Don't Peek Into the Ark

1 Samuel 6:19

The Philistine’s stole the Ark of the Covenant when Israel brought it out of Shiloh onto the battlefield to stop the invaders. It did not work, for Israel was under punishment of God for the filthy lifestyles and practices of the high priest Eli and his two sons Hophni and Phineas. The two sons were killed in the battle and Eli died when he fell and broke his neck upon hearing that the Ark was gone (1 Samuel 4:18).

With the Ark of God in their possession, the Philistines fell under a terrible curse with all of the men in whatever the Ark entered being struck with “emerods in their secret parts” (1 Samuel 5:9). These were terrible sores and are believed to have possibly been hemorrhoids. Other men were simply killed by the hand of God. It became clear to the Philistines that God wanted His Ark back!

To test and see whether or not the curse that was upon them was from God, they placed the Ark on a cart and yoked “two milch kine” to it (1 Samuel 6:7). These were two cows that had just calved, and it would take an act of God to force these cows to walk away from their calves. An act of God is exactly what they got as they watched in amazement as the two cows walked straight to the Jewish village of Bethshemesh, “lowing as they went” (1 Samuel 6:12).

When the Ark arrived in Bethshemesh, which means “house of the sun” in Hebrew, the men of the city lifted the lid off the Ark and looked inside. Perhaps they wanted to make sure that the Philistines had not taken anything, but whatever the reason, God killed 50,070 of them. Numbers chapter 4 had warned that no one was to touch the holy things of God, so the act of touching the surface of the Ark was bad enough, but to pear inside was to lift the mercy seat which was sprinkled with sacrificial blood. To see the contents of the Ark you had to move the blood out of the way, effectively ignoring the fact that a lamb had lost its life to keep what was covered hidden from view.

Hebrews 9:4 tells us that there were three items in the Ark: a golden pot of manna, Aaron’s rod that budded and the 10 Commandments. All three items were a result of man’s rebellion against God. The manna came when Israel complained about God’s provision. Aaron’s rod budded as a result of an insurrection that was against God’s priest, Aaron. The Ten Commandments were a result of Israel bragging that whatever God told them to do, they were capable of doing it (Exodus 19:8). God wanted all signs of man’s rebellion and sin to be covered by blood so that when He looks at them, all that He will see is the sacrifice.

God told Israel in the land of Egypt to mark the door posts and the door mantle with the blood of a spotless lamb and that when the angel of death came over to kill the firstborn of all of the land, the blood would cause him to “pass over you” (Exodus 12:13). The precious blood has always caused God to “pass over”. While the blood of bulls and of goats could not take the sin away (Hebrews 10:4), Jesus came for that very reason. Now that all of our sins are beneath the shed blood of Jesus, may we never lift the lid again! He does not see your sin, so why should you?

Don't Peek Into the Ark

1 Samuel 6:19

The Philistine’s stole the Ark of the Covenant when Israel brought it out of Shiloh onto the battlefield to stop the invaders. It did not work, for Israel was under punishment of God for the filthy lifestyles and practices of the high priest Eli and his two sons Hophni and Phineas. The two sons were killed in the battle and Eli died when he fell and broke his neck upon hearing that the Ark was gone (1 Samuel 4:18).

With the Ark of God in their possession, the Philistines fell under a terrible curse with all of the men in whatever the Ark entered being struck with “emerods in their secret parts” (1 Samuel 5:9). These were terrible sores and are believed to have possibly been hemorrhoids. Other men were simply killed by the hand of God. It became clear to the Philistines that God wanted His Ark back!

To test and see whether or not the curse that was upon them was from God, they placed the Ark on a cart and yoked “two milch kine” to it (1 Samuel 6:7). These were two cows that had just calved, and it would take an act of God to force these cows to walk away from their calves. An act of God is exactly what they got as they watched in amazement as the two cows walked straight to the Jewish village of Bethshemesh, “lowing as they went” (1 Samuel 6:12).

When the Ark arrived in Bethshemesh, which means “house of the sun” in Hebrew, the men of the city lifted the lid off the Ark and looked inside. Perhaps they wanted to make sure that the Philistines had not taken anything, but whatever the reason, God killed 50,070 of them. Numbers chapter 4 had warned that no one was to touch the holy things of God, so the act of touching the surface of the Ark was bad enough, but to pear inside was to lift the mercy seat which was sprinkled with sacrificial blood. To see the contents of the Ark you had to move the blood out of the way, effectively ignoring the fact that a lamb had lost its life to keep what was covered hidden from view.

Hebrews 9:4 tells us that there were three items in the Ark: a golden pot of manna, Aaron’s rod that budded and the 10 Commandments. All three items were a result of man’s rebellion against God. The manna came when Israel complained about God’s provision. Aaron’s rod budded as a result of an insurrection that was against God’s priest, Aaron. The Ten Commandments were a result of Israel bragging that whatever God told them to do, they were capable of doing it (Exodus 19:8). God wanted all signs of man’s rebellion and sin to be covered by blood so that when He looks at them, all that He will see is the sacrifice.

God told Israel in the land of Egypt to mark the door posts and the door mantle with the blood of a spotless lamb and that when the angel of death came over to kill the firstborn of all of the land, the blood would cause him to “pass over you” (Exodus 12:13). The precious blood has always caused God to “pass over”. While the blood of bulls and of goats could not take the sin away (Hebrews 10:4), Jesus came for that very reason. Now that all of our sins are beneath the shed blood of Jesus, may we never lift the lid again! He does not see your sin, so why should you?

