Study notes

1 Samuel 6

Introducing 1 SamuelWho wrote it, when, why, and what to look for as you read

2:12–7:17 Section

Eli’s sons did evil things as priests and Eli didn’t stop them. Samuel acted differently than they did. Samuel wasn’t in the family line of Aaron. But he served God faithfully like priests were supposed to.

The first message that Samuel shared as a prophet was against Eli and his sons. The prophecy came true after a battle between the people of Israel and the Philistines. The Israelites wanted God to protect them and to help them win the battle. They used the ark of the covenant to try and force God to do this. But they weren’t obeying God or trusting him to save them. This was very different from how the ark was used in the battle against Jericho (Joshua 6:1–14).

Eli’s sons were killed in the battle with the Philistines. Eli died when he heard that the Philistines captured the ark of the covenant. The Philistines suffered a plague because they had taken the ark. The plague was God’s judgement against them. It showed them that God was more powerful than their false gods.

When the ark was returned to Israel, Samuel served the Israelites as their leader. He was the last one to lead like the 12 judges had led. He helped the Israelites turn back to God. They stopped worshipping false gods and instead worshipped only God. This showed that they were being faithful to the Mount Sinai covenant. Then God saved them from their enemies. This was one of the covenant blessings.

6:2

priests and diviners: Fortune telling was part of the Philistine religion (see 1 Samuel 28:7; Deuteronomy 18:10–14).

6:3

The Philistines probably did not know about Israelite worship rules. A Philistine guilt offering was likely a payment to their god. It was to avoid his anger. This differs from the idea of atonement in Leviticus 16.

6:4

rats: See study note on 1 Samuel 5:6.

6:6

The Philistines believed they could defeat the Lord by fighting harder (1 Samuel 4:9). They had beaten the Israelites, but now understood they could not defeat Israel's God.

6:7

take their calves away: If the cows ignored their motherly instincts and left their calves to take the Ark to Israel, it would show that the plague came from Israel's God (1 Samuel 6:9).

6:9

Beth-shemesh was the nearest Israelite town to Ekron (a Philistine city) (1 Samuel 5:10).

6:13

People usually harvested wheat in May or June (late spring or early summer).

6:14

This burnt offering might have been for forgiveness of sin (see 1 Samuel 7:9–10; Leviticus 1:3–17). But, it was more likely a voluntary act of love or gratitude (see Leviticus 22:18–22).

6:15

Fortunately, the ark arrived in Beth-shemesh (1 Samuel 6:13), a city of the Levites (Joshua 21:13–16). The Levite men living there could safely move the ark (see Numbers 4:15).

6:17

guilt offering: See study note on 1 Samuel 6:3.
Ashdod, Gaza, Ashkelon, Gath, and Ekron: These were the five main Philistine cities. They were on or near the Great Trunk Road, an important ancient trade route. This route connected Egypt with Mesopotamia through the coastal plain of Canaan. Each city had a ruler similar to a king (1 Samuel 6:16).

6:19

seventy men: Beth-shemesh was a small village.
because they looked inside the ark: Touching the ark was not allowed (Numbers 4:15; 2 Samuel 6:6–8), as was looking inside it (Numbers 4:20). The men who died did not respect God's holiness.

6:20

Who can stand: Even God's people faced his wrath when they disrespected his holiness. The wrath of God is God's strong disapproval of human beings and their sinful actions.
To whom should the ark go up from here?: When confronted with God's holiness, the Israelites felt the same distress as the pagan Philistines (1 Samuel 6:2).

6:21

Kiriath-jearim was close, about 16 kilometers (10 miles) northeast of Beth-shemesh.

Verse notes: Adapted by Mission Mutual (Aquifer Open Study Notes) from Tyndale Open Study Notes © 2023 Tyndale House Publishers. CC BY-SA 4.0. Section notes: Biblica Study Notes © 2023 Biblica, Inc. CC BY-SA 4.0, via BibleAquifer. About the sources