A Complete History and Mystery of the Old and New Testament, Biblical tract · Volume 2 · Commentary on 1 Samuel · Chapter 5
1 Samuel, CHAP. V.
THE Fifth Chapter ſheweth how the Philiſtines were puniſhed for carrying away the Ark of God Captive.
The Firſt Remark is, The procuring cauſe of the Philiſtines puniſhment was their prophanation of the Ark of God, which was his own Inſtitution by Moſes in the Wilderneſs, &c. and though Iſrael had now moſt groſly abuſed it, by over-valuing and Idolizing it, ſo that God juſtly ſuffered it to fall into the hands of the Philistines; yet will not God ſuffer it to be under-valued and abuſed by Uncircumciſed Hands; which they did, in placing it, (when they had taken it captive) in their Temple of Dagon their Idol at Aſhdod, conſecrating it as a moſt rich ſpoil, and a famous Trophy to their ſuppoſed God, by whoſe help (they thought) the Victory was obtained, v. 1, 2.
The Second Remark in General is, Though the Iſraclites had much benefit by their having the Ark of God among them heretofore, (as in its being their Conduct to Canaan, when the Cloudy-Pillar departed from them, in the Dividing of Jordan, in the overthrow of Jericho, &c.) Yet now when it was faln into the Philistines hands, theſe Ʋncircumciſed ones found but little joy in their having it, but it proved fatal to them, and Plagued them from Place to Place, and from one City to another.
N. B. This happened that Men may know how little good is gotten by Holy things, if not uſed in an Holy manner.
The Third Remark is, The particular puniſhments wherewith God Plagued the Philiſtines for abuſing his Holy Ark; this was firſt upon their Religion or rather Superſtition, in confounding their Idol Dagon, once and again to make it the more contemptible, v. 3, 4, 5. As,
Firſt, God, who had ſeemed to be Aſleep hitherto, now Awakes in the Vindication of his own Ark, and will not ſuffer Dagon to be its Co-Rival, but with his own immediate Hand throws Dagon down flat upon his own Dunghill; inſomuch that when the Philiſtines Prieſts came early in the Morning to Worſhip Dagon, behold they find their Dagon himſelf in a poſture (as it were) of Worſhipping the Ark of God, before which the Idol was not able to ſtand.
N. B. And thus it ſtill falls out, That Diabolical Deluſions all fall down before the Glorious Light of the Goſpel of Chriſt; (whereof this Ark was a Type.) There is no concord betwixt Chriſt and Belial, 2 Cor. 6.14, 15.
N. B. How the firſt fall of Dagon came to be huſhed, the Sacred Scripture telleth us not, but ſaith only, [They of Aſhdod aroſe early, &c.] to wit the Crafty Prieſts of Dagon were both Curious to obſerve what Correſpondency their Idol had with its new Neighbour, and whether Dagon had received any damage thereby; Surely they were no leſs Careful than Curious to redreſs the Alteration and Detriment before the People were ſtirring to take any cognizance thereof; which indeed they did: And all becauſe they feared leſt their Dunghill Deity ſhould come into contempt, and thereby their Double Honour of Reverence and Maintenance would fall down with their Dagon to the Duſt. And ſuppoſe any of the People were peeping ſo early as themſelves, they could ſoon Sham ſuch credulous By-gots with telling them it was only a Caſualty.
N. B. However the Curioſity and Carefulneſs of thoſe Superſtitious Prieſts in Riſing thus Early, &c. may ſerve to ſhame our ſluggiſhneſs in a better Worſhip, at which David was Early, Pſal. 5.3, &c. We Read how our Lord Roſe Early to Pray for us, &c. Mar. 1.35. Sanctificat, Sanat, dit at quo que Surgere Manè.
To Riſe betimes in the Morning makes Men Holy, Healthy and Wealthy. But
Secondly, Seeing the firſt fall of Dagon was not effectual to convince thoſe Sottiſh Idolaters of their Mad folly, the Lord of the Ark throws Dagon down the ſecond time with more violence (after the Prieſts had reared up this poor ſorry Cod, who could not rear up himſelf from his firſt fall) inſomuch that now the Lord brake the Head of Dagon quite off, and the Palms of his. Hands ſo that nothing but the Stump remained, v. 4.
