1 Samuel 7:2 — meaning, Hebrew and Greek word study, commentary
1 Samuel 7:2
And it came to pass, while the ark abode in Kirjathjearim, that the time was long; for it was twenty years: and all the house of Israel lamented after the LORD.
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
Judges 2:4 And it came to pass, when the angel of the LORD spake these words unto all the children of Israel, that the people lifted up their voice, an…
Jeremiah 3:13 Only acknowledge thine iniquity, that thou hast transgressed against the LORD thy God, and hast scattered thy ways to the strangers under ev…
Jeremiah 3:22-25 Return, ye backsliding children, and I will heal your backslidings. Behold, we come unto thee; for thou art the LORD our God.
Jeremiah 31:9 They shall come with weeping, and with supplications will I lead them: I will cause them to walk by the rivers of waters in a straight way,…
Zechariah 12:10-11 And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall loo…
Matthew 5:4 Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.
2 Corinthians 7:10-11 For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death.
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Commentary
Matthew Henry on 1 Samuel 7:1-2
Here we must attend the ark to Kirjath-jearim, and then leave it there, to hear not a word more of it except once (Sa1 14:18), till David fetched it thence, about forty years after, Ch1 13:6.
I. We are very willing to attend it thither, for the men of Beth-shemesh have by their own folly made that a burden which might have been a blessing; and gladly would we see it among those to whom it will be a savour of life unto life, for in every place where it has been of late it has been a savour of death unto death. Now,
1. The men of Kirjath-jearim cheerfully bring it among them, Sa1 7:1. They came, at the first word, and fetched up the ark of the Lord. Their neighbours the Beth-shemites, were not…
the ark abode in Kirjath-jearim . . . twenty years--It appears, in the subsequent history, that a much longer period elapsed before its final removal from Kirjath-jearim (2Sa. 6:1-19; Ch1 13:1-14). But that length of time had passed when the Israelites began to revive from their sad state of religious decline. The capture of the ark had produced a general indifference either as to its loss or its recovery.
all the house of Israel lamented after the Lord--They were then brought, doubtless by the influence of Samuel's exhortations, to renounce idolatry, and to return to the national worship of the true God.
Adam Clarke on 1 Samuel 7:2
It was twenty years - This chapter contains the transactions of at least twenty years, but we know not the date of each event.
John Gill on 1 Samuel 7:2
And it came to pass, while the ark abode in Kirjathjearim, that the time was long,.... It could not be less than between forty and fifty years, for it remained here until the times of David, who removed it from hence after he was made king over all Israel, and when he had reigned over Judah seven years; and from the death of Eli to that time, which included the government of Samuel and Saul, it could not be less than what has been hinted:
for it was twenty years; not that this was all the time the ark was at Kirjathjearim, but it was so long there before it was much taken notice of, and sought unto, and the Lord by it; there was a great neglect of God, and his worship, which through the mea…
The Church Fathers
And it came to pass, from the day the ark remained in Kiriath-jearim, etc. Here, observe the difference between active and contemplative perfection. Behold, the ark of the Lord, which could scarcely remain even one day in the field of Joshua the Bethshemite when it arrived; and not only could it not ascend to Gabaa, that is, the high place of Bethshemesh, but it could not even clearly enter its very gates. However, reaching Kiriath-jearim and being brought to its hill, it remained there for almost twenty years, with days of virtues multiplied until the year was complete, because the contemplation of heavenly life can scarcely be tasted for even a moment by the holy ones living in the flesh. For the body, which is corrupted, weighs down the soul, and the earthly habitation depresses the mind that thinks of many things (Wisdom IX). On the other hand, active life can be celebrated with much longer duration and in the companionship of cooperating brethren, so much so that the Decalogue in it, doubled by the grace of the Gospel, or certainly perfected by the body and mind, is shown to be fulfilled almost as if it were the twentieth year of the ark remaining with them, proven by the merits of good deeds.
"From the day the ark of the Lord remained in Cariathiarim, the days were multiplied, etc." [1 Samuel 7:2] What is said, that from the day the ark remained in Cariathiarim, the days were multiplied, indeed it was already the twentieth year, and all the house of Israel rested after the Lord, should not be understood as if the twenty years in which the ark stayed in Cariathiarim until the eighth year of David's reign, when the gathering crowd of the people brought it to Jerusalem, ought to be counted. For it is found later that in Saul's times, it was taken out from this city and brought into the camp, while he fought against the Philistines. Thus it is written: And Saul said to Achia: Bring the ark of the Lord, for the ark of God was there on that day with the children of Israel. And because it is certain that David brought it to Jerusalem, having taken it from the house of Abinadab, into which it is said to have been brought, it remains to understand that in the days of Saul, it was brought back from the camp and into the aforementioned city, from which it was brought again to Jerusalem, during David's reign. Therefore, the meaning of the aforementioned passage is that from the time the ark stayed in Cariathiarim, it was the twentieth year (Book of Antiquities VI, chap. 13), when it happened to be transferred from there during Saul's times because of the war. Or certainly it was the twentieth year, when all the house of Israel still rested after the Lord, having cast away idols, serving Him alone. What it did during the entire time of Samuel's leadership, which, as testified by Josephus, was completed in twelve years; and in the first period of Saul's reign, which, according to the same historian, lasted for twenty years, no one curious about sacred history is ignorant of. For afterwards, when the spirit of the Lord had departed from Saul, and an evil spirit troubled him, especially in pursuing the innocent and just David, it was necessary that a part of his military or populace participated in his wrongdoing.
