I Samuel 5:1-2- And the Philistines took the ark of God, and brought it from Ebenezer unto Ashdod. When the Philistines took the ark of God, they brought it into the house of Dagon, and set it by Dagon.
The Philistines put the ark in the temple of their false god, Dagon. Dagon was a statue with the body of a fish and the head of a man- kind of like a merman.
The Philistines didn't realize that you can't put the Almighty God of heaven with a false god. God is a jealous God and He won't share his glory with anyone or anything.
I Samuel 5:3- And when they of Ashdod arose early on the morrow, behold, Dagon was fallen upon his face to the earth before the ark of the LORD. And they took Dagon, and set him in his place again.
When the power of Almighty God came into the temple, the statue of the false god fell down. Maybe God himself reached out and knocked the statue down. But, I think that perhaps the devils that were around the statue knew that they should bow before God.
However the reason, when the Philistines came into their temple in the morning, they found their idol on the floor. They set the idol back in it's place. I wonder if this had happened before?
That night the Philistines went to bed and guess what happened again?
I Samuel 5:4- 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.
When the Philistines came into their temple in the morning, it looked as if the idol had tried to run away! But, no one can run from Almighty God! The hands that the statue would use to crawl away (because he was a fish and had no legs) were cut off, and then the head was cut off.
God was trying to show the Philistines that He was the Creator of heaven and earth, and He was more powerful than any devil or image they could worship. He was proving to them that He could defeat their false gods, just like He proved to the Egyptians that He could defeat their idols!
Do you think the Philistines learned? Nope!
I Samuel 5:5-7- Therefore neither the priests of Dagon, nor any that come into Dagon's house, tread on the threshold of Dagon in Ashdod unto this day. But the hand of the LORD was heavy upon them of Ashdod, and he destroyed them, and smote them with emerods, even Ashdod and the coasts thereof. 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.
The Philistines continued to worship their false god, even after Almighty God had defeated it. So, God sent disease into their lives.
Sometimes, when we don't listen to the miracles God sends our ways to get our attention, He has to put something terrible and personal in our path.
God was trying very hard to get the Philistines attention! But, they thought they could just send Him away.
I Samuel 5:8-9a- They sent therefore and gathered all the lords of the Philistines unto them, and said, What shall we do with the ark of the God of Israel? And they answered, Let the ark of the God of Israel be carried about unto Gath. And they carried the ark of the God of Israel about thither. And it was so, that, after they had carried it about, the hand of the LORD was against the city with a very great destruction:
God isn't really in a box that you can just seal up and send away. He is everywhere. The Philistines didn't understand this, because their false idol only stayed in their temple. They thought that Almighty God worked the same way.
Now, they were really scared!
I Samuel 5:11- So they sent and gathered together all the lords of the Philistines, and said, Send away the ark of the God of Israel, and let it go again to his own place, that it slay us not, and our people: for there was a deadly destruction throughout all the city; the hand of God was very heavy there.
They leaders of the Philistines came up with a plan.
I Samuel 6:1-2- And the ark of the LORD was in the country of the Philistines seven months. And the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners, saying, What shall we do to the ark of the LORD? tell us wherewith we shall send it to his place.
They called their false prophets to ask them what they should do. The false prophets said that they should make golden gifts for Almighty God, and that they should send the ark back to the Israelites.
I Samuel 6:3, 5-8 - And they said, If ye send away the ark of the God of Israel, send it not empty; but in any wise return him a trespass offering: then ye shall be healed, and it shall be known to you why his hand is not removed from you. 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. Wherefore then do ye harden your hearts, as the Egyptians and Pharaoh hardened their hearts? when he had wrought wonderfully among them, did they not let the people go, and they departed? 7 Now therefore make a new cart, and take two milch kine, on which there hath come no yoke, and tie the kine to the cart, and bring their calves home from them: And take the ark of the LORD, and lay it upon the cart; and put the jewels of gold, which ye return him for a trespass offering, in a coffer by the side thereof; and send it away, that it may go.
Even though it had been hundreds of years since God had punished Egypt, the natives of Canaan were still talking about it. They knew that Almighty God was powerful. And they decided they were going to send the ark of God home.
So, they took a cart and put the ark on it. Then, they put the jewelry box with the golden peace offering beside it. They hooked up 2 cows to the cart and let them go to see if Almighty God would guide it to the land of Israel.
I Samuel 6:12-14- And the kine took the straight way to the way of Bethshemesh, and went along the highway, lowing as they went, and turned not aside to the right hand or to the left; and the lords of the Philistines went after them unto the border of Bethshemesh. And they of Bethshemesh were reaping their wheat harvest in the valley: and they lifted up their eyes, and saw the ark, and rejoiced to see it. And the cart came into the field of Joshua, a Bethshemite, and stood there, where there was a great stone: and they clave the wood of the cart, and offered the kine a burnt offering unto the LORD.
The Israelites were so happy to see the ark that they offered a sacrifice to God right then and there!
I Samuel 6:15- And the Levites took down the ark of the LORD, and the coffer that was with it, wherein the jewels of gold were, and put them on the great stone: and the men of Bethshemesh offered burnt offerings and sacrificed sacrifices the same day unto the LORD.
I Samuel 6:16- And when the five lords of the Philistines had seen it, they returned to Ekron the same day.
The Philistines leaders stood at the edge of their land and watched to see what would happen. They saw the cows go straight to the land of Israel. They saw the Israelites sacrifice and worship God. And then they left.
They never acknowledged the power of God. They never repented. And they never turned from their wicked ways. God had tried to show them, but they just wouldn't see.
How sad that some people can look right at the truth of God and decide they don't want it!
But, even more sad are the people who know the God of Truth and decide they can do their own will instead of what God says.
I Samuel 6:19-21- And he smote the men of Bethshemesh, because they had looked into the ark of the LORD, even he smote of the people fifty thousand and threescore and ten men: and the people lamented, because the LORD had smitten many of the people with a great slaughter. And the men of Bethshemesh said, Who is able to stand before this holy LORD God? and to whom shall he go up from us? And they sent messengers to the inhabitants of Kirjathjearim, saying, The Philistines have brought again the ark of the LORD; come ye down, and fetch it up to you.
The Israelites who knew better thought they could open up the ark of God and God had to punish them. He had told Moses that only the Levites were allowed to touch the ark, and that they had to do it a certain way. These men should have known better!
What a waste! It seems they would never learn!
