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The Ark Afflicts the Philistines
5 Now the Philistines had taken the ark of God and they brought it from Eben-ezer to Ashdod. 2 The Philistines took the ark of God and brought it to the temple of Dagon, and placed it beside Dagon. 3 But when the Ashdodites arose early next morning, to everyone’s surprise, Dagon had fallen to his face on the ground before the ark of Adonai. So they took Dagon up and put him back in his place. 4 But when they arose early the following morning, surprisingly, Dagon had fallen to his face on the ground before the ark of Adonai, and the head of Dagon and both palms of his hands were cut off on the threshold; only Dagon’s trunk was left on him. 5 That is why to this day neither the priests of Dagon nor any who enter Dagon’s house will tread on Dagon’s threshold in Ashdod.
6 Then the hand of Adonai was heavy upon the Ashdodites, ravaging them and afflicting Ashdod and its vicinity with tumors. 7 When the men of Ashdod saw what was happening they said, “The ark of the God of Israel must not stay with us, for His hand has dealt harshly against us as well as against our god Dagon.” 8 So they sent word and gathered all the lords of the Philistines to them and asked, “What will we do with the ark of the God of Israel?”
They replied, “Let the ark of the God of Israel be carried over to Gath.” So they carried the ark of the God of Israel over. 9 But it came about, that after they had carried it around, that the hand of Adonai was against the city causing very great panic, as He struck the people of the city, from the youngest to the oldest, so that tumors broke out on them.
10 So they sent the ark of God to Ekron. But it came about as the ark of God came to Ekron that the Ekronites cried out saying, “They’ve brought around the ark of the God of Israel to us to kill us and our people!” 11 So they sent word and gathered all the lords of the Philistines and said, “Send the ark of the God of Israel away—let it go back to its own place, so it won’t kill us and our people!” For a panic of death was throughout the entire city, as God’s hand was very heavy there. 12 The people who did not die were afflicted with tumors, so that the outcry of the city went up to heaven.
Philistines Send the Ark Back
6 After the ark of Adonai had been in the country of the Philistines seven months, 2 the Philistines summoned the priests and the diviners saying, “What should we do with the ark of Adonai? Tell us how we should send it back to its place.”
3 So they said, “If you are going to send the ark of the God of Israel back, do not send it empty. For you must surely return it with a guilt offering. Then you will be healed and it will be revealed to you why His hand has not been removed from you.”
4 “What guilt offering should we return to Him?” they asked.
So they said, “Five golden tumors and five golden mice—according to the number of the lords of the Philistines, for one plague was on each of you and on your lords. 5 So you will make images of your tumors and images of your mice that mar the land, and you must give glory to the God of Israel. Perhaps He will lighten His hand off of you, your gods and your land. 6 Why harden your hearts as the Egyptians and Pharaoh hardened their hearts? When He afflicted them, didn’t they send them away so they left? 7 Now therefore get a new cart ready, two milk cows on which there has never been a yoke, hitch the cows to the cart, and return their calves home, away from them. 8 Then take the ark of Adonai and place it on the cart; also put the golden objects that you return to Him as a guilt offering in a box by its side. Then send it off so it may go. 9 Then watch—if it goes up by the way of its own territory to Beth-shemesh, then it was He who inflicted on us this great harm. But if not, then we will know that it was not His hand that struck us; it just happened to us by chance.”
10 So the people did so—they took two milk cows and hitched them to the cart, and shut up their calves at home. 11 Then they placed the ark of Adonai on the cart together with the box, the golden mice, and the models of their tumors. 12 So the cows took the way straight toward Beth-shemesh—they kept along the same highway, lowing as they went, and turned aside neither to the right nor to the left. The lords of the Philistines followed them to the border of Beth-shemesh.
13 Now the people of Beth-shemesh were reaping their wheat harvest in the valley. When they lifted up their eyes and saw the ark, they rejoiced to see it. 14 The cart came to the field of Joshua of Beth-shemesh and stopped there, where there was a large stone. Then they chopped the wood of the cart and offered up the cows as a burnt offering to Adonai. 15 The Levites took down the ark of Adonai and the box that was with it that contained the gold objects, and placed them on the large stone. Then the people of Beth-shemesh offered burnt offerings and sacrifices to Adonai that day.
16 Now when the five lords of the Philistines had seen it, they returned to Ekron that same day. 17 So these are the golden tumors that the Philistines returned as a guilt offering to Adonai: one for Ashdod, one for Gaza, one for Ashkelon, one for Gath, one for Ekron. 18 The golden mice also corresponded to the number of all the cities of the Philistines belonging to the five lords—both the fortified cities and their country villages—as far as the large stone on which they had set down the ark of Adonai. It remains to this day in the field of Joshua of Beth-shemesh.
19 Then He struck down some of the men of Beth-shemesh because they had gazed into the ark of Adonai. He struck down the people—70 out of 50,000 men—the people mourned because Adonai had struck the people a great slaughter. 20 So the men of Beth-shemesh asked, “Who is able to stand before Adonai—this holy God? To whom should it go up from us?” 21 So they sent messengers to the inhabitants of Kiriath-jearim, saying, “The Philistines have brought back the ark of Adonai. Come down—bring it up to you.”
Samuel’s Victory at Mizpah
7 Then the men of Kiriath-jearim came and fetched up the ark of Adonai, brought it into the house of Abinadab on the hill, and consecrated Eleazar his son to guard the ark of Adonai. 2 From the day the ark rested in Kiriath-jearim it was a long time, 20 years, and the whole house of Israel yearned after Adonai. 3 Then Samuel spoke to the whole house of Israel saying, “If you are returning to Adonai with all your heart, then remove the foreign gods and the Ashtaroth from among you, direct your hearts to Adonai and serve Him only. Then He will deliver you from the hand of the Philistines.” 4 So Bnei-Yisrael removed the Baalim[a] and the Ashtaroth, and served Adonai alone.
