1And the ark of Jehovah was in the country of the Philistines seven months . 2And the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners , saying, What shall we do with the ark of Jehovah ? show us wherewith we shall send it to its place . 3And they said, If ye send away the ark of the God of Israel , send it not empty ; but by all means return him a trespass-offering: then ye shall be healed , and it shall be known to you why his hand is not removed from you . 4Then said they , What shall be the trespass-offering which we shall return to him ? And they said, Five golden tumors , and five golden mice , according to the number of the lords of the Philistines ; for one plague was on you all , and on your lords . 5Wherefore ye shall make images of your tumors , and images of your mice that mar the land; and ye shall give glory unto the God of Israel : peradventure he will lighten his hand from off you , and from off your gods, and from off your land.
The Israelites' Response
6Wherefore then do ye harden your hearts , as the Egyptians and Pharaoh hardened their hearts ? When he had wrought wonderfully among them , did they not let the people go , and they departed ? 7Now therefore take and prepare you a new cart , and two milch kine , on which there hath come no yoke ; and tie the kine to the cart , and bring their calves home from them ; 8and take the ark of Jehovah , and lay it upon the cart ; and put the jewels of gold , which ye return him for a trespass-offering, in a coffer by the side thereof ; and send it away , that it may go . 9And see ; if it goeth up by the way of its own border to Beth-shemesh , then he hath done us this great evil : but if not , then we shall know that it is not his hand that smote us ; it was a chance that happened to us . 10And the men did so , and took two milch kine , and tied them to the cart , and shut up their calves at home ; 11and they put the ark of Jehovah upon the cart , and the coffer with the mice of gold and the images of their tumors . 12And the kine took the straight way by the way to Beth-shemesh ; they went along the highway , lowing as they went , and turned not aside to the right hand or to the left ; and the lords of the Philistines went after them unto the border of Beth-shemesh .
The Philistines' Guilt Offering
13And they of Beth-shemesh were reaping their wheat harvest in the valley ; and they lifted up their eyes , and saw the ark, and rejoiced to see it . 14And the cart came into the field of Joshua the Beth-shemite , and stood there , where there was a great stone: and they clave the wood of the cart , and offered up the kine for a burnt-offering unto Jehovah . 15And the Levites took down the ark of Jehovah , and the coffer that was with it , wherein the jewels of gold were , and put them on the great stone: and the men of Beth-shemesh offered burnt-offerings and sacrificed sacrifices the same day unto Jehovah . 16And when the five lords of the Philistines had seen it , they returned to Ekron the same day . 17And these are the golden tumors which the Philistines returned for a trespass-offering unto Jehovah : for Ashdod one , for Gaza one , for Ashkelon one , for Gath one , for Ekron one ; 18and the golden mice , according to the number of all the cities of the Philistines belonging to the five lords , both of fortified cities and of country villages , even unto the great stone, whereon they set down the ark of Jehovah , which stone remaineth unto this day in the field of Joshua the Beth-shemite .
The Ark in Beth Shemesh
19And he smote of the men of Beth-shemesh , because they had looked into the ark of Jehovah , he smote of the people seventy men , and fifty thousand men ; and the people mourned , because Jehovah had smitten the people with a great slaughter . 20And the men of Beth-shemesh said, Who is able to stand before Jehovah , this holy God ? and to whom shall he go up from us ? 21And they sent messengers to the inhabitants of Kiriath-jearim , saying, The Philistines have brought back the ark of Jehovah ; come ye down , and fetch it up to you .