35 Bible Verses about Ark Of The Covenant, Events

Have seven priests carry seven rams' horns in front of the ark. On the seventh day march around the city seven times, while the priests blow the horns. When you hear the signal from the ram's horn, have the whole army give a loud battle cry. Then the city wall will collapse and the warriors should charge straight ahead." So Joshua son of Nun summoned the priests and instructed them, "Pick up the ark of the covenant, and seven priests must carry seven rams' horns in front of the ark of the Lord."read more.
And he told the army, "Move ahead and march around the city, with armed troops going ahead of the ark of the Lord." When Joshua gave the army its orders, the seven priests carrying the seven rams' horns before the Lord moved ahead and blew the horns as the ark of the covenant of the Lord followed behind. Armed troops marched ahead of the priests blowing the horns, while the rear guard followed along behind the ark blowing rams' horns. Now Joshua had instructed the army, "Do not give a battle cry or raise your voices; say nothing until the day I tell you, 'Give the battle cry.' Then give the battle cry!" So Joshua made sure they marched the ark of the Lord around the city one time. Then they went back to the camp and spent the night there. Bright and early the next morning Joshua had the priests pick up the ark of the Lord. The seven priests carrying the seven rams' horns before the ark of the Lord marched along blowing their horns. Armed troops marched ahead of them, while the rear guard followed along behind the ark of the Lord blowing rams' horns. They marched around the city one time on the second day, then returned to the camp. They did this six days in all. On the seventh day they were up at the crack of dawn and marched around the city as before -- only this time they marched around it seven times. The seventh time around, the priests blew the rams' horns and Joshua told the army, "Give the battle cry, for the Lord is handing the city over to you!

All the people, rulers, leaders, and judges were standing on either side of the ark, in front of the Levitical priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord. Both resident foreigners and native Israelites were there. Half the people stood in front of Mount Gerizim and the other half in front of Mount Ebal, as Moses the Lord's servant had previously instructed to them to do for the formal blessing ceremony.

So all the Israelites, the whole army, went up to Bethel. They wept and sat there before the Lord; they did not eat anything that day until evening. They offered up burnt sacrifices and tokens of peace to the Lord. The Israelites asked the Lord (for the ark of God's covenant was there in those days; Phinehas son of Eleazar, son of Aaron, was serving the Lord in those days), "Should we once more march out to fight the Benjaminites our brothers, or should we quit?" The Lord said, "Attack, for tomorrow I will hand them over to you."

Samuel revealed the word of the Then the Israelites went out to fight the Philistines. They camped at Ebenezer, and the Philistines camped at Aphek. The Philistines arranged their forces to fight Israel. As the battle spread out, Israel was defeated by the Philistines, who killed about four thousand men in the battle line in the field. When the army came back to the camp, the elders of Israel said, "Why did the Lord let us be defeated today by the Philistines? Let's take with us the ark of the covenant of the Lord from Shiloh. When it is with us, it will save us from the hand of our enemies.read more.
So the army sent to Shiloh, and they took from there the ark of the covenant of the Lord of hosts who sits between the cherubim. Now the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phineas, were there with the ark of the covenant of God. When the ark of the covenant of the Lord arrived at the camp, all Israel shouted so loudly that the ground shook. When the Philistines heard the sound of the shout, they said, "What is this loud shout in the camp of the Hebrews?" Then they realized that the ark of the Lord had arrived at the camp. The Philistines were scared because they thought that gods had come to the camp. They said, "Too bad for us! We've never seen anything like this! Too bad for us! Who can deliver us from the hand of these mighty gods? These are the gods who struck the Egyptians with all sorts of plagues in the desert! Be strong and act like men, you Philistines, or else you will wind up serving the Hebrews the way they have served you! Act like men and fight!" So the Philistines fought. Israel was defeated; they all ran home. The slaughter was very great; thirty thousand foot soldiers fell in battle. The ark of God was taken, and the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phineas, were killed.

