Tag Archives: Discernment

Absalom’s Return

107 – Absalom’s Return

2 Samuel 14:1-33

After three years, David finally stopped mourning for Amnon. Then he started to miss his son Absalom. Still, he wouldn’t ask him to return from hiding. 

Joab noticed this, so he hired a woman who was good at acting. He told her to go to the king, and he gave her the words she should say. She went before David dressed in clothes of mourning. She bowed before him and said, “Help me, my king.”

David said, “Tell me your problem.”

“I only had two sons after my husband died. Recently they got into a fight and no one stopped them. Soon, one killed the other one. Now my family says I’m to give them the only son I have left.  They say he must die because he’s a murderer. My king, this would remove my husband’s name from the earth.”

David said, “You can go home. I’ll take care of this for you. If anyone says this isn’t right, bring them to me.”

She said, “Oh, please swear by God that my son won’t be killed for what he did.”

David said, “I swear it by the Lord who lives. Your son won’t die for this.”

She said, “May I ask you one more question?”

“Yes, what is it?”

“I knew you’d give me a right judgment because the wisdom of God is in you. You clearly see what is good and what is evil. That’s why this judgment was good.

“So, why don’t you follow your own judgments? You’re wronging the nation of God by not bringing back your son. We’re all going to die someday, but God is the God of life. He wants us to be reconciled to one another.”

David said, “You asked me a question, now I have one for you. Listen to me carefully. You must tell me the truth. Did Joab send you here to talk to me?”

She said, “My lord the king has the wisdom of an angel of the Lord. No one can get anything around him. Yes, your servant Joab told me what to say, but it’s only because he loves you and wants what’s best for you.”

The king called for Joab and said, “Go and bring Absalom back in peace, but I don’t want to see him.” So Joab went and brought Absalom back to Jerusalem. He was allowed to live in his own house.

Two years went by and he still wasn’t allowed to see the king. Finally, he decided to ask Joab to arrange a meeting between him and his father. He sent for Joab, but he didn’t come. He sent for him a second time, but he still didn’t come.  Finally, Absalom sent his servants to set a fire to Joab’s barley field.

Joab went and yelled at Absalom. “Why did you set fire to my field?”

“I had to get your attention. Now tell me. Why did you bring me back to Jerusalem? I was better off where I was. Go to the king and arrange a meeting between the two of us. I want to see him even if he kills me.”

So Joab arranged a time when the king and his son could meet. Absalom went before his father and bowed down with his face to the ground. David got up and went and kissed his son.

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Nathan’s Story

105 – Nathan’s Story

II Samuel 12:1-31 Psalm 51:1-19

Only God knew about David’s sin with Bathsheba. He sent the prophet Nathan, who stood before the king and told this story: “There were two men who lived in the same city. One was rich. He had a large herd of cattle and a large flock of sheep. The other was poor. He only had one small lamb, but she was like a daughter to him. The lamb grew up with his children as a pet. She ate from their bowls, drank from their cups, and even slept with them at night.

The rich man had a friend come to visit from a far off city. When it came time for a meal, the rich man didn’t want to use one of his own sheep. Instead he took the poor man’s lamb and prepared it for his guest.”

David became angry. He stood up and shouted, “That’s disgusting! How could he be so heartless? He deserves to die. He’ll give the poor man four lambs for what he’s done.”

Nathan pointed at David and said, “You are the man! The Lord says, ‘I made you king over Israel and gave you all you have. I would’ve given you more if you had asked for it. So why have you despised me and done this evil? You killed Uriah with an Ammonite sword, and took his wife. Because of this, the sword will never leave your house. You did all of this in secret, but I’ll judge you openly.’ ”

David broke down before Nathan. “I have sinned against the Lord.” 

Later, he wrote this prayer:

“Oh God, have mercy upon me. 

Hold me tight within your love.

In your compassion, remove my rebellion.

Wash my guilt, and remove 

the stain of my sin.

I know I’m rebellious. 

My sin haunts me day and night.

You’re the one I fought against.

This evil is against you.

You’re right to be angry and throw me away.

I’ve been this way all my life.

But I know you want to teach me.

Go deep inside of me and put wisdom there.

Use harsh cleansers until 

everything is absolutely clean.

Replace my depression with joy.

Remove my sin and give me 

a clean new heart.

Give me a determined spirit, 

and restore the joy of my salvation.

If you do these things, I’ll teach others about your ways.”

Nathan went to David and said, “The Lord has heard your prayer and has taken away your sin. You’ll not die, but the child will die because of how you treated the Lord.”

