12th.: Philistines 2, Israel 0; God 5, Philistines 0
The Philistines and the Israelites had a rematch.
The Israelites brought with them the Ark of the Covenant.
This scared the Philistines.
Desperation double motivated the Philistines.
The Philistines won the second battle.
Killed the priest’s sons, Hophni, and Phinehas, and
Captured the Ark of the Covenant (1st Sam. 4:6-11).
After that things went bad for the Philistines.
The Philistines brought the Ark of the Covenant home.
That is when plagues plagued the Philistines (see 1st Samuel chapter 5).
Many Philistines died.
The Philistines then asked their own priests what to do.
The priests adviced, “If ye send away the ark of the God of Israel, send it not empty. But in any wise return him a trespass offering. Then ye shall be healed.” (1st Sam. 6:4a).
The priests even gave a sign that would indicate if the plagues were coming
from the Israelite God, or were simply bad luck.
“If it [the Ark] goes up by the way of his own coast to Bethshemesh, then he has done us this great evil. But if not, then we shall know that it is not his hand that smote us; it was a chance that happened to us.” (1st Sam. 6:9).
The unmanned, ox-pulled, cart with the Ark made a bee-line for the town of Bethshemesh in Israel (1st Sam. 6:12). God had personally confronted the Philistines.
Note that the Philistines did not forsake their gods for the one true God.
Likewise, do we forsake other things for God, or God for other things?
No man can serve two masters. For either he will hate the one, and love the other, or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. (Matt. 6:24)