1 Samuel 6:21

And they sent messengers to the inhabitants of Kirjathjearim, saying, The Philistines have brought again the ark of the LORD; come ye down, and fetch it up to you.

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Word by word — the Hebrew

Word	Hebrew	Strong’s	Meaning
sent	וַֽיִּשְׁלְחוּ֙ vai.yish.le.Chu	H7971	to send away · conjunction + verb, qal sequential imperfect, 3rd person masculine plural
messengers	מַלְאָכִ֔ים mal.'a.Khim	H4397	a messenger · noun, common masculine plural absolute
inhabitants	יוֹשְׁבֵ֥י yo.she.Vei	H3427	properly · verb, qal active participle, masculine plural construct
Kirjath-jearim	קִרְיַת kir.yat-	H7157	Kirjath-Jearim or Kirjath-Arim · proper noun, a place name
saying	לֵאמֹ֑ר le.Mor	H559	to say (used with great latitude) · preposition + verb, qal infinitive construct
Philistines	פְלִשְׁתִּים֙ fe.lish.Tim	H6430	a Pelishtite or inhabitant of Pelesheth · noun, gentilic masculine plural absolute
again	הֵשִׁ֤בוּ he.Shi.vu	H7725	to turn back (hence · verb, hiphil perfect, 3rd person common plural
ark	אֲר֣וֹן 'a.Ron	H727	a box · noun, common masculine singular construct
LORD	יְהוָ֔ה Yah.weh	H3068	Jehovah · proper noun, a title
down	רְד֕וּ re.Du	H3381	to descend (literally · verb, qal imperative, 2nd person masculine plural
up	הַעֲל֥וּ ha.'a.Lu	H5927	to ascend · verb, hiphil imperative, 2nd person masculine plural

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).

Cross-references

1 Chronicles 13:5-6 So David gathered all Israel together, from Shihor of Egypt even unto the entering of Hemath, to bring the ark of God from Kirjath-jearim.
Joshua 9:17 And the children of Israel journeyed, and came unto their cities on the third day. Now their cities were Gibeon, and Chephirah, and Beeroth,…
Joshua 18:14 And the border was drawn thence, and compassed the corner of the sea southward, from the hill that lieth before Beth-horon southward; and th…
Joshua 15:9 And the border was drawn from the top of the hill unto the fountain of the water of Nephtoah, and went out to the cities of mount Ephron; an…
Joshua 15:60 Kirjath-baal, which is Kirjath-jearim, and Rabbah; two cities with their villages:
Judges 18:12 And they went up, and pitched in Kirjath-jearim, in Judah: wherefore they called that place Mahaneh-dan unto this day: behold, it is behind…
Psalms 78:60 So that he forsook the tabernacle of Shiloh, the tent which he placed among men;
Jeremiah 7:12 But go ye now unto my place which was in Shiloh, where I set my name at the first, and see what I did to it for the wickedness of my people…

Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).

Commentary

Matthew Henry on 1 Samuel 6:19–end

Here is, 1. The sin of the men of Beth-shemesh: They looked into the ark of the Lord, Sa1 6:19. Every Israelite had heard great talk of the ark, and had been possessed with a profound veneration for it; but they had been told that it was lodged within a veil, and even the high priest himself might not look upon it but once a year, and then through a cloud of incense. Perhaps this made many say (as we are apt to covet that which is forbidden) what a great deal they would give for a sight of it. Some of these Beth-shemites, we may suppose, for that reason, rejoiced to see the ark (Sa1 6:13) more than for the sake of the public. Yet this did not content them; they might see it, but they would g…

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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on 1 Samuel 6:21

Kirjath-jearim--"the city of woods," also called Kirjath-baal (Jos 15:60; Jos 18:14; Ch1 13:6-7). This was the nearest town to Beth-shemesh; and being a place of strength, it was a more fitting place for the residence of the ark. Beth-shemesh being in a low plain, and Kirjath-jearim on a hill, explains the message, "Come ye down, and fetch it up to you." Next: 1 Samuel Chapter 7

Adam Clarke on 1 Samuel 6:21

To the inhabitants of Kirjath-jearim - They wished the ark away out of their village, but why they sent to this city instead of sending to Shiloh, does not appear: probably Shiloh had been destroyed by the Philistines, after the late defeat of Israel. This is most likely, as the ark was never more taken back to that place. It was a very ancient usage, when a plague or other calamity infested a country, city, etc. for the magicians to form an image of the destroyer, or of the things on which the plague particularly rested, in gold, silver, ivory, wax, clay, etc., under certain configurations of the heavens; and to set this up in some proper place, that the evils thus represented might be driv…

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John Gill on 1 Samuel 6:21

The Church Fathers

32. Kiriath-jearim is called their city. What is the city of the saints, if not that Jerusalem which is above? Who then are its inhabitants, if not perfect men separated from the love of the world by their lofty manner of life? Of whom indeed one, more effective than the rest, says: "Our conversation is in heaven" (Phil. 3:20). To these, of course, messengers must be sent to receive the ark of God: because for the election of priests, holy men must not only be received but also invited. And it should be noted that to these more exalted men it is said through messengers: Come down and bring it back. For they come down because they obey: for they would by no means come down if they refused with a proud mind to render what brotherly love seeks from them. Then indeed they are truly exalted, when they do not withdraw themselves from Christ; when they do not reject what is imposed upon them by the judgment of their brethren.
— Gregory the Dialogist, Commentary on 1 Kings, Book 3, Chapter 4

The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).

Dictionary and topics

David — Beloved, the eighth and youngest son of Jesse, a citizen of Bethlehem. His father seems to have been a man in humble life. His mother’s name is not recorded. Some think she was the Nahash of 2 Sam.…

Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).

1 Samuel 6:21

Word by word — the Hebrew

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on 1 Samuel 6:19–end

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on 1 Samuel 6:21

Adam Clarke on 1 Samuel 6:21

John Gill on 1 Samuel 6:21

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

1 Samuel 6:21

Word by word — the Hebrew

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on 1 Samuel 6:19–end

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on 1 Samuel 6:21

Adam Clarke on 1 Samuel 6:21

John Gill on 1 Samuel 6:21

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

Keil & Delitzsch on 1 Samuel 6:19–end

Tyndale Open Study Notes on 1 Samuel 6:21

Rashi on 1 Samuel 6:19