Peace in the Valley

Psalms 23:4

There is a change of direction in the 4th verse of the great Shepherd’s Psalm. Notice that in verse 2, “he maketh me…” and “he leadeth me…” Then in verse 3, “He leadeth me…” occurs again. In each instance, the Shepherd is leading and providing for the direction of His sheep. The Psalmist then says, “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death…” (Psalms 23:4). In this verse there is no mention of the sheep being led, only that they walk through of their own free will. This is a type of all of us wandering off of the beaten path of righteousness (verse 3) and into the dark valleys of life.

There are three important things to note about this journey into the valley. First, we should remember that it is only a valley, and valleys do not go on forever. They are simply depressions between mountains, so there are brighter days to come. This valley also has a name, “the valley of the shadow of death”. It is not “Death Valley”, it is only death’s shadow that we will see while here. Only a small child or an animal would fear a shadow on a wall, thinking that it might be a dark individual chasing them, but a mature adult would not harbor such fear. We know that in order for there to be shadows, there must be light shining on the other side of an object. Based on the fact that Malachi calls Jesus the “Sun of Righteousness”, who do you suppose that light might be?

Second, David says, “I will fear no evil: for thou art with me”. David has no fear because he knows that shadows cannot hurt him. No matter what evil lurks in the valley, causing the shadows, David has confidence in the Shepherd, realizing that Jesus’ very presence will calm the storms of doubt and fear. You have not been given a spirit of fear (2 Timothy 1:7), so do not accept it! As the old song says, ‘There is nothing to fear when Jesus is near; I’m living in sunlight now’.

Finally, “thy rod and thy staff they comfort me”. The rod is used by the shepherd to attack the predators that lurk near the flock. The Hebrew word for ‘rod’ as used here is typically translated ‘scepter’ or even ‘tribe’. It denotes more than a mere stick of wood; it is symbolic of the authority of God and His covenant keeping ways. He protects the sheep with the rod of His Covenant, bound to care for us by the finished work of His Son Jesus Christ.

The staff has a crook at the end of it, used for pulling wayward sheep out of ditches and trenches. When we slip off of the path, the Shepherd will put the staff under our shoulders and pull us close to Him. The staff is also a symbol of the healing and restorative power of God. Elisha placed his staff on a dead child and the life came back to him (2 Kings 4:29-37). The staff of our Good Shepherd will bring life back to weary legs.

Even though the Shepherd does not lead us into the valley of the shadow of death, He will not merely wait on the other side for us to emerge either. If we go in, He will go in, though it may not be in His perfect plan for us. Remember, no matter what you are going through, He will go through it with you. Do not blame yourself, for there are valleys between mountains and while He may not lead you into it, He will always lead you out.

Don't Peek Into the Ark

1 Samuel 6:19

The Philistine’s stole the Ark of the Covenant when Israel brought it out of Shiloh onto the battlefield to stop the invaders. It did not work, for Israel was under punishment of God for the filthy lifestyles and practices of the high priest Eli and his two sons Hophni and Phineas. The two sons were killed in the battle and Eli died when he fell and broke his neck upon hearing that the Ark was gone (1 Samuel 4:18).

With the Ark of God in their possession, the Philistines fell under a terrible curse with all of the men in whatever the Ark entered being struck with “emerods in their secret parts” (1 Samuel 5:9). These were terrible sores and are believed to have possibly been hemorrhoids. Other men were simply killed by the hand of God. It became clear to the Philistines that God wanted His Ark back!

To test and see whether or not the curse that was upon them was from God, they placed the Ark on a cart and yoked “two milch kine” to it (1 Samuel 6:7). These were two cows that had just calved, and it would take an act of God to force these cows to walk away from their calves. An act of God is exactly what they got as they watched in amazement as the two cows walked straight to the Jewish village of Bethshemesh, “lowing as they went” (1 Samuel 6:12).

When the Ark arrived in Bethshemesh, which means “house of the sun” in Hebrew, the men of the city lifted the lid off the Ark and looked inside. Perhaps they wanted to make sure that the Philistines had not taken anything, but whatever the reason, God killed 50,070 of them. Numbers chapter 4 had warned that no one was to touch the holy things of God, so the act of touching the surface of the Ark was bad enough, but to pear inside was to lift the mercy seat which was sprinkled with sacrificial blood. To see the contents of the Ark you had to move the blood out of the way, effectively ignoring the fact that a lamb had lost its life to keep what was covered hidden from view.

Hebrews 9:4 tells us that there were three items in the Ark: a golden pot of manna, Aaron’s rod that budded and the 10 Commandments. All three items were a result of man’s rebellion against God. The manna came when Israel complained about God’s provision. Aaron’s rod budded as a result of an insurrection that was against God’s priest, Aaron. The Ten Commandments were a result of Israel bragging that whatever God told them to do, they were capable of doing it (Exodus 19:8). God wanted all signs of man’s rebellion and sin to be covered by blood so that when He looks at them, all that He will see is the sacrifice.

God told Israel in the land of Egypt to mark the door posts and the door mantle with the blood of a spotless lamb and that when the angel of death came over to kill the firstborn of all of the land, the blood would cause him to “pass over you” (Exodus 12:13). The precious blood has always caused God to “pass over”. While the blood of bulls and of goats could not take the sin away (Hebrews 10:4), Jesus came for that very reason. Now that all of our sins are beneath the shed blood of Jesus, may we never lift the lid again! He does not see your sin, so why should you?