The Bible In Paintings, #93: ARK, ARK — ISRAEL’S GOT THE ARK!

Bing Images ^ | c. 2200 BC -- c. 95 AD | by the Father, Son & Holy Spirit

[Hebrews 11:6]

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THE PHILISTINES
REGRET SEIZING
THE ARK

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1^st . . S A M U E L . . 4 – 7
New International Version, emphases added
Abrdgd – the complete text is in your Bible, OR:
TO READ 1^st SAMUEL 4-7 IN FULL, Click Here
TO HEAR MAX McLEAN READING IT, Click Here
TO HEAR A DRAMATIZATION OF IT, Click Here
TO WATCH AN OVERVIEW OF 1^st SAMUEL, Click Here

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1 0 7 0. . B. C.

CHAPTER 5

6 The Lord brought devastation on them and afflicted them with tumors. 7 When the people of Ashdod saw what was happening, they said, “The ark of the god of Israel must not stay here with us, because his hand is heavy on us and on Dagon our god.”

10 So they sent the ark of God to Ekron. As the ark of God was entering Ekron, the people of Ekron cried out, “They have brought the ark of the god of Israel around to us to kill us and our people.” 11 So they called together all the rulers of the Philistines and said, “Send the ark of the god of Israel away; let it go back to its own place, or it will kill us and our people.” For death had filled the city with panic; God’s hand was very heavy on it. 12 Those who did not die were afflicted with tumors, and the outcry of the city went up to heaven.

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1
by NICOLAS POUSSIN
“The Plague of Ashdod”

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2

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BACK TO ISRAEL
GOES THE ARK!

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CHAPTER 6
1 When the ark of the Lord had been in Philistine territory seven months, 2 the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners and said, “What shall we do with the ark of the Lord? Tell us how we should send it back to its place.”

3 They answered, “If you return the ark of the god of Israel, do not send it back to him without a gift; by all means send a guilt offering to him. Then you will be healed, and you will know why his hand has not been lifted from you.”

4 The Philistines asked, “What guilt offering should we send to him?”

They replied, “Five gold tumors and five gold rats, according to the number of the Philistine rulers, because the same plague has struck both you and your rulers. 5 Make models of the tumors and of the rats that are destroying the country, and give glory to Israel’s god. Perhaps he will lift his hand from you and your gods and your land. 6 Why do you harden your hearts as the Egyptians and Pharaoh did? When Israel’s god dealt harshly with them, did they not send the Israelites out so they could go on their way?

7 “Now then, get a new cart ready, with two cows that have calved and have never been yoked. Hitch the cows to the cart, but take their calves away and pen them up. 8 Take the ark of the Lord and put it on the cart, and in a chest beside it put the gold objects you are sending back to him as a guilt offering. Send it on its way, 9 but keep watching it. If it goes up to its own territory, toward Beth Shemesh, then the Lord has brought this great disaster on us. But if it does not, then we will know that it was not his hand that struck us but that it happened to us by chance.”

10 So they did this. 12 Then the cows went straight up toward Beth Shemesh, keeping on the road and lowing all the way; they did not turn to the right or to the left. The rulers of the Philistines followed them as far as the border of Beth Shemesh.

13 Now the people of Beth Shemesh were harvesting their wheat in the valley, and when they looked up and saw the ark, they rejoiced at the sight. 14 The people chopped up the wood of the cart and sacrificed the cows as a burnt offering to the Lord.

21 Then they sent messengers to the people of Kiriath Jearim, saying, “The Philistines have returned the ark of the Lord. Come down and take it up to your town.”

CHAPTER 7
1 So the men of Kiriath Jearim came and took up the ark of the Lord. 2 The ark remained at Kiriath Jearim a long time—twenty years in all.

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3
by a follower of James Tissot
“The Ark Sent Away”

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4

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5

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6
by SEBASTIEN BOURDON
“The Return of the Ark”

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7
by GUSTAVE DORÉ
“Return of the Ark to Bethshemesh”

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8

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9
“The Reapers Lifted Their Eyes and Saw the Ark”

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10
by OTTO ELLIGER & A. DE BLOIS
“Philistines Return the Ark”

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11

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12

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13

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14
“The Transfer”

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SAMUEL, ISRAEL’S
BELOVED LEADER

. .Then all the people of Israel turned back to the Lord. 3 So Samuel said to all the Israelites, “If you are returning to the Lord with all your hearts, then rid yourselves of the foreign gods and the Ashtoreths and commit yourselves to the Lord and serve him only, and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines.” 4 So the Israelites put away their Baals and Ashtoreths, and served the Lord only.

