And the ark of the LORD was in the cities of the Philistines seven months.

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 to its place.”

And they said, “If you send away the ark of the God of Israel, do not send it empty, for you shall by all means return before Him a guilt offering. Then you will be healed and it will be relieved to you. Why would his stroke not rest from you?”

When they said, “What is the guilt offering that we shall return before Him?” they said, “The number of the chiefs of the Philistines: five golden haemorrhoids and five golden mice, for the one stroke was equally on all of you and on your chiefs.

So you must make images of your haemorrhoids and images of your mice that ravaged the land, and you shall give glory before the God of Israel. Perhaps his stroke will rest from you and your idols and your land.

Why should you harden your hearts as the Egyptians and the pharaoh hardened their hearts? Was that not when revenge was taken on them? And afterwards they sent them away and they went.

Now then, take and prepare one new cart and two milch cows which have never pulled in a yoke. And bind the cows to the cart, but send their calves back inside, so that they cannot follow them.

And you shall take the ark of the LORD and put it down on the cart. And you shall place in a box at its side the golden figures which you are returning before Him as a guilt offering. Then you shall send it off, and it will go.

And you shall watch: if it goes up on the way of its own territory, to Beth shemesh, then this great harm was done from before Him; but if not, then we shall know that it was not his stroke that came near to us, it happened to us by chance.”

And the men did so, and led two milch cows and bound them to the cart, and shut up their calves at home.

And they put the ark of the LORD on the cart, and the box and the golden mice and the images of their haemorrhoids.

And the cows went straight on the way, in the direction of Beth shemesh, along one highway, lowing as they went. They turned neither to the right nor to the left, and the chiefs of the Philistines went after them as far as the border of Beth shemesh.

And Beth shemesh was harvesting the wheat harvest in the valley; and when they lifted up their eyes and saw the ark, they rejoiced to see it.

The cart went to the field of Joshua, who was of Beth shemesh, and stood there. And a great stone was there; and they split up the wood of the cart and sacrificed the cows as a burnt offering before the LORD.

And the Levites took down the ark of the LORD and the box that was with it, in which were the golden things, and put them upon the great stone. And the men of Beth shemesh sacrificed burnt offerings and slaughtered holy sacrifices on that day before the LORD.

And when the five chiefs of the Philistines saw it, they returned that day to Ekron.

These are the golden haemorrhoids which the Philistines returned as a guilt offering before the LORD: one of Ashdod, one of Gaza, one of Ashkelon, one of Gath, one of Ekron.

And the golden mice, the number of all the cities of the Philistines belonging to the five chiefs, from the fortified cities unto the unwalled cities, and unto the great stone on which they returned the ark of the LORD, to this day. Behold, it is in the field of Joshua who was of Beth shemesh.

And He killed among the men of Beth shemesh, because they rejoiced as they saw the ark of the LORD, when it was exposed; and He killed among the elders of the people seventy men and among the assembly fifty thousand men. And the people mourned, because the LORD had made a great stroke among the people.

Then the men of Beth shemesh said, “Who is able to stand before the ark of the LORD, this holy God? And to what place shall it be brought up, away from us?”

So they sent messengers to the inhabitants of Kiriath jearim, saying, “The Philistines have returned the ark of the LORD. Come down and take it up to you.”