The Philistines put themselves in array against Israel: and when they joined battle, Israel was struck before the Philistines; and they killed of the army in the field about four thousand men.
God did not record the destruction of the tabernacle at Shiloh, but some writers assume the Philistines razed it after they captured the ark. [Note: E.g., Joyce Baldwin, 1 & 2 Samuel, p. 71; and Charles Pfeiffer and Howard Vos, The Wycliffe Historical Geography of Bible Lands, p. 143.] The town probably did suffer destruction then (cf. Jeremiah 7:12; Jeremiah 7:14; Jeremiah 26:6). [Note: See John Bright, A History of Israel, p. 165.] However, the writer of Chronicles mentioned that the tabernacle still stood in David’s day (1 Chronicles 21:29) and when Solomon began to reign (2 Chronicles 1:3). The writer of Samuel showed less interest in the sanctuary structure than in the ark. The Philistines may have destroyed the town of Shiloh, but it "revived sufficiently to produce a few worthy citizens in later generations (cf. 1 Kings 11:29; Jeremiah 41:5)." [Note: Gordon, p. 96.] 