1 Samuel 5: The ark in the house of Dagon, and the plague of tumors
A free study, verse by verse. Text: World English Bible. Notes come from the Hebrew. How to read a study
What happens?
The Philistines bring the ark of God from Ebenezer to Ashdod and set it beside Dagon in his house. The next morning Dagon has fallen on his face before Yahweh's ark, and the morning after, he has fallen again, with his head and hands cut off on the threshold. Yahweh's hand is heavy on the people of Ashdod, and he strikes them with tumors. The ark is sent to Gath, where tumors break out on young and old, and then to Ekron, where the people cry out that it has come to kill them. The lords of the Philistines are asked to send it back to its own place, and the cry of the city goes up to heaven.
Who is speaking?
The narrator tells the story. No verse is in gold: God speaks no words in this chapter. The men of Ashdod speak in verse 7. The lords of the Philistines are asked what to do, and answer, in verse 8. The people of Ekron cry out in verse 10, and they speak to the lords of the Philistines in verse 11. Verses 6, 9 and 11 tell what Yahweh's hand did, in the narrator's words. God's own words are printed in gold, and those verses are marked God speaks
1Now the Philistines had taken God’s ark, and they brought it from Ebenezer to Ashdod.
In plain English: The Philistines had taken the ark of God, and they brought it from Ebenezer to Ashdod.
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2The Philistines took God’s ark, and brought it into the house of Dagon and set it by Dagon.
In plain English: The Philistines took the ark of God, brought it into the house of Dagon, and set it beside Dagon.
Good to know: The dictionary gives Dagon as "a Philistine deity", and the text does not describe him. In the lords of the Philistines gathered "to offer a great sacrifice to Dagon their god" when Samson was taken. Here the ark of Israel's God is set beside Dagon in his own house.
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3When the people of Ashdod arose early on the next day, behold, Dagon had fallen on his face to the ground before Yahweh’s ark. They took Dagon and set him in his place again.
In plain English: When the people of Ashdod got up early the next day, there was Dagon, fallen on his face to the ground before Yahweh's ark. They took Dagon and put him back in his place.
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4When they arose early on the following morning, behold, Dagon had fallen on his face to the ground before Yahweh’s ark; and the head of Dagon and both the palms of his hands were cut off on the threshold. Only Dagon’s torso was intact.
In plain English: When they got up early the next morning, there was Dagon, fallen on his face to the ground before Yahweh's ark. Dagon's head and both palms of his hands were cut off, lying on the threshold. Only Dagon's body (literally: only Dagon; this Bible: torso) was left.
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5Therefore neither the priests of Dagon nor any who come into Dagon’s house step on the threshold of Dagon in Ashdod to this day.
In plain English: That is why, to this day, neither the priests of Dagon nor anyone who comes into Dagon's house steps on the threshold of Dagon in Ashdod.
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6But Yahweh’s hand was heavy on the people of Ashdod, and he destroyed them and struck them with tumors, even Ashdod and its borders.
In plain English: But Yahweh's hand was heavy on the people of Ashdod. He brought ruin on them (this Bible: destroyed them) and struck them with tumors, Ashdod and the land around it (this Bible: its borders).
The Hebrew words: "Tumors" here is ophalim, from ophel, which the dictionary gives as "a tumor; also a mound, i.e. fortress". The same word is in verses 9 and 12 and in and . In and the word is techorim, which the dictionary gives as "a boil or ulcer (from the inflammation)". uses ophalim among the curses: "Yahweh will strike you with the boils of Egypt, with the tumors".
Good to know: The old Greek translation in this collection (Brenton) has more in this verse: "mice sprang up in the midst of their country, and there was a great and indiscriminate mortality in the city". In the Hebrew of this story, mice are first named in , in the Philistine priests' answer.
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7When the men of Ashdod saw that it was so, they said, “The ark of the God of Israel shall not stay with us, for his hand is severe on us and on Dagon our god.”
In plain English: When the men of Ashdod saw how it was, they said, "The ark of the God of Israel must not stay with us, because his hand is hard on us and on Dagon our god."
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8They sent therefore and gathered together all the lords of the Philistines, 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 carried over to Gath.” They carried the ark of the God of Israel there.
In plain English: So they sent and gathered all the lords 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 moved (literally: go around) to Gath." So they moved the ark of the God of Israel there.
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9It was so, that after they had carried it there, Yahweh’s hand was against the city with a very great confusion; and he struck the men of the city, both small and great, so that tumors broke out on them.
In plain English: But after they had moved it, Yahweh's hand was against the city, with a very great panic (this Bible: confusion). He struck the men of the city, young and old (this Bible: small and great), and tumors broke out on them.
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10So they sent God’s ark to Ekron. As God’s ark came to Ekron, the Ekronites cried out, saying, “They have brought the ark of the God of Israel here to us, to kill us and our people.”
In plain English: So they sent the ark of God to Ekron. As the ark of God came to Ekron, the people of Ekron cried out, "They have brought the ark of the God of Israel around to us (literally: to me), to kill us and our people (literally: me and my people)!"
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11They sent therefore and gathered together all the lords of the Philistines, and they said, “Send the ark of the God of Israel away, and let it go again to its own place, that it not kill us and our people.” For there was a deadly panic throughout all the city. The hand of God was very heavy there.
In plain English: So they sent and gathered all the lords of the Philistines, and said, "Send the ark of the God of Israel away. Let it go back to its own place, so that it does not kill us and our people." For there was a deadly panic through the whole city. The hand of God was very heavy there.
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12The men who didn’t die were struck with the tumors; and the cry of the city went up to heaven.
In plain English: The men who did not die were struck with the tumors, and the cry of the city went up to heaven (or: to the sky).
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