Suddenly, the child became sick. David begged God to spare him. The king wouldn’t eat, but spent day and night on the ground pleading with God. His servants tried to get him to eat, but he refused.

On the seventh day, the child died. The servants were afraid to tell David. They had watched him agonize while the child was still alive. They thought he would do something desperate when he found out the child was dead.

He saw them whispering to one another. He said, “Is the child dead?”

“Yes, he is dead.”

So David got up off the ground, took a bath, and put on clean clothes. He worshipped in the house of the Lord and then sent for something to eat.

The servants were amazed. He explained it to them. “While the child was still alive, I pleaded with the Lord in case he would be gracious and let the child live. But now that he’s dead, there’s nothing I can do. He can’t come back to me, but I can go to him.”

 Later, Bathsheba gave birth to another son, and David named him Solomon. The Lord loved Solomon, and said he would be the next king of Israel.

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Building an Empire

102 – Building an Empire

2 Samuel 7-8 4:4 I Chronicles 17:1-18:34

David established his kingdom and defended it from the nations around him. Finally, there was peace in Israel. He then started thinking about building a Temple for the Lord. One day he said to the prophet of God, “I live in a beautiful palace, while the Ark of God remains in a tent!”

The prophet agreed, “Go ahead and build the Temple. God will be pleased.”

That night God spoke to the prophet and gave him a message for David. The Lord said, “You were following sheep when I made you king of Israel. I’ve been with you all these years, and I’ve given you victory over your enemies. Now I’ll establish your name among the greatest men who’ll ever live. Your royal family line will last forever.

 “Still, I won’t allow you to build my house. I’ve made you a man of war and many have died because of you. Your son will be a man of peace, and he will build my house. I’ll be a father to him and establish his kingdom.”

King David was content when he heard this message, and humbled himself before the Lord. From that day he started looking at the nations around him. He invaded the Philistines and took back the cities and lands they had taken from Israel. He then turned to the Moabites and Edomites and brought them into submission to Israel. 

He turned his armies north and defeated nation after nation. Jerusalem became prosperous as gold, silver, bronze, and horses were brought to the city. David set up garrisons in all of these countries to maintain control over them. He used their men to build up his army. His name became feared and honored throughout that part of the world. 

David dedicated to the Lord all that he gained. He brought justice to the people, and taught them righteousness. 

One day David asked his servants, “Are there any members of Saul’s family still alive? I want to show them kindness just like Jonathan showed kindness to me.” 

A servant named Ziba spoke up and told him about Mephibosheth, who was Jonathan’s son. He was five years old when his nurse heard about the death of Saul and Jonathan. She panicked and ran with the boy on her shoulders. He fell to the ground and his feet were hurt. Ever since, he had been lame in both feet.

David sent for him. He came in and bowed down on the ground. He said, “I am your servant.”

David said, “Don’t be afraid. I’m returning to you the kindness that your father gave to me. I’m giving you all the fields that belonged to Saul. Also, from now on, you’ll eat at my table.”

Mephibosheth once again bowed down and said, “I’m nothing but a dead dog. Why should you care about me?”

The king said to Ziba, “You and your sons are to work the lands that I have just given to Mephibosheth. You’re now his servants.”

So Mephibosheth lived in Jerusalem and ate at the king’s table. He became like one of David’s sons.

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Staying by the Stuff

95 – Staying by the Stuff

1 Samuel 29:1 – 30:31

As the Philistines started making plans to invade Israel, their king said to David, “You’ll march with me. I want you and your men to be my personal bodyguards.”

David said, “Good, now you’ll be able to see what my men and I can do.”

All the military units went to a place where they could present themselves in review as they prepared for war. The Philistine commanders were shocked when they saw David and his men. They said to the king, “You can’t bring those Hebrews to fight with us!”

He said, “David defected from Israel, and has been faithful to me ever since. I have no reason to doubt his loyalty.”

The commanders got mad. “Send him away! He’s the one they sing about. ‘Saul has killed his thousands; David his tens of thousands.’ He might suddenly turn on us in the middle of a battle. That would be a good way for him to regain Saul’s favor.”

The king went to David. “You’re an honorable man, and I personally want you by my side in battle. But the commanders don’t trust you. Therefore I have to send you back to Ziklag.”

David said, “What have I done to deserve this? I’ve been faithful to you from the first day I came here.”

The king said, “I know you have, but my hands are tied. You must leave in the morning.” 

