Tumors & Rats

The Philistines took on more than they bargained for.  Capturing the ark of God (the chest, not the boat) sounded like a good idea at the time - the fruit of plunder following a successful military campaign.

1 Samuel 5:6-8a (NIV)
The Lord’s hand was heavy on the people of Ashdod and its vicinity; he brought devastation on them and afflicted them with tumors. When the people of Ashdod saw what was happening, they said, “The ark of the god of Israel must not stay here with us, because his hand is heavy on us and on Dagon our god.” So they called together all the rulers of the Philistines and asked them, “What shall we do with the ark of the god of Israel?”

Attempts were made to remedy their misstep to no avail.  At wits' end they, through priests, called out to God.  (Don't you think that should have been their go-to much earlier?)  The priests suggest to them that they should return the ark to the Israelites.  Yet not only were they to return what was not rightfully theirs, they were to add their own contributions.  Strange contributions, I think.

1 Samuel 6:4-5 (NIV)
The Philistines asked, “What guilt offering should we send to him?”
They replied, “Five gold tumors and five gold rats, according to the number of the Philistine rulers, because the same plague has struck both you and your rulers. Make models of the tumors and of the rats that are destroying the country, and give glory to Israel’s god. Perhaps he will lift his hand from you and your gods and your land."

If you ever choose to take something that rightfully belongs to me, I hope you will return it; but please no tumors and rats with it!

Why tumors and rats?

Directed to do so, the Philistines took costly gold and formed rats and tumors.  They formed reminders of their missteps out of something valuable.  Through this they learned a valuable lesson.

So - can we?

What tumors and rats have you experienced due to missteps?  They don't have to be actual cancerous growths or rodents.  They can be debts, frustrations, fines, pain, broken relationships, and the like.

You may not want to craft reminders out of precious metals, but I suggest that you take time to reflect on the damage caused by missteps.  That reflection can lead to a great change of heart and behavior and, therefore, a lot less tumors and rats.

#ordinarylives

---