10. The Ark at Shiloh; or, God's Presence Directive in Perplexity

Chapter 10 - The Ark at Shiloh; or, God’s Presence Directive in Perplexity WHEN the solemnities of Mount Ebal were over, and the feast on the peace-offerings had been con­cluded, the ark was taken back to the camp at Gilgal, where it had a settled abode until the cessation of war enabled its establishment in the town divinely appointed as its more permanent resting place. So soon, however, as the tranquil possession of the entire land was obtained, "the whole congregation of the children of Israel assembled together at Shiloh, and set up the tabernacle of the con­gregation there;" Joshua 18:1., for there Jehovah "set His name at the first,"Jeremiah 7:12, and there He con­tinued to tabernacle among men until the days of Eli. The choice of this spot was doubtless regulated by its central position, which se­cured its safety in a mode somewhat similar to that of its preservation in the midst of the desert encampments; and which also rendered it equally accessible to all the remoter tribes, when they had to repair thither for annual festivals or private vows. Its situation, in the territory assigned to Ephraim, marked its peculiar suitability as a place of resort for the chief legislator, who was himself of that tribe.

Henceforward it was at Shiloh alone that sacrifice might be presented, because it was here alone that the presence of God was en­throned. Deuteronomy 12:11-14., We accordingly find no record of acceptable sacrifice being offered elsewhere during the location of the ark in this city, save on occasion of any special manifestations of divinity in the person of the Angel of the covenant; As Judges 6:22-24;Judges 13:16-23., the exception thus proving and confirming the rule, the former having refer­ence to the extraordinary, the latter to the ordinary revealment of Jehovah’s presence. The incidents connected with the ark’s so­journ of more than three centuries at Shiloh are not numerous. It was, for the most part, a time of rest and of peace. The first use made of it was for the appointment by lot, of the territorial boundaries, which should mark the distinct tribal domains. Joshua 18:8-10., Seven of these divisions were yet unapportioned, but on a diligent survey and accurate sketch of the land, Joshua cast lots in Shiloh "before the Lord," thus committing the choice of a settled habitation in Canaan to the same divine Guide, who had so constantly and so wisely marked out the bounds of their temporary stations in the wilderness.

Another assembly was convened, on the re­port, that the trans-Jordanic tribes had sinned in rearing an altar as though with the inten­tion of presenting sacrifice in another than the appointed place. So public a transgression of an express law might not pass unpunished. " When the children of Israel heard of it, the whole congregation of the children of Israel gathered themselves together to go up to war against them."Joshua 22:12-33. The convenience of Shiloh, as a rendezvous, was not the only cause of its being made their place of assembly. In meeting there, they met before the Lord, commend­ing to Him their enterprise, and seeking from Him counsel and success. The spirit of wisdom was poured out upon them, in answer doubtless to their prayers. They embarked not rashly on the fearful necessity of war; they sent forth a deputation of inquiry, and were satisfied to learn that the object which had occasioned their anxiety, was not designed for a sacrificial, but for a commemorative altar. Their thankfulness arose in strains of grateful praise, and when we are told that "the chil­dren of Israel blessed God," we perceive the advantage which their presence in Shiloh would afford them for expressing their joy in the eucharistic offerings of the Levitical law.

It seems clear, that the noble testimony breathed in Joshua’s last public speech was uttered in presence of the tabernacle.Joshua 24:1;Joshua 24:26. Whether, as some, suggest, we are to read "Shiloh" for" Shechem," as the place of con­vocation,---or whether, in this instance, there had been an exceptional transference of the "sanctuary" to another than its appointed site,---has been disputed. The latter, how­ever, seems a very probable supposition. As no word is spoken of sacrifices, the law which forbade their being offered, save in the one chosen place, was not violated; and there might be some appropriateness in Joshua’s closing his public life by convening the people, and once more bringing the ark itself to the neighborhood of that spot, where once had been conducted a service yet more solemn and imposing. We dwell not on this transaction, because no express mention is made of the ark: else we might have found a useful lesson in the connection between our decision for God and our belief in His presence. It is too often a failure in the latter that induces the total absence, or the mere half-heartedness, of the former. It is when we feel that the Almighty One is with us, to strengthen as well as to search us, that we can fearlessly say, "As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord."