Now the Philistines had captured the ark of God and brought it from Ebenezer to Ashdod. The Philistines took the ark of God and brought it into the temple of Dagon, where they positioned it beside Dagon. When the residents of Ashdod got up early the next day, Dagon was lying on the ground before the ark of the Lord. So they took Dagon and set him back in his place.read more.
But when they got up early the following day, Dagon was again lying on the ground before the ark of the Lord. The head of Dagon and his two hands were sheared off and were lying at the threshold. Only Dagon's body was left intact. (For this reason, to this very day, neither Dagon's priests nor anyone else who enters Dagon's temple step on Dagon's threshold in Ashdod.) The Lord attacked the residents of Ashdod severely, bringing devastation on them. He struck the people of both Ashdod and the surrounding area with sores. When the people of Ashdod saw what was happening, they said, "The ark of the God of Israel should not remain with us, for he has attacked both us and our god Dagon!" So they assembled all the leaders of the Philistines and asked, "What should we do with the ark of the God of Israel?" They replied, "The ark of the God of Israel should be moved to Gath." So they moved the ark of the God of Israel. But after it had been moved the Lord attacked that city as well, causing a great deal of panic. He struck all the people of that city with sores. So they sent the ark of God to Ekron. But when the ark of God arrived at Ekron, the residents of Ekron cried out saying, "They have brought the ark of the God of Israel here to kill our people!" So they assembled all the leaders of the Philistines and said, "Get the ark of the God of Israel out of here! Let it go back to its own place so that it won't kill us and our people!" The terror of death was throughout the entire city; God was attacking them very severely there. The people who did not die were struck with sores; the city's cry for help went all the way up to heaven.

When the ark of the Lord had been in the land of the Philistines for seven months, the Philistines called the priests and the omen readers, saying, "What should we do with the ark of the Lord? Advise us as to how we should send it back to its place." They replied, "If you are going to send the ark of the God of Israel back, don't send it away empty. Be sure to return it with a guilt offering. Then you will be healed, and you will understand why his hand is not removed from you."

Then the people of Kiriath Jearim came and took the ark of the Lord; they brought it to the house of Abinadab located on the hill. They consecrated Eleazar his son to guard the ark of the Lord. It was quite a long time -- some twenty years in all -- that the ark stayed at Kiriath Jearim. All the people of Israel longed for the Lord.

David again assembled all the best men in Israel, thirty thousand in number. David and all the men who were with him traveled to Baalah in Judah to bring up from there the ark of God which is called by the name of the Lord of hosts, who sits enthroned between the cherubim that are on it. They loaded the ark of God on a new cart and carried it from the house of Abinadab, which was on the hill. Uzzah and Ahio, the sons of Abinadab, were guiding the new cart.read more.
They brought it with the ark of God up from the house of Abinadab on the hill. Ahio was walking in front of the ark, while David and all Israel were energetically celebrating before the Lord, singing and playing various stringed instruments, tambourines, rattles, and cymbals. When they arrived at the threshing floor of Nacon, Uzzah reached out and grabbed hold of the ark of God, because the oxen stumbled. The Lord was so furious with Uzzah, he killed him on the spot for his negligence. He died right there beside the ark of God. David was angry because the Lord attacked Uzzah; so he called that place Perez Uzzah, which remains its name to this very day. David was afraid of the Lord that day and said, "How will the ark of the Lord ever come to me?" So David was no longer willing to bring the ark of the Lord to be with him in the City of David. David left it in the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite. The ark of the Lord remained in the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite for three months. The Lord blessed Obed-Edom and all his family. David was told, "The Lord has blessed the family of Obed-Edom and everything he owns because of the ark of God." So David went and joyfully brought the ark of God from the house of Obed-Edom to the City of David.

