1 Samuel 4:7

7 they were afraid, and said, "A god has come into their camp! We're lost! Nothing like this has ever happened to us before!

1 Samuel 4:7 Meaning and Commentary

1 Samuel 4:7

And the Philistines were afraid
When the spies returned, and reported to them the reason of the shouting:

for they said, God is come into the camp;
into the camp of Israel, because the ark represented him, and was the symbol of his presence; and these Heathens might take the ark itself for an idol of the Israelites; the Targum is,

``the ark of God is come''

and they said, woe unto us;
it is all over with us, destruction and ruin will be our case, victory will go on their side now their God is among them:

for there hath not been such a thing heretofore;
if by this they meant that the ark had never been in the camp of Israel before, they were mistaken; and it is no great wonder they should, being not so well acquainted with the affairs of Israel, and their customs; or rather, it was not so yesterday, or three days ago, when they were defeated; there was no shouting then: or the state of the war is altered; before we fought with the men of Israel, but now we must fight with the God of Israel also.

1 Samuel 4:7 In-Context

5 When the Covenant Box arrived, the Israelites gave such a loud shout of joy that the earth shook.

6 The Philistines heard the shouting and said, "Listen to all that shouting in the Hebrew camp! What does it mean?" When they found out that the Lord's Covenant Box had arrived in the Hebrew camp,

7 they were afraid, and said, "A god has come into their camp! We're lost! Nothing like this has ever happened to us before!

8 Who can save us from those powerful gods? They are the gods who slaughtered the Egyptians in the desert!

9 Be brave, Philistines! Fight like men, or we will become slaves to the Hebrews, just as they were our slaves. So fight like men!"