1 Samuel 4:10

Judgment

⁸ Woe to us! Who will deliver us from the hand of these mighty gods? These are the gods who struck the Egyptians with all kinds of plagues in the wilderness.

⁹ Take courage and be men, O Philistines! Otherwise, you will serve the Hebrews just as they served you. Now be men and fight!”

So the Philistines fought, and Israel was defeated, and each man fled to his tent. The slaughter was very great—thirty thousand foot soldiers of Israel fell.

¹¹ The ark of God was captured, and Eli’s two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, died.

¹² That same day a Benjamite ran from the battle line all the way to Shiloh, with his clothes torn and dirt on his head.

Here the Bible tells a story about someone else. Ask yourself what it can say to us today. Do read the surrounding verses too, because the context often says more than a single verse.

Compare

BSB: So the Philistines fought, and Israel was defeated, and each man fled to his tent. The slaughter was very great—thirty thousand foot soldiers of Israel fell.
KJV: And the Philistines fought, and Israel was smitten, and they fled every man into his tent: and there was a very great slaughter; for there fell of Israel thirty thousand footmen.
WEB: The Philistines fought, and Israel was defeated, and each man fled to his tent. There was a very great slaughter; for thirty thousand footmen of Israel fell.
ASV: And the Philistines fought, and Israel was smitten, and they fled every man to his tent: and there was a very great slaughter; for there fell of Israel thirty thousand footmen.
DARBY: And the Philistines fought, and Israel was routed, and they fled every man to his tent; and there was a very great slaughter, and there fell of Israel thirty thousand footmen.
BLB: And the Philistines fought and Israel was defeated, and every man fled to his tent, and there was a very great slaughter, and there fell from Israel thirty thousand foot soldiers.

ÅB: Da gikk filistrene til strid, og Israel ble slått, og de flyktet hver til sitt telt, og der ble et meget stort mannefall - det falt tretti tusen mann av Israels fotfolk.
OTB: Så kjempet filisterne, og Israel ble beseiret. Hver mann flyktet til sitt telt. Slaktingen var veldig stor—tretti tusen fotsoldater fra Israel falt.
B1930: Da gikk filistrene til strid, og Israel blev slått, og de flyktet hver til sitt telt, og der blev et meget stort mannefall - det falt tretti tusen mann av Israels fotfolk.

Study notes (Tyndale)

Original text and word study

Cross references

1 Samuel 4:2
The Philistines arrayed themselves against Israel, and as the battle spread, Israel was defeated by the Philistines, who struck down about four thousand men on the battlefield.
Read in context
2 Kings 14:12
And Judah was routed before Israel, and every man fled to his home.
Read in context
Deuteronomy 28:25
The LORD will cause you to be defeated before your enemies. You will march out against them in one direction but flee from them in seven. You will be an object of horror to all the kingdoms of the earth.
Read in context
Leviticus 26:17
And I will set My face against you, so that you will be defeated by your enemies. Those who hate you will rule over you, and you will flee when no one pursues you.
Read in context
Psalms 78:60–64
He abandoned the tabernacle of Shiloh, the tent He had pitched among men.
Read in context
2 Samuel 18:17
They took Absalom, cast him into a large pit in the forest, and piled a huge mound of stones over him. Meanwhile, all the Israelites fled, each to his home.
Read in context
2 Samuel 19:8
So the king got up and sat in the gate, and all the people were told: “Behold, the king is sitting in the gate.” So they all came before the king. Meanwhile, the Israelites had fled, each man to his home.
Read in context
2 Samuel 18:7
There the people of Israel were defeated by David’s servants, and the slaughter was great that day—twenty thousand men.
Read in context