WEBVTT

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Hello, this is Father Paul, and I'm glad we're

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taking this journey together to read the Bible

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in a year. Today's reading is from 1 Samuel chapters

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4 through 6. Chapter 4 And the word of Samuel

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came to all Israel. Now Israel went out to battle

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against the Philistines and encamped beside Ebenezer.

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And the Philistines encamped in Aphek. Then the

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Philistines put themselves in battle array against

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Israel. And when they joined battle, Israel was

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defeated by the Philistines who killed about

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4 ,000 men of the army in the field. And when

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the people had come into the camp, the elders

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of Israel said, Why has the Lord defeated us

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today before the Philistines? Let us bring the

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ark of the covenant of the Lord from Shiloh to

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us, that when it comes among us it may save us

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from the hand of our enemies. So the people sent

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to Shiloh, that they might bring from there the

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ark of the covenant of the Lord of hosts, who

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dwells between the cherubim. And the two sons

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of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were there with

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the ark of the covenant of God. And when the

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ark of the covenant of the Lord came into the

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camp, all Israel shouted so loudly that the earth

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shook. Now when the Philistines heard the noise

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of the shout, they said, What does the sound

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of this great shout in the camp of the Hebrews

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mean? Then they understood that the ark of the

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Lord had come into the camp. So the Philistines

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were afraid, for they said, God has come into

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the camp. And they said, Woe to us, for such

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a thing has never happened before. Woe to us,

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who will deliver us from the hand of these mighty

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gods. These are the gods who struck the Egyptians

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with all the plagues in the wilderness. Be strong

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and conduct yourselves like men, you Philistines,

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that you do not become servants of the Hebrews,

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as they have been to you. Conduct yourselves

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like men and fight. So the Philistines fought,

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and Israel was defeated, and every man fled to

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his tent. There was a very great slaughter. and

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there fell of Israel thirty thousand foot soldiers.

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Also the ark of God was captured, and the two

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sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, died. Then

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a man of Benjamin ran from the battle line the

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same day, and came to Shiloh with his clothes

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torn and dirt on his head. Now when he came,

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there was Eli sitting on a seat by the wayside

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watching. for his heart trembled for the ark

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of God. And when the man came into the city and

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told it, all the city cried out. When Eli heard

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the noise of the outcry, he said, What does the

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sound of this tumult mean? And the man came quickly

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and told Eli, Eli was ninety -eight years old,

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and his eyes were so dim that he could not see.

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Then the man said to Eli, I am he who came from

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the battle, and I fled today from the battle

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line. And he said, What happened, my son? So

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the messenger answered and said, Israel has fled

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before the Philistines, and there has been a

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great slaughter among the people. Also your two

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sons, Hophni and Phinehas, are dead, and the

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ark of God has been captured. Then it happened,

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when he made mention of the ark of God, that

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Eli fell off the seat backward by the side of

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the gate, and his neck was broken, and he died.

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For the man was old and heavy, and he had judged

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Israel forty years. Now his daughter -in -law,

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Phinehas' wife, was with child due to be delivered.

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And when she heard the news that the ark of God

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was captured, and that her father -in -law and

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her husband were dead, she bowed herself and

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gave birth, for her labor pains came upon her.

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And about the time of her death, the women who

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stood by her said to her, Do not fear, for you

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have born a son. But she did not answer, nor

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did she regard it. Then she named the child Ichabod,

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saying, The glory has departed from Israel. because

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the ark of God had been captured, and because

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her father -in -law and her husband. And she

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said, The glory has departed from Israel, for

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the ark of God has been captured. Chapter 5 Then

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the Philistines took the ark of God and brought

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it from Ebenezer to Ashdod. When the Philistines

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took the ark of God, they brought it into the

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house of Dagon and set it by Dagon. And when

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the people of Ashdod arose early in the morning,

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there was Dagon fallen on its face to the earth

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before the ark of the Lord. So they took Dagon

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and set it in its place again. And when it arose

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early the next morning, there was Dagon fallen

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on its face to the ground before the ark of the

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Lord. The head of Dagon and both the palms of

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its hands were broken off on the threshold. Only

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Dagon's torso was left of it. Therefore neither

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the priests of Dagon nor any who came into Dagon's

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house tread on the threshold of Dagon in Ashdod.