So David and his men left. When they got back to Ziklag, they found that foreign raiders had come and burnt down the town. They hadn’t killed anyone, but simply took all the people with them. This included all the wives, sons, and daughters of David and his men.

The men cried until they could cry no more. Some of the men wanted to stone David, but God stood by him. He prayed to the Lord, “Should I chase after these raiders? Will I catch them?

The Lord said, “Go after them. You’ll catch them and get everything back that was taken from you.”

So David took his 600 men and went after the invaders. At one point, they stopped because 200 of his men were too exhausted to go farther. So the 400 left their supplies with the 200 and continued on.

They came upon a slave who had belonged to the raiders, but had been left behind because he had gotten sick. He hadn’t eaten anything for three days. David’s men gave him food and water and helped revive him. 

David said, “Will you lead us to the raiders?”

He said, “I’ll lead you to them if you swear you won’t kill me, and you won’t give me back to them.” David agreed.

The slave led David’s men directly to the raiders. They were celebrating how much plunder they had gotten from the Philistines and the Israelites. Without warning, David’s men attacked and quickly killed most of them. Only a few got away. David’s men got everything back they had lost, plus all the plunder the raiders had taken from other cities.

When they got back to the 200 men, some of the 400 said, “They didn’t go with us into battle. So they only get their wives and children back. They don’t get any of the extra plunder we took.”

David said, “No! That’s wrong. God gave us a great victory today. We’ll share equally with those who stayed back with our supplies.” So that became the law of Israel from that day on.

David and his men went back to Ziklag. He then sent some of the plunder back to various cities in Israel.

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Sparing God’s Anointed

94 – Sparing God’s Anointed

1 Samuel 26:1 – 27:12

Saul once again took 3,000 of his best warriors and went after David. That night they set up camp beside the road. David heard where they were, so he went there during the night.

Saul was asleep in the middle of the camp with his men circled around him. Next to him was Abner, the commander of the army. The Lord caused a deep sleep to come over all of them.
 
David took Abishai and walked right up to where Saul and Abner were sleeping. Abishai said, “Today God gave you your enemy. Say the word and I’ll thrust him through with this spear and pin him to the ground.”

David said, “No. God anointed him king of Israel. Only God can take that away. He has appointed a time for Saul to die, and we will accept that. I’ll never touch a man anointed by God.”

David took the king’s water jug and the spear that was stuck in the ground next to Saul’s head. They left the camp without anyone waking up. 

When they were at a safe distance on the top of the next hill, David yelled at Saul’s camp. “Abner, listen to me.”

Abner woke up and then yelled back. “How dare you wake up the king? Who are you?”

David said, “Abner, you’re the best soldier in Israel. Yet, you failed to protect the king, God’s anointed. Men came into the camp while you were sleeping. Look around. Where is the king’s spear and water jug? You should be executed.”

Saul yelled back, “My son David, is that your voice I hear?”

“Yes, my king. It’s my voice. What have I done to cause you to hunt me down like a criminal? Whoever turned you against me should be cursed. They’re making me leave the land that is blessed of God.”

Saul said, “Oh, my son David. Once again you had a chance to kill me and you didn’t. It’s now clear to me that I’ve sinned. I’ve been a fool. Come back to me. I won’t hurt you.”

David said, “Yes, it’s true. The Lord gave you to me, but I knew that I wasn’t to touch His anointed king. May God value my life and spare me, just like I value your life. I want him to see that I’m righteous and loyal. Send a young man over here to get your spear.”

Saul said, “My son, you are blessed of God. You will do great things for the Lord.” With that, King Saul went back home.

David said to his men, “Eventually Saul will find me, and when he does he’ll kill me. I must go to a place that is out of his reach. What better place than with the king of the Philistines.”

So David took his 600 men to Gath. All of them took their families with them. David said to the king, “Please give me a small town nearby. I don’t deserve to live in the same town with so great a king.” So he gave David the town of Ziklag. David and his men stayed there for a year and four months. The king of the Philistines learned to trust David as one of his own countrymen.

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Abigail

93 – Abigail

1 Samuel 25:1-44

David and his men lived in the same area as a rich herdsman named Nabal, a descendant of Caleb. He was known to be mean and harsh, but he had a beautiful wife who was much more practical in how she dealt with others. Her name was Abigail.

Having David’s army in the area was a great advantage to Nabal because foreign raiders didn’t come and steal from his herds. Still, Nabal didn’t invite David and his men to his annual sheep-shearing feast. So David sent 10 young men with a message. “Peace to you and yours. I respect you as my own father. Your shepherds will tell you that we have protected your flocks over the entire time we have lived in this area. Instead of us coming to your feast, please send some food and provisions with these young men.” 

