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borne from place to place in terror, and destruction from God followed
its course, until the Philistines were greatly perplexed to know what to
do with it. Angels who accompanied it, guarded it from all harm. And
the Philistines did not dare to open the chest, for their god, Dagon,
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had met with such a fate, they feared to touch it, or to have it near
them. They called for the priests and the diviners, and inquired of
them what they should do with the ark of God. They advised them to
send it back to the people to whom it belonged, and to send with it
a costly trespass-offering, which if God would be pleased to accept,
they would be healed. They should also understand that God’s hand
was upon them because they had taken his ark, which belonged alone
to Israel.
Some were not in favor of this. It was too humiliating to carry
back the ark, and they urged that no one of the Philistines would dare
venture his life to carry the ark of the God of Israel which had brought
such death upon them. Their counselors entreated the people not to
harden their hearts, as the Egyptians and Pharaoh had done, and cause
still greater afflictions and plagues to come upon them. And as they
were all afraid to take the ark of God, they advised them, saying, “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 them. 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 trespass-offering,
in a coffer by the side thereof; and send it away, that it may go. 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, then we shall know that it is
not his hand that smote us; it was a chance that happened to us. And
the men did so; and took two milch kine, and tied them to the cart, and
shut up their calves at home. And 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.”
The Philistines knew that the cows would not be induced to leave
their young calves at home, unless they should be urged so to do by
some unseen power. The cows went direct to Beth-shemesh, lowing for
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their calves, yet going directly from them. The lords of the Philistines
followed after the ark, unto the border of Beth-shemesh. They dare
not trust that sacred chest wholly to the cows. They feared if any evil
happened to it, that greater calamities would come upon them. They