1 Samuel 5-6 Send it Back!

Israel lost in their battle with the Philistines, and they lost the Ark of the Lord to boot. After their initial shouts of victory, the Philistines cry “send it back” regarding the Ark.

This is one of the stories in the Bible that make me laugh. I can see in mt mind’s eye the faces of the players. This includes the statue of Dagon, who loses his head in the process. They are in for trouble as long as they keep the Ark of the Lord. Let’s join in and see how God deals with the Philistines.

♥ ♦ ♥

The Philistine army is returning from their battle against Israel. They victory cries can be heard ringing out as they approach their home in Ashdod. No need to wait for a report as everyone can easily guess the outcome from the sounds coming from this group. But there is a MAJOR surprise in store when the army actually arrives.

The priests of Dagon and the king of the city come out to welcome the victorious troops. As they watch the approaching army, they notice they are carrying a large item. It is being borne on the shoulders of four men and covered with some kind of blue cloth. The welcoming party waits while the captain of the guard comes to present himself.

“How went the battle? What have you to report?”

“My lord we have defeated the Israelite dogs! We have also captured their God!” The captain motions the men forward who are holding the large item covered in the blue cloth.

As the Ark is brought forward the priest is wringing his hands and salivating with anticipation. The king holds himself aloof on the outside but inside is on par with the priest. The Ark rests suspended by the carrying poles on the shoulders of four men.

“Remove that cloth” commands the king.

“Wait! My lord, a god, even an enemy god should not be laid naked before the masses. Let it be brought into the temple of Dagon and laid bare there. Dagon can tower over this Israelite God and prove his superiority.”

The king is at first angry with the priest for interrupting and countermanding his orders but his counsel in sound. “Yes. Bring it into the temple of Dagon. Dagon can gaze down on this defeated God.”

The Ark of the Lord is brought to the door of the temple. The soldiers wait as the priest speaks with Dagon. “Great Dagon we have an offering for you. By your hand we have captured the God of the Israelites. We present it to you as a gift for your favor on us.”

After speaking these words, the priest motions for four temple attendants to take the Ark from the soldiers. They bring it into the temple and sit it to the left of the huge statue of Dagon. The under priest is summoned for the next task. “Remove the covering and let’s have a look at this God of Israel’s.”

The under priest reaches out and takes hold of the cloth. His hands begun to burn as if he has just plunged them into the fire. Screaming in pain, he releases the cloth and falls back. He retreats to a corner of the room. Confusion and anger mar the face of the high priest and he bellows for another to remove the cloth. The second attempt meets with no better results. The high priest, after seeing the scorched hands of the two under priests decides to leave the cloth in place for now. He will deal with it tomorrow as it is already late in the day. “Leave! All of you. We will deal with this on the morrow.”

All night long the high priest thinks of ways to remove the covering of Israel’s God. He wants their God humbled before his own and letting it remain hidden seems wrong to him. He gets little sleep as he moves from one plan to the next, trying to find a solution. When morning comes, he is anxious to try some of the different solutions he came up with. He dresses as quickly as possible and heads to the temple of Dagon.

The door to the temple moves easily as he pushes upon it to gain entrance. Rats scurry past his feet, causing him to jump back. After a moment, he regains his composure and continues on. In his hands he holds the torch to light the lamps and a jar of incense. As soon as he crosses the threshold, he feels that there is something different. He quickly applies the torch to the lamps and places his torch in its holder. His eyes are drawn immediately to a large object lying on the floor. It is Dagon! He is lying face down beside the still covered God of the Israelites. A cry of anguish is rent from his lips at the sight.

Several other priests come rushing to the sound of the high priest’s cry. They two are dumbstruck at the scene before them. Immediately they begin throwing out possibilities for such a scene. “Was there an earthquake?” “Did rodents get in and weaken the foundation?” “Maybe thieves broke in during the night.” None of the explanations seemed to fit well and the only thing they could agree on was getting Dagon up off the ground.

After a careful inspection of the base on which Dagon sat, and the god itself, they gathered the equipment necessary to raise Dagon. It took most the day to carefully maneuver him back into position. Throughout the day, rats scurry from their hiding places withing the temple. It is strange to see rats in the temple, but they are given little thought as Dagon is raised again to his post. By the time they were done there was very little time to try some of the priest’s ideas for uncovering Israel’s God. It would hold for another night.

