T4T 1SA Chapter 4

The Philistines captured the sacred chest

At that time the Israeli army went to fight against the army of the Philistine people. The Israeli army set up their tents at Ebenezer, and the Philistine army set up their tents at Aphek. 2 The Philistine army attacked the Israeli army, and as the battle continued, the Philistines defeated the Israelis and killed about 4,000 of their soldiers. 3 When the remaining Israeli soldiers returned to their camp, the Israeli elders/leaders said, “Why did Yahweh allow the Philistine army to defeat us today? We should bring the chest that contains the Ten Commandments here from Shiloh, in order that Yahweh will go with us when we go to the battle again, and in order that our enemies will not defeat us again!”

4 So the soldiers did that. They sent some men to Shiloh, and those men brought back the chest that contained the Ten Commandments. They thought that if they did that, Yahweh would help them. They believed that Yahweh sat on a throne between the statues of winged creatures that were on top of the chest that Yahweh Almighty had given them. The two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, went with them.

5 When the Israeli people saw the men bringing the box into their camp, they were so happy that they shouted loudly. They shouted so loudly that they made the ground shake! 6 The Philistines asked, “What are the people in the Hebrew camp shouting about?” Someone told them that they were shouting because the chest that contained the Ten Commandments of Yahweh had been brought to them. 7 Then the Philistines became very afraid. They said, “One of the Israelis’ gods has come into their camp to help them We are in big trouble now! Nothing like this has happened to us before! 8 ◄Who can/Can anyone► save us from their powerful gods [RHQ]? They are the gods who struck the people of Egypt with many plagues before the Israelis left Egypt and traveled through the desert. 9 You Philistine men, be courageous! Fight very hard! If you do not do that, they will defeat us, and then you will become their slaves, just like they have been our slaves previously!”

10 So the Philistine men fought very hard, and they defeated the Israelis. They killed 30,000 Israeli soldiers, and the other Israeli soldiers fled and ran away to their tents. 11 The Philistines captured the sacred chest, and they killed Eli’s two sons, Hophni and Phinehas.

Eli died

12 On that same day, one man of the tribe descended from Benjamin tore his clothes and threw dirt on his head to show that he was very sad. He ran from the place where the armies were fighting, and he arrived at Shiloh late that afternoon. 13 Eli was waiting beside the road. He wanted to hear news about the battle, and he was also very anxious to know if anything bad had happened to God’s sacred chest. When the messenger arrived and told people what had happened, everyone in the town started to cry loudly.

14 Eli asked, “Why are they making all that noise?” The messenger ran over to Eli and told him the news.

15 At that time, Eli was 98 years old, and he was blind. 16 The messenger said to Eli, “I have just come from where the armies were fighting. I left there earlier today.” Eli asked, “What happened?”

17 The man replied, “The Philistines defeated our Israeli army. They killed thousands of our soldiers, and the others ran away. The Philistines killed your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas. They also captured God’s sacred chest.”

18 Eli was very old, and he was very fat; and when he heard what had happened to the sacred chest, he fell backward from his chair beside the town gate. His neck was broken and he died. He had led the Israeli people for 40 years before he died.

19 The wife/widow of Eli’s son Phinehas was pregnant, and it was almost time for her to give birth to her baby. When she heard that God’s sacred chest had been captured and that her husband and her father-in-law were dead, her labor pains suddenly began. She quickly gave birth to a boy. 20 The women who were helping her tried to encourage her by saying to her, “You have given birth to a son!” But she did not pay any attention [DOU] to what they said.

21 She named the boy Ichabod, which means ‘no glory’, because she said, “God’s glory has departed from Israel.” She said that because God’s sacred chest had been captured and because her husband and her father-in-law had died. 22 She said, “God’s glory has left Israel, because God’s sacred chest has been captured!” And then she died.