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this day. But the hand of the Lord was heavy

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on the people of Ashdod, and he ravaged them

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and struck them with tumors, both Ashdod and

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its territory. And when the men of Ashdod saw

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how it was, they said, The ark of the God of

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Israel must not remain with us, for his hand

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is harsh toward us and dag on our God. Therefore

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they sent and gathered to themselves all the

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lords of the Philistines and said, What shall

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we do with the ark of the God of Israel? And

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they answered, Let the ark of the God of Israel

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be carried away to Gath. So they carried the

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ark of the God of Israel away. So it was, after

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they had carried it away, that the hand of the

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Lord was against the city with a very great destruction.

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And he struck the men of the city, both small

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and great, and tumors broke out on them. Therefore

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they sent the ark of God to Akron. So it was,

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as the ark of God came to Akron, that the Akronites

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cried out, saying, They have brought the ark

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of the God of Israel to us, to kill us and our

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people. So they sent and gathered together all

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the lords of the Philistines and said, Send away

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the ark of the God of Israel, and let it go back

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to its own place, so that it does not kill us

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and our people. For there was a deadly destruction

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throughout all the city. The hand of God was

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very heavy there. And the men who did not die

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were stricken with the tumors, and the cry of

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the city went up to heaven. Chapter 6 Now the

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ark of the Lord was in the country of the Philistines

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seven months. And the Philistines called for

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the priests and the diviners, saying, What shall

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we do with the ark of the Lord? Tell us how we

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should send it to its place. So they said, If

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you send away the ark of the God of Israel, do

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not send it empty, but by all means return it

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to him with a trespass offering. Then you will

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be healed, and it will be known to you why his

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hand is not removed from you. Then they said,

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What is the trespass offering which we shall

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return to him? They answered, Five golden tumors

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and five golden rats, according to the number

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of the lords of the Philistines. For the same

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plague was on all of you and on all your lords.

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Therefore you shall make images of your tumors

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and images of your rats that ravage the land,

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and you shall give glory to the God of Israel.

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Perhaps he will lighten his hand from you, from

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your gods, and from your land. Why then do you

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harden your hearts as the Egyptians and Pharaoh

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hardened their hearts? When he did mighty things

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among them, did they not let the people go, that

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they might depart? Now therefore make a new cart,

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take two milk cows, which have never been yoked,

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and hitch the cows to the cart, and take their

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calves home away from them. Then take the ark

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of the Lord, and set it on the cart, and put

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the articles of gold, which you are returning

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to him as a trespass offering, in a chest by

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its side. Then send it away, and let it go. And

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watch, if it goes up the road to its own territory

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to bait Shemesh, then he has done us this great

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evil. But if not, then we shall know that it

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is not his hand that struck us, it happened to

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us by chance. Then the men did so. They took

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two milk cows and hitched them to the cart and

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shut up their calves at home. And they set the

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ark of the Lord on the cart and the chest with

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the gold rats and the images of their tumors.

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Then the cows headed straight for the road to

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Beit Shemesh and went along the highway, lowing

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as they went, and did not turn aside to the right

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hand or the left. And the lords of the Philistines

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went after them to the border of Beit Shemesh.

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Now the people of Beit Shemesh were reaping their

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wheat harvest in the valley, and they lifted

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their eyes and saw the ark and rejoiced to see

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it. Then the cart came into the field of Joshua

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of Beit Shemesh and stood there. A large stone

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was there. So they split the wood of the cart

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and offered the cows as a burnt offering to the

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Lord. The Levites took down the ark of the Lord

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and the chest that was with it, in which were

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the articles of gold, and put them on a large

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stone. Then the men of Beit Shemesh offered burnt

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offerings and made sacrifices the same day to

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the Lord. So when the five lords of the Philistines

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had seen it, they returned to Ekron the same

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day. These are the golden tumors which the Philistines

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returned as a trespass offering to the Lord.

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One for Ashdod, one for Gaza, one for Ashkelon,

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one for Gath, one for Ekron. And the golden rats,

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according to the number of all the cities of

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the Philistines, belonging to the five lords,

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both fortified cities and country villages, even

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as far as the large stone of Abel, on which they

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set the ark of the Lord, which stone remains

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to this day in the field of Joshua of Beth Shemesh.

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Then he struck the men of Beth Shemesh, because

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they had looked into the ark of the Lord. He

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struck fifty thousand and seventy men of the

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people, and the people lamented, because the

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Lord had struck the people with a great slaughter.

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And the men of Beth Shemesh said, Who is able

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to stand before this holy Lord God, and to whom

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shall it go up from us? So they sent messengers

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to the inhabitants of Kirjas -Jerim, saying,

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The Philistines had brought back the ark of the

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Lord. Come down and take it up with you. I hope

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you enjoyed today's reading as much as I did,

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and I look forward to seeing you again tomorrow

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to continue on our journey. God bless you and

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have a great day.