¹ The men of Kiriath-Jearim came and, taking up the ark of Yahweh, brought it to the house of Abinadab on the hill, and consecrated his son Eleazar to guard the ark of Yahweh.

² From the day when the ark was installed at Kiriath-Jearim, a long time went by -- twenty years -- and the whole House of Israel longed for Yahweh.

³ Samuel then spoke as follows to the whole House of Israel, 'If you are returning to Yahweh with all your heart, banish the foreign gods and Astartes which you now have, and set your heart on Yahweh and serve him alone; and he will deliver you from the power of the Philistines.'

⁴ And the Israelites banished the Baals and Astartes and served Yahweh alone.

⁵ Samuel then said, 'Muster all Israel at Mizpah and I shall plead with Yahweh for you.'

⁶ So they mustered at Mizpah and drew water and poured it out before Yahweh. They fasted that day and declared, 'We have sinned against Yahweh.' And Samuel was judge over the Israelites at Mizpah.

⁷ When the Philistines heard that the Israelites had mustered at Mizpah, the Philistine chiefs marched on Israel; and when the Israelites heard this, they were afraid of the Philistines.

⁸ They said to Samuel, 'Do not stop calling on Yahweh our God to rescue us from the power of the Philistines.'

⁹ Samuel took a sucking lamb and presented it as a burnt offering to Yahweh, and he called on Yahweh on behalf of Israel and Yahweh heard him.

¹⁰ While Samuel was in the act of presenting burnt offering, the Philistines joined battle with Israel, but that day Yahweh thundered violently over the Philistines, threw them into panic and Israel defeated them.

¹¹ The men of Israel sallied out from Mizpah in pursuit of the Philistines and beat them all the way to below Beth-Car.

¹² Samuel then took a stone and erected it between Mizpah and the Tooth, and gave it the name Ebenezer, saying, 'Yahweh helped us as far as this.'

¹³ So the Philistines were humbled and no longer came into Israelite territory; Yahweh oppressed the Philistines throughout the life of Samuel.

¹⁴ The towns which the Philistines had taken from Israel were given back to Israel, from Ekron all the way to Gath, and Israel freed their territory from the power of the Philistines. There was peace, too, between Israel and the Amorites.

¹⁵ Samuel was judge over Israel throughout his life.

¹⁶ Each year he went on circuit through Bethel and Gilgal and Mizpah and judged Israel in all these places.

¹⁷ He would then return to Ramah, since his home was there; there too he judged Israel. And there he built an altar to Yahweh.