The Ark Returned to Israel 1 And the ark of the LORD was in the field of the Philistines seven months.
Gregory the Dialogist · AD 604 1. What do these seven months signify, if not the entire length of the present life? Although the Azotites and Ekronites cried out, "Let the ark of the God of Israel be carried around, and let the ark of God not remain among us," nevertheless the truth of the sacred history tells us — that we may recognize in the type of the holy Church — that the ark of God was in the region o…
Bede · AD 735 Therefore the ark of the Lord was in the region of the Philistines for seven months. Seven often expresses the universality of any matter, either of time, or number, or surely the fullness of spiritual grace.
2 And the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners, saying, “What shall we do with the ark of the LORD? Let us know with what we shall send it back to its place.”
Gregory the Dialogist · AD 604 2. Who are those who consult priests and diviners, if not the faithful of the holy Church, who desire to hold the way of eternal salvation without error? And who are understood as the priests and diviners, if not the preachers of the holy Church? They are indeed priests on account of the offering of the sacrament, and diviners by the ministry of preaching.
3 And they said: “If you are sending away the ark of the God of Israel, do not send it away empty; but surely return to him a guilt offering. Then you will be healed, and it will be known to you why his hand does not turn away from you.”
Gregory the Dialogist · AD 604 3. What is an empty ark, but divine knowledge without good works? For to send back an empty ark is to bear no fruit of good works from the knowledge of spiritual mysteries. The ark is therefore sent back empty when the mind of one coming to the faith already desires to pass over to the eternal contemplation of God, and yet takes no care to labor at good works in this life.
Bede · AD 735 But they said: If you send back, they said, the ark of the God of Israel to its place, etc. And we, seeing the vengeance of the impious, and washing our hands in the blood of sinners, if we decide to send back the ark of heavenly grace to its place, that is, into the hearts of those neighbors who once had it and lost it by straying, advising them to repent, it must be done with…
4 And they said, “What is the guilt offering that we shall return to him?” And they said: “By the number of the lords of the Philistines: five tumors of gold and five mice of gold — for one plague was on all of you and on your lords.
Cassiodorus · AD 585 We read in the first book of Kings [Samuel] that because of the damage done to the consecrated ark the foreigners were smitten on their hinder parts, so that they even suffered the dreadful fate of being gnawed alive by mice. This remains a perennial reproach on them, because no other was punished in this way.
Gregory the Dialogist · AD 604 5. What does it mean that five likenesses of tumors, and as many likenesses of mice, according to the number of the provinces, are commanded to be made, and thus the debt to the ark is paid? These things indeed, if weighed in the Jewish manner according to the lowliness of the letter, are not only to be despised, but not even worthy of hearing.
Bede · AD 735 According to the number of the provinces of the Philistines, etc. According to the number of the five senses of the body, which you contaminated by looking back, whose fruits you all lost by poorly handling faith, now in all that you do by seeing, hearing, tasting, smelling, or touching, offer to Christ the most illustrious virtues due to him, such as patience, compunction, hum…
5 And you shall make images of your tumors and images of your mice that are ruining the land, and give glory to the God of Israel. Perhaps he will lighten his hand from off you, and from off your gods, and from off your land.
Bede · AD 735 And you will give glory to the God of Israel, etc. And confess that God alone is true, but every man is a liar (Rom. III; Psalm CXV); perhaps He may turn His face away from your sins and wipe out all your iniquities, and, while the merciful Compassionate One imposes on you a very light burden.
6 And why should you make your heart heavy, as Egypt and Pharaoh made their heart heavy? When he dealt severely with them, did they not send them away, and they went?
Gregory the Dialogist · AD 604 8. For the heart hardens, like Egypt and Pharaoh, when one already understands the wounds of his sins through knowledge of sacred Scripture, and yet does not direct his mind toward the true joys of the future life through the improvement of his life or through the bitterness of repentance. Rightly, then, is he compared to the Egyptians in hardness of heart.
7 And now, take and prepare one new cart, and two milk cows on which no yoke has come; and harness the cows to the cart, and take their calves home, away from them.
Gregory the Dialogist · AD 604 9. For what is designated by the name of the cart, if not either the whole holy Church together, or the individual soul of each faithful person? The wheels of this cart are indeed the two Testaments.
Bede · AD 735 Now, therefore, seize and make a new cart, etc. Now, they say, hasten, and either in your hearts or in the hearts of your brethren, putting off the old man with his deeds, put on the new one, which is created according to God in righteousness and holiness and truth (Ephes.