Dictionary and topics
Abinadab — Father of nobleness; i.e., “noble.” (1.) A Levite of Kirjath-jearim, in whose house the ark of the covenant was deposited after having been brought back from the land of the Philistines (1 Sam. 7:1).…
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.…
Eleazar — God has helped. (1.) The third son of Aaron (Ex. 6:23). His wife, a daughter of Putiel, bore him Phinehas (Ex. 6:25). After the death of Nadab and Abihu (Lev. 10:12; Num. 3:4) he was appointed to the…
Gibeah — A hill or hill-town, “of Benjamin” (1 Sam. 13:15), better known as “Gibeah of Saul” (11:4; Isa. 10:29). It was here that the terrible outrage was committed on the Levite’s concubine which led to the…
Judges, Book of — Is so called because it contains the history of the deliverance and government of Israel by the men who bore the title of the “judges.” The book of Ruth originally formed part of this book, but about…
Kirjath-jearim — City of jaars; i.e., of woods or forests, a Gibeonite town (Josh. 9:17) on the border of Benjamin, to which tribe it was assigned (18:15, 28). The ark was brought to this place (1 Sam. 7:1, 2) from…
Kirjathjearim — (the city of forests), first mentioned as one of the four cities of the Gibeonites, (Joshua 9:17) it next occurs as one of the landmarks of the northern boundary of Judah, ch (Joshua 15:9) and as the…
Samuel — Heard of God. The peculiar circumstances connected with his birth are recorded in 1 Sam. 1:20. Hannah, one of the two wives of Elkanah, who came up to Shiloh to worship before the Lord, earnestly…
Abinadab · 1. A Levite, in whose house the ark of God rested twenty years — 1. A Levite, in whose house the ark of God rested twenty years
Ark Of The Covenant · At Kirjath-jearim twenty years
Purification of Israel from idolatry. - Twenty years passed away from that time forward, while the ark remained at Kirjath-jearim, and all Israel mourned after Jehovah. Then Samuel said to them, "If ye turn to the Lord with all your heart, put away the strange gods from the midst of you, and the Astartes, and direct your heart firmly upon the Lord, and serve Him only, that He may save you out of the hand of the Philistines." And the Israelites listened to this appeal. The single clauses of Sa1 7:2 and Sa1 7:3 are connected together by vav consec., and are not to be separated from one another. There is no gap between these verses; but they contain the same closely and logically connected thou…
Twenty years covers the time until Samuel assembled the people at Mizpah (7:5-6). David later brought the Ark to Jerusalem (2 Sam 6:1-19).
Rashi on 1 Samuel 7:2
From the time the Ark came to rest in Kiryas Yearim. And they saw the retribution which befell them because of the sin of Eili's family, and the mighty deed which the Holy One, Blessed is He, had visited upon the Philistines.
The house … was drawn after Adonoy. Through Shmuel who would travel from city to city, judging and reproving them.
וַיִנָּהוּ' is an expression of drawing; in Aramaic, 'תִּתְּנֵהוּ לְפוּלְחָנִי' [they were drawn after My worship]. And similarly 'וְלֹא נֹהַּ בָּהֶם' it is no use to attract them to good.1 Yechezkeil 7:11. Menachem classifies 'וַיִנָּהוּ' as an expression of lamentation, as in 'נְהִי נִהְיָה' [a lament has come to be].2Michoh 2:4. And similarly 'וְלֹא נֹ…
And the whole house of Israel rested after the Lord. It symbolically designates the final happiness of Judah converted at the end, to which the entire previous passage particularly refers, although it can generally be applied to the whole church. Also, according to the letter, some think that the period of twenty years in which the ark rested in Cariathiarim indicates both the manner and the status of the time when Samuel governed Israel. For it is not to be supposed, as some chronographers are mistakenly troubled, that the twenty years during which the ark remained there extends to the eighth year of David's reign, when it was transported to Jerusalem by him. For we read below, in the beginning of Saul's reign, that it was in Gabaa of Benjamin, with the Scripture saying: "And Saul said to Achia: Bring the ark of God. For the ark of God was there on that day with the sons of Israel" (1 Samuel 14). Therefore, we must understand, although Scripture is silent about it, that it was brought back from Gabaa of Benjamin to Gabaa, that is, the hill of Cariathiarim, from where it was transferred to Jerusalem during David's reign. Do not believe that the ark of the Lord was moved through various places without the significance of mystery, so that now it visits the Lord of the Solomites, now it enters the city of woods, now it appears as a helper among the camps, now it returns to the city of woods, and having left Shiloh, rejected the tabernacle of Shiloh (Psalm 78), finally ascending the mountain of Zion, which He loved; nor does it fail to be brought back and forth even then between the camps. Moreover, Uriah, speaking with David during the Ammonite war, indicated that it was under tents (1 Chronicles 17). And this continued until the time of the dedication of the house of God, wherein it received a permanent dwelling in the Holy of Holies. Know that these things are not done in vain, but in the type of the Church, which in its manifold but most peaceful diversity of its members now enjoys the sweetest light of the theoretical life, tasting and seeing that the Lord is good, now penetrates the dense active devotion, though nourished by a lesser burning or light of the mind, yet not less fruitful in good works; now it arms the spiritual militia of virtues against the dangers of the opposing world; nor does it desert its fruitful way of life suitable for resisting…
The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).
— At Kirjath-jearim twenty years
Eleazar (Eleazer) · covenant for a while — covenant for a while
Kirjath-Jearim · The ark of the covenant remains for twenty years at — The ark of the covenant remains for twenty years at
Revivals · .Samuel — .Samuel
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).