Sleep again proved elusive as the high priest tried to rationalize what he had walked into that morning. He came up with no firm answers but a resolve to remove the covering THIS DAY as he rose. Once again, he rushes through his morning preparations. He is disgusted to see rats move about in his room, but is determined to get to the work at hand for today. He doesn’t even make it into the temple this time before he is confronted with another catastrophe! On the threshold lie Dagon’s head and hands! Another scream rips from his lungs at the sight and brings the under priests scurrying to his aid.

“How could you let this happen?! Was no one on guard last night?”

“I stood guard last night my priest. None passed by. I allowed no one to enter the temple.”

“Then you are a FOOL, for SOMEONE did enter the temple! Someone DESECRATED Dagon! I will have your heart as an offering for forgiveness!”

The priest carefully steps over the dismembered pieces of Dagon on the threshold to find that he has been completely disassembled. His torso lies at the foot of the Israelites God as if in supplication. Two rats sit atop the torso of Dagon. The high priest is outraged at this scene! He rushes over and removes tongs from Dagon’s altar. He is determined to lay bare the God of Israel and right this wrong done to his god. With tongs in hand, he moves towards the Ark. So intent is his focus on the object of his anger that he doesn’t notice the rats scurrying across the floor. His trips on one as it crosses his path and he is flung to the floor. During his fall the tongs twist in his hand and he lands on them. They are embedded in his chest when he finally comes to rest beside the torso of his god, joining him in supplication to the God of Israel.

The under priests are frozen in place as this scene unfolds. As blood pours from the high priest’s chest the spell is broken and the under priests rush from the room. It is three hours before any of them are calm enough to begin the process of repairing the damage in the temple. They return to the temple room and find rats feeding on the high priest’s body. They bat them away with whatever they can lay their hands on, remove the high priest’s body, collect the pieces of Dagon and have the pieces brought to the craftsmen for reworking.

It will be some time before Dagon is ready to take his place again in the temple. It doesn’t seem right that the God of Israel is left to stand in Dagon’s temple in his absence but none dare touch it for fear of death.

The morning after the death of the high priest several of the under priests notice growths on their arms. They are knobby looking and painful. The most senior remaining priest assumes the role of high priest. He is called to the king who is also experiencing a growth on his leg.

“What is this? Relieve me of this pain! HEAL ME” demands the king.

“I have seen this on several of the under priests. I will lance it and pray to Dagon to heal it for you.”

“Whatever; just make it stop!”

The new high priest spends all day lancing the growths and praying to Dagon. He prays at the altar of Dagon even though his form is absent.

The next morning the number of people with these strange growths continues to grow. The size of the growths also increases. Lancing them did not alleviate the pain or poison causing them. They bulge from the skin as if seeking to separate themselves from the body.

The number and size of rats has increased within the city also. There is not a single home that is not affected by their presence. Cats have been brought in to deal with them, but it is a losing battle.

After three days the high priest’s prayers still go unanswered. He is beside himself. He is at the point of excising the growths from all who can tolerate the procedure. The removed portions are encapsulated tumors and their occurrence is spreading through the populace like wildfire.

The desecration of Dagon, the appearance of the tumors, and the rats are being linked back to the arrival of Israel’s God. With the failure of the priests to stop the spread of the tumors the people begin crying out for the removal of the Ark. The entire city and all its territories are in terror! “The Ark of the God of Israel must not remain with us, for his hand is hard against us and against Dagon our god” (1 Samuel 5:7b).

It takes two months before the people prevail in their desperate attempt to separate themselves from Israel’s God. A meeting of all the Philistine lords is called.

“What shall we do with the ark of the God of Israel?” (1 Samuel 5:8b) The king of Ashdod is beside himself. “It cannot stay here!”

The kings all look at one another. No one speaks for a moment.

“That relic of Israel has no power. I will take it” announces the king of Gath.

It is settled. The Ark of the God of Israel will leave in the morning.

The king of Gath laughs at the people of Ashdod as they cower at the sight of the large blue object being carried by his soldiers. “Ashdod is full of superstitious people” he thinks. He is not willing to tempt fate though, so he decides to leave the covering in place.

Israel’s God is brought into the Gath and placed in the temple. Within a day of its entrance through the gates, tumors begin to appear on the people. Its spread is so pervasive that no one is exempt. Young, old, rich, poor; ALL are affected. Add to this, an influx of rats into the city.

“The Ark of the God of Israel cannot stay here! Please send it away” the people of Gath cried. It had been with them for a short time, but it was long enough to convince them that Israel’s God was dangerous. He didn’t need weapons of warfare to defeat them, His presence alone was enough to strike terror into the most callous heart in Gath.