Nabal said, “I don’t know David. I’m definitely not his father. Slaves are always running away from their masters. Tell him to go back to where he came from. I’m not going to take food away from my servants and give it to strangers.”

The young men went back and told David everything that was said. David said to his men, “Put on your swords. I protected this man’s goods, and he repays me with insults. Not one man in his camp will be alive in the morning.”

Meanwhile, one of Nabal’s servants went and told Abigail what was said and done. He said, “David’s men were ‘a wall’ to us while we were out in the fields. They protected us night and day. We didn’t lose one animal during this time. Yet, your husband insulted them and refused to help them. You must think of something because your husband has offended an army that can kill all of us.”

Without telling her husband, Abigail gathered provisions for David’s men. She got 200 loaves of bread, 2 wine skins, 5 butchered sheep, a bushel of roasted grain, 100 clusters of raisins, and 200 cakes of pressed figs. She put all of these things on some donkeys and headed down the road.

As she rounded a corner, she saw David’s men coming toward her. She got off the donkey and ran to him. She knelt down with her face to the ground and said, “It’s my fault your men were mistreated. I would have treated them well if I had known they were coming. Forgive my husband. His name means ‘fool,’ and that’s how he acts. Please accept these gifts of food.

“It’s the Lord who’s kept you from getting revenge today. He has always fought your battles for you, and he always will. When he makes you king, you’ll want a clear conscience about this day.”

David said, “It was God who sent you here today. Your wisdom has kept me from shedding blood and taking revenge on a man who offended me. If you hadn’t come, every male in your camp would have died.” He then accepted Abigail’s gifts.

She went back home to find Nabal feasting like a king. She didn’t tell him what happened. He got drunk and fell asleep. 

In the morning, she waited until he was sober, and then told him what she did the day before. He immediately had a heart attack and lay in a coma for 10 days. Then the Lord killed him.

David heard about his death and said, “Praise the Lord! God kept me from doing evil, and he punished Nabal for the evil that he did.”

David then sent a message to Abigail asking if she would become his wife. She agreed and went to him.

Meanwhile, Saul gave his daughter Michal to become the wife of another.

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Corner of Saul’s Robe

92 – Corner of Saul’s Robe

1 Samuel 24:1-22

Saul started chasing David from place to place. At one point, they came to a large rock formation. David and his men were on one side, and Saul’s army was on the other. If Saul had gone a little farther, he would’ve seen David and been able to get him.

Just then a messenger went to Saul and said, “Hurry! You need to come back. The Philistines have invaded our land!” So Saul had to retreat in order to save the nation from the Philistines. After that, that rock formation was called “Rock of Escape.” 

David moved his men to the canyons of En-gedi. After Saul was done fighting the Philistines, he heard that David was at En-gedi. He selected 3,000 of his best soldiers and took them toward En-gedi.

Along the way, Saul stopped, and went into a cave to relieve himself. He didn’t know David and his army were in the back of that cave. His men were thrilled that the Lord had given Saul to David. They whispered, “Kill him!”

Instead, David quietly got close and cut off the corner of Saul’s robe. Instantly, he felt guilty for doing this. He said to his men, “Hear what I’m saying. God anointed Saul to be king over Israel. Even my little finger won’t hurt him.” He held his men back so Saul could leave the cave peacefully.

 As the king was walking away, David came out and yelled, “My lord the king!” Saul stopped and looked back. When Saul stopped and looked back, David bowed down. He said, “Who are you listening to? Who told you I wanted to hurt you? Look at the corner of your robe. It’s missing because I’m holding it in my hand. God gave your life to me when you came into this cave. My men told me to kill you, but I didn’t because you’re my king. You’re the Lord’s anointed, and I would never hurt you.

“Listen to what I’m saying. I haven’t sinned against you. Still you’re trying to kill me. I’m asking the Lord to judge between us, and I know he will make things right. But I will never hurt you.”

When Saul heard this, he broke down and cried. He said, “Oh my son David, you’re more righteous than I. You have only returned good for all the bad I’ve done to you. How is it that the Lord gave me to you, and you didn’t kill me? Who’s heard of such a thing?

“Now I know it’s true. You’ll be king over Israel. Oh David my son, swear to me by the Lord. When you’re king, don’t kill my descendants. Don’t eliminate my father’s name from our tribe.” 

