Shiloh

Shiloh in the Bible

• Joshua: After the settlement in Canaan, the whole congregation of Israel assembled at Shiloh and set up the tabernacle of the congregation there (Joshua 18:1). At Shiloh, Joshua cast lots to divide the land among the seven remaining tribes (Joshua 18:8-10; 19:51). It was also at Shiloh that the Levites requested cities to dwell in (Joshua 21:2).
• Judges: The book records that the house of God was in Shiloh (Judges 18:31). A yearly feast of the LORD was held at Shiloh, and the book tells how the Benjamites seized women who came out to this feast and took them as wives (Judges 21:19-23).
• 1 Samuel: Hannah and her husband Elkanah went up to Shiloh every year to worship. The priest Eli had charge of "the temple of the LORD" there, and the young Samuel received God's call within the temple where the ark was kept (1 Samuel 1–3). When Israel fought the Philistines, they brought the ark of the covenant from Shiloh to the battlefield, where it was captured; when Eli heard the news, he died (1 Samuel 4).
• 1 Kings: The prophet Ahijah the Shilonite foretold to Jeroboam that the kingdom would be divided (1 Kings 11:29-31; 14:2).
• Psalms and Jeremiah: Psalm 78:60 declares that God forsook the tabernacle of Shiloh. Jeremiah warned the people who trusted in the temple in Jerusalem yet would not turn from their sins: "go ye now unto my place which was in Shiloh... and see." He declared that the temple in Jerusalem would become like Shiloh (Jeremiah 7:12-14; 26:6).

Background

Judges 21:19 locates Shiloh north of Bethel, on the east side of the highway that goes up from Bethel to Shechem, and south of Lebonah. Today it is commonly identified with Khirbet Seilun in the West Bank, where several excavations have been conducted. Scholars, however, differ in how they interpret the excavation results. The original meaning of the name is uncertain; one view connects it with a word related to "peace."

Significance in the Bible as a Whole

Shiloh was the center of Israel's worship before the temple was built in Jerusalem. The Psalms and Jeremiah use Shiloh as an example showing that God is not bound to any particular place and that He will forsake even His sanctuary when His people disobey. The New Testament does not mention Shiloh directly. Nevertheless, the teaching that worship depends not on place but on "spirit and truth" (John 4:20-23) and Jesus' prediction of the temple's destruction are read as carrying forward the same theme.

Interpretations and Debates

• The destruction of Shiloh: 1 Samuel 4 records only the capture of the ark and does not say that Shiloh was destroyed. The view that the Philistines destroyed Shiloh at that time is an inference drawn from Jeremiah's warnings and Psalm 78. Scholars disagree about when and how Shiloh actually declined.
• The form of the sanctuary: The Book of Joshua calls the sanctuary at Shiloh the "tabernacle of the congregation," while 1 Samuel calls it "the temple of the LORD" and mentions its doorposts. Some interpret this as the continued use of the tent itself, while others hold that a permanent structure had been added.
• "Shiloh" in Genesis 49:10: The New Korean Revised Version, like the KJV, renders Jacob's blessing on Judah as "until Shiloh come." In this verse, "Shiloh" has been read not as a place name but as a reference to a person who is to come, and the verse has traditionally been interpreted as a messianic prophecy. Other translations and scholars render the original differently, for example as "until he comes to whom it belongs."

In the Korean Church

Sermons frequently treat Hannah's prayer, Samuel's call, and the downfall of Eli's house, all of which took place at Shiloh. Jeremiah's words in chapter 7, "go ye now unto my place which was in Shiloh," are cited as a warning against merely formal worship. Shiloh is not to be confused with the similarly named Pool of Siloam.