Shiloh is the site where the Tabernacle (Mishkan), the portable sanctuary that the Israelites carried through the desert, stood for 369 years, from the time of Joshua’s conquest until the Ark of the Covenant was captured by the Philistines (1 Samuel 4:11). Before Jerusalem became the center of Israelite worship, Shiloh was the religious capital of the nation, the place where the tribes gathered, where the Ark of the Covenant rested, and where Hannah prayed for a son.
Tabernacle
After the Israelites crossed the Jordan River and completed the initial conquest, Joshua set up the Tabernacle at Shiloh: “The whole assembly of the Israelites gathered at Shiloh and set up the tent of meeting there” (Joshua 18:1). For nearly four centuries, Shiloh was the place where Israelites came to worship, to offer sacrifices, and to seek judgment. The Tabernacle at Shiloh was not the tent of the desert wanderings; archaeological evidence suggests that a more permanent structure was built to house the sacred objects.
Hannah’s Prayer
One of the most moving stories in the Bible takes place at Shiloh. Hannah, who was childless, came to the Tabernacle to pray: “In her deep anguish Hannah prayed to the Lord, weeping bitterly. And she made a vow, saying, ‘Lord Almighty, if you will only look on your servant’s misery and remember me, and not forget your servant but give her a son, then I will give him to the Lord for all the days of his life’” (1 Samuel 1:10-11). The priest Eli, watching her lips move without sound, thought she was drunk. Hannah explained, and Eli blessed her. She bore a son, Samuel, and when he was weaned, she brought him to Shiloh to serve in the Tabernacle, keeping her vow. Samuel grew up to become the prophet who anointed both Saul and David as kings.
The Destruction
Around 1050 BCE, the Philistines defeated Israel in battle and captured the Ark of the Covenant. The news killed Eli the priest, and Shiloh was destroyed. The prophet Jeremiah later used the destruction of Shiloh as a warning to Jerusalem: “Go now to the place in Shiloh where I first made a dwelling for my Name, and see what I did to it because of the wickedness of my people Israel” (Jeremiah 7:12). The warning was ignored, and Jerusalem was destroyed by the Babylonians 400 years after Shiloh fell.
The Site
The archaeological site at Shiloh includes remains from the Bronze Age through the Byzantine period. The area identified as the location of the Tabernacle is on the northern side of the tell, where a flat area surrounded by a wall may have been the sacred precinct. A Byzantine church and mosaic floor mark the site that early Christians identified with the Tabernacle. A modern visitor center uses multimedia presentations to tell the story of the Tabernacle and its 369 years at Shiloh.
Power of Hannah’s Prayer
Hannah’s prayer at Shiloh is considered by the Talmud to be the model for all Jewish prayer. The rabbis note that Hannah “spoke in her heart; only her lips moved, but her voice was not heard” (1 Samuel 1:13), establishing the practice of silent prayer (the Amidah) that is central to Jewish worship to this day. The Talmud derives multiple laws of prayer from Hannah’s behavior: prayer should come from the heart, the lips should move, the voice should not be heard, and a person who is drunk should not pray (because Eli mistook Hannah’s silent intensity for drunkenness). Hannah’s song of thanksgiving after Samuel’s birth, “My heart rejoices in the Lord; in the Lord my horn is lifted high” (1 Samuel 2:1), became the model for the Magnificat that Mary sang at Ein Karem (Luke 1:46-55). Two mothers, separated by a thousand years, both singing at the birth of sons they had prayed for, in words that echo across the centuries.
Visit with Hoshen Tours
Shiloh is where Israel’s worship story begins. Hoshen Tours visits the site and tells the story of the Tabernacle, Hannah’s prayer, and the destruction that Jeremiah used as a warning to Jerusalem.