So David made that vow to Saul. The king then took his men and returned back home. David led his men up to the stronghold. 

About that same time, the prophet Samuel died, and everyone in Israel mourned his death.

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Story Telling by Phyllis Hostmeyer
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Ein Hedi
Waterfall at Ein Gedi, probable general location of the cave in this story.
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En Gedi aerial from south, from the Pictorial Library of Bible Lands, a valuable teaching resource produced by BiblePlaces.com
En Gedi area aerial from east, from the Pictorial Library of Bible Lands, a valuable teaching resource produced by BiblePlaces.com
En Gedi Nahal David waterfall, from the Pictorial Library of Bible Lands, a valuable teaching resource produced by BiblePlaces.com

David Earns a Wife

88 – David Earns a Wife

1 Samuel 18:1-30

After the death of Goliath, Saul’s son, Jonathan, became a close friend to David. The love between these two men was great. Jonathan gave David everything he needed to fight on the battlefield, and also what he needed for working in the king’s court.

David was successful as a commander in the army. All the people admired him, and his men became loyal to him. One day when Saul and his army came in from battle, the women from the various cities greeted them with dancing and singing. Their song was, “Saul has killed thousands. David has killed tens of thousands.” 

This made Saul furious! He said, “Listen to them. They give him more credit than me. What will they do next? Give him the kingdom?” From that day on, Saul became more and more jealous of David.

The next day, God allowed an evil spirit to take control of Saul. He started to act crazy. It was still David’s job to go play his harp when the king was in one of these moods. As David played, Saul said to himself, “I’ll end this right now. I’ll pin him to the wall.” When the time was just right, he grabbed a spear and threw it at David. David dodged it just in time, and kept playing the harp. Saul waited, and once again when the time was just right, he grabbed another spear and threw it at David. Again David dodged it just in time.

With that, Saul realized that the Spirit of the Lord had left him and was now with David. The king’s anger turned to fear.

He put David in charge of 1,000 soldiers and sent him out to battle. David was successful in every campaign he led. This increased the love that the people had for him, but it made Saul even more afraid of him.

One of the king’s daughters, named Michal, loved David. When Saul found out about this, he got an idea. He thought of a plan where the Philistines would kill David. The king had his servants go to David and say, “The king likes you so much that he’s willing for you to become his son-in-law.”

When David heard this, he said, “I am not a rich man. I can’t offer the king anything for his daughter.”

“Oh, the king doesn’t want you to pay him money. All he wants is for you to get revenge on his enemies. He wants you to kill 100 Philistines, and bring back proof that they’re dead.”

David was pleased by these terms. So he and his men went out and killed 200 Philistines and took Saul proof that they were dead. Saul had no choice but to give his daughter Michal to David.

Even more now, Saul considered David to be his enemy. Still, the Lord gave David victory every time he went out to battle. He was more successful than all of the other military officers and his name became more and more famous.

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Ebenezer

80 – Ebenezer

1 Samuel 7:1 – 8:22

The people of Israel slowly turned back to God. This was a process that took twenty years. Finally Samuel said, “If it’s true you want to serve God, get rid of all your idols. Dedicate yourself to the Lord and serve him only. Do this, and he’ll give you victory over the Philistines.”

The people did what Samuel said and got rid of their idols. So he told them to come together for a dedication service. He said, “Come, and I’ll pray for you.” The people came together and dedicated themselves to God. From then on, Samuel was their judge.

The Philistines heard that the Israelites had gathered in one place. They thought this was an act of war, so they marched into the land and prepared to attack Israel. The people were afraid when they saw the massive Philistine army.

Samuel said, “Don’t look at your enemy. Instead, focus on God and pray to him. The Lord will save us from the Philistines.” He then presented a sacrifice to God, and asked for help.

The Lord answered Samuel’s prayer. Suddenly loud thunder was heard throughout the Philistine camp. They became confused and started to run. The men of Israel chased after them and killed many of them.

Samuel set up a large stone as a monument of what happened that day. He called it Ebenezer, which means “Rock of Help.” He said, “The Lord has helped us up to this point.”

The Lord fought against the Philistines as long as Samuel lived. Every year the prophet went on a circuit so he could better judge the people. The rest of the time, he judged them from his hometown.

 When he was old, he appointed his sons to become judges. Unfortunately, they didn’t have his integrity.  They accepted bribes and judged accordingly.

The people went to Samuel and said, “Your sons are not just. Therefore, we want to be like all the other nations and have a king. Select one for us before you die.”

