The big picture
1 Samuel 6 opens in verse 1 with “And the ark of the LORD was in the country of the Philistines seven months.”, reaches its middle movement near verse 11 with “And they laid the ark of the LORD upon the cart, and the coffer with the mice of gold…”, and closes in verse 21 with “And they sent messengers to the inhabitants of Kirjath-jearim, saying, The Philistines…” Repeated or prominent terms include LORD, Beth, Philistines, cart, shemesh. Together, those details trace this chapter’s own movement from its opening to its conclusion.
Scripture beside the summary
1 Samuel · King James Version · 211 Samuel 6:1-7
1–7: The ark of the LORD was in the country of the Philistines seven months.
1 Samuel 6:1–7 opens with “And the ark of the LORD was in the country of the Philistines seven months.” and reaches “Now therefore make a new cart, and take two milch kine, on which there hath come no yoke, and…” by its final verse. That movement develops the focus on 1 Samuel 6 develops its own movement around LORD, Beth, Philistines, cart, shemesh, with particular weight carried by Philistines, send, cart.
Context that brings the passage to life
This block contains 3 explicit questions. They are more than punctuation: they reveal where a voice is searching, challenging, afraid, or trying to understand.
“And the ark of the LORD was in the country of the Philistines seven months.” The number seven makes the report concrete. Ask whether it measures time, people, distance, repetition, or completeness before deciding what weight it carries.
“And the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners, saying, What shall we do to the ark of the LORD ? tell us…” The question slows the passage down. Notice who is being pressed to answer, what the question assumes, and whether the next lines provide a response.
“And they said, If ye send away the ark of the God of Israel, send it not empty; but in any wise return him a trespass…” The command cannot be understood from the verb alone. Its recipient, purpose, and place in the larger covenant or argument define the responsibility.
1 Samuel 6:1-7
King James Version1And the ark of the LORD was in the country of the Philistines seven months.
2And the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners, saying, What shall we do to the ark of the LORD ? tell us wherewith we shall send it to his place.
3And they said, If ye send away the ark of the God of Israel, send it not empty; but in any wise 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? They answered, Five golden emerods, 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 emerods, 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.
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 make a new cart, and take two milch kine, on which there hath come no yoke, and tie the kine to the cart, and bring their calves home from them:
1 Samuel 6:8-14
8–14: Take the ark of the LORD , and lay it upon the cart; and put the jewels…
1 Samuel 6:8–14 opens with “And take the ark of the LORD , and lay it upon the cart; and put the jewels of gold, which ye…” and reaches “And the cart came into the field of Joshua, a Beth-shemite, and stood there, where there was a…” by its final verse. That movement develops the focus on 1 Samuel 6 develops its own movement around LORD, Beth, Philistines, cart, shemesh, with particular weight carried by Beth, cart, shemesh.
Context that brings the passage to life
“And take the ark of the LORD , and lay it upon the cart; and put the jewels of gold, which ye return him for a…” The line’s distinctive content terms include cart, coffer, gold. Its relationship to verses 9 shows what work it does in this passage.
“And see, if it goeth up by the way of his own coast to Beth-shemesh, then he hath done us this great evil: but if not…” The command cannot be understood from the verb alone. Its recipient, purpose, and place in the larger covenant or argument define the responsibility.
“And the men did so; and took two milch kine, and tied them to the cart, and shut up their calves at home:” The number two makes the report concrete. Ask whether it measures time, people, distance, repetition, or completeness before deciding what weight it carries.
1 Samuel 6:8-14
King James Version8And take the ark of the LORD , 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 his own coast 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 laid the ark of the LORD upon the cart, and the coffer with the mice of gold and the images of their emerods.
12And the kine took the straight way to the way of Beth-shemesh, and 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.
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, a Beth-shemite, and stood there, where there was a great stone: and they clave the wood of the cart, and offered the kine a burnt offering unto the LORD .
1 Samuel 6:15-21
15–21: The Levites took down the ark of the LORD , and the coffer that was with…
1 Samuel 6:15–21 opens with “And the Levites took down the ark of the LORD , and the coffer that was with it, wherein the…” and reaches “And they sent messengers to the inhabitants of Kirjath-jearim, saying, The Philistines have…” by its final verse. That movement develops the focus on 1 Samuel 6 develops its own movement around LORD, Beth, Philistines, cart, shemesh, with particular weight carried by LORD, Beth, Philistines.
Context that brings the passage to life
This block contains 1 explicit questions. They are more than punctuation: they reveal where a voice is searching, challenging, afraid, or trying to understand.
“And the Levites took down the ark of the LORD , and the coffer that was with it, wherein the jewels of gold were, and…” Naming Beth and Levites keeps the account rooted in particular people or places. Follow where the name returns and what changes around it.
“And when the five lords of the Philistines had seen it, they returned to Ekron the same day.” The number five makes the report concrete. Ask whether it measures time, people, distance, repetition, or completeness before deciding what weight it carries.
“And these are the golden emerods which the Philistines returned for a trespass offering unto the LORD ; for Ashdod…” The number one makes the report concrete. Ask whether it measures time, people, distance, repetition, or completeness before deciding what weight it carries.
1 Samuel 6:15-21
King James Version15And the Levites took down the ark of the LORD , 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 the LORD .
16And when the five lords of the Philistines had seen it, they returned to Ekron the same day.
17And these are the golden emerods which the Philistines returned for a trespass offering unto the LORD ; for Ashdod one, for Gaza one, for Askelon 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 fenced cities, and of country villages, even unto the great stone of Abel, whereon they set down the ark of the LORD : which stone remaineth unto this day in the field of Joshua, the Beth-shemite.
19And he smote the men of Beth-shemesh, because they had looked into the ark of the LORD , even he smote of the people fifty thousand and threescore and ten men: and the people lamented, because the LORD had smitten many of the people with a great slaughter.
20And the men of Beth-shemesh said, Who is able to stand before this holy LORD God? and to whom shall he go up from us?
21And they sent messengers to the inhabitants of Kirjath-jearim, saying, The Philistines have brought again the ark of the LORD ; come ye down, and fetch it up to you.
Details worth noticing
The opening image
1 Samuel 6:1 begins with “And the ark of the LORD was in the country of the Philistines seven months.”
Where the chapter turns
1 Samuel 6:7 forms a natural hinge: “Now therefore make a new cart, and take two milch kine, on which there hath come no yoke, and tie the kine to the cart, and bring their calves home from…”
The final note
1 Samuel 6:21 leaves the reader with “And they sent messengers to the inhabitants of Kirjath-jearim, saying, The Philistines have brought again the ark of the LORD ; come ye down, and fetch it…”
A word trail through the chapter
The words LORD, Beth, Philistines, cart, shemesh, kine help reveal the chapter’s repeated concerns.
What repeated description explains the judgment?
The earth is corrupt and filled with violence, especially in verses 11-13.
What does obedience look like here?
Detailed preparation, gathering provisions and constructing what God commands.
KJV words made clear
- unto
- to
- hath
- has
- wherefore
- for that reason
Text first
Where readers differ
The chapter summary begins with what the passage says and how its parts fit together. It does not assume one denomination has already settled every question. Where a conclusion depends on a tradition, literary theory, or historical reconstruction, that dependence is named openly.
The KJV text is presented first. Interpretive conclusions are labeled, and differences are introduced only when they help a reader understand why serious communities do not always reach the same answer.
Comparative interpretive notes for this chapter are in preparation. Until reviewed notes are ready, this page separates the KJV text from summary and application without claiming that serious readers agree on every question.