English Standard Version
1 Samuel 7:2
2From the day that the ark was lodged at Kiriath-jearim, a long time passed, some twenty years, and all the house of Israel lamented after the Lord.
1 Samuel 7:2 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And it came to pass, while the ark abode in Kirjath–jearim, that the time was long; for it was twenty years: and all the house of Israel lamented after the Lord.
- New International Version (NIV)The ark remained at Kiriath Jearim a long time—twenty years in all. Then all the people of Israel turned back to the Lord.
- New King James Version (NKJV)So it was that the ark remained in Kirjath Jearim a long time; it was there twenty years. And all the house of Israel lamented after the Lord.
- New Living Translation (NLT)The Ark remained in Kiriath-jearim for a long time—twenty years in all. During that time all Israel mourned because it seemed the Lord had abandoned them.
Context of 1 Samuel 7:2
1And the men of Kiriath-jearim came and took up the ark of the Lord and brought it to the house of Abinadab on the hill. And they consecrated his son Eleazar to have charge of the ark of the Lord. From the day that the ark was lodged at Kiriath-jearim, a long time passed, some twenty years, and all the house of Israel lamented after the Lord. 3And Samuel said to all the house of Israel, "If you are returning to the Lord with all your heart, then put away the foreign gods and the Ashtaroth from among you and direct your heart to the Lord and serve him only, and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines." 4So the people of Israel put away the Baals and the Ashtaroth, and they served the Lord only.
Read all of 1 Samuel 71 Samuel 7:2 word by word
וַיְהִ֗י מִיּ֞וֹם שֶׁ֤בֶת הָֽאָרוֹן֙ בְּקִרְיַ֣ת יְעָרִ֔ים וַיִּרְבּוּ֙ הַיָּמִ֔ים וַיִּֽהְי֖וּ עֶשְׂרִ֣ים שָׁנָ֑ה וַיִּנָּה֛וּ כָּל־בֵּ֥ית יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל אַחֲרֵ֥י יְהוָֽה׃ סRead the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And it came to pass, whileיוֹםyôm · dayH3117
- the arkאֲרוֹן'ârôn 'ârôn · arkH727
- abodeיָשַׁבyâshab · to dwellH3427
- in Kirjath–jearimקִרְיַת יְעָרִיםqiryath ye‛ârîym qiryath ‛ârîym · Kiriath-jearimH7157
- was longרָבָהrâbâh · to multiplyH7235
- for it was twentyעֶשְׂרִים‛eώrîym · twentyH6242
- yearsשָׁנָהshâneh shânâh · yearH8141
- and all the houseבַּ֫יִתbayith · house: householdH1004
- of Israelיִשְׂרָאֵלyiώrâ'êl · IsraelH3478
- lamentedנָהָהnâhâh · to wailH5091
- afterאַחַר'achar · afterH310
- the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
Cross-references for 1 Samuel 7:2
- Judges 2:4As soon as the angel of the Lord spoke these words to all the people of Israel, the people lifted up their voices and wept.
- Jeremiah 3:13Only acknowledge your guilt, that you rebelled against the Lord your God and scattered your favors among foreigners under every green tree, and that you have not obeyed my voice, declares the Lord.
- Jeremiah 31:9With weeping they shall come, and with pleas for mercy I will lead them back, I will make them walk by brooks of water, in a straight path in which they shall not stumble, for I am a father to Israel, and Ephraim is my firstborn.
- Zechariah 12:10"And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and pleas for mercy, so that, when they look on me, on him whom they have pierced, they shall mourn for him, as one mourns for an only child, and weep bitterly over him, as one weeps over a firstborn.
- Matthew 5:4"Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.
- 2 Corinthians 7:10For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death.
Commentaries on 1 Samuel 7:2
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 2It was twenty years - This chapter contains the transactions of at least twenty years, but we know not the date of each event.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 2And all the house of Israel lamented - The occupation of the country about Shiloh by the Philistines 1 Samuel 7:3 was partly the reason for the ark being kept so long at Kirjath-jearim. But another reason seems to have been the fall of the Israelites into idolatry, which made them neglect the ark, and brought upon them this Philistine servitude; probably the last 20 years of the Philistine oppression described in Judges 13:1, which is there expressly…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 2Twenty years passed until Samuel gathered the people at Mizpah (1 Samuel 7:5–6). Later, David moved the ark to Jerusalem (2 Samuel 6:1–19).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 22. the ark abode in Kirjath-jearim ... twenty years--It appears, in the subsequent history, that a much longer period elapsed before its final removal from Kirjath-jearim (2Sa 6:1-19; 1Ch 13:1-14). But that length of time had passed when the Israelites began to revive from their sad state of religious decline. The capture of the ark had produced a general indifference either as to its loss or its recovery. all the house of Israel lamented after the…Read the comment
Topics related to 1 Samuel 7:2
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on 1 Samuel 7
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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Commentaries