Let's move the ark of our God back here, for we did not seek his will throughout Saul's reign." The whole assembly agreed to do this, for the proposal seemed right to all the people. So David assembled all Israel from the Shihor River in Egypt to Lebo Hamath, to bring the ark of God from Kiriath Jearim.read more.
David and all Israel went up to Baalah (that is, Kiriath Jearim) in Judah to bring up from there the ark of God the Lord, who sits enthroned between the cherubim -- the ark that is called by his name. They transported the ark on a new cart from the house of Abinadab; Uzzah and Ahio were guiding the cart, while David and all Israel were energetically celebrating before God, singing and playing various stringed instruments, tambourines, cymbals, and trumpets. When they arrived at the threshing floor of Kidon, Uzzah reached out his hand to take hold of the ark, because the oxen stumbled. The Lord was so furious with Uzzah, he killed him, because he reached out his hand and touched the ark. He died right there before God. David was angry because the Lord attacked Uzzah; so he called that place Perez Uzzah, which remains its name to this very day. David was afraid of God that day and said, "How will I ever be able to bring the ark of God up here?" So David did not move the ark to the City of David; he left it in the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite. The ark of God remained in Obed-Edom's house for three months; the Lord blessed Obed-Edom's family and everything that belonged to him.

They brought the ark of the Lord and put it in its place in the middle of the tent that David had pitched for it. Then David offered burnt sacrifices and peace offerings before the Lord.

They brought the ark of God and put it in the middle of the tent David had pitched for it. Then they offered burnt sacrifices and peace offerings before God.

David constructed buildings in the City of David; he then prepared a place for the ark of God and pitched a tent for it.

David left Asaph and his colleagues there before the ark of the Lord's covenant to serve before the ark regularly and fulfill each day's requirements,

The king said to Nathan the prophet, "Look! I am living in a palace made from cedar, while the ark of God sits in the middle of a tent." Nathan replied to the king, "You should go and do whatever you have in mind, for the Lord is with you." That night the Lord told Nathan,read more.
"Go, tell my servant David: 'This is what the Lord says: Do you really intend to build a house for me to live in? I have not lived in a house from the time I brought the Israelites up from Egypt to the present day. Instead, I was traveling with them and living in a tent. Wherever I moved among all the Israelites, I did not say to any of the leaders whom I appointed to care for my people Israel, "Why have you not built me a house made from cedar?"'

When David had settled into his palace, he said to Nathan the prophet, "Look, I am living in a palace made from cedar, while the ark of the Lord's covenant is under a tent." Nathan said to David, "You should do whatever you have in mind, for God is with you." That night God told Nathan the prophet,read more.
"Go, tell my servant David: 'This is what the Lord says: "You must not build me a house in which to live. For I have not lived in a house from the time I brought Israel up from Egypt to the present day. I have lived in a tent that has been in various places. Wherever I moved throughout Israel, I did not say to any of the leaders whom I appointed to care for my people Israel, 'Why have you not built me a house made from cedar?'"'

Zadok and all the Levites who were with him were carrying the ark of the covenant of God. When they positioned the ark of God, Abiathar offered sacrifices until all the people had finished leaving the city. Then the king said to Zadok, "Take the ark of God back to the city. If I find favor in the Lord's sight he will bring me back and enable me to see both it and his dwelling place again.

Then Solomon convened in Jerusalem Israel's elders, all the leaders of the Israelite tribes and families, so they could witness the transferal of the ark of the Lord's covenant from the city of David (that is, Zion). All the men of Israel assembled before King Solomon during the festival in the month Ethanim (the seventh month). When all Israel's elders had arrived, the priests lifted the ark.read more.
The priests and Levites carried the ark of the Lord, the tent of meeting, and all the holy items in the tent. Now King Solomon and all the Israelites who had assembled with him went on ahead of the ark and sacrificed more sheep and cattle than could be counted or numbered. The priests brought the ark of the Lord's covenant to its assigned place in the inner sanctuary of the temple, in the most holy place, under the wings of the cherubs.

Then Solomon convened Israel's elders -- all the leaders of the Israelite tribes and families -- in Jerusalem, so they could witness the transferal of the ark of the covenant of the Lord from the City of David (that is, Zion). All the men of Israel assembled before the king during the festival in the seventh month. When all Israel's elders had arrived, the Levites lifted the ark.read more.
The priests and Levites carried the ark, the tent where God appeared to his people, and all the holy items in the tent. Now King Solomon and all the Israelites who had assembled with him went on ahead of the ark and sacrificed more sheep and cattle than could be counted or numbered. The priests brought the ark of the covenant of the Lord to its assigned place in the inner sanctuary of the temple, in the most holy place under the wings of the cherubs.

