1 Samuel 5:4

1 Samuel 5:4 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And when they arose early on the morrow morning, behold, Dagon was fallen upon his face to the ground before the ark of the Lord; and the head of Dagon and both the palms of his hands were cut off upon the threshold; only the stump of Dagon was left to him.
• New International Version (NIV)But the following morning when they rose, there was Dagon, fallen on his face on the ground before the ark of the Lord! His head and hands had been broken off and were lying on the threshold; only his body remained.
• English Standard Version (ESV)But when they rose early on the next morning, behold, Dagon had fallen face downward on the ground before the ark of the Lord, and the head of Dagon and both his hands were lying cut off on the threshold. Only the trunk of Dagon was left to him.
• New King James Version (NKJV)And when they arose early the next morning, there was Dagon, fallen on its face to the ground before the ark of the Lord. The head of Dagon and both the palms of its hands were broken off on the threshold; only Dagon’s torso was left of it.

Context of 1 Samuel 5:4

2They carried the Ark of God into the temple of Dagon and placed it beside an idol of Dagon. 3But when the citizens of Ashdod went to see it the next morning, Dagon had fallen with his face to the ground in front of the Ark of the Lord! So they took Dagon and put him in his place again. But the next morning the same thing happened—Dagon had fallen face down before the Ark of the Lord again. This time his head and hands had broken off and were lying in the doorway. Only the trunk of his body was left intact. 5That is why to this day neither the priests of Dagon nor anyone who enters the temple of Dagon in Ashdod will step on its threshold. 6Then the Lord’s heavy hand struck the people of Ashdod and the nearby villages with a plague of tumors.

1 Samuel 5:4 word by word

וַיַּשְׁכִּ֣מוּ בַבֹּקֶר֮ מִֽמָּחֳרָת֒ וְהִנֵּ֣ה דָג֗וֹן נֹפֵ֤ל לְפָנָיו֙ אַ֔רְצָה לִפְנֵ֖י אֲר֣וֹן יְהוָ֑ה וְרֹ֨אשׁ דָּג֜וֹן וּשְׁתֵּ֣י׀ כַּפּ֣וֹת יָדָ֗יו כְּרֻתוֹת֙ אֶל־הַמִּפְתָּ֔ן רַ֥ק דָּג֖וֹן נִשְׁאַ֥ר עָלָֽיו׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And when they arose earlyשָׁכַםshâkam · to riseH7925
• on the morrowמׇחֳרָתmochŏrâth mochŏrâthâm · morrowH4283
• morningבֹּ֫קֶרbôqer · morningH1242
• behold, Dagonדָּגוֹןdâgôn · DagonH1712
• fallenנָפַלnâphal · to fall: fallH5307
• upon his faceפָּנֶהpânîym · faceH6440
• to the groundאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: soilH776
• beforeפָּנֶהpânîym · face: beforeH6440
• the arkאֲרוֹן'ârôn 'ârôn · arkH727
• of the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• and the headרֹאשׁrô'sh · headH7218
• and bothשְׁנַ֫יִםshenayim shettayim · twoH8147
• the palmsכַּףkaph · palmH3709
• of his handsיָדyâd · handH3027
• cut offכָּרַתkârath · to cut: eliminateH3772
• upon the thresholdמִפְתָּןmiphtân · thresholdH4670
• was leftשָׁאַרshâ'ar · to remainH7604

Cross-references for 1 Samuel 5:4

• Isaiah 2:18Idols will completely disappear.
• Isaiah 27:9The Lord did this to purge Israel’s wickedness, to take away all her sin. As a result, all the pagan altars will be crushed to dust. No Asherah pole or pagan shrine will be left standing.
• Jeremiah 10:11Say this to those who worship other gods: “Your so-called gods, who did not make the heavens and earth, will vanish from the earth and from under the heavens.”
• Jeremiah 50:2This is what the Lord says: “Tell the whole world, and keep nothing back. Raise a signal flag to tell everyone that Babylon will fall! Her images and idols will be shattered. Her gods Bel and Marduk will be utterly disgraced.
• Ezekiel 6:4All your altars will be demolished, and your places of worship will be destroyed. I will kill your people in front of your idols.
• Daniel 11:8When he returns to Egypt, he will carry back their idols with him, along with priceless articles of gold and silver. For some years afterward he will leave the king of the north alone.
• Micah 1:7All her carved images will be smashed. All her sacred treasures will be burned. These things were bought with the money earned by her prostitution, and they will now be carried away to pay prostitutes elsewhere.”

Commentaries on 1 Samuel 5:4

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 4Only the stump of Dagon was left - Literally, Only דגן dagon (i.e., the little fish) was left. It has already been remarked that Dagon had the head, arms and hands of a man or woman, and that the rest of the idol was in the form of a fish, to which Horace is supposed to make allusion in the following words: - Desinat in piscem mulisr formosa superne "The upper part resembling a beautiful woman; the lower, a fish." All that was human in his form was broken…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 4his head and his hands broken off: This was a symbol of God's power over the idol (1 Samuel 5:7; see also 17:51).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 3-43-4. they of Ashdod arose early--They were filled with consternation when they found the object of their stupid veneration prostrate before the symbol of the divine presence. Though set up, it fell again, and lay in a state of complete mutilation; its head and arms, severed from the trunk, were lying in distant and separate places, as if violently cast off, and only the fishy part remained. The degradation of their idol, though concealed by the priests on…Read the comment

Topics related to 1 Samuel 5:4

• Idolatry
• Miracles

In the dictionaries

• Dagon
• Destruction
• Ground
• Samuel, Books of
• Threshold
• Ark of the Covenant
• Elijah
• God
• House
• Judges, Period of

Commentaries on 1 Samuel 5

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings