1 Samuel 5:10

10 Therefore they sent the ark of the Lord into Ekron. And when the ark of the Lord had come into Ekron, men of Ekron cried [out], and said, They have brought to us the ark of God of Israel, that he slay us and our people. (And so they sent the Ark of the Lord to Ekron. And when the Ark of the Lord had come to Ekron, the men of Ekron cried out, and said, They have brought the Ark of the God of Israel to us, so that now he will kill 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 And they sent, and gathered all the wise men, either princes, of Philistines to them, and said, What shall we do of the ark of God of Israel? And the men of Gath answered, The ark of God of Israel be led about; and they led about the ark of God of Israel. (And they sent for, and gathered together, all the princes of the Philistines, and said to them, What shall we do with the Ark of the God of Israel? And the men answered, The Ark of the God of Israel should be taken to Gath; and so they took the Ark of the God of Israel there.)

9 And while they led it about, the hand of the Lord was made upon all the cities about, of full great slaughter; and he smote men of each city, from a little man till to the more, and the lower entrails of them waxed rotten, and came forth; and men of Gath took counsel, and they made to themselves seats of skins, either cushions. (And after they took it there, the hand of the Lord was made upon all the city with a full great slaughter; and he struck the men of the city, from a small, or a low, man unto a great man, and their lower entrails grew rotten, and came forth; and the men of Gath took counsel together, and then they made leather cushions for themselves.)

10 Therefore they sent the ark of the Lord into Ekron. And when the ark of the Lord had come into Ekron, men of Ekron cried [out], and said, They have brought to us the ark of God of Israel, that he slay us and our people. (And so they sent the Ark of the Lord to Ekron. And when the Ark of the Lord had come to Ekron, the men of Ekron cried out, and said, They have brought the Ark of the God of Israel to us, so that now he will kill us and our people!)

11 Then they sent, and gathered together all the wise men, either princes, of Philistines; which said, Deliver ye the ark of God of Israel, and turn it again into his place, and slay not us with our people. For dread of death was made in all [the] cities, and the hand of the Lord was full grievous. (And they sent for, and gathered together, all the princes of the Philistines; and they said, Send the Ark of the God of Israel away, and let it return to its own place, so that it shall not kill us and our people. For the fear of death was made in all the city, and the hand of the Lord was very grievous there.)

12 And the men, that were not dead (who did not die), were smitten in the privy parts of their buttocks, and the yelling of each city went up into heaven.