וַיְהִי אֲרוֹן ה' בִּשְׂדֵה פְלִשְׁתִּים שִׁבְעָה חֳדָשִׁים

The Ark of the Lord was in Philistine territory seven months.

וַיִּקְרְאוּ פְלִשְׁתִּים לַכֹּהֲנִים וְלַקֹּסְמִים לֵאמֹר מַה נַּעֲשֶׂה לַאֲרוֹן ה'הוֹדִעֻנוּ בַּמֶּה נְשַׁלְּחֶנּוּ לִמְקוֹמוֹ

The Philistines summoned the priests and the diviners, saying: What shall we do with the Ark of the Lord? Inform us how we should send it to its place. We will certainly return it, but that is likely to be insufficient. We must also express our submission in some form, as otherwise who knows what else God will do to us?

וַיֹּאמְרוּ אִם מְשַׁלְּחִים אֶת אֲרוֹן אֱלֹהֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל אַל תְּשַׁלְּחוּ אֹתוֹ רֵיקָם כִּי הָשֵׁב תָּשִׁיבוּ לוֹ אָשָׁם אָז תֵּרָפְאוּ וְנוֹדַע לָכֶם לָמָּה לֹא תָסוּר יָדוֹ מִכֶּם

They, the priests and diviners, said: If you are sending the Ark of the God of Israel forth, do not send it with nothing. Rather, return the gift of a guilt offering to Him, as an indication that you wish to be forgiven for your sin. Then you will be healed, and it will be known to you why at this stage His hand would not yet be removed from you.

וַיֹּאמְרוּ מָה הָאָשָׁם אֲשֶׁר נָשִׁיב לוֹ וַיֹּאמְרוּ מִסְפַּר סַרְנֵי פְלִשְׁתִּים חֲמִשָּׁה טְחֹרֵי זָהָב וַחֲמִשָּׁה עַכְבְּרֵי זָהָב כִּי מַגֵּפָה אַחַת לְכֻלָּם וּלְסַרְנֵיכֶם

They said: What should the guilt offering that we shall return to Him be? They, the priests, said: According to the number of the Philistine governors, five golden images of hemorrhoids and five golden mice, as one plague is upon everyone and upon your governors, including the rulers of other cities to which the ark was not brought.

וַעֲשִׂיתֶם צַלְמֵי טְחֹרֵיכֶם וְצַלְמֵי עַכְבְּרֵיכֶם הַמַּשְׁחִיתִם אֶת הָאָרֶץ וּנְתַתֶּם לֵאלֹהֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל כָּבוֹד אוּלַי יָקֵל אֶת יָדוֹ מֵעֲלֵיכֶם וּמֵעַל אֱלֹהֵיכֶם וּמֵעַל אַרְצְכֶם

You shall make images of your hemorrhoids and images of your mice that are destroying the land; and you shall give honor to the God of Israel; perhaps He will ease His heavy hand from upon you and from upon your gods and from upon your land.

וְלָמָּה תְכַבְּדוּ אֶת לְבַבְכֶם כַּאֲשֶׁר כִּבְּדוּ מִצְרַיִם וּפַרְעֹה אֶת לִבָּם הֲלוֹא כַּאֲשֶׁר הִתְעַלֵּל בָּהֶם וַיְשַׁלְּחוּם וַיֵּלֵכוּ

Why should you harden your hearts, like Egypt and Pharaoh hardened their hearts? Was it not that when He harried them, they perforce sent them and indeed they went? Since a similar event occurred to a greater king than you, why would you repeat the mistakes of the past?

וְעַתָּה קְחוּ וַעֲשׂוּ עֲגָלָה חֲדָשָׁה אֶחָת וּשְׁתֵּי פָרוֹת עָלוֹת אֲשֶׁר לֹא עָלָה עֲלֵיהֶם עֹל וַאֲסַרְתֶּם אֶת הַפָּרוֹת בָּעֲגָלָה וַהֲשֵׁיבֹתֶם בְּנֵיהֶם מֵאַחֲרֵיהֶם הַבָּיְתָה

Now, take and fashion a single new wagon, as a mark of honor for the ark, and two nursing cows, young cows that have just given birth, upon which a yoke for threshing was not placed, and tie the cows, who are unaccustomed to bearing a burden, to the wagon, and return their recently born calves home from behind them. In the natural order of things, such cows would not venture far from their calves.

