1 Sa. 4: Ark of War

1 Samuel 4:17 "The man who brought the news replied, 'Israel fled before the Philistines, and the army has suffered heavy losses. Also your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, are dead, and the ark of God has been captured.'"

Well...just about everything you would think could go wrong for Israel does, right here in chapter 4.

First off, they go to war with the Philistines. Not sure why. The point is, the Philistines kick their hineys. Confused, the Israelites remember something way back about needing God with them or some such thing, so they drag the ark out of the place it belongs and bring it to the battlefield. The ark made people erupt in cheers and screaming and shouting. The Philistines are like, "What's the deal, what's going on?" So they have quite the pep talk amongst themselves. But now that the ark is there, and with God on their side, the Israelites stomp the Philistines. Just kidding, the Philistines actually kill 30,000 Israelite foot soldiers. So it was even worse with the ark.

The Philistines captured the ark, and I am assuming that they did their research and new it was of some value. And Hophni and Phinehas died, fulfilling 1 Samuel 2:34.

Eli is told about this defeat, the death of his sons, and the capture of the ark. And it was too much for him to handle. He fell backward off his chair and broke his neck. Which is amazing. Can you imagine dying with your last thought being the capture of the ark, and possibly questioning everything you believed?

Phinehas' wife gave birth to a boy named Ichabod. Meaning "no glory." Ain't that right.