So they traveled from the mountain of the Lord three days’ journey; ¹  and the ark of the covenant of the Lord was traveling before them during the three days’ journey, to find a resting place for them.

At that same time the Lord said to me, “Carve out for yourself two stone tablets like the first ones and come up the mountain to me; also make for yourself a wooden ark. ¹ 

So I made an ark of acacia ¹  wood and carved out two stone tablets just like the first ones. Then I went up the mountain with the two tablets in my hands.

Then Moses wrote down this law and gave it to the Levitical priests, who carry the ark of the Lord’s covenant, and to all Israel’s elders.

“Take this scroll of the law and place it beside the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God. It will remain there as a witness against you,

and commanded the people: “When you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God ¹  being carried by the Levitical priests, you must leave here ²  and walk ³  behind it.

When the feet ¹  of the priests carrying the ark of the Lord, the Ruler ²  of the whole earth, touch ³  the water of the Jordan, the water coming downstream toward you will stop flowing and pile up.” ⁴ 

The priests carrying the ark of the covenant of the Lord stood firmly on dry ground in the middle of the Jordan. All Israel crossed over on dry ground until the entire nation was on the other side. ¹ 

Joshua told them, “Go in front of the ark of the Lord your God to the middle of the Jordan. Each of you is to put a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the Israelite tribes.

Joshua also set up twelve stones ¹  in the middle of the Jordan in the very place where the priests carrying the ark of the covenant stood. They remain there to this very day.

When Joshua gave the army its orders, ¹  the seven priests carrying the seven rams’ horns before the Lord moved ahead and blew the horns as the ark of the covenant of the Lord followed behind.

Joshua tore his clothes; ¹  he and the leaders ²  of Israel lay face down on the ground before the ark of the Lord until evening ³  and threw dirt on their heads. ⁴ 

and the lamp of God had not yet been extinguished. Samuel was lying down in the temple of the Lord as well; the ark of God was also there.

When the Philistines heard the sound of the shout, they said, “What is this loud shout in the camp of the Hebrews?” Then they realized that the ark of the Lord had arrived at the camp.

The messenger replied, “Israel has fled from ¹  the Philistines! The army has suffered a great defeat! Your two sons, Hophni and Phineas, are dead! The ark of God has been captured!”

When he mentioned the ark of God, Eli ¹  fell backward from his chair beside the gate. He broke his neck and died, for he ²  was old and heavy. He had judged Israel for forty years.

She named the boy Ichabod, ¹  saying, “The glory has departed from Israel,” referring to the capture of the ark of God and the deaths of her father-in-law and her husband.

When the residents of Ashdod got up early the next day, ¹  Dagon was lying on the ground before the ark of the Lord. So they took Dagon and set him back in his place.

When the people ¹  of Ashdod saw what was happening, they said, “The ark of the God of Israel should not remain with us, for he has attacked ²  both us and our god Dagon!”

the Philistines called the priests and the omen readers, saying, “What should we do with the ark of the Lord? Advise us as to how we should send it back to its place.”