5 Then Samuel said, “Gather all Israel to Mizpah and I will pray to Adonai for you.” 6 So they gathered together at Mizpah, drew water and poured it out before Adonai. They fasted on that day and said there, “We have sinned against Adonai.” Then Samuel was judging Bnei-Yisrael at Mizpah.
7 Now when the Philistines heard that Bnei-Yisrael had assembled at Mizpah, the lords of the Philistines marched against Israel. When Bnei-Yisrael heard it, they were afraid of the Philistines. 8 So Bnei-Yisrael said to Samuel, “Don’t stop crying out to Adonai our God for us, so He may save us from the hand of the Philistines!”
9 Samuel took a nursing lamb and offered it as a whole burnt offering to Adonai. Then Samuel cried out to Adonai for Israel and Adonai answered him. 10 As Samuel was offering up the burnt offering, the Philistines drew near to battle against Israel. But Adonai thundered with loud thunder on that day against the Philistines and confused them so that they were defeated before Israel. 11 Then the men of Israel went out of Mizpah and pursued the Philistines, and struck them down all the way to below Beth-car.
12 Then Samuel took a stone and set it between Mizpah and Shen, and named Eben-ezer[b] saying, “Thus far Adonai has helped us.” 13 So the Philistines were subdued and they did not invade the border of Israel anymore. The hand of Adonai was against the Philistines all the days of Samuel. 14 The towns that the Philistines had taken from Israel, from Ekron to Gath, were restored to Israel, and Israel recovered its territory from the hand of the Philistines. There was also peace between Israel and the Amorites.
15 Now Samuel judged Israel all the days of his life. 16 He used to go annually on a circuit to Beth-el and Gilgal and Mizpah, and would judge over Israel in all those places. 17 Then his return was to Ramah, because his home was there, and from there he would judge Israel. So he built an altar to Adonai there.
New Manna in the Wilderness
6 Afterwards, Yeshua went away to the other side of the Sea of Galilee, also known as the Sea of Tiberias. 2 A large crowd kept following Him, because they were watching the signs He was performing on the sick. 3 Then Yeshua went up the mountainside and sat down there with His disciples. 4 Passover, the Jewish feast, was near.
5 Lifting up His eyes and seeing a large crowd coming to Him, Yeshua said to Philip, “Where will we buy bread so these may eat?” 6 Now Yeshua was saying this to test him, for He knew what He was about to do.
7 Philip answered Him, “Two hundred denarii[a] isn’t enough to buy bread for each to get a little bit!”
8 One of His disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to Him, 9 “There’s a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish—but what’s that for so many?”
10 Yeshua said, “Make the people recline.” There was much grass in the area. So the men reclined, about five thousand in number. 11 Then Yeshua picked up the loaves. And having given thanks, He distributed bread to everyone who was reclining. He did the same with the fish, as much as they wanted.
12 When the people were full, Yeshua said to His disciples, “Gather up the leftovers, so nothing is wasted.” 13 So they gathered them and filled twelve baskets with broken pieces from the five barley loaves, which were left over by those who had finished eating.
14 When the people saw the sign that Yeshua performed, they began to say, “This is most certainly the Prophet who is to come into the world!” [b] 15 Realizing that they were about to come and seize Him by force to make Him king, Yeshua withdrew again to the mountain, Himself alone.
The Savior on the Sea
16 Now when evening came, Yeshua’s disciples went down to the sea. 17 Getting into a boat, they set out to cross the sea toward Capernaum. By now it had become dark, and still Yeshua had not come to them. 18 A great wind began to blow, stirring up the sea.
19 After they had rowed about twenty-five or thirty stadia,[c] they catch sight of Yeshua walking on the sea, approaching the boat. They were terrified! 20 But Yeshua says to them, “I am. Don’t be afraid.” [d] 21 Then they wanted to take Him into the boat, and right away the boat reached the shore where they were headed.
13 How quickly they forgot His works,
and would not wait for His counsel!
14 In the wilderness they craved ravenously,
in the desert they tested God.
15 So He gave them what they asked for,
but sent a wasting disease among them.
16 Then they envied Moses in the camp,
and also Aaron, the holy one of Adonai.
17 The earth opened up, swallowed Dathan,
and covered the company of Abiram.
18 Also a fire blazed in their company,
a flame consumed the wicked.
19 They made a calf in Horeb
and worshipped a molten image.
20 Thus they exchanged their glory
for an image of a grass-eating ox.
21 They forgot God their Savior,
who had done great things in Egypt—
22 miracles in the land of Ham,
awesome things by the Sea of Reeds.
23 So He commanded their extermination,
had not Moses, His chosen one,
stood in the breach before Him,
to turn His wrath from destroying them.
24 Then they scorned the pleasing land—
they did not trust in His word.
25 Instead, they grumbled in their tents.
They would not listen to Adonai’s voice.
26 Therefore He swore to them
that He would make them fall in the desert,
27 and disperse their offspring among the nations,
and scatter them through the lands.
28 Then they yoked themselves to Baal of Peor,
and ate the sacrifices of dead things.
29 So they provoked Him with their deeds,
and a plague broke out among them.
30 But Phinehas stood up and intervened,
so the plague was stopped.
31 It was credited to him as righteousness,
from generation to generation forever.
32 The wicked is brought down in his calamity
yet the righteous has a refuge even in death.
33 Wisdom rests in the heart of the discerning,
and even among fools she is known.
Tree of Life (TLV) Translation of the Bible. Copyright © 2015 by The Messianic Jewish Family Bible Society.