New Living Translation
1 Samuel 5:7
7When the people realized what was happening, they cried out, “We can’t keep the Ark of the God of Israel here any longer! He is against us! We will all be destroyed along with Dagon, our god.”
1 Samuel 5:7 in other versions
- King James Version (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.
- New International Version (NIV)When the people 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 on us and on Dagon our god.”
- English Standard Version (ESV)And when the men of Ashdod saw how things were, they said, "The ark of the God of Israel must not remain with us, for his hand is hard against us and against Dagon our god."
- New King James Version (NKJV)And when the men of Ashdod saw how it was, they said, “The ark of the God of Israel must not remain with us, for His hand is harsh toward us and Dagon our god.”
Context of 1 Samuel 5:7
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. When the people realized what was happening, they cried out, “We can’t keep the Ark of the God of Israel here any longer! He is against us! We will all be destroyed along with Dagon, our god.” 8So they called together the rulers of the Philistine towns and asked, “What should we do with the Ark of the God of Israel?” The rulers discussed it and replied, “Move it to the town of Gath.” So they moved the Ark of the God of Israel to Gath. 9But when the Ark arrived at Gath, the Lord’s heavy hand fell on its men, young and old; he struck them with a plague of tumors, and there was a great panic.
Read all of 1 Samuel 51 Samuel 5:7 word by word
וַיִּרְא֥וּ אַנְשֵֽׁי־אַשְׁדּ֖וֹד כִּֽי־כֵ֑ן וְאָמְר֗וּ לֹֽא־יֵשֵׁ֞ב אֲר֨וֹן אֱלֹהֵ֤י יִשְׂרָאֵל֙ עִמָּ֔נוּ כִּֽי־קָשְׁתָ֤ה יָדוֹ֙ עָלֵ֔ינוּ וְעַ֖ל דָּג֥וֹן אֱלֹהֵֽינוּ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And when the menאֱנוֹשׁ'ĕnôsh · humanH582
- of Ashdodאַשְׁדּוֹד'ashdôd · AshdodH795
- sawרָאָהrâ'âh · to see: seeH7200
- so, they saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
- The arkאֲרוֹן'ârôn 'ârôn · arkH727
- of the Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
- of Israelיִשְׂרָאֵלyiώrâ'êl · IsraelH3478
- shall not abideיָשַׁבyâshab · to dwellH3427
- with us: for his handיָדyâd · hand: powerH3027
- is soreקָשָׁהqâshâh · to hardenH7185
- upon us, and upon Dagonדָּגוֹןdâgôn · DagonH1712
Cross-references for 1 Samuel 5:7
- 1 Samuel 4:8Help! Who can save us from these mighty gods of Israel? They are the same gods who destroyed the Egyptians with plagues when Israel was in the wilderness.
- Exodus 8:8Then Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and begged, “Plead with the Lord to take the frogs away from me and my people. I will let your people go, so they can offer sacrifices to the Lord.”
- Exodus 9:28Please beg the Lord to end this terrifying thunder and hail. We’ve had enough. I will let you go; you don’t need to stay any longer.”
- Exodus 10:7Pharaoh’s officials now came to Pharaoh and appealed to him. “How long will you let this man hold us hostage? Let the men go to worship the Lord their God! Don’t you realize that Egypt lies in ruins?”
- Exodus 12:33All the Egyptians urged the people of Israel to get out of the land as quickly as possible, for they thought, “We will all die!”
- 1 Samuel 6:20“Who is able to stand in the presence of the Lord, this holy God?” they cried out. “Where can we send the Ark from here?”
- 2 Samuel 6:9David was now afraid of the Lord, and he asked, “How can I ever bring the Ark of the Lord back into my care?”
- 1 Chronicles 13:11David was angry because the Lord’s anger had burst out against Uzzah. He named that place Perez-uzzah (which means “to burst out against Uzzah”), as it is still called today.
- 1 Chronicles 15:13Because you Levites did not carry the Ark the first time, the anger of the Lord our God burst out against us. We failed to ask God how to move it properly.”
- 1 Samuel 5:3But 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.
- Jeremiah 46:25The Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says: “I will punish Amon, the god of Thebes, and all the other gods of Egypt. I will punish its rulers and Pharaoh, too, and all who trust in him.
- Jeremiah 48:7Because you have trusted in your wealth and skill, you will be taken captive. Your god Chemosh, with his priests and officials, will be hauled off to distant lands!
Commentaries on 1 Samuel 5:7
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 7His 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.Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 6-12Verses 6-12 The hand of the Lord was heavy upon the Philistines; he not only convinced them of their folly, but severely chastised their insolence. Yet they would not renounce Dagon; and instead of seeking God's mercy, they desired to get clear of his ark. 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 or communion with him, and seek him for their friend. But…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 77. 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].Read the comment
In the dictionaries
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
New Living Translation — © 1996, 2004, 2015 Tyndale House Foundation
Commentaries