He told the Levites, who instructed all Israel about things consecrated to the Lord, "Place the holy ark in the temple which King Solomon son of David of Israel built. Don't carry it on your shoulders. Now serve the Lord your God and his people Israel!

So when the people left their tents to cross the Jordan, the priests carrying the ark of the covenant went ahead of them. When the ones carrying the ark reached the Jordan and the feet of the priests carrying the ark touched the surface of the water -- (the Jordan is at flood stage all during harvest time) -- the water coming downstream toward them stopped flowing. It piled up far upstream at Adam (the city near Zarethan); there was no water at all flowing to the sea of the Arabah (the Salt Sea). The people crossed the river opposite Jericho.read more.
The priests carrying the ark of the covenant of the Lord stood firmly on dry ground in the middle of the Jordan. All Israel crossed over on dry ground until the entire nation was on the other side.

Joshua told them, "Go in front of the ark of the Lord your God to the middle of the Jordan. Each of you is to put a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the Israelite tribes. The stones will be a reminder to you. When your children ask someday, 'Why are these stones important to you?' tell them how the water of the Jordan stopped flowing before the ark of the covenant of the Lord. When it crossed the Jordan, the water of the Jordan stopped flowing. These stones will be a lasting memorial for the Israelites."read more.
The Israelites did just as Joshua commanded. They picked up twelve stones, according to the number of the Israelite tribes, from the middle of the Jordan as the Lord had instructed Joshua. They carried them over with them to the camp and put them there. Joshua also set up twelve stones in the middle of the Jordan in the very place where the priests carrying the ark of the covenant stood. They remain there to this very day. Now the priests carrying the ark of the covenant were standing in the middle of the Jordan until everything the Lord had commanded Joshua to tell the people was accomplished, in accordance with all that Moses had commanded Joshua. The people went across quickly, and when all the people had finished crossing, the ark of the Lord and the priests crossed as the people looked on.

So Joshua son of Nun summoned the priests and instructed them, "Pick up the ark of the covenant, and seven priests must carry seven rams' horns in front of the ark of the Lord." And he told the army, "Move ahead and march around the city, with armed troops going ahead of the ark of the Lord." When Joshua gave the army its orders, the seven priests carrying the seven rams' horns before the Lord moved ahead and blew the horns as the ark of the covenant of the Lord followed behind.read more.
Armed troops marched ahead of the priests blowing the horns, while the rear guard followed along behind the ark blowing rams' horns. Now Joshua had instructed the army, "Do not give a battle cry or raise your voices; say nothing until the day I tell you, 'Give the battle cry.' Then give the battle cry!" So Joshua made sure they marched the ark of the Lord around the city one time. Then they went back to the camp and spent the night there. Bright and early the next morning Joshua had the priests pick up the ark of the Lord. The seven priests carrying the seven rams' horns before the ark of the Lord marched along blowing their horns. Armed troops marched ahead of them, while the rear guard followed along behind the ark of the Lord blowing rams' horns. They marched around the city one time on the second day, then returned to the camp. They did this six days in all. On the seventh day they were up at the crack of dawn and marched around the city as before -- only this time they marched around it seven times. The seventh time around, the priests blew the rams' horns and Joshua told the army, "Give the battle cry, for the Lord is handing the city over to you! The city and all that is in it must be set apart for the Lord, except for Rahab the prostitute and all who are with her in her house, because she hid the spies we sent. But be careful when you are setting apart the riches for the Lord. If you take any of it, you will make the Israelite camp subject to annihilation and cause a disaster. All the silver and gold, as well as bronze and iron items, belong to the Lord. They must go into the Lord's treasury." The rams' horns sounded and when the army heard the signal, they gave a loud battle cry. The wall collapsed and the warriors charged straight ahead into the city and captured it.

