1 Samuele 6:9 Commento

In this chapter we have the return of the ark to the land of Israel, whither we are now gladly to attend it, and observe, I. How the Philistines dismissed it, by the advice of their priests (Sa1 6:1-11), with rich presents to the God of Israel, to make an atonement for their sin (Sa1 6:3-5), and yet with a project to bring it back, unless Providence directed the kine, contrary to their inclination, to go to the land of Israel (Sa1 6:8, Sa1 6:9). II. How the Israelites entertained it. 1. With great joy and sacrifices of praise (Sa1 6:12-18). 2. With an over-bold curiosity to look into it, for which many of them were struck dead, the terror of which moved them to send it forward to another city (Sa1 6:19-21).

INTRODUCTION TO FIRST SAMUEL 6 In this chapter we are told the Philistines advised with their priests what to do with the ark, and wherewith to send it home, Sa1 6:1 whose advice was to send with it a trespass offering, golden images of emerods and mice, and to put it on a new cart, and the images in a coffer on the side of the ark, and draw it with two cows, Sa1 6:3, and gave them a token whereby they might know whether they had been smitten by the God of Israel or not, Sa1 6:9 which advice they took, and acted in all things according to it; and the lords of the Philistines accompanied the ark to the border of Bethshemesh, Sa1 6:10, where they of Bethshemesh received it with joy, and offered the kine for a burnt offering to the Lord, and the Levites took care of the ark and presents in it, and the lords of the Philistines returned home, Sa1 6:13, but they of Bethshemesh looking into the ark were smitten of God, upon which they sent to the men of Kirjathjearim to fetch it from them, Sa1 6:19.

And see if it goeth up by the way of its own coast to Bethshemesh,.... The nearest city to the land of the Philistines, which lay on their borders, and the borders of the tribe of Judah; see Gill on Jos 15:10. Now the lords of the Philistines are directed by their priests to observe, whether these kine, that drew the cart on which the ark was, took the direct road to the borders of the land of Israel, and to Bethshemesh, the nearest city that lay on that coast: if so, they might conclude then, he hath done us this great evil; that is, the God of Israel, whose ark this was; he had inflicted the disease of the emerods on them, and sent such numbers of mice into their fields, that had destroyed the increase of them: but if not, then we shall know that it is not his hand that hath smote us; but that there is some other cause of it: it was a chance that happened to us; and so might have been the case if the ark had never been taken or detained, and to be imputed to fate, or to the stars, or some secret causes they know not of.

For this reason he [Paul] says, “To the Jews I became as a Jew, to those without law, as one without law, to those that are under the law, as under the law.” Thus God does too, as in the case of the wise men, he does not conduct them by an angel, nor a prophet, nor an apostle, nor an evangelist, but how? By a star. For as their art made them conversant with these, he made use of such means to guide them. So [he does] in the case of the oxen that drew the ark. “If it goes up by the way of his own coast, then he has done this great evil to us,” as their prophets suggested. Do these prophets then speak the truth? No; but he refutes and confounds them out of their own mouths.

13. Bethshemesh, as we have already said, is interpreted as "house of the sun." The preachers observe the released ark to see whether it proceeds on a straight path toward Bethshemesh, because even when subjects are released to their own judgment, prelates must examine whether they convert the good of liberty to the advancement of the heavenly journey. But it must also be carefully noted that the ark rightly ascends toward Bethshemesh when it does not abandon the road of the border territory while traveling. For our neighbors are the elect who came before us; neighbors indeed are those who have properties arranged next to one another. The neighbors of the elect, therefore, are the perpetual co-heirs of the eternal kingdom. For they dwell as if with properties arranged next to one another, those who, called into the same fellowship of the eternal homeland, have received the rights of eternal inheritance from the one and same majesty of the Creator. Or they are called neighbors for this reason: because when the elect arrive from a good manner of life to the joys of everlasting life, those who live rightly in this world are close to the heavenly citizens. What then is the road of the border territory, if not temporal affliction? The Lord Himself demonstrates this road to Bethshemesh, saying: "Narrow is the way that leads to life" (Matt. 7:14). He likewise commends this road when, rebuking the disciples, He says: "O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe! Was it not necessary for Christ to suffer, and so to enter into His glory?" (Luke 24:25.) Hence Paul says: "Through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God" (Acts 14:21). The ark is therefore directed toward Bethshemesh when it is seen to ascend by the road of the border territory, because in the heavenly manner of life he more truly advances who seeks to reach eternal joys not through worldly pleasures but through afflictions of the flesh and adversities of the world. But because the released ark is said not merely to go but to ascend, a higher road is indicated for subjects released into freedom, because they do not rightly travel the road to Bethshemesh if they do not daily advance from good things to better. For to ascend by the merits of virtues is to advance daily toward better things. But when the ark is rightly directed toward Bethshemesh, they ascribe the great evil they had suffered to the works of almighty God. For they call that great evil the striking about which it is read above: "The hand of the Lord was upon each city with exceedingly great slaughter." And because we have referred that same slaughter both to the conversion of the Gentiles and to the salutary compunction of sinning believers, when the ark rightly proceeds toward Bethshemesh, that great evil which had occurred is shown to be from God, because indeed the end of each of the elect indicates how the mind of the preacher should recognize their first works. 14. For if they fail in the end, it is openly recognized that their good beginnings were not from the Lord. Whence it is also added: "But if not, we shall know that it was not at all his hand that struck us, but it happened by chance." What is the hand of the Lord, if not the Only-begotten of the eternal Father? For they are not touched by the hand of the Lord who are separated from their former way of life not by the inspiration of the divine word, but by a sudden resolution of their own heart. They certainly fall away from their begun goodness all the more quickly, inasmuch as they did not know how to consider beforehand with what fortitude that which they had proposed—to enter by the narrow way to the eternal homeland—was to be carried out. Therefore it was aptly said: "It happened by chance." For what happens by chance occurs suddenly and without counsel or foresight. When therefore those who, having been converted, seemed to have departed from the love of the world, or from unbelief, return to the wickedness of their former life, it is openly recognized that they were separated from their former way of life not by the hand of the Lord, as they seemed to have been struck down, but by an accidental chance. There follows: "They did in this manner, and taking two cows they yoked them to the cart, and shut up their calves at home, and placed the ark of God upon the cart, and the small chest which contained the golden mice and the likenesses of the tumors." Since these things have been more fully expounded above, let us now see what the journey of the ark itself contains in terms of spiritual instruction.

