1 Samuel 5
5
Capture of the Ark Provokes God
1Then the Philistines took the ark of God, and they brought it from Ebenezer to #5:1 One of the five major Philistine cities.Ashdod. 2They took the ark of God and brought it into the house of Dagon and set it beside [the image of] Dagon [their chief idol]. 3When the people of Ashdod got up early the next day, behold, Dagon had fallen on his face on the ground before the ark of the Lord. So they took Dagon and returned him to his place. 4But when they got up early the next morning, behold, Dagon had [again] fallen on his face on the ground before the ark of the Lord, and his head and both palms of his hands were [lying] cut off on the threshold; only the trunk [portion] of [the idol of] Dagon was left on him. 5This is the reason neither the priests of Dagon nor any who enter Dagon’s house step on the threshold of Dagon in Ashdod to this day.
6Then the hand of the Lord was heavy on the people of Ashdod, and He caused them to be dumbfounded and struck them with #5:6 It is possible that this was a type of bubonic plague or infection spread by rats (or fleas hosted by rats), as intimated in 6:4f.tumors, both Ashdod and its territory. 7When the men of Ashdod saw what had happened, they said, “The ark of the God of Israel must not remain with us, for His hand is heavy on us and on Dagon our god.” 8So they sent word and gathered all the lords (governors) of the Philistines to them and said, “What shall we do with the ark of the God of Israel?” They answered, “Let the ark of the God of Israel be brought around to #5:8 Gath was another major Philistine city and the home of their giant warrior, Goliath. Faced with the humiliation of surrendering the ark to Israel, the Philistine governors decided instead to treat it like a dangerous “hot potato” and simply get rid of it by sending it to another city.Gath.” So they took the ark of the God of Israel there. 9But it happened that after they had taken it to Gath, the hand of the Lord was against the city, causing an extremely great panic [because of the deaths from the plague], for He struck the people of the city, both young and old, and tumors broke out on them. 10So they sent the ark of God to #5:10 A major Philistine city north of Ashdod and near the territory of Israel.Ekron. And as the ark of God came to Ekron, the Ekronites cried out, “They have brought the ark of the God of Israel [from Gath] to #5:10 Lit me.us, to kill us and #5:10 Lit my.our people.” 11So they sent word and gathered all the lords of the Philistines and said, “Send away the ark of the God of Israel; let it be returned to its own place, so that it will not kill us and our people.” For there was a deadly panic throughout the city; the hand of God was very heavy (severe) there. 12The men who had not died were stricken with tumors and the cry of the city [for help] went up to heaven.
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1 Samuel 5
5
Trouble for the Philistines
1After the Philistines had captured the Ark of God, they took it from Ebenezer to Ashdod. 2They carried it into Dagon’s temple and put it next to Dagon. 3When the people of Ashdod rose early the next morning, they found that Dagon had fallen on his face on the ground before the Ark of the Lord. So they put Dagon back in his place. 4The next morning when they rose, they again found Dagon fallen on the ground before the Ark of the Lord. His head and hands had broken off and were lying in the doorway. Only his body was still in one piece. 5So, even today, Dagon’s priests and others who enter his temple at Ashdod refuse to step on the doorsill.
6The Lord was hard on the people of Ashdod and their neighbors. He caused them to suffer and gave them growths on their skin. 7When the people of Ashdod saw what was happening, they said, “The Ark of the God of Israel can’t stay with us. God is punishing us and Dagon our god.” 8The people of Ashdod called all five Philistine kings together and asked them, “What should we do with the Ark of the God of Israel?”
The rulers answered, “Move the Ark of the God of Israel to Gath.” So the Philistines moved it to Gath.
9But after they moved it to Gath, there was a great panic. The Lord was hard on that city also, and he gave both old and young people in Gath growths on their skin. 10Then the Philistines sent the Ark of God to Ekron.
But when it came into Ekron, the people of Ekron yelled, “Why are you bringing the Ark of the God of Israel to our city? Do you want to kill us and our people?” 11So they called all the kings of the Philistines together and said, “Send the Ark of the God of Israel back to its place before it kills us and our people!” All the people in the city were struck with terror because God was so hard on them there. 12The people who did not die were troubled with growths on their skin. So the people of Ekron cried loudly to heaven.
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The Holy Bible, New Century Version, Copyright © 2005 Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved.