The scholarly consensus seems to be a plague like the bubonic plague (the description, the mention of mice/rats, etc. seems to fit). The KJV uses an older spelling of hemorrhoids. Any other thoughts? Please list them below.

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Tim Phillips
Pastor, Midlane Park Presbyterian Church (ARP)
Louisville, KY
Husband of Scottish Lass
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"Wherever the gospel is preached, it is as if God Himself came into the midst of us." ~ John Calvin

Lymphoma.

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Less than the least of all saints,
Peter
At home: All Saints, REC.. At seminary: New Hope, PCA.
ETS, Due West, SC, CSA
Blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord
and whose hope the Lord is:
For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters.
Jer. 17:8

Simple- they were a painful, debilitating problem that the Philistines could only attribute to the presence of the Ark and thus to the wrath of God.

It can be fun to hypothesize on such things (like Paul's thorn in the flesh and such) but it can also be quite dangerous; possibly leading to anything from interpretive maximalism to full blown division over 'mere words'.

Theognome

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Bill Cunningham
Covenant Reformed Church, URC
Kansas City
There are three kinds of people- those who can count, and those who can't.

Some scholars have hinted at elephantiasis.

The Scriptures simply don't say and frankly it's not so important to know exactly what they were, just that the Philistines were stricken with them, and that it was God's doing.

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Donald Jacobs
Roanoke VA.
Covenant Reformed Episcopal Church.

Cum vero infirmor tunc potens sum.

Liberals.

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Andrew DeShazo
Husband of Kathryn
Father of Phillip-Giles B. DeShazo
Deacon
Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church, Memphis, TN
"From out of the depth of unbroken Infinfity arose the Question, "Who am I?" And to that Question there is the answer, "I am God!" -Meher Baba, died 1969.

"I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." Christ, died 33 AD, ressurected three days later.

It was plainly something you could make images of, which seems to suggest a fairly discrete appearance.

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Ruben
Moderator
F.P.C.I.
Indiana

Vanities and disguises have covered us, and thereby we are naked; licenciousness hath inflam'd us, and thereby we are frozen; voluptuousness hath fed us, and thereby we are sterved, the fancies and traditions of men have taught and instructed us, and thereby we are ignorant.
John Donne

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Calvinistas Conversando
Teología en Mexico
The Howling Wilderness

I'm sorry, my friend, but I think you're mistaken. Those aren't liberals you're thinking of; those are rats.

I suggest genetic mutation.

That would explain some of the weirder statues with multiple appendages.

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Jonathan
Audio Engineer
Reformed Anabaptist
Ohio

Moroni's magical glasses of proper interpretation:

Good one.

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Tom Mitchell
Opp, AL
Member of First Presbyterian Church PCA Florala, AL

O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin
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“The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our sons forever, that we may observe all the words of this law." Deut 29:29

If God doesn't tell us, we not only don't know, but we should refrain from speculation.

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Brian Withnell
Deacon, OPC
Leesburg, Virginia

You cannot train for war in the midst of a battle. Prepare before the battle starts; if the battle is long and hard, you will wish you had.

Gesenius and Baumgartner (HAL) agree:

Gesenius:
טְחוֹרִים m. pl. tumours of the anus, hæmorrhoidal mariscœ, protruding from the anus (see טָחַר), protruding through tenesmus in voiding. 1 Sam. 6:11, 17; and Deu. 28:27; 1 Sa. 5:6, 9.

HAL:

טְחֹרִים: טחר, Bauer-L. Heb. 468z; tantum pl.; JArm.tg טְחוֹרִין, Syr. also ṭe/ṭuḥāra haemorrhoids: טְחֹרֵי, טְחֹרֵיהֶם: ulcers of the anus haemorrhoids 1S 611.17

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Rev. Todd Ruddell
Pastor, Christ Covenant Reformed Presbyterian Church (RPCGA)
Wylie, TX
www.christcovenantreformedpc.org

Our best marks can contribute nothing to our justification, ...that is proper to faith. Faith cannot lodge in the soul alone, and without other graces; yet faith alone justifies before God.--G. Gillespie

Perhaps they were cancerous hemorrhoids brought on by the bubonic plague...
...or something else.

But I like "Liberals". Good answer.

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Alex - Orange County, CA - PCA

"I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but
Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by
faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me."
Galatians 2:20

Manton - "The sovereign dominion of God is a great prop to our faith."

I alway thought it was the bubonic plague it'd be funny if it was hemorrhoids.

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Aaron
Independent Baptist
Holland MI

Isn't liberals almost a synonym for hemorrhoids ?????

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Rich Koster
1689'er
Browns Mills NJ USA
Often Goofy Reformed Eccentric
Romans 7:14-25

you guy are funny

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Martin - Reformed
Husband to the most godly, honorable and loyal wife Line
Searching for a Church
Webpage www.5solas.dk
Free Online Reformed Seminary - http://www.tnars.net
Soli Deo Gloria

It's not a tumor!

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Tom Albrecht
Elder, Covenant URCNA, New Holland, PA.

"When I find the time, I'm going to write the social history of bourbon."

well this devolved quicklly

If it was hemorrhoids, I'm sure they weren't laughing.

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Stuart
Elder, Lambeg Baptist, Northern Ireland, UK

In Him the fulness of the Godhead dwells in bodily form and in Him you are complete (Col 2.9-10)

The Christian is a person who makes it easy for others to believe in God. (RM M'Cheyne)

I am sure it wasnt funny but I just cant see how someone could die from hemorrhoids.

Well, if they were really big, or even worse, an intestinal prolapse, it could be pretty bad.

I like the Gesinius derivation too. The image of bronzing them is remarkably strange and yet plausible. People were pretty weird and earthy in those parts.

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Raymond Victor Bottomly
Providence Reformed Baptist Church, Tacoma, WA

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A hemorrhoid is not a tumor, but they may have not known the dif or had a word specifically for what is was God gave them.

But wouldn't that hurt to bronze a hemorrhoid?

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DonP

Context seems to indicate that it was in fact hemorrhoids (AV-emerods). Consider 1 Sam. 5:9 "And it was so, that, after they had carried it about, the hand of the LORD was against the city with a very great destruction: and he smote the men of the city, both small and great, and they had emerods in their secret parts."

Also, I don't read where it mentions that anyone died from the "emerods". God smote the men of the city that they died but it wasn't a result of the "emerods".

12 And the men that died not were smitten with the emerods: and the cry of the city went up to heaven.

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Marty Shue
Grace Bible Church - Pastor
Reformed Baptist
Concord, NC

hey welcome to the PB
Good thoughts.

Thank you! I've been reading and enjoying the posts for several weeks.
Finally decided to jump in!