Then Joshua built an altar for the Lord God of Israel on Mount Ebal, just as Moses the Lord's servant had commanded the Israelites. As described in the law scroll of Moses, it was made with uncut stones untouched by an iron tool. They offered burnt sacrifices on it and sacrificed tokens of peace. There, in the presence of the Israelites, Joshua inscribed on the stones a duplicate of the law written by Moses.read more.
All the people, rulers, leaders, and judges were standing on either side of the ark, in front of the Levitical priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord. Both resident foreigners and native Israelites were there. Half the people stood in front of Mount Gerizim and the other half in front of Mount Ebal, as Moses the Lord's servant had previously instructed to them to do for the formal blessing ceremony.

The entire Israelite community assembled at Shiloh and there they set up the tent of meeting. Though they had subdued the land,

So all the Israelites, the whole army, went up to Bethel. They wept and sat there before the Lord; they did not eat anything that day until evening. They offered up burnt sacrifices and tokens of peace to the Lord.

Year after year this man would go up from his city to worship and to sacrifice to the Lord of hosts at Shiloh. It was there that the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phineas, served as the Lord's priests.

When the army came back to the camp, the elders of Israel said, "Why did the Lord let us be defeated today by the Philistines? Let's take with us the ark of the covenant of the Lord from Shiloh. When it is with us, it will save us from the hand of our enemies. So the army sent to Shiloh, and they took from there the ark of the covenant of the Lord of hosts who sits between the cherubim. Now the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phineas, were there with the ark of the covenant of God. When the ark of the covenant of the Lord arrived at the camp, all Israel shouted so loudly that the ground shook.read more.
When the Philistines heard the sound of the shout, they said, "What is this loud shout in the camp of the Hebrews?" Then they realized that the ark of the Lord had arrived at the camp. The Philistines were scared because they thought that gods had come to the camp. They said, "Too bad for us! We've never seen anything like this! Too bad for us! Who can deliver us from the hand of these mighty gods? These are the gods who struck the Egyptians with all sorts of plagues in the desert! Be strong and act like men, you Philistines, or else you will wind up serving the Hebrews the way they have served you! Act like men and fight!" So the Philistines fought. Israel was defeated; they all ran home. The slaughter was very great; thirty thousand foot soldiers fell in battle. The ark of God was taken, and the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phineas, were killed. On that day a Benjaminite ran from the battle lines and came to Shiloh. His clothes were torn and dirt was on his head. When he arrived in Shiloh, Eli was sitting in his chair watching by the side of the road, for he was very worried about the ark of God. As the man entered the city to give his report, the whole city cried out. When Eli heard the outcry, he said, "What is this commotion?" The man quickly came and told Eli. Now Eli was ninety-eight years old and his eyes looked straight ahead; he was unable to see. The man said to Eli, "I am the one who came from the battle lines! Just today I fled from the battle lines!" Eli asked, "How did things go, my son?" The messenger replied, "Israel has fled from the Philistines! The army has suffered a great defeat! Your two sons, Hophni and Phineas, are dead! The ark of God has been captured!" When he mentioned the ark of God, Eli fell backward from his chair beside the gate. He broke his neck and died, for he was old and heavy. He had judged Israel for forty years. His daughter-in-law, the wife of Phineas, was pregnant and close to giving birth. When she heard that the ark of God was captured and that her father-in-law and her husband were dead, she doubled over and gave birth. But her labor pains were too much for her. As she was dying, the women who were there with her said, "Don't be afraid! You have given birth to a son!" But she did not reply or pay any attention. She named the boy Ichabod, saying, "The glory has departed from Israel," referring to the capture of the ark of God and the deaths of her father-in-law and her husband. She said, "The glory has departed from Israel, because the ark of God has been captured."