5 Then Samuel said, “Assemble all Israel at Mizpah, and I will intercede with the Lord for you.” 6 When they had assembled at Mizpah, they fasted and there they confessed, “We have sinned against the Lord.” Now Samuel was serving as leader of Israel at Mizpah.

7 When the Philistines heard that Israel had assembled at Mizpah, the rulers of the Philistines came up to attack them. 9 Then Samuel took a suckling lamb and sacrificed it as a whole burnt offering to the Lord. He cried out to the Lord on Israel’s behalf, and the Lord answered him.

10 While Samuel was sacrificing the burnt offering, the Philistines drew near to engage Israel in battle. But that day the Lord thundered with loud thunder against the Philistines and threw them into such a panic that they were routed before the Israelites. 11 The men of Israel rushed out of Mizpah and pursued the Philistines, slaughtering them along the way to a point below Beth Kar.

13 So the Philistines were subdued and they stopped invading Israel’s territory. Throughout Samuel’s lifetime, the hand of the Lord was against the Philistines. 14 And there was peace between Israel and the Amorites.

15 Samuel continued as Israel’s leader all the days of his life. 16 From year to year he went on a circuit from Bethel to Gilgal to Mizpah, judging Israel in all those places.

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15
“The Prophet Samuel as an Old Man”
St Mungo Museum of Religious Life and Art, Glasgow, Scotland

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16
by JAMES TISSOT
“Prophet Samuel's Farewell Speech”

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17
“Prophet Samuel's Farewell Speech”

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18
by HE QI
“Ark of Covenant”

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19

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SNEAK PEEK: Next time,

STAINED GLASS
EXTRAVAGANZA!!!

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R E S O U R C E S

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If you'd like to see for yourself the Bing page
which yielded most of the works above, here is the link:

Philistines Returned the Ark

Where no attribution appears below a work,
the artist's name is unknown
Works are numbered to facilitate your commenting

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Links to three masters who painted Biblical scenes prolifically:

REMBRANDT HARMENSZOON van RIJN

GUSTAV DORÉ
241 wood engravings for
La Grande Bible de Tours

JAMES TISSOT
180 watercolors depicting Bible scenes

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This series keeps moving from one Bible passage to another,
so here is a fascinating and enjoyable link to assist in following along:
BIBLE TIMELINE

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Finally, here are links to the
PREVIOUS 92 POSTS IN THIS SERIES
, with descriptive titles to assist you in finding those which interest you

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SPECIAL THANKS
to FReeper left that other site,
who allowed God to make her His conduit
for incomparable enthusiasm, encouragement,
education, advice and technical assistance!

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NOTES ON MY SELECTION CRITERIA

Q u a l i t y The Bible and its Author are my focus, not the art:
this is The Bible in Paintings, not “Great Paintings” nor even “Good Paintings.” So, works need not be masterpieces to qualify for inclusion here—they don’t need to be housed at the Louvre nor auctioned by Sotheby’s. They only need to illustrate successfully some aspect of the Biblical text or, frankly, just tickle my fancy, which I'm asking the Holy Spirit to guide. Often, artists misrepresent the Scripture, but unless the error is material, licentious or heretical I usually include the artwork, trusting that the Spirit is perfectly capable of defending Himself. So, with such forgiving filters, it means that you're seeing practically everything I'm finding.

P a c i n gThe pace may seem glacial to those eager to see their favorite events. My commission is to search for art on each Bible passage in sequence; if I find enough, then it becomes the next installment, even if undramatic. But where there is no art, that Bible passage goes untold here. The Bible is a thick book, as you know; but we'll get there eventually, Lord willing. Always remember:
love, joy, peace, patience kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control is a fruit of the Spirit!

Art is merely the Toy Department of Bible study,
so I’m just having fun here—I hope you are, too!
Thank you for your understanding.

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YES, WE DO HAVE A

P I N G… .L I S T

for "The Bible In Paintings" series

… .

To be alerted to each new posting,
either reply here or FRmail me.

