procession round Jericho (Joshua 6:4, 6, 8, 11, 12). When carried it was
always wrapped in the veil, the badgers’ skins, and blue cloth, and
carefully concealed even from the eyes of the Levites who carried it. After
the settlement of Israel in Palestine the ark remained in the tabernacle at
Gilgal for a season, and was then removed to Shiloh till the time of Eli,
between 300 and 400 years (Jeremiah 7:12), when it was carried into the
field of battle so as to secure, as they supposed, victory to the Hebrews,
and was taken by the Philistines (1 Samuel 4:3-11), who sent it back after
retaining it seven months (1 Samuel 5:7, 8). It remained then at
Kirjath-jearim (7:1,2) till the time of David (twenty years), who wished to
remove it to Jerusalem; but the proper mode of removing it having been
neglected, Uzzah was smitten with death for putting “forth his hand to the
ark of God,” and in consequence of this it was left in the house of
Obed-edom in Gath-rimmon for three months (2 Samuel 6:1-11), at the end
of which time David removed it in a grand procession to Jerusalem, where
it was kept till a place was prepared for it (12-19). It was afterwards
deposited by Solomon in the temple (1 Kings 8:6-9). When the
Babylonians destroyed Jerusalem and plundered the temple, the ark was
probably taken away by Nebuchadnezzar and destroyed, as no trace of it
is afterwards to be found. The absence of the ark from the second temple
was one of the points in which it was inferior to the first temple.
- ARKITE (Genesis 10:17; 1 Chronicles 1:15), a designation of certain
descendants from the Phoenicians or Sidonians, the inhabitants of Arka, 12
miles north of Tripoli, opposite the northern extremity of Lebanon. - ARM used to denote power (Psalm 10:15; Ezekiel 30:21; Jeremiah
48:25). It is also used of the omnipotence of God (Exodus 15:16; Psalm
89:13; 98:1; 77:15; Isaiah 53:1; John 12:38; Acts 13:17) - ARMAGEDDON occurs only in Revelation 16:16 (R.V.,
“Har-Magedon”), as symbolically designating the place where the “battle
of that great day of God Almighty” (ver. 14) shall be fought. The word
properly means the “mount of Megiddo.” It is the scene of the final
conflict between Christ and Antichrist. The idea of such a scene was
suggested by the Old Testament great battle-field, the plain of Esdraelon
(q.v.). - ARMENIA high land, occurs only in Authorized Version, 2 Kings 19:37;
in Revised Version, “Ararat,” which is the Hebrew word. A country in