The Ark of God
I Samuel 4-7
Deuteronomistic History
10/14/2011
Document: Ark of the LORD, on BlackBoard
Story Synopsis
At Ebenezer, the Israelites lose a battle to the Philistines. To gain a victory, they decide to bring the Ark of God to the battle so that they might win having the Name of the Lord on their side.
The High Priest Eli loses his sons, an act which suggests that priestly immorality brought on defeat. Eli died from shock of the Ark of God being taken by the Philistines, and he fell over and broke his neck, dying instantly.
Meanwhile, the Philistines take the Ark to the temple of their god, Dagon. The next day the find the statue of the god fallen over. On the second day, they find it fallen over again, but this time with its hands and head dismembered. Then the Philistines wanted to get rid of the Ark (plagues also devastated the land), so they crafted golden mice and tumors (plagues) and sent them off with the Ark and cattle back to the Israelites.
Etiologies are present: 1) Dagon's priest always stepped over the threshold, and 2) the Ark ends up in Kireath Jearim for around 20 years.
Key issue: Whose god is greater?
Deity Capture Traditions
- nations would return captured deities at times; such was the case of Marduk
- in particular, the Hittites and the Assyrians would return gods
- this practice was possibly a form of humiliation to the conquered nations
From Article:
Eli's sons took from the offering and they ate as much as they could of it. They did not even offer some sacrifices but ate them instead.
*Note: the Ark acts simply as a placeholder for the hand of the Lord*
Moral Chronology:
- Judgment looms over Eli's sons
- The Ark is lost to the Philistines
- God's power is displayed against sinful priests
- A lesson is given to teach the Israelites about God's power
No comments:
Post a Comment