The king of Gath is stubborn though. He ignores the people. Even the grotesque tumors that cover his arms and legs and the rats that bite him in the night could not move him to admit defeat. Not until he is afraid that all his kingdom will turn against him does he give in to their cries. The Ark of Israel’s God was in Gath for four months.

The king of Gath calls the king Ekron to stand before him. Ekron is the smallest of the kingdoms and Gath has power over them.

The king of Ekron makes his way to the throne room.

“We have done our part. The God of Israel is yours now. Take it from here.”

The king of Ekron’s face pales, but he nods his acceptance. Soldiers once again take up Israel’s God and move it onto another home.

As soon as the people of Ekron see the large blue structure coming their way they go into a panic! They have heard the stories from Ashdod and Gath. They want NO part of it in their city. “They have brought around to us the Ark of the God of Israel to kill us and our people” (1 Samuel 5:10b). Their cries go unheeded. The Ark is sitting in their midst and wreaking its havoc.

After more than a month, the king of Ekron calls for his scribe and his fastest runners. He can’t wait any longer. It doesn’t matter that the king of Gath tasked him with holding the God of Israel’s Ark. It HAS to go!

“Send word to the lords of Ashdod, Gaza, Ashkelon and Gath. We must meet together to determine what to do with the Ark of Israel’s God. Have them assemble her within the week and bring their priests and diviners with them.”

As soon as the words are written the runners are dispatched to their destinations.  The king of Ekron has already decided that the Ark must be sent back to Israel. There is nowhere left for him to send it in Philistia. He needs the other Philistine lords to agree with him and for the diviners and priests to prescribe how this will happen.

After everyone is assembled in the hall of the king of Ekron the discussion begins in earnest.

“I cannot have Israel’s God in my territory! It brings nothing but death and disease! Will any of you take it into your own lands?”

An immediate chorus of “No!” and “Never!” breaks out. No one wants what it brings with it. This is a war trophy without a home in the country that captured it.

“I propose we send it back to Israel. Let them deal with it” proposes the king of Ekron. There is immediate agreement to this idea.

“Tell us with what we shall send it to its place” (1 Samuel 6:2b) inquires the king of Ekron of all those present.

The high priest of Ekron speaks for the group of diviners and priests. “If you send away the Ark of the God of Israel, do not send it empty, but by all means return Him a guilt offering. That you will be healed, and it will be known to you why His hand does not turn away from you” (1 Samuel 6:3).

They all agrees that this is a good idea but what kind of offering is the next question on their lips. “What is the guilt offering that we shall return to Him?” (1 Samuel 6:4a) inquires the king of Gath.

The priests and diviners converse for a few minutes. It takes little time at all for them to come up with an appropriate offering. It will represent ALL of the Philistine lords and the plagues that they have suffered. “Your offering should be ‘five golden tumors and five golden mice, according to the number of the lords of the Philistines, for the same plague was on all of you and your lords. So you must make images of your tumors and images of your mice that ravage the land, and give glory to the God of Israel’ (1 Samuel 6:4b-5a)” the high priest of Ekron offers.

The kings all scowls and murmuring is heard at this last part; giving glory to the God of Israel. It looks like they might reject the whole plan on account of this stipulation.

Quickly the high priest of Ekron offers hope. “Perhaps He will lighten His hand from off you and your gods and your land. Why should you harden your hearts as the Egyptians and Pharaoh hardened their hearts? After He had dealt severely with them, did they not send the people away, and they departed?” (1 Samuel 6:5b-6).

This reminder of Israel’s past is enough to remove all reservations the kings had. “It will be done! We will not refuse to honor Israel’s God. Tell us what must be done” commands the king of Gath.

The high priest of Ekron breathes a sigh of relief. He wants Israel’s God’s Ark gone and is ready to do whatever it takes to see that it happens. All his counterparts are in complete agreement on seeing it OUT of their land! “Take and prepare a new cart and two milk cows on which there has never come a yoke, and yoke the cows to the cart, but take their calves home, away from them. And take the Ark of the Lord and place it on the cart and put in a box at its side the figures of gold, which you are returning to Him as a guilt offering. Then send it off and let it go its way and watch. If it goes up on the way to its own land to Beth-shemesh, then it is He who has done us this great harm, but if not, then we shall know that it is not His hand that struck us; it happened to us by coincidence” (1 Samuel 6:7-9).