וּלְקַחְתֶּם אֶת אֲרוֹן ה' וּנְתַתֶּם אֹתוֹ אֶל הָעֲגָלָה וְאֵת כְּלֵי הַזָּהָב אֲשֶׁר הֲשֵׁבֹתֶם לוֹ אָשָׁם תָּשִׂימוּ בָאַרְגַּז מִצִּדּוֹ וְשִׁלַּחְתֶּם אֹתוֹ וְהָלָךְ

Take the Ark of the Lord and place it on the cart, and place the gold objects, the images that represent the plagues which afflicted you, that you are returning to Him as a guilt offering in a box at its side, of the ark, and send it and it will go.

וּרְאִיתֶם אִם דֶּרֶךְ גְּבוּלוֹ יַעֲלֶה בֵּית שֶׁמֶשׁ הוּא עָשָׂה לָנוּ אֶת הָרָעָה הַגְּדוֹלָה הַזֹּאת וְאִם לֹא וְיָדַעְנוּ כִּי לֹא יָדוֹ נָגְעָה בָּנוּ מִקְרֶה הוּא הָיָה לָנוּ

You will see, if it takes a route that ascends in the direction of its boundary, to Beit Shemesh, it will be known that He has done this great evil to us, but if not, and the cows return home or turn off in any other direction, then we will know that it was not His hand that afflicted us; it was happenstance that befell us. They sensed that the Ark of God had wrought all of the afflictions they had experienced, and they therefore treated it with honor. Nevertheless, they still wished to test whether it was simply a series of coincidences.

וַיַּעֲשׂוּ הָאֲנָשִׁים כֵּן וַיִּקְחוּ שְׁתֵּי פָרוֹת עָלוֹת וַיַּאַסְרוּם בָּעֲגָלָה וְאֶת בְּנֵיהֶם כָּלוּ בַבָּיִת

The men did so; they took two nursing cows and tied them to the wagon, and they shut their calves at home.

וַיָּשִׂמוּ אֶת אֲרוֹן ה' אֶל הָעֲגָלָה וְאֵת הָאַרְגַּז וְאֵת עַכְבְּרֵי הַזָּהָב וְאֵת צַלְמֵי טְחֹרֵיהֶם

They placed the Ark of the Lord on the wagon with the box and the golden mice and the images of their hemorrhoids.

וַיִּשַּׁרְנָה הַפָּרוֹת בַּדֶּרֶךְ עַל דֶּרֶךְ בֵּית שֶׁמֶשׁ בִּמְסִלָּה אַחַת הָלְכוּ הָלֹךְ וְגָעוֹ וְלֹא סָרוּ יָמִין וּשְׂמֹאול וְסַרְנֵי פְלִשְׁתִּים הֹלְכִים אַחֲרֵיהֶם עַד גְּבוּל בֵּית שָׁמֶשׁ

The cows went directly on the way on the path to Beit Shemesh; the cows traveled directly toward Beit Shemesh; on one highway they went, lowing as they went, and they did not turn right or left. The cows walked straight to a place where they had never been before; and the Philistine governors were walking after them, accompanying the ark and watching it as it reached until the border of Beit Shemesh.

ובֵית שֶׁמֶשׁ קֹצְרִים קְצִיר חִטִּים בָּעֵמֶק וַיִּשְׂאוּ אֶת עֵינֵיהֶם וַיִּרְאוּ אֶת הָאָרוֹן וַיִּשְׂמְחוּ לִרְאוֹת

The town of Beit Shemesh was reaping the wheat harvest in the valley, and they lifted their eyes and saw the ark, which stood out, as it was made entirely of gold, with the cherubs on top, and they rejoiced to see it.

וְהָעֲגָלָה בָּאָה אֶל שְׂדֵה יְהוֹשֻׁעַ בֵּית הַשִּׁמְשִׁי וַתַּעֲמֹד שָׁם וְשָׁם אֶבֶן גְּדוֹלָה וַיְבַקְּעוּ אֶת עֲצֵי הָעֲגָלָה וְאֶת הַפָּרוֹת הֶעֱלוּ עֹלָה לַה'

The wagon continued until it came to the field of someone named Yehoshua the Beit Shemeshite and stood there, and there was a large stone there. They split the wood of the cart and offered up the cows as a burnt offering to the Lord.

וְהַלְוִיִּם הוֹרִידוּ אֶת אֲרוֹן ה' וְאֶת הָאַרְגַּז אֲשֶׁר אִתּוֹ אֲשֶׁר בּוֹ כְלֵי זָהָב וַיָּשִׂמוּ אֶל הָאֶבֶן הַגְּדוֹלָה וְאַנְשֵׁי בֵית שֶׁמֶשׁ הֶעֱלוּ עֹלוֹת וַיִּזְבְּחוּ זְבָחִים בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא לַה'

The Levites took down the Ark of the Lord from the cart, and the box that was with it, in which there were objects of gold, and they placed them on the large stone. The men of Beit Shemesh offered up burnt offerings and presented feast offerings on that day to the Lord, in gratitude for the return of the Ark of the Covenant.

