1 Samuel 6:2
New International Version
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.”

New Living Translation
Then the Philistines called in their priests and diviners and asked them, “What should we do about the Ark of the LORD? Tell us how to return it to its own country.”

English Standard Version
And the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners and said, “What shall we do with the ark of the LORD? Tell us with what we shall send it to its place.”

Berean Standard Bible
the Philistines summoned the priests and diviners, saying, “What shall we do with the ark of the LORD? Tell us how to send it back to its place.”

King James Bible
And the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners, saying, What shall we do to the ark of the LORD? tell us wherewith we shall send it to his place.

New King James Version
And the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners, saying, “What shall we do with the ark of the LORD? Tell us how we should send it to its place.”

New American Standard Bible
And the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners, saying, “What are we to do with the ark of the LORD? Tell us how we may send it to its place.”

NASB 1995
And the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners, saying, “What shall we do with the ark of the LORD? Tell us how we shall send it to its place.”

NASB 1977
And the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners, saying, “What shall we do with the ark of the LORD? Tell us how we shall send it to its place.”

Legacy Standard Bible
And the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners, saying, “What shall we do with the ark of Yahweh? Make us know how we shall send it to its place.”

Amplified Bible
And the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners (seers), saying, “What shall we do with the ark of the LORD? Let us know how we can send it back to its place.”

Christian Standard Bible
the Philistines summoned the priests and the diviners and pleaded, “What should we do with the ark of the LORD? Tell us how we can send it back to its place.”

Holman Christian Standard Bible
the Philistines summoned the priests and the diviners and pleaded, “What should we do with the ark of the LORD? Tell us how we can send it back to its place.”

American Standard Version
And the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners, saying, What shall we do with the ark of Jehovah? show us wherewith we shall sent it to its place.

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
And the Philistines, the Priests and the Tyrants called and they said: “What shall we do with the Ark of LORD JEHOVAH? Show us by what we shall send it to its place?”

Brenton Septuagint Translation
And the Philistines call their priests, and their prophets, and their enchanters, saying, What shall we do to the ark of the Lord? teach us wherewith we shall send it away to its place.

Contemporary English Version
the Philistines called in their priests and fortunetellers, and asked, "What should we do with this sacred chest? Tell us how to send it back where it belongs!"

Douay-Rheims Bible
And the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners, saying: What shall we do with the ark of the Lord? tell us how we are to send it back to its place? And they said:

English Revised Version
And the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners, saying, What shall we do with the ark of the LORD? shew us wherewith we shall send it to its place.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
when the Philistines called for priests and people skilled in explaining omens. The Philistines asked, "What should we do with the ark of the LORD? Tell us how to return it to its [proper] place."

Good News Translation
the people called the priests and the magicians and asked, "What shall we do with the Covenant Box of the LORD? If we send it back where it belongs, what shall we send with it?"

International Standard Version
The Philistines summoned the priests and diviners and asked, "What should we do about the Ark of the LORD? Tell us how we should send it back to its place."

JPS Tanakh 1917
And the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners, saying: 'What shall we do with the ark of the LORD? declare unto us wherewith we shall send it to its place.'

Literal Standard Version
and the Philistines call for priests and for diviners, saying, “What do we do to the Ark of YHWH? Let us know with what we send it to its place.”

Majority Standard Bible
the Philistines summoned the priests and diviners, saying, “What shall we do with the ark of the LORD? Tell us how to send it back to its place.”

New American Bible
when they summoned priests and diviners to ask, “What shall we do with the ark of the LORD? Tell us what we should send back with it.”

NET Bible
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."

New Revised Standard Version
Then the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners and said, “What shall we do with the ark of the LORD? Tell us what we should send with it to its place.”

New Heart English Bible
The Philistines called for the priests, and for the diviners, and for the magicians, saying, "What shall we do with the ark of the LORD? Tell us how we should send it to its place."

Webster's Bible Translation
And the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners, saying, What shall we do to the ark of the LORD? tell us with what we shall send it to its place.

World English Bible
The Philistines called for the priests and the diviners, saying, “What shall we do with Yahweh’s ark? Show us how we should send it to its place.”

Young's Literal Translation
and the Philistines call for priests and for diviners, saying, 'What do we do to the ark of Jehovah? let us know wherewith we send it to its place?'

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
The Ark Returned to Israel
1When the ark of the LORD had been in the land of the Philistines seven months, 2the Philistines summoned the priests and diviners, saying, “What shall we do with the ark of the LORD? Tell us how to send it back to its place.” 3They replied, “If you return the ark of the God of Israel, do not send it away empty, but by all means return it to Him with a guilt offering. Then you will be healed, and you will understand why His hand has not been lifted from you.”…

Cross References
Genesis 41:8
In the morning his spirit was troubled, so he summoned all the magicians and wise men of Egypt. Pharaoh told them his dreams, but no one could interpret them for him.

Exodus 7:11
But Pharaoh called the wise men and sorcerers and magicians of Egypt, and they also did the same things by their magic arts.

1 Samuel 6:1
When the ark of the LORD had been in the land of the Philistines seven months,

Isaiah 2:6
For You have abandoned Your people, the house of Jacob, because they are filled with influences from the east; they are soothsayers like the Philistines; they strike hands with the children of foreigners.


