1 Samuel 7:11

Beth-car. The location is uncertain, but it is thought by some to be the modern ‘Ain Karim, about 4 1/4 mi. (6.7 km.) west of Jerusalem. This has been the general opinion, but more recently it has been identified with Ramath-Rahel, 2.9 mi. (4.6 km.) south of Jerusalem. It may be that the thunderstorm came from the north, and inasmuch as Baal was considered a storm god, the Philistines would superstitiously flee from a god whose dwelling was supposed to be in the mountains of the north. Fleeing southward, the Philistines probably took the easiest road back to the plain country, which would lead them through Beth-shemesh to Ekron. Along the way they were harassed by the assembled Israelites. And there, as Isaiah declared centuries later, God graciously gave them at once “beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning” (Isa. 61:3).