וַחֲמִשָּׁה סַרְנֵי פְלִשְׁתִּים רָאוּ וַיָּשֻׁבוּ עֶקְרוֹן בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא

The five Philistine governors who had accompanied this procession from afar saw what took place, and they returned to Ekron, their place of origin, on that day, as it was clear by then that this was a miraculous occurrence, and that the afflictions suffered by the Philistines were not coincidental. From their perspective, the matter was concluded.

וְאֵלֶּה טְחֹרֵי הַזָּהָב אֲשֶׁר הֵשִׁיבוּ פְלִשְׁתִּים אָשָׁם לַה' לְאַשְׁדּוֹד אֶחָד לְעַזָּה אֶחָד לְאַשְׁקְלוֹן אֶחָד לְגַת אֶחָד לְעֶקְרוֹן אֶחָד

These are the golden hemorrhoids that the Philistines returned as a guilt offering to the Lord: one for Ashdod, one for Gaza, one for Ashkelon, one for Gat, one for Ekron. Each of the main Philistine cities brought one of these gifts for God.

וְעַכְבְּרֵי הַזָּהָב מִסְפַּר כָּל עָרֵי פְלִשְׁתִּים לַחֲמֵשֶׁת הַסְּרָנִים מֵעִיר מִבְצָר וְעַד כֹּפֶר הַפְּרָזִי וְעַד אָבֵל הַגְּדוֹלָה אֲשֶׁר הִנִּיחוּ עָלֶיהָ אֵת אֲרוֹן ה'עַד הַיּוֹם הַזֶּה בִּשְׂדֵה יְהוֹשֻׁעַ בֵּית הַשִּׁמְשִׁי

As for the golden mice, they gave far more than the amount the diviners had suggested. Instead, they were according to the number of all the cities of the Philistines, of the five governors, both fortified cities and unwalled villages. These gifts came until the great stone [avel] upon which they placed the Ark of the Lord, which is in the field of Yehoshua the Beit Shemeshite until this day. Alternatively, avel means a large valley.

וַיַּךְ בְּאַנְשֵׁי בֵית שֶׁמֶשׁ כִּי רָאוּ בַּאֲרוֹן ה'וַיַּךְ בָּעָם שִׁבְעִים אִישׁ חֲמִשִּׁים אֶלֶף אִישׁ וַיִּתְאַבְּלוּ הָעָם כִּי הִכָּה ה' בָּעָם מַכָּה גְדוֹלָה

He smote among the people of Beit Shemesh because they gazed at the Ark of the Lord, which was generally concealed from view in the Holy of Holies. During their celebrations, the people of Beit Shemesh did not conduct themselves with the appropriate respect. Instead, they allowed the ark to remain exposed, so that curious onlookers could see it. Some danced, others sang, while certain people might even have engaged in excessive frivolity at the triumphal return of the ark. The Sages describe in more detail the types of frivolity to which the verse alludes. With regard to the word “gaze” as the act of looking at an object frivolously and disrespectfully. He smote among the people seventy men, fifty thousand men; and the people mourned, for the Lord had smitten the people with a great blow.

וַיֹּאמְרוּ אַנְשֵׁי בֵית שֶׁמֶשׁ מִי יוּכַל לַעֲמֹד לִפְנֵי ה' הָאֱלֹהִים הַקָּדוֹשׁ הַזֶּה וְאֶל מִי יַעֲלֶה מֵעָלֵינוּ

The people of Beit Shemesh said: Who can stand before the Lord, this holy God? Evidently, we do not know how to conduct ourselves appropriately in the presence of the ark. Therefore, to whom will it ascend from among us? To where can we transfer it? This statement of the men of Beit Shemesh parallels the earlier declaration of the Philistines when they sought to remove the ark from their possession.

וַיִּשְׁלְחוּ מַלְאָכִים אֶל יוֹשְׁבֵי קִרְיַת יְעָרִים לֵאמֹר הֵשִׁבוּ פְלִשְׁתִּים אֶת אֲרוֹן ה' רְדוּ הַעֲלוּ אֹתוֹ אֲלֵיכֶם

They, the men of Beit Shemesh, sent messengers to the inhabitants of Kiryat Ye’arim, saying: The Philistines returned the Ark of the Lord; descend to us, and bring it up to you. Your city is more important and respectable than ours, and therefore you are more worthy than us of retaining it in your possession.