After the ark had been seven months in the land of the Philistines, they consult their priests and diviners about sending it to Shiloh, Sa1 6:1, Sa1 6:2. They advise that it be sent back with a trespass-offering of five golden emerods, and five golden mice, Sa1 6:3-6. They advise also that it be sent back on a new cart, drawn by two milch kine from whom their calves shall be tied up; and then conclude that if these cows shalt take the way of Beth-shemesh, as going to the Israelitish border, then the Lord had afflicted them, if not, then their evils were accidental, Sa1 6:7-9. They do as directed; and the kine take the way of Beth-shemesh, Sa1 6:10-13. They stop in the field of Joshua; and the men of Beth-shemesh take them, and offer them to the Lord for a burnt-offering, and cleave the wood of the cart to burn them, and make sundry other offerings, Sa1 6:14, Sa1 6:15. The offerings of the five lords of the Philistines, Sa1 6:16-18. For too curiously looking into the ark, the men of Beth-shemesh are smitten of the Lord, Sa1 6:19, Sa1 6:20. They send to the inhabitants of Kirjath-jearim, that they may take away the ark, Sa1 6:21.

A chance that happened to us - The word מקרה mikreh, from קרה karah, to meet or coalesce, signifies an event that naturally arises from such concurring causes as, in the order and nature of things, must produce it. Thus a bad state of the atmosphere, putrid exhalations, bad diet, occasioned by any general scarcity, might have produced the disease in question; and to something of this kind they would attribute it, if the other evidences did not concur. This gives us the proper notion of chance; and shows us that it is a matter as dependent upon the Divine providence, as any thing can be: in short, that these occurrences are parts of the Divine government. The word chance, though often improperly used to signify such an occurrence as is not under the Divine government, is of itself, not only simple, but expressive; and has nearly the meaning of the Hebrew word: it comes from the French cheoir, or escheoir, to fall out, to occur, to fall to. Hence our law-term escheat, any lands that fall to the lord of the manor by forfeiture, or for want of heirs: i.e., these are the occurrences which naturally throw the lands into the hands of the lord.

THE PHILISTINES COUNSEL HOW TO SEND BACK THE ARK. (Sa1 6:1-9) the ark . . . was in the country of the Philistines seven months--Notwithstanding the calamities which its presence had brought on the country and the people, the Philistine lords were unwilling to relinquish such a prize, and tried every means to retain it with peace and safety, but in vain.

Beth-shemesh--that is, "house of the sun," now Ain Shems [ROBINSON], a city of priests in Judah, in the southeast border of Dan, lying in a beautiful and extensive valley. JOSEPHUS says they were set a-going near a place where the road divided into two--the one leading back to Ekron, where were their calves, and the other to Beth-shemesh. Their frequent lowings attested their ardent longing for their young, and at the same time the supernatural influence that controlled their movements in a contrary direction.

The Ark of God Sent Back. - Sa1 6:1-3. The ark of Jehovah was in the land (lit. the fields, as in Rut 1:2) of the Philistines for seven months, and had brought destruction to all the towns to which it had been taken. At length the Philistines resolved to send it back to the Israelites, and therefore called their priests and diviners (see at Num 23:23) to ask them, "What shall we do with regard to the ark of God; tell us, with what shall we send it to its place?" "Its place" is the land of Israel, and בּמּה does not mean "in what manner" (quomodo: Vulgate, Thenius), but with what, wherewith (as in Mic 6:6). There is no force in the objection brought by Thenius, that if the question had implied with what presents, the priests would not have answered, "Do not send it without a present;" for the priests did not confine themselves to this answer, in which they gave a general assent, but proceeded at once to define the present more minutely. They replied, "If they send away the ark of the God of Israel (משׁלּחים is to be taken as the third person in an indefinite address, as in Sa1 2:24, and not to be construed with אתּם supplied), do not send it away empty (i.e., without an expiatory offering), but return Him (i.e., the God of Israel) a trespass-offering." אשׁם, lit. guilt, then the gift presented as compensation for a fault, the trespass-offering (see at Lev. 5:14-6:7). The gifts appointed by the Philistines as an asham were to serve as a compensation and satisfaction to be rendered to the God of Israel for the robbery committed upon Him by the removal of the ark of the covenant, and were therefore called asham, although in their nature they were only expiatory offerings. For the same reason the verb השׁיב, to return or repay, is used to denote the presentation of these gifts, being the technical expression for the payment of compensation for a fault in Num 5:7, and in Lev 6:4 for compensation for anything belonging to another, that had been unjustly appropriated. "Are ye healed then, it will show you why His hand is not removed from you," sc., so long as ye keep back the ark. The words תּרפאוּ אז are to be understood as conditional, even without אם, which the rules of the language allow (see Ewald, 357, b.); this is required by the context. For, according to Sa1 6:9, the Philistine priests still thought it a possible thing that any misfortune which had befallen the Philistines might be only an accidental circumstance. With this view, they could not look upon a cure as certain to result from the sending back of the ark, but only as possible; consequently they could only speak conditionally, and with this the words "we shall know" agree.