Now that a plan has been formed craftsmen are immediately commissioned in the city of Ekron. The Philistine lords agree that there is not time to return to their own lands to complete their portions of the offering. None of them will rest easy again until they see the Ark of Israel’s God leave their lands.

Within days the cart and guilt offering castings are readies. Each king presented his latest tumor for removal and casting. Five mice were plunged into the vat of gold for casting and added to the offering being prepared. A new yoke was even made for the milk cows to wear. All is in readiness.

All the Philistine lords, priests and diviners assemble once again.

“Bring two milk cows from my herd” orders the king of Ekron.

Two cows of equal size are brought to the waiting assembly. As the group looks on the two cows are yoked together and attached to the cart. Next the Ark of the Lord is carefully placed on the cart. Finally, next to the Ark is placed an ornate box that contains the tumors and mice of the guilt offering.

“What do we do now” asks the king of Ashdod.

Before the words even have a chance to fade in the air the milk cows begin moving. Even though they have never worn a yoke or asked to do a day’s work, beyond caring for their young and providing milk to the maids who tend them, they move together as if they are a well-trained team. They move “straight in the direction of Beth-shemesh” (1 Samuel 6:12a) lowing as they go. They have no need of driver, bit or reign. They don’t turn either right or left from the road that leads out of Philistia and into Israel.

The Philistine lords follow the cows and cart as it makes it way down the highway. They go as far as the border of Beth-shemesh. There is NO doubt remaining in their minds as to the question of coincidence or divine judgement. Relief washes over the group as they watch from a hiding place as the people of Israel receive their God back.

The cart continues on until it reaches a field on the outside of town. The people of the town were engaged in harvesting their wheat when they heard the cart approaching. Instead of seeing one of their neighbors coming to offer help they see a cart carrying a large covered object.

Joshua, the owner of the field where the cart is nearing, runs over to stop the cart before it strikes someone. The wheat on that side of the field has already been harvested and bundled but a driverless cart can cause a LOT of damage.

Before Joshua even lays a hand on the team or cart, it comes to a stop. Joshua is surprised to see two cows with swollen udders in the place oxen should be occupying. He is also curious to know what they have brought and where it came from. As he steps to the side of the cart, he starts to reach a hand out to grasp the covering but then he freezes when he sees the gold poles poking out front and back of the object. He steps back in wonder and fear. “Could this be what I think it is?!”

Work stopped in the field when Joshua ran towards the cart. All eyes watch him as he makes his discovery.

“It is the Ark of the Lord” yells Joshua.

People come running to join him. Questions and shouts of joy ring out from those assembled.

“Are you sure?” “How can this be?” “Praise be the Lord!” “Where did it come from?”

A group of four men approach the ark and attempt to lift its cover. As soon as their hands touch the covering, they fall to the ground as if struck by lightning. They scream and convulse for but a moment before the life leaves them all.

The crowd is stunned into silence at the sight.

Finally, Joshua gets hold of his excitement and fear. He needs to call for the Levites. They are the only ones who will be able to touch the ark. He seizes his oldest son by the shoulders and turns him so they are face to face. “I need you to go into the city. Go to the house of the priest and tell him what we have found. Go as fast as you can. Stop for no one.”

Joshua’s son takes off as if he is an arrow being released from a drawn bow. He is fleet of foot and will have word to its intended destination faster than any other man could have.

While his son is on his mission Joshua stands firm in a mission of his own. He is determined to ensure that no one else touch the Ark of the Lord while they await the Levites. “Stand back all of you! We must not touch the sacred things of the Lord. It would dishonor Him. My son has gone to fetch the Levite.”

This warning is all it took for the rest of the people to move back even farther. While they wait for the Levite to arrive the men who were struck dead are pulled away from the cart. Those who have performed this task will have to perform the ritual for cleansing at the end of the day but at least the Levite won’t become unclean as he cares for the ark.

The Philistine lords are watching from cover and have witnessed the death of the men who tried to lift the cover. “Israel’s God lets no one look on His Ark. Neither Philistine nor Israelite. I wish we had known this beforehand.”

Joshua’s son returns and he is accompanied by not just one but several Levites. The task of caring for the ark takes at least four Levites so the Levite Joshua’s son was sent to, called out for assistance. They enter the circle of people who wait around the Ark.

“This is indeed the Ark of the Lord! Praise His name for He has returned it to us!” This call goes up from the town’s head Levite. “We must make a sacrifice of thanks giving to the Lord.”

