The ark of God is a reference to the ark of the covenant, a wooden chest overlaid on the inside and outside with gold, and with two winged cherubim on top (Exodus 25:10–22). It was the most holy physical possession of Israel. It symbolized God’s presence (Exodus 25:22; Numbers 7:89; Numbers 10:35–36) with the space between the winged cherubim representing the royal throne from which the Lord invisibly reigned (1 Samuel 4:4; 2 Samuel 6:2; Psalm 99:1). The ark itself contained three symbols of Israel’s relationship with God: the stone tablets of the Ten Commandments, Aaron’s high priest rod, and a jar of manna (Exodus 25:16, Exodus 25:21; Exodus 40:20; Hebrews 9:4). The ark was to be carried by Levites on special poles and no one was permitted to touch it (Exodus 25:12–13; Exodus 37:3–5; Numbers 4:4–15). It was kept in the Most Holy Place (Exodus 26:33–34), a special part of the tabernacle which the high priest was allowed to enter but once a year on the Day of Atonement (Leviticus 16:1–34).
3 The lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the temple of the LORD, where the ark of God was.