1 Samuel 5:7
in 1 Samuel 5And when the men of Ashdod saw what was happening, they said, “The ark of the God of Israel must not stay here with us, because His hand is heavy upon us and upon our god Dagon.”
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And when the men of Ashdod saw that it was so, they said, The ark of the God of Israel shall not abide with us; for his hand is sore upon us, and upon Dagon our god.
KJV
And when the men of Ashdod saw that it was so, they said, The ark of the God of Israel shall not abide with us: for his hand is sore upon us, and upon Dagon our god.
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This verse in 1 Samuel 5
Commentary
8 notes on this verseHis hand is sore upon us, and upon Dagon our god - Here the end was completely answered: they now saw that they had not prevailed against Israel, on account of their god being more powerful than Jehovah; and they now feel how easily this God can confound and destroy their whole nation.
This site's exposition
the hand of the LORD was heavy
on 1 Samuel 5:6-7
The hand of the Lord falls on Ashdod and its vicinity, “afflicting them with tumors”. The men of Ashdod read the sign and want the ark gone, because “His hand is heavy upon us and upon our god Dagon”. Clarke takes their own words as proof that they conclude Israel's God beat their god in his own city.
This site's exposition
And when the men of Ashdod saw
The men of Ashdod confess that the hand of the God of Israel lies on Dagon as well as on them. Adam Clarke saw them learning that their victory in chapter 4 owed nothing to Dagon's strength. Matthew Henry saw them choosing to keep God at a distance.
The record, by era
The Medieval Church2 voices
Seeing the men of Ashdod had such a plague, etc. Upon seeing the idol worshippers experience the power of Christ against their gods, they refuse to accept his faith, lest on account of this they might be compelled to renounce their whole host of gods. …
A commentator
Gregory the DialogistCommentary on 1 Kings, Book 3, Chapter 3 · Written before 604.
proposed
7. For when they saw temples destroyed, sacrifices ceasing, wives separated from husbands and husbands from wives, sons separated from parents and fathers from sons, what else could they think but that the hand of the Lord was heavy both upon them and upon their superstition? But what was done next follows: (Verse 8.) And they sent and gathered together all the lords of the Philistines, and the Gittites answered: Let the ark of God be carried around.
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
Carnal hearts, when they smart under the judgments of God, would rather, if it were possible, put him far from them than enter into covenant and communion with him, and make him their friend. Thus the men of Ashdod resolve, The ark of the God of Israel shall not abide with us. It is resolved to change the place of its imprisonment.
And when the men of Ashdod saw that it was so,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
the ark of God shall not abide with us--It was removed successively to several of the large towns of the country, but the same pestilence broke out in every place and raged so fiercely and fatally that the authorities were forced to send the ark back into the land of Israel [1Sa 5:8-10].
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — starts-lowercase
The words behind it
19 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיִּרְא֥וּ | vaiyiru | and they saw | H7200 → | 1300 times |
| אַנְשֵֽׁי־ | ʾanshei- | [the] people of | H582 → | 566 times |
| אַשְׁדּ֖וֹד | ʾashdod | Ashdod | H795 → | 17 times |
| כִּֽי־ | ki- | that | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| כֵ֑ן | khen | so | H3651 → | 771 times |
| וְאָמְר֗וּ | veameru | and they said | H559 → | 5305 times |
| לֹֽא־ | lo'- | not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| יֵשֵׁ֞ב | yeshev | it will remain | H3427 → | 1079 times |
| אֲר֨וֹן | ʾaron | [the] ark of | H727 → | 202 times |
| אֱלֹהֵ֤י | ʾelohei | [the] God of | H430 → | 2601 times |
| יִשְׂרָאֵל֙ | yisrael | Israel | H3478 → | 2507 times |
| עִמָּ֔נוּ | ʾimanu | with us | H5973 → | 1050 times |
| כִּֽי־ | ki- | for | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| קָשְׁתָ֤ה | kashetah | it is hard | H7185 → | |
| יָדוֹ֙ | yado | hand his | H3027 → | 1618 times |
| עָלֵ֔ינוּ | ʾaleinu | on us | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| וְעַ֖ל | veal | and on | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| דָּג֥וֹן | dagon | Dagon | H1712 → | 13 times |
| אֱלֹהֵֽינוּ׃ | ʾeloheinu | God our | H430 → | 2601 times |
וַיִּרְא֥וּand they saw
vaiyiruH7200 →1300 times
אַנְשֵֽׁי־[the] people of
ʾanshei-H582 →566 times
אַשְׁדּ֖וֹדAshdod
ʾashdodH795 →17 times
כִּֽי־that
ki-H3588 →4482 times
כֵ֑ןso
khenH3651 →771 times
וְאָמְר֗וּand they said
veameruH559 →5305 times
לֹֽא־not
lo'-H3808 →5168 times
יֵשֵׁ֞בit will remain
yeshevH3427 →1079 times
אֲר֨וֹן[the] ark of
ʾaronH727 →202 times
אֱלֹהֵ֤י[the] God of
ʾeloheiH430 →2601 times
יִשְׂרָאֵל֙Israel
yisraelH3478 →2507 times
עִמָּ֔נוּwith us
ʾimanuH5973 →1050 times
כִּֽי־for
ki-H3588 →4482 times
קָשְׁתָ֤הit is hard
kashetahH7185 →
יָדוֹ֙hand his
yadoH3027 →1618 times
עָלֵ֔ינוּon us
ʾaleinuH5921 →5755 times
וְעַ֖לand on
vealH5921 →5755 times
דָּג֥וֹןDagon
dagonH1712 →13 times
אֱלֹהֵֽינוּ׃God our
ʾeloheinuH430 →2601 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
1 Chronicles 15:13It was because you Levites were not with us the first time that the LORD our God burst forth in anger against us. For we did not consult Him about the proper order.”
it leads to
- 2 Samuel 6:3
They set the ark of God on a new cart and brought it from the house of Abinadab, which was on the hill. Uzzah and Ahio, the sons of Abinadab, were guiding the new…
- 1 Corinthians 14:40
But everything must be done in a proper and orderly manner.
- 1 Corinthians 11:2
Now I commend you for remembering me in everything and for maintaining the traditions, just as I passed them on to you.
- 1 John 1:8–10
If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
- Numbers 4:15
When Aaron and his sons have finished covering the holy objects and all their equipment, as soon as the camp is ready to move, the Kohathites shall come and do the carrying. But they…
- 2 Samuel 6:3
Through
Exodus 8:28Pharaoh answered, “I will let you go and sacrifice to the LORD your God in the wilderness, but you must not go very far. Now pray for me.”
it leads to
- Exodus 8:8
Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and said, “Pray to the LORD to take the frogs away from me and my people. Then I will let your people go, that they may sacrifice to the…
- Exodus 8:8
Through
Exodus 12:33And in order to send them out of the land quickly, the Egyptians urged the people on. “For otherwise,” they said, “we are all going to die!”
it leads to
- Psalms 105:38
Egypt was glad when they departed, for the dread of Israel had fallen on them.
- Exodus 11:1
Then the LORD said to Moses, “I will bring upon Pharaoh and Egypt one more plague. After that, he will allow you to leave this place. And when he lets you go, he will…
- Psalms 105:38
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies1
About 1 Samuel
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Bede, Commentary on Samuel; Gregory the Dialogist, Commentary on 1 Kings, Book 3, Chapter 3; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.