During the time of the Judges, it is but once that we have any information concerning the tabernacle’s most precious treasure. The event must have transpired not very long after the death of Joshua, since we know that Ele­azar’s son still occupied the high priest’s office. It was a period when no ruler was executing justice among the people, when every man was doing that which was right in his own eyes, and lawless insubordination was universally prevalent. We hasten over the preliminary circumstances which introduce this portion of the narrative. Suffice it to say, that the Benjamites had committed a series of glaring offences against travelers who had lodged one night in Gibeah, on their way to "the house of the Lord" at Shiloh. The matter had been reported to the remaining tribes, whereupon in fitting indignation "the whole congregation was gathered together as one man" in Mizpeh. The proofs of guilt were too evident to require investigation. Swift chastisement was the unanimous verdict passed by the assembled multitude. They had no doubt as to the duty of entering on warfare; they hesitated only as to the mode of doing it. In their perplexity, therefore, they betook themselves to the divine oracle. They "arose, and went up"---perhaps, by deputation---" to the house of God, and asked counsel." Judges 20:18-28. There has been much controversy as to the place whither they repaired for the purpose. Some commentators, following the guidance of Jose­phus, consider that the expression "house of God" should, in this narrative, have been left untranslated; and they accordingly conclude that for some cause, probably for the conven­ience of the army, the ark alone, or the ark and tabernacle, had been moved to "Bethel."

[It is true that the usual designation of the sanctuary was Beth-Elohira, or, Beth-Jehovah, and not Beth-El; but even Rosenmiller (who has been cited in support of the above argument) unhesitatingly admits that the latter term is applied to the temple inZechariah 7:2.]

Others think that the mysterious shrine had been taken to Mizpeh; and they deduce this from the statement, that the congregation were gathered "unto the Lord,"---a phrase, how­ever, which may have been used only to denote that they entered on this as a religious duty, undertaken in Jehovah’s fear, and that they met together as a host assembled to do Him service by vindicating the cause of the injured, and taking revenge upon the evil-doers. The third, the most generally received, and in our view the simplest interpretation, is that which considers the ark to have remained quietly at Shiloh. The situation of this town toward the southern part of Ephraim’s territory, which was the tribe immediately adjacent to the theater of war, made it sufficiently accessible, without the need of such removal as only a peculiar exigency could warrant. The phrase "the ark of the covenant of God was there in those days," has indeed given some color to the idea, that it was not in its usual locality; but the sentence may also be satisfactorily ex­plained, as the comment of a writer who lived after the time of Shiloh’s final abandonment, and who thus reminded his readers that things had not always been as they were in his day, that once the tabernacle, had not been empty, that once the ark had not been secluded in the dwelling of a private family. The propriety of referring these transactions to Shiloh, is further confirmed by the declarations of the ensuing chapter: the Israelites having come to the house of God, and poured out their sorrows into Jehovah’s listening ear, "rose early on the morrow, and built therean altar, and offered burnt offerings and peace offer­ings." Judges 21:1-4.

This, without an express warrant from Heaven, they would have had no right to do elsewhere than in the appointed place, where God had recorded his name; and in strict harmony, therefore, with the inference to which this leads us, is the mention immedi­ately made of the virgins of Jabesh-gilead as having been brought "unto the camp to Shi­loh." The whole narrative seems clear, if we adopt the idea, that during the conflict the Israelites occasionally repaired thither to seek advice in the chosen place of divine manifest­ation, and after the victory took up a position beside what was then the ecclesiastical capital of their land. But it is more important for us to study the circumstances, than to determine the scene of their occurrence. Four times was the ark visited; once in connection with each of the three great battle days that marked this civil war, and once at its conclusion. On the first occasion, the act was one of homage, of humility, and of confidence. "Which of us shall go up first to the battle against the children of Ben­jamin?" Here was an acknowledgment of God’s sovereignty, a confession of their own inadequacy to form a competent judgment, and an expression of trust in that divine wisdom which could give them unerring guidance. They were in difficulty as to who among them must take the lead. Let authority be unduly assumed, and discord would ensue; but let authority be conferred from heaven, and all would render a cheerful obedience. The ap­peal was not made in vain. An answer was vouchsafed. Judah was appointed to the post of honor and of danger. With next day’s light, the array of battle was drawn up against Gibeah; but the result proved un­favorable to the men of Israel, who left two and twenty thousand slain upon the field.