So the Philistines fought. Israel was defeated; they all ran home. The slaughter was very great; thirty thousand foot soldiers fell in battle. The ark of God was taken, and the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phineas, were killed. On that day a Benjaminite ran from the battle lines and came to Shiloh. His clothes were torn and dirt was on his head.read more.
When he arrived in Shiloh, Eli was sitting in his chair watching by the side of the road, for he was very worried about the ark of God. As the man entered the city to give his report, the whole city cried out. When Eli heard the outcry, he said, "What is this commotion?" The man quickly came and told Eli. Now Eli was ninety-eight years old and his eyes looked straight ahead; he was unable to see. The man said to Eli, "I am the one who came from the battle lines! Just today I fled from the battle lines!" Eli asked, "How did things go, my son?" The messenger replied, "Israel has fled from the Philistines! The army has suffered a great defeat! Your two sons, Hophni and Phineas, are dead! The ark of God has been captured!" When he mentioned the ark of God, Eli fell backward from his chair beside the gate. He broke his neck and died, for he was old and heavy. He had judged Israel for forty years. His daughter-in-law, the wife of Phineas, was pregnant and close to giving birth. When she heard that the ark of God was captured and that her father-in-law and her husband were dead, she doubled over and gave birth. But her labor pains were too much for her. As she was dying, the women who were there with her said, "Don't be afraid! You have given birth to a son!" But she did not reply or pay any attention. She named the boy Ichabod, saying, "The glory has departed from Israel," referring to the capture of the ark of God and the deaths of her father-in-law and her husband. She said, "The glory has departed from Israel, because the ark of God has been captured."

Now the Philistines had captured the ark of God and brought it from Ebenezer to Ashdod. The Philistines took the ark of God and brought it into the temple of Dagon, where they positioned it beside Dagon. When the residents of Ashdod got up early the next day, Dagon was lying on the ground before the ark of the Lord. So they took Dagon and set him back in his place.read more.
But when they got up early the following day, Dagon was again lying on the ground before the ark of the Lord. The head of Dagon and his two hands were sheared off and were lying at the threshold. Only Dagon's body was left intact.

The Lord attacked the residents of Ashdod severely, bringing devastation on them. He struck the people of both Ashdod and the surrounding area with sores. When the people of Ashdod saw what was happening, they said, "The ark of the God of Israel should not remain with us, for he has attacked both us and our god Dagon!" So they assembled all the leaders of the Philistines and asked, "What should we do with the ark of the God of Israel?" They replied, "The ark of the God of Israel should be moved to Gath." So they moved the ark of the God of Israel.read more.
But after it had been moved the Lord attacked that city as well, causing a great deal of panic. He struck all the people of that city with sores. So they sent the ark of God to Ekron. But when the ark of God arrived at Ekron, the residents of Ekron cried out saying, "They have brought the ark of the God of Israel here to kill our people!" So they assembled all the leaders of the Philistines and said, "Get the ark of the God of Israel out of here! Let it go back to its own place so that it won't kill us and our people!" The terror of death was throughout the entire city; God was attacking them very severely there. The people who did not die were struck with sores; the city's cry for help went all the way up to heaven.