Samuel was shocked. He couldn’t understand why they would want such a thing. He prayed to God, but the Lord said, “Don’t be offended. They haven’t rejected you. They’ve rejected me. Do what they say, but first tell them what it will be like to have a king.”

Samuel stood before the people and described in detail how a king would abuse them and take advantage of them. He said, “A king will take your sons away from you and they’ll work for him instead of you. They’ll serve in his military, or work for him personally. He’ll take your daughters and put them to work. He’ll take your best fields, vineyards, and orchards. He’ll tax you so he can live in luxury. You’ll become his servants, and you’ll work to fulfill his every whim. When that happens, you’ll complain to the Lord, but he won’t help you.”

The people refused to take this warning. They insisted, “We still want a king! He’ll judge us and fight our battles for us.”

The Lord said, “Do as they ask. Give them a king.”

So Samuel told them to go home, and he would find them a king.

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Ark of God Returned

79 – Ark of God Returned

1 Samuel 5:1 – 6:21

Continued from the previous story

After the Philistines captured the Ark of God, they put it in the temple of their god. The next morning, they found their idol face down in front of the Ark. They set the idol back up, but the next morning it was on the ground again. This time, the head and hands were broken off.

Suddenly the city was overrun with mice, and the people had large tumors covering their bodies. The men said, “This is being caused by the Ark of Israel’s God.” So they moved it to another city. 

Immediately, God’s judgment hit that city. They were overrun with mice and the people developed large painful tumors. This caused the people to panic. The men sent the Ark of God to yet another city, but the people there yelled at them. “You’re trying to kill us! We don’t want that Ark in our city!”

They moved the Ark from city to city for seven months. Fear and death followed it wherever it went. Finally the Philistines asked their priests, “How can we send the Ark of the Lord back to Israel?”

They said, “If you send the Ark back to Israel, you must send a guilt offering with it. Then God will remove his hand of judgment, and you’ll be healed. Make five gold images of your tumors and five gold images of the mice that are destroying the land. Give glory to the God of Israel, and he will stop crushing you. But if you become stubborn, you’ll be like Pharaoh when these people left Egypt. He’ll send more plagues upon you until you send the Ark back to Israel.

“Here’s what to do. Prepare a new cart and place the Ark of God on it.  Put the gold objects in a box beside it. Select two milk cows that have never been in a yoke, and hitch them to the cart. Take the calves away from the cows and put them in a pen nearby. Then stand back and see what the cows do. If they ignore their calves and go up the road toward Israel, you’ll know it was the Lord who tormented us for seven months. But, if the cows go toward their calves, we’ll know that all of this was just something that happened by chance. It wasn’t God’s judgment.”

The men did exactly as they were instructed. They got two milk cows and separated them from their calves. They hitched the cows to a cart, even though they had never been in a yoke before. They put the Ark on a new cart, along with the five gold images of their tumors and the mice.

When all was ready, they stood back and watched. The cows went straight up the road toward Israel. They stayed on that road with their heads down, lowing as they went. The Philistine rulers walked behind them all the way to the territory of Israel.

The people of Israel were harvesting wheat when they saw the Ark coming toward them. They shouted for joy. As they watched, the cows pulled the cart to a field near a large rock and stopped. The people of Israel put the Ark on the rock. They then used the wood from the cart to offer the cows as a burnt offering to the Lord.  When the Philistine rulers saw this, they returned to their country.

There were 70 men from a nearby town who were curious about what was in the Ark of God, so they opened it and looked inside. All 70 men died by the hand of God.  This struck fear into the people, but it was the beginning of the nation of Israel turning their hearts back to God.

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Poem
P78-79-The-Ark

Charts
Geography-of-Southern-Israel

Israel-Crossroads-Mountains-Valleys

Judges-of-Israel

Photos
Cart-for-ark-of-covenant-reconstruction-at-Ekron-Museum-tb031500100.jpg

Cart for the Ark of the Covenant reconstruction, from the Pictorial Library of Bible Lands, a valuable teaching resource produced by BiblePlaces.com

Tabernacle-model-Ark-of-the-Covenant-in-Holy-of-Holies-tb052208371

Model of the Ark of the Covenant, from the Pictorial Library of Bible Lands, a valuable teaching resource produced by BiblePlaces.com

Kiriath-Jearim-Mary-and-ark-statue-from-below-tb110602104

Mary and the Ark of the Covenant atop a church at Kiriath Jearim, from the Pictorial Library of Bible Lands, a valuable teaching resource produced by BiblePlaces.com