1 Samuel 6:5
in 1 Samuel 6Make images of your tumors and of the rats that are ravaging the land. Give glory to the God of Israel, and perhaps He will lift His hand from you and your gods and your land.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Wherefore ye shall make images of your tumors, and images of your mice that mar the land; and ye shall give glory unto the God of Israel: peradventure he will lighten his hand from off you, and from off your gods, and from off your land.
KJV
Wherefore ye shall make images of your emerods, and images of your mice that mar the land; and ye shall give glory unto the God of Israel: peradventure he will lighten his hand from off you, and from off your gods, and from off your land.
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This verse in 1 Samuel 6
Commentary
12 notes on this verseHe will lighten his hand from off you - The whole land was afflicted; the ground was marred by the mice; the common people and the lords afflicted by the haemorrhoids, and their gods broken in pieces.
This site's exposition
Five gold tumors and five gold rats
on 1 Samuel 6:4-6
The priests prescribe “Five gold tumors and five gold rats”, one for each ruler, images of the two plagues in a votive practice common among ancient nations. They ask “Why harden your hearts as the Egyptians and Pharaoh hardened theirs”, a question that shows the exodus story had reached Philistine ears. Wesley reads the gold as an offering meant to gain favor from the God who sent the plague.
This site's exposition
Make images of your tumors
The gold images confess in metal what the plague had done. Adam Clarke counted three things under God's hand in this verse: the people, the land ravaged by rats, and their gods, with Dagon already broken. John Wesley read give glory as owning God's power, his justice and his goodness.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
We read in the first book of Kings [Samuel] that because of the damage done to the consecrated ark the foreigners were smitten on their hinder parts, so that they even suffered the dreadful fate of being gnawed alive by mice. This remains a perennial …
The Medieval Church2 voices
And you will give glory to the God of Israel, etc. And confess that God alone is true, but every man is a liar (Rom. III; Psalm CXV); perhaps He may turn His face away from your sins and wipe out all your iniquities, and, …
A commentator
Gregory the DialogistCommentary on 1 Kings, Book 3, Chapter 4 · Written before 604.
proposed
5. What does it mean that five likenesses of tumors, and as many likenesses of mice, according to the number of the provinces, are commanded to be made, and thus the debt to the ark is paid? These things indeed, if weighed in the Jewish manner according to the lowliness of the letter, are not only to be despised, but not even worthy of hearing. He indeed receives these things worthily who understands that the more lowly they sound by the letter, the more useful they are through their spiritual meaning.
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
Give glory - The glory of his power in conquering you, who seemed to have conquered him; of his justice in punishing you, and of his goodness if he relieve you.
Note, Sinners lengthen out their own miseries by obstinately refusing to part with their sins. Egypt's plagues would have been fewer than ten if Pharaoh's heart had not been hardened not to let the people go. But at length it is determined that the ark must be sent back; there is no remedy, they are undone if they detain it.
4 more voices on this verse
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
They must make images of the emerods, that is, of the swellings and sores with which they had been afflicted, so making the reproach of that shameful disease perpetual by their own act and deed ( Ps. lxxviii.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
Wherefore ye shall make images of your emerods,....
