1 Samuel 5:10

10 Therefore they sent the ark of God to Ekron. And it came to pass, as the ark of God came to Ekron, that the Ekronites cried out, saying, "They have brought about the ark of the God of Israel to us to slay us and our people."

1 Samuel 5:10 Meaning and Commentary

1 Samuel 5:10

Therefore they sent the ark of God to Ekron
Another of the five principalities of the Philistines, about ten miles from Gath, where Baalzebub, or the god of the fly, was worshipped:

and it came to pass, that as the ark of God came to Ekron;
and had been there some little time:

that the Ekronites cried out;
when they perceived the hand of God was upon them, as upon the other cities; these were the chief magistrates of the city, with the lord of them, as appears by what follows:

saying, they have brought about the ark of the God of Israel to us;
from one city to another, and at length to us:

to slay us and our people;
not that this was their intention, but so it was eventually.

1 Samuel 5:10 In-Context

8 They sent therefore and gathered all the lords of the Philistines unto them and said, "What shall we do with the ark of the God of Israel?" And they answered, "Let the ark of the God of Israel be carried about unto Gath." And they carried the ark of the God of Israel about thither.

9 And it was so that, after they had carried it about, the hand of the LORD was against the city with a very great destruction; and He smote the men of the city, both small and great, and they had hemorrhoids in their secret parts.

10 Therefore they sent the ark of God to Ekron. And it came to pass, as the ark of God came to Ekron, that the Ekronites cried out, saying, "They have brought about the ark of the God of Israel to us to slay us and our people."

11 So they sent and gathered together all the lords of the Philistines and said, "Send away the ark of the God of Israel, and let it go again to his own place, that it slay us not, and our people." For there was a deadly destruction throughout all the city; the hand of God was very heavy there.

12 And the men who died not were smitten with the hemorrhoids; and the cry of the city went up to heaven.