8 And take the ark of the LORD and put it on the cart; and the articles of gold that you are returning to him as a guilt offering, you shall place in a box at its side. And send it off, and let it go.
Gregory the Dialogist · AD 604 11. Moreover, it is commanded that the golden vessels, which were rendered to the ark as a guilt offering, be placed at its side. For he calls "golden vessels" what he mentioned above, saying: "You shall make likenesses of your tumors and of your mice." In these vessels, as we had said, the memory of sins and temptations was signified.
Bede · AD 735 And you will take the Ark of the Lord and place it on the cart, etc. Place the more secret parts of the heavenly mysteries, imbued with the new commandment of Christ, upon it, and also set forth for all together as an example to be observed and followed, in such a way that the Church, adorned with both the mysteries of faith and examples of virtues, may be sent to seek the remn…
9 And watch: if it goes up by the way of its own territory, to Beth-shemesh, then he has done us this great evil; but if not, then we shall know that it was not his hand that touched us — it happened to us by chance.”
John Chrysostom · AD 407 For this reason he [Paul] says, "Unto the Jews I became as a Jew, to them that are without law, as without law, to those that are under the Law, as under the Law." Thus does God too, as in the case of the wise men, He does not conduct them by an Angel, nor a Prophet, nor an Apostle, nor an Evangelist, but how? By a star.
Gregory the Dialogist · AD 604 13. Bethshemesh, as we have already said, is interpreted as "house of the sun." The preachers observe the released ark to see whether it proceeds on a straight path toward Bethshemesh, because even when subjects are released to their own judgment, prelates must examine whether they convert the good of liberty to the advancement of the heavenly journey.
10 And the men did so. And they took two milk cows and harnessed them to the cart, and their calves they shut up at home.
Justin Martyr · AD 165 You are aware, then, that when the ark of the testimony was seized by the enemies of Ashdod, and a terrible and incurable malady had broken out among them, they resolved to place it on a cart to which they yoked cows that had recently calved, for the purpose of ascertaining by trial whether or not they had been plagued by God's power on account of the ark, and if God wished it…
Gregory the Dialogist · AD 604 We know that when the ark of the Lord was returned from the land of the Philistines to the land of the Israelites, it was placed on a cart. They yoked cows that had recently borne young to the cart, and shut up their calves at home.
Bede · AD 735 They therefore did this in this way, and took two cows, etc. The Philistines made the ark according to the advice of their priests and diviners.
11 And they put the ark of the LORD on the cart, with the box, and the mice of gold, and the images of their tumors.
12 And the cows went straight on the way, on the way to Beth-shemesh; on one highway they went, walking and lowing, and they did not turn aside right or left. And the lords of the Philistines walked behind them as far as the border of Beth-shemesh.
Gregory the Dialogist · AD 604 15. To go straight along the road that leads to Beth-shemesh is, in the pursuit of heavenly perfection, to maintain affliction of the flesh through the virtue of discretion. For the cows by no means walk in a straight line if discretion is not preserved in the affliction of the flesh.
Bede · AD 735 They journeyed on the same path, progressing and groaning, etc. They walked on the same path of faith and truth, indeed groaning, as people, being separated from those they love; yet they were more willing, when necessity arose, to hasten eagerly to the sacrifice of passion for the ark of the Lord rather than agreeing to lay down the ark out of the weeping of their children.
13 And Beth-shemesh was reaping the wheat harvest in the valley; and they lifted their eyes and saw the ark, and rejoiced to see it.
Gregory the Dialogist · AD 604 19. For who can the Bethshemites be more rightly understood as than those who are already perfect men in the sublimity of contemplation? For they are as if from the house of the sun, who, having despised all earthly things, are illuminated by the splendors of the true light.
Bede · AD 735 Moreover, the Bethshemites were reaping wheat in the valley, etc. Furthermore, the citizens of eternal light, desirous to store the ripe fruits of virtues, which they produced with humble hearts, into the joys of the heavenly homeland; and with the eyes of their hearts lifted, they rejoiced wherever on earth they saw the heavenly things.
14 And the cart came into the field of Joshua of Beth-shemesh and stood there; and a great stone was there. And they split the wood of the cart, and the cows they offered up as a burnt offering to the LORD.
Gregory the Dialogist · AD 604 22. If Bethshemesh is interpreted as "house of the sun," the house of the sun is the heavenly city. Here Joshua the Bethshemite signifies the Redeemer of the human race not so much by type as by his very name and dignity. For Joshua is called "savior" in our language. And the Lord says of himself: "The Son of man came to seek and to save that which was lost" (Luke 19:10).