The church is built upon a rock. They offered the sacrifices of thanksgiving to God, some think upon the great stone, more probably upon an altar of earth made for the purpose,
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
give glory unto the God of Israel--By these propitiatory presents, the Philistines would acknowledge His power and make reparation for the injury done to His ark. lighten his hand . . . from off your gods--Elohim for god.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — starts-lowercase
The words behind it
21 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַעֲשִׂיתֶם֩ | vaasitem | and you will make | H6213 → | 2628 times |
| צַלְמֵ֨י | tzalmei | images of | H6754 → | 17 times |
| טְחֹרֵיכֶ֜ם | techoreikhem | tumors your | H2914 → | 8 times |
| וְצַלְמֵ֣י | vetzalmei | and images of | H6754 → | 17 times |
| עַכְבְּרֵיכֶ֗ם | ʾakhbereikhem | mice your | H5909 → | 6 times |
| הַמַּשְׁחִיתִם֙ | hamashchitim | which are ruining | H7843 → | 146 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| הָאָ֔רֶץ | haaretz | the land | H776 → | 2504 times |
| וּנְתַתֶּ֛ם | unetatem | and you will give | H5414 → | 2011 times |
| לֵאלֹהֵ֥י | lelohei | to [the] God of | H430 → | 2601 times |
| יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל | yisrael | Israel | H3478 → | 2507 times |
| כָּב֑וֹד | kavod | honor | H3519 → | 200 times |
| אוּלַ֗י | ʾulai | perhaps | H194 → | 45 times |
| יָקֵ֤ל | yakel | he will lighten | H7043 → | 82 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| יָדוֹ֙ | yado | hand his | H3027 → | 1618 times |
| מֵֽעֲלֵיכֶ֔ם | mealeikhem | from with <the> you | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| וּמֵעַ֥ל | umeal | and from on | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| אֱלֹהֵיכֶ֖ם | ʾeloheikhem | gods your | H430 → | 2601 times |
| וּמֵעַ֥ל | umeal | and from on | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| אַרְצְכֶֽם׃ | ʾartzekhem | land your | H776 → | 2504 times |
וַעֲשִׂיתֶם֩and you will make
vaasitemH6213 →2628 times
צַלְמֵ֨יimages of
tzalmeiH6754 →17 times
טְחֹרֵיכֶ֜םtumors your
techoreikhemH2914 →8 times
וְצַלְמֵ֣יand images of
vetzalmeiH6754 →17 times
עַכְבְּרֵיכֶ֗םmice your
ʾakhbereikhemH5909 →6 times
הַמַּשְׁחִיתִם֙which are ruining
hamashchitimH7843 →146 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
הָאָ֔רֶץthe land
haaretzH776 →2504 times
וּנְתַתֶּ֛םand you will give
unetatemH5414 →2011 times
לֵאלֹהֵ֥יto [the] God of
leloheiH430 →2601 times
יִשְׂרָאֵ֖לIsrael
yisraelH3478 →2507 times
כָּב֑וֹדhonor
kavodH3519 →200 times
אוּלַ֗יperhaps
ʾulaiH194 →45 times
יָקֵ֤לhe will lighten
yakelH7043 →82 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
יָדוֹ֙hand his
yadoH3027 →1618 times
מֵֽעֲלֵיכֶ֔םfrom with <the> you
mealeikhemH5921 →5755 times
וּמֵעַ֥לand from on
umealH5921 →5755 times
אֱלֹהֵיכֶ֖םgods your
ʾeloheikhemH430 →2601 times
וּמֵעַ֥לand from on
umealH5921 →5755 times
אַרְצְכֶֽם׃land your
ʾartzekhemH776 →2504 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
Joshua 7:19So Joshua said to Achan, “My son, give glory to the LORD, the God of Israel, and make a confession to Him. I urge you to tell me what you have done; do not…
it leads to
- Jeremiah 13:16
Give glory to the LORD your God before He brings darkness, before your feet stumble on the dusky mountains. You wait for light, but He turns it into deep gloom and thick darkness.
- John 9:24
So a second time they called for the man who had been blind and said, “Give glory to God! We know that this man is a sinner.”
- 1 Samuel 14:43
“Tell me what you have done,” Saul commanded him. So Jonathan told him, “I only tasted a little honey with the end of the staff that was in my hand. And now I must…
- 2 Chronicles 30:22
And Hezekiah encouraged all the Levites who performed skillfully before the LORD. For seven days they ate their assigned portion, sacrificing fellowship offerings and giving thanks to the LORD, the God of their fathers.
- Daniel 9:4
And I prayed to the LORD my God and confessed, “O, Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps His covenant of loving devotion to those who love Him and keep His commandments,
- Jeremiah 13:16
Through
1 Samuel 5:11Then the Ekronites assembled all the rulers of the Philistines and said, “Send away the ark of the God of Israel. It must return to its place, so that it will not kill us…
it leads to
- 1 Samuel 5:6
Now the hand of the LORD was heavy on the people of Ashdod and its vicinity, ravaging them and afflicting them with tumors.
- 1 Samuel 5:6
Through
John 9:24So a second time they called for the man who had been blind and said, “Give glory to God! We know that this man is a sinner.”
it leads to
- Joshua 7:19
So Joshua said to Achan, “My son, give glory to the LORD, the God of Israel, and make a confession to Him. I urge you to tell me what you have done; do not…
- John 9:16
Because of this, some of the Pharisees said, “This man is not from God, for He does not keep the Sabbath.” But others said, “How can a sinful man perform such signs?” And there…
- Joshua 7:19
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; Cassiodorus, EXPOSITION OF THE PSALMS 77.66; Gregory the Dialogist, Commentary on 1 Kings, Book 3, Chapter 4; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.