And see, if it goeth up by the way of his own coast to Bethshemesh, then he hath done us this great evil: but if not, then we shall know that it is not his hand that smote us: it was a chance that happened to us.
Watch and see if it goes up the road toward its own territory to Beth Shemesh. If it does, then he has brought this terrible disaster on us. But if it doesn't go that way, then we'll know it wasn't his power that struck us down, it was just a random accident that happened to us.
The Philistines are devising a test to see if their suffering was really caused by God or just bad luck.
📚 Historical Context
In the biblical narrative of 1 Samuel, the Philistines had captured the Ark of the Covenant from the Israelites and suffered severe plagues as a divine punishment. They devised a test by placing the Ark on a cart pulled by cows that had never been yoked, to determine if God was truly behind their misfortunes or if it was just random chance. If the cows traveled unguided toward the Israelite territory of Bethshemesh, it would confirm God's involvement; otherwise, it would be seen as a natural occurrence.
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