³When the troops came back to the camp, the leaders of Israel asked, “Why has the Lord used the Philistines to defeat us today? Let’s get the ark of the Lord’s promise from Shiloh so that he may be with us and save us from our enemies.” ⁴The troops sent some men who brought back the ark of the promise of the Lord of Armies—who is enthroned over the angels.^bEli’s two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, came along with God’s ark. ⁵When the Lord’s ark came into the camp, all Israel shouted so loudly that the earth rang with echoes.

⁶As the Philistines heard the noise, they asked, “What’s ⸤all⸥ this shouting in the Hebrew camp?” The Philistines found out that the Lord’s ark had come into the camp. ⁷Then they were frightened and said, “A god has come into ⸤their⸥ camp.” They also said, “Oh no! Nothing like this has ever happened before. ⁸We’re in trouble now! Who can save us from the power of these mighty gods? These are the gods who struck the Egyptians with every kind of plague in the desert. ⁹Be strong, Philistines, and act like men, or else you will serve the Hebrews as they served you. Act like men and fight.”

The Ark Captured

¹⁰The Philistines fought and defeated Israel. Every ⸤Israelite⸥ soldier fled to his tent. It was a major defeat in which 30,000 Israelite foot soldiers died. ¹¹The ark of God was captured. Both of Eli’s sons, Hophni and Phinehas, died.

¹²A man from the tribe of Benjamin ran from the front line of the battle. He went to Shiloh that day with his clothes torn and dirt on his head.^c

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Footnotes

b 4:4 Or “cherubim.”
c 4:12 Tearing one’s clothes and throwing dirt on one’s head was a sign of mourning.