The milk cows had drawn their cargo very close to a large flat stone at the edge of the field. This natural stone was part of the boundary of Joshua’s field. It had stood sentinel for his family since the tribe of Judah divided the land by clan and family. This stone will serve well as the place of offering to the Lord.

Four Levites move into position beside the four extended pole ends. Together they lift the Ark of the Lord from the cart and carefully carry it to the stone. Gently and with great respect they place it in the center of the stone. Before turning loose, they ensure it is stable on its foundation.

The head Levite returns to the cart and retrieves the ornate box that accompanied it. He opens the box to find ten golden objects. Five of them appear to be rodents but the other five are oddly shaped. There is nothing accompanying them stating what they are supposed to be. His fellow Levites examine the items in the box and one concludes that they look very much like tumors. The number of each of these items corresponds to the five major cities of the Philistines.  “These appear to be part of an offering from the Philistines” reasons the head Levite. All agree and the box is placed near the Ark of the Lord.

Once the Philistines’ offering is in place it is time for Israel’s offering. Joshua instructs his men to break the cart and yoke into pieces. “This will be the wood for our offering” says the Levite. He takes the wood and lays it on the ground near the base of the stone that holds the Ark.

It is time for the offering itself. The head Levite removes a knife he carries from his robe. He has one with him at all times for when he is called upon to make an offering. He quickly slits the throats of the two cows and lets their blood run out on the ground near the base of the stone. He then cuts their bodies into pieces. The bodies of both cows are arranged on the wood. Finally, a torch is brought and laid to the base of the offering. Fire springs forth and consumes the offering within minutes.

The Philistine lords looking on have seen enough. The Ark of the God of Israel is back where it belongs. Their guilt has been atoned for in the offering of the tumors, mice, and cows. They pray this is enough to remove the hand of Israel’s God on them. There is nothing left for them to do but return to their own country and see the evidence of their supplication.

The women begin to dance and sing praises to the Lord. The men of the city decide to offer sacrifices to the Lord also and before long Joshua’s field is turned into a place of worship. Each offering is presented at the base of the stone on which the Ark of the Lord rests. Each man rejoices as he concludes his sacrifice of praise unto the Lord and returns to join his fellow revelers.

By the time the sacrifices finally conclude much of the day has passed. The revelers have broken into groups, some large and some small. Most of the groups are sharing of the meat that was returned to them from their sacrifice. The original two cows were the only sacrifice that was completely consumed and consecrated to the Lord. The spirit in Joshua’s field continues to be one of thanks giving.

There is one group however that has a different plan in mind. This is the closest ANY of the people have ever been to the Ark of the Lord. It has been hidden away in the Holy of Holies their entire lives. Who knows when anyone will ever get to see it again. Even when the Levites were performing the sacrifices here today it stayed covered. This group is intent on getting a peek beneath the cover. Their hearts are bursting with curiosity and daring. Now that the sacrifices are completed, they will make their move.

The Levites have all been included in different groups who are sharing their meals. None are standing guard over the Ark. The group of brash young men make their move. They heard of the four men who died when they touched the covering of the Ark earlier. They will not make that same mistake. Instead, they have brought sticks that they will use to raise just one side of the cover with. They slip around the back side of the ark and prepare to act. They wait until the crowd in the field seems to be the loudest. The crowd has been going in waves of excitement all day and they are just waiting for another one to crest before they make their move.

Song breaks forth in one of the groups and others join in as if a wave of fire were moving throughout the field. “This is about as good as it’s going to get” one of the crouching young men whispers to his colleague. They are the ones holding the sticks. His partner nods and the two of them quickly insert their sticks under the edge of the covering and lift. Before even raising the covering a hands’ breadth screams of pain erupt from the entire group. They all fall to the ground, writhing in pain.

Alerted by the screams the rest of the occupants of the field turn their attention to this group. The first ones on the scene are struck with terror at the sight. The young mens’ skin appears as if it has melted like a candle. Their screams have nearly died out, as there is little life left in those lying on the ground. The ones that are still crying out will cease to do so very soon.

The Levites push their way to the front and shout for the people to move back. It is obvious by the charred sticks what this group was attempting to do. They have received their just reward from the Lord. He is NOT to be mocked.

But their fate also strikes fear into the hearts of every father in the assembly. Could one of these lying here be their own son? If not now, could their own succumb to the same temptation? Something has to be done before anyone else falls prey to this sin.