Treasury of Scripture

And the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners, saying, What shall we do to the ark of the LORD? tell us with which we shall send it to his place.

called

Genesis 41:8
And it came to pass in the morning that his spirit was troubled; and he sent and called for all the magicians of Egypt, and all the wise men thereof: and Pharaoh told them his dream; but there was none that could interpret them unto Pharaoh.

Exodus 7:11
Then Pharaoh also called the wise men and the sorcerers: now the magicians of Egypt, they also did in like manner with their enchantments.

Isaiah 47:12,13
Stand now with thine enchantments, and with the multitude of thy sorceries, wherein thou hast laboured from thy youth; if so be thou shalt be able to profit, if so be thou mayest prevail…

wherewith

Micah 6:6-9
Wherewith shall I come before the LORD, and bow myself before the high God? shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves of a year old? …

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Ark Arts Declare Diviners Philistines Priests Secret Show Wherewith Wise
1 Samuel 6
1. After seven months the Philistines take counsel how to send back the ark
10. They bring it on a new cart with an offering unto Beth Shemesh
19. The people are smitten for looking into the ark
21. They send to them of Kiriath Jearim to fetch it














(2) What shall we do to the ark of the Lord?--During the seven months which followed the great Philistine victory of Aphek, the Ark remained in the country of the enemies of Israel. It was removed from temple to temple in the various cities, but the same doom always followed it. The inhabitants of the city where was the Ark were smitten with deadly abscesses, in addition to which, from the statement in 1Samuel 6:5, a plague of field-mice during the same period probably desolated the land. In their distress the Philistine rulers, determining to get rid of the fatal trophy of which they were once so proud, consulted their priests and diviners as to the most graceful and effective way of returning the captured Hebrew emblem. The "diviners" in the counsels of all the nations of antiquity occupy a distinguished place. We hear of them under different designations, as magicians, sorcerers, soothsayers, augurs, oracles, &c. They plied their strange trade, now with the aid of arrows, now with the entrails of slain animals, now with observation of the stars, now with the watching of natural signs, the flight of birds, &c. These men, who in one form or other dabbled in occult science, and perhaps here and there were aided by evil and unclean spirits, but who more frequently traded on the credulity and superstition of their fellows, occupied a considerable position among the nations of antiquity. We hear of them frequently among the Israelites, who seem to have adopted this class of advisers from the heathen nations around them. Isaiah (Isaiah 3:2) specially mentions them, and reckons these diviners among the leading orders of the State. The English Version, however, with singular inconsistency, renders the word in that same passage by "prudent;" possibly, it has been ingeniously suggested, owing to the translators being displeased at finding the professors of a forbidden art ranked so highly among the chosen people.

In the first verse the LXX. add, "and the land swarmed with mice," another of the many explanatory additions so common in the Greek translation of the Hebrew.



Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
the Philistines
פְלִשְׁתִּ֗ים (p̄ə·liš·tîm)
Noun - proper - masculine plural
Strong's 6430: Philistines -- inhabitants of Philistia

summoned
וַיִּקְרְא֣וּ (way·yiq·rə·’ū)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine plural
Strong's 7121: To call, proclaim, read

the priests
לַכֹּהֲנִ֤ים (lak·kō·hă·nîm)
Preposition-l, Article | Noun - masculine plural
Strong's 3548: Priest

and diviners,
וְלַקֹּֽסְמִים֙ (wə·laq·qō·sə·mîm)
Conjunctive waw, Preposition-l, Article | Verb - Qal - Participle - masculine plural
Strong's 7080: To distribute, determine by lot, magical scroll, to divine

saying,
לֵאמֹ֔ר (lê·mōr)
Preposition-l | Verb - Qal - Infinitive construct
Strong's 559: To utter, say

“What
מַֽה־ (mah-)
Interrogative
Strong's 4100: What?, what!, indefinitely what

shall we do
נַּעֲשֶׂ֖ה (na·‘ă·śeh)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - first person common plural
Strong's 6213: To do, make

with the ark
לַאֲר֣וֹן (la·’ă·rō·wn)
Preposition-l | Noun - common singular construct
Strong's 727: A chest, ark

of the LORD?
יְהוָ֑ה (Yah·weh)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 3068: LORD -- the proper name of the God of Israel

Tell
הוֹדִעֻ֕נוּ (hō·w·ḏi·‘u·nū)
Verb - Hifil - Imperative - masculine plural | first person common plural
Strong's 3045: To know

us how
בַּמֶּ֖ה (bam·meh)
Preposition-b | Interrogative
Strong's 4100: What?, what!, indefinitely what

to send it back
נְשַׁלְּחֶ֥נּוּ (nə·šal·lə·ḥen·nū)
Verb - Piel - Imperfect - first person common plural | third person masculine singular
Strong's 7971: To send away, for, out

to its place.”
לִמְקוֹמֽוֹ׃ (lim·qō·w·mōw)
Preposition-l | Noun - masculine singular construct | third person masculine singular
Strong's 4725: A standing, a spot, a condition


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OT History: 1 Samuel 6:2 The Philistines called for the priests (1Sa iSam 1 Sam i sa)
1 Samuel 6:1
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