The Koine Bible

And it happened in those days that the Philistines were gathered together for war against Israel, and Israel went out to meet them for war, and they encamped at Ebenezer, and the Philistines encamped in Aphek.

And the Philistines drew up for battle against Israel, and the battle turned, and the man of Israel stumbled before the Philistines, and four thousand men were struck in the battle line in the field.

And the people came into the camp, and the elders of Israel said, Why has the Lord caused us to stumble today before the Philistines? Let us take the ark of our God from Shiloh, and let it go out in the midst of us and save us from the hand of our enemies.

And the people sent to Shiloh and they take from there the ark of the Lord sitting upon the cherubim, and both the sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, with the ark.

And it came to pass, as the ark of the Lord came into the camp, that all Israel cried out with a great voice, and the earth resounded.

And the Philistines heard the cry and the Philistines said, What is this great cry in the camp of the Hebrews? And they knew that the ark of the Lord had come into the camp.

And the Philistines were afraid and said, These gods have come to them into the camp. Woe to us! Deliver us, Lord, today, because such a thing has not happened yesterday and the third day.

Woe to us; who will deliver us out of the hand of these mighty gods? These are the gods who struck Egypt with every plague and in the wilderness.

Be strong and become men, Philistines, lest you serve the Hebrews, as they served us; and you will be as men, and fight against them.

And they fought them, and every man of Israel stumbled and fled each one to his tent, and there was a very great slaughter, and thirty thousand men of Israel fell.

And the ark of God was taken, and both sons of Eli died, Ophni and Phinees.

And a Benjaminite man ran from the battle line and came to Shiloh on that day, and his garments torn, and earth upon his head.

And he came, and behold, Eli was sitting on the chair by the gate, watching the road, because his heart was amazed concerning the ark of God. And the man entered into the city to report, and the city cried out.

And Eli heard the sound of the outcry and said, What is the sound of this cry? And the man, hastening, entered and reported to Eli.

And Eli was a son of ninety years, and his eyes had failed, and he was not seeing; and Eli said to the men standing around him, What is the sound of this noise?

And the man, having hastened, came to Eli and said to him, I am the one who has come from the camp, and I have fled today from the battle line. And he said, What is the thing that has happened, child?

And the boy answered and said, Israel has fled from before the Philistines, and there has been a great slaughter among the people, and both your sons are dead, and the ark of God has been taken.

And it came to pass, as he remembered the ark of God, that he fell backward from the seat beside the gate, and his back was broken, and he died, because the man was old and heavy, and he himself had judged Israel twenty years.

And his daughter-in-law, the wife of Phinees, was with child, about to bear, and she heard the report that the ark of God had been taken and that her father-in-law and her husband had died, and she crouched and gave birth, because her pains turned back upon her.

And at her time she dies, and the women who stood by her said to her, Do not fear, for you have borne a son; but she did not answer, and her heart did not understand.

And she called the boy Ichabod, saying, Woe over the ark of God and over her father-in-law and over her husband.

And they said, The glory of Israel has been deported, when the ark of the Lord was taken.