“God is HOLY! ‘Who is able to stand before the Lord, this Holy God? And to whom shall He go up away from us?’ (1 Samuel 6:20b).”

This call was made by the head Levite. Not even he trusts that the people would remember this lesson and not repeat it. This town has too many inhabitants and the nation has wandered away from the Lord too far to be trusted.

Joshua has a suggestion. He has relatives near the city of Kiriath-jearim who fear the Lord and have kept His commandments. “Let me send a message to my cousin Abinadab in the town of Kiriath-jearim. He can come with some of the men from his family and take the Ark of the Lord into his own home. It will be safe there until the Lord moves to bring it back unto His Tabernacle.”

Joshua is a well-respected man in Beth-shemesh so the people readily agree. Word is immediately sent to Abinadab. While awaiting an answer, Joshua and his sons stand guard against any further attempts to approach the Ark of the Lord.

Three days later a contingent of men from Kiriath-jearim arrives. In their number are six Levites. Four of them will carry the Ark of the Lord. A fifth will precede the Ark and the sixth will follow. This is how they plan to keep any from approaching and angering the Lord. The remaining men will see to the needs of the Levites and ensure their safety as they travel to Abinadab’s home.

Joshua and his sons are glad to see the Ark of the Lord on its way. They know it is one step closer to being back where it belongs. They also know that it will be well cared for where it is going.

While waiting for the arrival of the Ark of the Lord, Eleazar, Abinadab’s son has been preparing its place. A room has been cleaned to within an inch of its life and a heavy curtain hung across the doorway. It is a room where the family will not be allowed to enter as it will belong to the Lord. It will be a little crowded in the home for a time as this room once was the sleeping space for Eleazar and his wife. A new room for them will be constructed when time permits.

The Ark of the Lord arrives on the doorstep of Abinadab. Before it enters his house he wants the Levites to offer a special blessing for his house. He wants it to be a worthy place for the Ark of the Lord to rest in its journey.

“Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, look down on this humble home as it is offered to You as a place of refuge. Bless those who watch over Your holy Ark while it rests in its travels. Keep their hearts and minds fully grounded in Your Laws. Keep their feet from straying from Your path. And bring Your Ark once again to Your Tabernacle at Your appointed time.”

After the blessing was completed, Abinadab opened his home and received the Ark of the Lord. Eleazar led the way to the place where it would stay. Once the Ark was settled everyone withdrew and the curtain was let down across the door.

“Before we depart, we will consecrate your son Eleazar to minister to the Ark of the Lord” instructs the lead Levite.

“This is good as I am an old man and do not know how many more years the Lord will bless me with. My son Eleazar has followed the Law of Moses from his youth. He will do well as one to watch over the Ark of the Lord.”

Abinadab and Eleazar quickly gathered wood and a ram for a sacrifice. The Levites prepared the sacrifice according to the Law of Moses. Abinadab brought out precious oil he had been saving to bring to Shiloh as part of his offering.

Eleazar bowed before the Levites and they poured the oil on his head. They also put some of the blood of the sacrifice they had made onto his right thumb, his right earlobe and big toe of his right foot. He was now set apart to care for the Ark of the Lord.

Eleazar would serve in this role for twenty years as he kept the Ark of the Lord, and all the ordinances pertaining to it, faithfully. God would also bless Abinadab’s home during these years as he was faithful in all he did.

(to be continued)

I wanted to make sure and include the rats in my story, as they were part of the offering sent by the Philistines. I HATE MICE! I can’t imagine being inundated by them! Where I live I will NOT be without a cat.

We aren’t told directly in the story given to us by the Lord, or my story, but the Ark was placed in the home of a Levite of the clan of Korah. This was the only line of Levi who was authorized to care for the Tabernacle furnishings. The Lord was looking out for His Ark even as it ended up in a field.

Father God, You are amazing! I LOVE how You took down the Philistines. I certainly am NOT asking to be a part of THAT scene. ALL of this was part of Your plan though. I believe that, if the Ark had not been removed from it’s place in the Tabernacle, David never could have approached You. He was of mixed blood with Moab. There were not enough generations between him and Ruth to allow him into the congregation. You put things in motion LONG before he was ever called to be king over Israel.

You put Your plans in place for my life, before I knew what would come to be. I can look back now and see Your fingerprints all over the places I have walked through. I KNOW I’m not done walking through You prepared places. Give me strength and hold me tight as we walk on together.