Again they had recourse to the ark; this time, with grief, with perseverance, and with tender­ness of heart. They went not with the cold and callous words of a formal and business­like question, They "went up, and wept be­fore the Lord." It was an earnest work on which they had entered; they had been made sensible of its stern reality; they had been pierced through with many sorrows. Their sanguine hopes had received a sudden check; their keen expectations of victory had given place to the humiliation of defeat; some of their bravest warriors were laid low in the dust. But not for a moment did they think that God was powerless to aid them, or that it was useless to inquire His will. To Him they hastened in their distress; on Him they cast their burden; before Him they tarried to re­ceive further instruction. They wept before the Lord "until even," persistent in their desire, and importunate in their request for celestial guidance.

It was a new question they proposed: "Shall I go up again to battle?" In the first instance, they had thought the path of duty clear; now they distrusted their own judgment. They asked not how they should go, but whether they should go at all. The tone of their question was changed as well as its purport: "Shall I go up again to battle against the children of Ben­jamin my brother?" The closing word indi­cated a subdued state of feeling; their own affliction had awakened their compassion for others; they had felt some of the sad results which war entails on the conquered; they shrank from making those who were of their own kin endure what now themselves were suffering; they owned the relationship which, in their earlier excitement, they had well nigh, if not wholly, forgotten. Their zeal had been mixed with much of mere emotional impulse; but now the "strange fire" was extinguished. This revived affection, however, was not such as involved any connivance at sin. If it was needful that Benjamin be attacked, they were still prepared to address themselves boldly to the task. The response given to them was as emphatic as it was brief: "Go up against him." There was no promise of conquest, no pledge even of safety; but there was a command, and that was enough. They "encouraged them­selves, and set their battle again in array in the place where they put themselves in array the first day."

Once again, however, they were worsted in the fight; the Benjamites slew eighteen thousand of their troops; and when they returned to the encampment, it was found that in two days’ slaughter one-tenth of the four hundred thousand who had made up the original army at Mizpeh had been cut off. To the house of God they went a third time; and it was now with unanimity, with penitence, and with submissiveness of will. No mere deputa­tion was sent; "all the children of Israel and all the people" joined in the exercise. Everyone, who had to engage in the combat, felt the need of supplication, and such as could not fight, had yet the ability to pray. Their sor­row was as deep as before; again" they wept." It was as earnest as on the previous day; again they" sat there before the Lord until even." It was far more penitent than it had been; they now "fasted," and "offered burnt offer­ings and peace offerings before the Lord."

