And they departed from the mount of the LORD three days' journey, and the ark of the covenant of the LORD went before them in the three days' journey to search out a resting place for them.

And when the ark went forth, Moses said, "Rise up LORD and let thine enemies be scattered, and let them that hate thee flee before thee."

and commanded the people, saying, "When ye see the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God, and the priests that are Levites bearing it: then depart ye from your places and follow after it.

Then Joshua spake unto the priests, saying, "Take up the ark of the covenant, and go before the people." And they took up the ark of the covenant, and went before the people.

Behold, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the world shall go before you into Jordan.

And the same season the LORD separated the tribe of Levi to bear the ark of the covenant of the LORD and to stand before the LORD, and to minister unto him and to bless in his name unto this day.

And Moses wrote this law and delivered it unto the priests, the sons of Levi, which bare the ark of the covenant of the LORD, and unto all the elders of Israel,

he commanded the Levites which bare the ark of the covenant of the LORD, saying,

When all the people were clean over, then went over the ark of the LORD, and also the priests before the people.

And seven priests shall bear seven trumpets of rams' horns before the ark. And the seventh day, ye shall compass the city seven times and the priests shall blow with their trumpets.

And Joshua the son of Nun called unto the priests, and said unto them, "Take up the ark of the covenant, and let seven priests bear seven trumpets of rams' horns before the ark of the LORD."

And when Joshua had spoken unto the people, the seven priests that bare the seven trumpets of rams horns before the ark of the LORD went forth and blew with the horns, and the ark of the covenant of the LORD followed after them.

And so the ark of the LORD compassed the city and went about it once: and then they returned unto the host and lodged there.

And Joshua rose early in the morning, and the priests took up the ark of the LORD, and seven priests bare seven trumpets of rams' horns before the ark of the LORD, and as they went, blew with the horns. And the men of arms went before them, and the common people came after the ark of the LORD: and as they went, they blew with the horns.

And they asked the LORD - for there was the ark of the covenant of God, in those days;

And when the people were come into their tents, the elders of Israel said, "Wherefore hath the LORD beaten us this day before the Philistines? Let us fetch the ark of the covenant of the LORD, out of Shiloh unto us, and let it come among us and save us out of the hands of our enemies." And the people sent to Shiloh, and fetched from thence the ark of the covenant of the LORD of Hosts which dwelleth between the Cherubims. And there were the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas with the ark of the covenant of God. And when the ark of the covenant of the LORD came into the host, all Israel shouted a mighty shout, so that the earth rang again.read more.
When the Philistines heard the noise of the shout they said, "What meaneth the sound of this mighty shout in the host of the Hebrews?" And they understood how that the ark of the LORD was come into the host.

And the ark of God was taken, and the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas were dead.

And the messenger answered and said, "Israel is fled before the Philistines, and there is a great slaughter chanced among the people, and thy two sons Hophni and Phinehas are dead, and thereto the ark of God is taken."

And the Philistines took the ark of God and carried it from the help stone, unto Ashdod, and brought it unto the house of Dagon, and set it by Dagon. And when they of Ashdod were up in the morning, behold, Dagon lay groveling upon the earth before the ark of the LORD. And they took Dagon and set him in his place again.read more.
And when they were up early in the next morning behold, Dagon lay groveling upon the ground before the ark of the LORD, and his head and his two hands cut off upon the threshold, that the body only was left on him. Wherefore neither the priests of Dagon, neither any man that cometh into Dagon's house might tread on the threshold of Dagon in Ashdod, unto this day. But the hand of the LORD was heavy upon them of Ashdod, and he destroyed them, and smote them with hemorrhoids; both Ashdod and all the coasts thereof. And when the men of Ashdod saw that it was so, they said, "The ark of the God of Israel shall not abide here with us, for his hand is sore upon us and upon Dagon our god." And so they sent and gathered all the lords of the Philistines unto them and said, "What shall we do with the ark of the God of Israel?" Then said they of Gath, "Let the ark of the God of Israel be carried about." And they carried the ark of the God of Israel about. And when they had carried it about, the hand of the LORD was in the city with a mighty great plague, and he smote the men of the city both small and great: and they were smitten in their secret places with the hemorrhoids. Then they sent the ark of God to Ekron. And as soon as the ark of God came to Ekron, the Ekronites cried out saying, "They have brought the ark of the God of Israel unto us: to slay us and our people." Then they sent and fetched all the lords of the Philistines unto them and said, "Send away the ark of the God of Israel, and let it go home again unto his own place, that it slay us not with our people." For there was a plague of death throughout all the city, and the hand of God was exceeding sore there, insomuch that they which died not, were smitten with the hemorrhoids: so that the cry of the city went up to heaven.

