2 The ark remained at Kiriath Jearim for a long time. It was there for a full 20 years. All of the people of Israel were filled with sorrow. They looked to the Lord for help.
3 Samuel spoke to the whole community of Israel. He said, "Do you really want to return to the Lord with all your hearts? If you do, get rid of your strange gods. Get rid of your statues of goddesses that are named after Ashtoreth. Commit yourselves to the Lord. Serve him only. Then he will save you from the powerful hand of the Philistines."
4 So the people of Israel put away their statues of gods that were named after Baal. They put away their statues of goddesses named after Ashtoreth. They served the Lord only.
5 Then Samuel said, "Gather all of the people of Israel together at Mizpah. I will pray to the Lord for you."
6 When the people had come together at Mizpah, they went to the well and got water. They poured it out in the sight of the Lord. On that day they didn't eat any food. They admitted they had sinned. They said, "We've sinned against the Lord." Samuel was the leader of Israel at Mizpah.
7 The Philistines heard that Israel had gathered together at Mizpah. So the Philistine rulers came up to attack them. When the people of Israel heard about it, they were afraid.
8 They said to Samuel, "Don't stop crying out to the Lord our God to help us. Keep praying that he'll save us from the powerful hand of the Philistines."