Bede · AD 735 And the cart came into the field of Joshua of Beth Shemesh, etc. And wherever the Church sees hearts bringing forth fruit for Jesus Christ, the Lord of eternal clarity and the inventor of perpetual light, it prepares to make a dwelling there, as if finding rest after the labor of seeking.
15 And the Levites took down the ark of the LORD, and the box that was with it, in which were the articles of gold, and set them on the great stone. And the men of Beth-shemesh offered burnt offerings and sacrificed sacrifices on that day to the LORD.
Gregory the Dialogist · AD 604 26. The Levites are interpreted as "the assumed." Who then are the Levites, except those who are so confirmed by divine grace that they can never be forsaken by the Holy Spirit? Indeed, the Levites set down the ark when perfect preachers admonish their subjects, so that spiritual knowledge may in no way puff them up.
Bede · AD 735 The Levites, however, laid down the Ark of God, etc. Ministers of the word, receiving faith and examples of the lives of saints from those who have preceded in Christ, did not place these things in some base and lowly earthly breast, but in those which they saw as firm in Christ.
16 And the five lords of the Philistines saw it, and they returned to Ekron that day.
Gregory the Dialogist · AD 604 28. The satraps of the Philistines, as I have already said above, are chosen as preachers of the Gentiles. They are indeed contained in the number five, because they preside over those who are either still unlearned in the faith or are carnal, in order to restrain the five senses of the body.
Bede · AD 735 And the five lords of the Philistines saw, etc. All who have preceded in Christ, so long contemplate the faith and deeds of those succeeding them in Him as in a mirror, until they recognize them also as firm in faith and progressing well; and thus, becoming more assured of their salvation, they return to the homes of their own conversation to be cared for.
17 And these are the tumors of gold that the Philistines returned as a guilt offering to the LORD: for Ashdod one, for Gaza one, for Ashkelon one, for Gath one, for Ekron one;
Gregory the Dialogist · AD 604 29. What all these things signify has been set forth at length above. But what does it mean that when the debt owed to the ark is commanded to be paid for sin, five golden hemorrhoids and five mice are named together; yet when what was owed is declared to have already been paid, individual cities are reported to have each paid one separately?
18 and the mice of gold, by the number of all the cities of the Philistines belonging to the five lords, from fortified city to open village — as far as the great stone on which they set down the ark of the LORD, which is to this day in the field of Joshua of Beth-shemesh.
Bede · AD 735 And up to Abel the great stone, etc. Even the strong ones in faith, and those who are sufficient in devotion to support and govern the wavering Church, conscious of their own fragility, say: For in many things we all offend (James 3).
19 And he struck some of the men of Beth-shemesh, because they looked into the ark of the LORD; and he struck of the people seventy men — fifty thousand men. And the people mourned, because the LORD had struck the people a great blow.
Gregory the Dialogist · AD 604 30. Who are the struck-down Beth-shemites, if not heretics deceived by false contemplation? For the Beth-shemites existed not in truth, but in presumption.
Bede · AD 735 "And he struck down from the people seventy men, and fifty thousand of the common people." [1 Samuel 6:19] This was said of those who dared to see the Ark of the Lord returned from the land of the Philistines, although they were not of the Levitical lineage: "And he struck down from the people seventy men, and fifty thousand of the common people." The terms "people" and "common…
20 And the men of Beth-shemesh said, “Who is able to stand before the LORD, this holy God? And to whom shall he go up from us?”
Gregory the Dialogist · AD 604 And because the true faithful were saddened by their striking down, there follows: "And the men of Beth-shemesh said: Who is able to stand in the sight of the Lord, this holy God?" For it is as though the true faithful, yet simple ones, were saying: If such wise men and philosophers are deceived in the knowledge of the highest truth, when can the unlearned and simple come to th…
Bede · AD 735 And the men of Beth-shemesh said: Who can stand, etc. The men of the house of the sun, that is, the citizens of the heavenly homeland, wandering on earth; and if they taste even a little, and that by snatching, of the eternal light which they thirst for, they immediately realize how much they are nothing of their own, rightly fearing they say: For no living being will be justif…
21 And they sent messengers to the inhabitants of Kiriath-jearim, saying, “The Philistines have returned the ark of the LORD. Come down; bring it up to yourselves.”
Gregory the Dialogist · AD 604 32. Kiriath-jearim is called their city. What is the city of the saints, if not that Jerusalem which is above? Who then are its inhabitants, if not perfect men separated from the love of the world by their lofty manner of life? Of whom indeed one, more effective than the rest, says: "Our conversation is in heaven" (Phil. 3:20).