Self-confidence was cast out---sin confessed­ reconciliation sought---sacrifice presented. They remembered, that to be "smitten before the enemy" was one of the curses pronounced in the law of Moses; they knew that the curse rested only on those who were chargeable with guilt; they awoke to a sense of their de­pravity and a remembrance of their manifold short-comings. They would approach God still, but it should be with sacrificial blood. They would come, not as righteous, but as sinners. They would crave mercy, ere they besought assistance. Encouraged by the com­pletion of these rites, they proposed a third question: "Shall I yet again go out to battle against the children of Benjamin my brother, or shall I cease?" The addition of this al­ternative, "or shall I cease?" denoted their perfect willingness to leave the decision en­tirely with God. It showed that they made no reservation, that they resigned all choice of their own, that they were prepared submissively to welcome all God’s will. Pride would have whispered, "No; it is impossible to cease; our dignity must be maintained." But submission said, "There is no dignity in sin---­no dignity in obstinately pursuing a wrong course---no dignity in unkindness to a neigh­bor---no dignity in disobedience to God." Setting aside all party-feeling, all self-willed preference, they manifested their readiness to act or to desist, to fight or to forbear, to continue or to close the battle, just as God might ap­point. Such is the state of mind which He approves, and which He delights to honor. The broken and contrite heart He will not de­spise. The renewed command came forth, "Go up;" but with it was given also the definite promise, "for tomorrow I will deliver them into thine hand." To Gibeah they re­traced their steps; but laid their plan of mili­tary operations with more sagacity and skill. Either through express directions from God by the medium of Phinehas the priest, or through a spirit of wisdom divinely infused into their generals, or through a remembrance of the orders given to Joshua at Ai, an am­bush was contrived, a rapid flight was feigned, the scale was turned, and victory declared it­self for the confederated tribes.

It was a sore battle, which cost the destruc­tion of 25,000 of the Benjamite army, together with the slaughter of all the men in their cities, a small remnant only (consisting of 600 war­riors) escaping to the rock Rimmon. The con­querors retired, not to triumph, but to weep. They "came to the house of God, and abode there till even, before God, and lifted up their voices and wept sore; and said, Oh Lord God of Israel, why is this come to pass in Israel?" On the morrow---according to the statement which has already come under our notice ­they "rose early, and built there an altar, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings." So numerous were their sacrifices that, as on a later occasion, "the brazen altar was not able to receive them."2 Chronicles 7:7.

We find not, however, that any answer was given to their inquiry, or that any advice was granted them in their new difficulty. But there was a reason for the silence of the oracle. A rash oath had been taken,---an oath to allow no intermarriage with the guilty tribe; and when the people had brought themselves into a dilemma by their own imprudence, they were left to taste the fruits of their folly. Had they repented of their hasty determination, had they avowed their indiscretion, had they persevered in their effort to gain heavenly teaching, had they sought release from a vow which was to their neighbor’s hurt, they might have been accept­ed and blessed, they might have been absolved from their bond, or told how to avert its evil consequences. But unwilling to avow their precipitancy, and turning away from the door of the tabernacle, confident in their own under­standing, they were left to their own devices, and succeeded in extricating themselves only by an unjustifiable evasion of the oath by which they were bound. In conclusion: we learn, from a review of the whole, that many a perplexity is traceable to our own short-sightedness and want of self-control;---that in every perplexity, whether of our own causing, or whether produced by extraneous influences, an honorable way of escape is to be discovered only by following the light which beams from heaven;---and that if such light be not visible, we must entreat its bestowal. This we must entreat persever­ingly, not discouraged by the partial failures of the past, not damped by the uncertainties of the future. We must also entreat it submis­sively, watching against that self-deception whereby we so often resign a fancied good, with the latent notion of having it rendered back to our fond embrace. Above all, we must mingle penitence with our every petition; for it is only as we say from the heart, "God be merciful to me a sinner," that we can expect, through the Savior’s merits, to obtain an answer of peace. But thus coming, devoid of all self-confidence, either as it regards our own wisdom to direct our steps, or our own righteousness to deserve direction from above,---thus committing our ways to the Lord, and asking Him to undertake for us, we shall not be left to the dull glimmerings of unassisted reason. He who said to his disciples, "These things have I spoken unto you, being yet present with you," immediately added, "But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, He shall teach you all things." The promise applies, indeed, to spiritual guidance; but will not He who gives the greater, also freely give the less?

" What though no answering voice is heard, His oracles, the written word, Counsel and guidance still impart, Responsive to the upright heart. No need of prophets to inquire; The sun is risen j the stars retire. The Comforter is come, and sheds His holy unction on our heads.

Lord! with this grace our hearts inspire, Answer our sacrifice by fire; And by thy mighty acts declare Thou art the God that hearest prayer."