No contracts, startup charges or monthly fees;
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[Hebrews 11:6]

At the Holy Spirit's prompting, I am surveying "Bible art" to give God glory, as many of these artists have done, and for my own amusement and learning; and I thought others might enjoy it and be blessed by it, too. My plan is to proceed methodically from left-to right, Genesis to Revelation, as the Lord wills. Back soon with another.

The Bible encourages us to meditate on it (Ps. 1:1-3, 119:11-16, etc.); these artists have done so, and their works can assist us and enrich our own thoughts about biblical characters, incidents and concepts, and increase our faith in He who is behind it all. As you encounter and consider these images and the related Scriptures and the Spirit enlightens your understanding, please share it with us!

But it is not only oil-on-canvas that can so help us; I refer to the astonishing video series The Chosen, which strolls through the four Gospels at the most leisurely pace. The eight episodes of Season 1 are finished, and the second of a planned seven seasons is coming soon. I say "leisurely" because after an entire year’s viewing Jesus still has only seven of the apostles (although He's preparing to call up Thomas from the minor leagues--but Thomas is skeptical, of course). Anticipating a canvas of fifty-plus hours instead of a movie's paltry two hours, The Chosen turns the characters (especially including Jesus!) into three-dimensional humans and brings the Gospels alive--you have never seen anything even remotely like it! Here is the Official Trailer.

Here is a link for free viewing of The Chosen: “Works with your phone, tablet, and you can cast to your Roku or Chromecast.” Last fall I paid $34.98 for DVDs and ongoing internet access—best 35 bucks I’ve ever spent (I don’t recall how much our marriage license cost, but then it was 42 years ago).

[Hebrews 11:6]

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F o r . . y o u r

CONSIDERATION

ENJOYMENT

& BLESSING

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[Red Badger]

Are we sure it's not in a US military warehouse somewhere, like Area 51?......................

[left that other site]

Philistines Steal The Ark

They Will Regret This.

[Forgiven_Sinner]

First impressions:

Tissot was good as usual, but I wanted more detail on the 5 Philistine kings. The OTTO ELLIGER & A. DE BLOIS woodcut was almost exactly as I pictured the scene in my head.

Along with Balaam’s dialogue with his donkey, this is the funniest scene in the Bible. You have the five Philistine kings, walking behind two cows for about 17 miles back to Israel. That’s at least 8 hours of walking.

[Hebrews 11:6]

Agreed. The Philistines acknowledged that the Hebrew god might actually be controlling events (He certainly wreaked enough havoc to persuade them), and they devised a very clever exercise to test their hypothesis (lactating cows abandoning their calves). Having started, they had to stay with their scientific experiment until its conclusion.

There may have been one or more of them who, having their hypothesis thus confirmed, actually came to saving faith in Yahweh. I'm looking forward to finding out and, if so, meeting, fellowshipping, and rejoicing with them.

[EliRoom8]

These are really outstanding — including those stained glass ones of Samuel. I’d like to say which are my favorites but they are all so very good!

[etabeta]

That gilded bas-relief is immensely beautiful. I believe is in a church in France but I don’t remember the name. Do you have any info? Thanks as always.

[Hebrews 11:6]

No, the site where I found it didn’t say. Paintings and tapestries are portable, but windows, fountains, statues and bas reliefs generally aren’t; so when I find their location, I try always to include it.

[Maudeen]

Oh that the United States of America would follow suit . . . .“If you are returning to the Lord with all your hearts, then rid yourselves of the foreign gods and the Ashtoreths and commit yourselves to the Lord and serve him only, and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines.” 4 So the Israelites put away their Baals and Ashtoreths, and served the Lord only.

[Hebrews 11:6]

When we pray we must realize God is still on His throne.

[Maudeen]

AMEN!

[etabeta]

I found it. It is in the Cathedral of Auch, Midi-Pyrénées, France. In that Cathedral there are also some beautiful Renaissance stained glass windows.

[Hebrews 11:6]

Well done! Have you actually visited?

[etabeta]

Unfortunately I have not.

[Hebrews 11:6]

Well?

[etabeta]

Never visited that church. I love Romanesque and Gothic architecture, my dream is taking a year to visit all the European treasures of those periods. It will never happen but it is my beautiful dream.

[Hebrews 11:6]

If some survive the Great Tribulation, and if Jesus gives you simmer vacation time during His millennial reign, you can go a thousand times, to your little heart’s content.