Shiloh
City · Shiloh → Khirbet Seilun, West Bank
Israel set up the Tent of Meeting here when the land was won, and the ark rested at Shiloh through the days of the judges. Hannah prayed here for a son, and the boy Samuel heard the LORD call his name in the night.
People
- Joshua
- Eli
- Hannah
- Samuel
- Ahijah
At a glance
- Realm
- Israel (Ephraim)
- Role
- First resting place of the tabernacle and ark
- Peoples
- Israel
- First mention
- Joshua 18 (tabernacle set up)
The story
Shiloh in the hills of Ephraim was where Joshua pitched the Tent of Meeting once the land was subdued, and there he divided the remaining inheritance among the tribes by lot. For generations the ark of the covenant rested at Shiloh, and Israel came up to worship.
Here Hannah wept and prayed for a son and gave him back to the LORD, and the boy Samuel heard God call his name in the night beside the lamp. But Eli’s sons profaned the sanctuary, the ark was carried off in battle, and Shiloh became forever a warning of a holy place the LORD had let fall.
Through the eras
- The Patriarchs · absent from the map.
- Conquest & Judges · standing. Israel set up the Tent of Meeting here, and the ark rested at Shiloh through the days of the judges.
- The United Kingdom · in ruins. Burned about 1050 BC after the ark was taken in battle; who set the fire, Scripture does not say.
- Divided Kingdoms · in ruins. A byword for ruin; Ahijah the prophet still lived among its remnant.
- The Exile · in ruins. Men from Shiloh still went up with offerings after Jerusalem fell.
- The Return · absent from the map.