When the ark of the Lord had been in the land of the Philistines for seven months, the Philistines called the priests and the omen readers, saying, "What should we do with the ark of the Lord? Advise us as to how we should send it back to its place." They replied, "If you are going to send the ark of the God of Israel back, don't send it away empty. Be sure to return it with a guilt offering. Then you will be healed, and you will understand why his hand is not removed from you."read more.
They inquired, "What is the guilt offering that we should send to him?" They replied, "The Philistine leaders number five. So send five gold sores and five gold mice, for it is the same plague that has afflicted both you and your leaders. You should make images of the sores and images of the mice that are destroying the land. You should honor the God of Israel. Perhaps he will release his grip on you, your gods, and your land. Why harden your hearts like the Egyptians and Pharaoh did? When God treated them harshly, didn't the Egyptians send the Israelites on their way? So now go and make a new cart. Get two cows that have calves and that have never had a yoke placed on them. Harness the cows to the cart and take their calves from them back to their stalls. Then take the ark of the Lord and place it on the cart, and put in a chest beside it the gold objects you are sending to him as a guilt offering. You should then send it on its way. But keep an eye on it. If it should go up by the way of its own border to Beth Shemesh, then he has brought this great calamity on us. But if that is not the case, then we will know that it was not his hand that struck us; rather, it just happened to us by accident." So the men did as instructed. They took two cows that had calves and harnessed them to a cart; they also removed their calves to their stalls. They put the ark of the Lord on the cart, along with the chest, the gold mice, and the images of the sores. Then the cows went directly on the road to Beth Shemesh. They went along, mooing as they went; they turned neither to the right nor to the left. The leaders of the Philistines were walking along behind them all the way to the border of Beth Shemesh. Now the residents of Beth Shemesh were harvesting wheat in the valley. When they looked up and saw the ark, they were pleased at the sight. The cart was coming to the field of Joshua, who was from Beth Shemesh. It paused there near a big stone. Then they cut up the wood of the cart and offered the cows as a burnt offering to the Lord. The Levites took down the ark of the Lord and the chest that was with it, which contained the gold objects. They placed them near the big stone. At that time the people of Beth Shemesh offered burnt offerings and made sacrifices to the Lord. The five leaders of the Philistines watched what was happening and then returned to Ekron on the same day. These are the gold sores that the Philistines brought as a guilt offering to the Lord -- one for each of the following cities: Ashdod, Gaza, Ashkelon, Gath, and Ekron. The gold mice corresponded in number to all the Philistine cities of the five leaders, from the fortified cities to hamlet villages, to greater Abel, where they positioned the ark of the Lord until this very day in the field of Joshua who was from Beth Shemesh. But the Lord struck down some of the people of Beth Shemesh because they had looked into the ark of the Lord; he struck down 50,070 of the men. The people grieved because the Lord had struck the people with a hard blow. The residents of Beth Shemesh asked, "Who is able to stand before the Lord, this holy God? To whom will the ark go up from here?" So they sent messengers to the residents of Kiriath Jearim, saying, "The Philistines have returned the ark of the Lord. Come down here and take it back home with you."

Then the people of Kiriath Jearim came and took the ark of the Lord; they brought it to the house of Abinadab located on the hill. They consecrated Eleazar his son to guard the ark of the Lord.

So David was no longer willing to bring the ark of the Lord to be with him in the City of David. David left it in the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite. The ark of the Lord remained in the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite for three months. The Lord blessed Obed-Edom and all his family. David was told, "The Lord has blessed the family of Obed-Edom and everything he owns because of the ark of God." So David went and joyfully brought the ark of God from the house of Obed-Edom to the City of David.

David was told, "The Lord has blessed the family of Obed-Edom and everything he owns because of the ark of God." So David went and joyfully brought the ark of God from the house of Obed-Edom to the City of David. Those who carried the ark of the Lord took six steps and then David sacrificed an ox and a fatling calf. Now David, wearing a linen ephod, was dancing with all his strength before the Lord.read more.
David and all Israel were bringing up the ark of the Lord, shouting and blowing trumpets. As the ark of the Lord entered the City of David, Saul's daughter Michal looked out the window. When she saw King David leaping and dancing before the Lord, she despised him. They brought the ark of the Lord and put it in its place in the middle of the tent that David had pitched for it. Then David offered burnt sacrifices and peace offerings before the Lord.

Zadok and all the Levites who were with him were carrying the ark of the covenant of God. When they positioned the ark of God, Abiathar offered sacrifices until all the people had finished leaving the city. Then the king said to Zadok, "Take the ark of God back to the city. If I find favor in the Lord's sight he will bring me back and enable me to see both it and his dwelling place again. However, if he should say, 'I do not take pleasure in you,' then he will deal with me in a way that he considers appropriate."read more.
The king said to Zadok the priest, "Are you a seer? Go back to the city in peace! Your son Ahimaaz and Abiathar's son Jonathan may go with you and Abiathar. Look, I will be waiting at the fords of the desert until word from you reaches me." So Zadok and Abiathar took the ark of God back to Jerusalem and remained there.