THE LORD IS THE HOLY GOD


1 Samuel 4:1b-7:1

Key Verse: 6:20a



  1. Who were the Philistines? (Ge10:14; Jos13:2-3; Jdg3:1-4; 1Sa4:9) What happened when the Israelites went out to fight them? (4:1b-2) How did the Israelites interpret their defeat, and what did they do? (4:3-4)



  1. How often is the expression “the ark of the LORD’s covenant” repeated? (4:3-5) What did this mean? (Ex25:21-22; 24:7-8) What was wrong with their faith? (Mk7:6)



  1. When the ark came into the Israelite camp, how did the people respond? (4:5) How did the Philistines react? (4:6-9) How did they view the God of Israel? (4:8) What was the result of the battle? (4:10-11) What is the meaning of the ark being captured?



  1. What news was brought to Eli? (4:12-17) What happened to him? (4:18; 2:30-34) To his daughter-in-law? (4:19-20) What did she name the boy and why? (4:21-22) What can we learn about God from her remark? (cf. 15:29)



  1. Where did the Philistines take the ark? (5:1-2) Why? (2Ki18:33-35; Isa37:11-12) What happened to Dagon? (5:3-4) What did God reveal about himself? (Isa44:17-20; 45:6) How did they respond? (5:5) Where did the ark of God go and what happened in each place? (5:6,7,9,11b-12) What was God trying to teach? (5:12b; Ex14:4b)



  1. How did the Philistines plan to send the ark back? (6:1-12) What did the models of tumors and rats mean? (6:5,8) How had their attitude toward God changed? What were they trying to know? (6:9) How did the two cows go against their natural instinct? (6:10-12) What can we learn from them? What did their return reveal about God?


  1. When the ark of God returned, what did the people of Beth Shemesh do? (6:13-15) What was the historical lesson of this event? (6:16-18) Why did God strike down some of them? (6:19)


  1. Read 6:20. What did they learn about God? (Isa6:3) How had God revealed his holiness among the Philistines as well as the Israelites? What attitude must we have in approaching God in our pluralistic culture? (Heb12:28b-29; Jn4:23-24) What did they do? (6:21-7:1)