And so when ark of the LORD had been in the country of the Philistines seven months, the Philistines called for the priests and the soothsayers saying, "What shall we do with the ark of the LORD? Tell us wherewith we shall send it home again." They answered, "If you send the ark of the God of Israel home again, send it not empty: But reward it with a trespass offering; and then ye shall be whole, and it shall be known to you, why his hand departeth not from you."read more.
Then said they, "What shall be the trespass offering which we shall reward him with?" And they answered, "Five golden arses with hemorrhoids and five golden mice, according to the number of the lords of the Philistines. For it was one manner of plague that was on you all, and on your lords too. Wherefore ye shall make images like to your arses with hemorrhoids and images like to your mice that destroyed your land, and shall give glory unto the God of Israel: that he may take his hand from off you, and from off your gods, and from off your land. Wherefore should ye harden your hearts as the Egyptians and Pharaoh hardened their hearts? Which for all that, when he had played his pageants with them, were fain to let the people go and depart. Now therefore make a new cart and take two milk kine, on whose neck never came yoke. And tie the kine in the cart, and bring the calves home from them. Then take the ark of the LORD and put it in the cart, and put the Jewels of gold - which ye reward him with for a trespass offering - in a forcer by the side thereof and send it away and let it go. And mark if he go up by the way that leadeth unto his own coast, to Bethshemesh, then it is he that did us this great evil. But and if he do not, then it is not his hand that smote us, but it was a chance that happened us." And the men did even so: they took two kine that gave milk and tied them in the cart, and kept the calves at home, and they laid the ark of the LORD upon the cart and the forcer with the mice of gold and the images of their arses with hemorrhoids. And the kine took the straight way to Bethshemesh, both one way, and as they went, lowed, turning neither to the righthand nor to the left. And the lords of the Philistines went after them until they came to the borders of Bethshemesh. And they of Bethshemesh were reaping their wheat harvest in the valley. And they lifted up their eyes and spied the ark. And rejoiced when they saw it. And the cart came into the grove of one Joshua, a Bethshemite, and stood still there. There was there also a great stone. And they clave the wood of the cart and offered the kine a burnt offering unto the LORD. And the Levites took down the ark of the LORD and the forcer that was thereby, wherein the Jewels of gold were and put them on the great stone. And the men of Bethshemesh sacrificed burnt sacrifice and offered offerings that same day unto the LORD. And when the five lords of the Philistines had seen it, they returned to Ekron the same day. These are the golden arses with hemorrhoids which the Philistines gave to amends for a trespass offering to the LORD: for Ashdod one; for Gaza one; for Ashkelon one; for Gath one; and for Ekron one. And the golden mice were according to the number of all the cities of the Philistines through the five lordships: both of walled towns and of towns unwalled, even unto the great stone whereon they set down the ark of the LORD: which stone remaineth unto this day in the field of Joshua the Bethshemite. And he plagued the men of Bethshemesh, because they had seen the ark of the LORD. And he slew of the people fifty thousand and three score and ten persons. And the people lamented, because the LORD had slain so great a slaughter of them. And the men of Bethshemesh said, "Who is able to stand before the LORD, so holy a God, and to whom shall he go from us?" And they sent messengers to the inhabiters of Kiriathjearim saying, "The Philistines have brought home again the Ark of the LORD: come down and fetch it up to you."

And he plagued the men of Bethshemesh, because they had seen the ark of the LORD. And he slew of the people fifty thousand and three score and ten persons. And the people lamented, because the LORD had slain so great a slaughter of them.

And the men of Kiriathjearim came and set up the ark of the LORD, and brought it unto the house of Abinadab in Gibeah and sanctified Eleazar his son to wait upon the ark of the LORD.

And then Saul said unto Ahijah, "Bring hither the ark of God." For the ark of God was at the time with the children of Israel.

And so David would not bring the Ark of the LORD with him into the city of David. But carried it into the house of Obededom, a Gittite. And the Ark of the LORD continued in the house of Obededom the Gittite, three months; and the LORD blessed Obededom and all his household.

And so David brought not the Ark home to him in the city of David: But turned it in to the house of Obededom o Gittite, and the Ark of God was with Obededom in his house, three months. And the LORD blessed the house of Obededom and all that he had.

And Uriah said unto David, "The ark and Israel and Judah dwell in pavilions; and my lord Joab and the servants of my lord lie in tents upon the flat earth - and should I then go into mine house, to eat and to drink and to lie with my wife? By thy life and as sure as thy soul liveth, I will not do that thing."

he said unto Nathan the prophet, "Behold, I dwell in a house of cedar trees, but the Ark of God dwelleth in the midst of curtains."

And David made him houses in the city of David, and prepared a place for the Ark of God, and pitched for it a tent.

When they had brought in the Ark of God they set it in the tent that David had pitched for it. And they brought burnt sacrifice and peace offerings before God.

And as David dwelt in his house he said to Nathan the prophet, "Lo, I dwell in a house of cedar tree: and the Ark of the LORD's covenant dwelleth under curtains."

But they were blinded to go up into the hilltop: Neverthelater, the ark of the covenant of the LORD and Moses departed not out of the host.