N. B. The Head is the ſeat of Wiſdom, and the Hands of ſtrength, as they are inſtruments for action; now both Prieſts and People come and behold what a Silly God they had hitherto Worſhipped, one that had neither Wiſdom nor Power to help himſelf, much leſs to help his Worſhippers: But as the Prophet ſaith. [He could act neither good nor evil,] Iſa 41.22, 23. We may well ſuppoſe that the place where Dagon ſtood up aloft in, was the moſt honourableſt part, and higheſt end of his Temple, and moſt remote from the Door of entrance; yet was his Head and Hands found choped off upon the Threſhold of the Door: Which plainly intimateth, that God gave this Infamous Idol an horrible hurle, with utmoſt diſdain and deteſtation.
N. B. God hurl'd him, though not as he did Lucifer, from Heaven to Hell, Iſa. 14.14, &c. yet from one end of his Temple to another, from the higheſt and moſt honourable, to the loweſt and moſt contemptible part of it; namely to the Threſhold; where any of the People might trample upon their God, and tread this Dunghill-Deity under foot as unſavoury ſalt, Matth. 5.13.
N. B. Thus the God of Iſrael Conquers the Philiſtines Dagon upon his own Dunnghil, while the Philiſtines had Conquered Iſrael: Nothing but the Stump of Dagon was now left, and no doubt but that alſo was ſorely battered and broken by ſo fearful a fall. The upper part of an Human ſhape was Demoliſhed, and nothing is left but the lower part, which was in the form of a Fiſh.
Deſinit in piſcem mulier formoſa Supernè,
Horace.
And, Frons Hominem praeſert, in piſcem deſinit Aluus. ſaith Virgil.
So that the Account theſe two Poets give of Dagon is, That it was ſome Meremaid or Sea-Nymph, unto whom they aſcribed that great Honour of their Victory over Sampſon, Judg. 16.23.
N. B. And thus far theſe fond Philiſtines found out the right Fund of their then Triumph, which was not a Male but a Female; for never any Man could match Samſon; but he was once and again over-matched by a Woman, and it was that Woman Delilah, who delivered Samſon into their hands; yet may we here ſay, the Philiſtines were thus far miſtaken herein, that it was not a Sea Nymph, but a Land-Nymph which was their grand Patroneſs; and they were more beholden to Fleſh than to Fiſh, in their catching and captivating of ſtrong Samſon, &c.
N. B. Moreover, Behold here the vain Superſtition of the Philiſtines, [They will not tread upon this Threſhold, &c. ver. 5.] Whether they did this, either by way of Veneration, thinking Dagon's touching had Sanctified it, or by way of deteſtation, becauſe it had been ſo fatal to their God: This matters not whether way; However God had his Holy hand in over-ruling their Superſtition, in making it a means to perpetuate the Memory of this famous Miracle of Dagon's falling before the Ark, and breaking his Neck upon the Threſhold to Gods own Glory, and to the ſhame of Idolatry; which otherwiſe very probably would have ſoon been forgotten.
N. B. 'Tis pity ſuch reverencing of the Threſholds of Temples, ſhould be found as among Pagans, ſo among Papagans alſo, who Kiſs the Threſhold of Peters Church in Rome at this Day.
The Fourth Remark is, The Lord of the Ark, after he had plagued thoſe Superſtitious Philiſtines in their Idol, next falls foul upon their very Bodies; ver. 6, 7, 8, 9, 10. When their former Nocuments upon their Idol did not prove effectual Documents to them, either for Reclaiming them from their Idolatry, or for Returning the Ark back to Iſrael, then God plagueth their Perſons with Emerods, which ſome think was the Lues Venerea, or the foul diſeaſe, others ſay it was Ʋlcus in Ano, or Fiſtula in the Fundament, but moſt are of Opinion, it was the Emrods, or Piles, a Diſeaſe, mentioned only here, and Deut. 28.27. whatever it was; they are expreſly ſaid to be deſtroyed therewith; it proved a Deſtructive Diſeaſe to them as the great God ſet it on upon them. Ordinary Piles be of two ſorts, the Outer and Knobbed, which may more eaſily be come at, and Cured: And the Inner or blind Piles, becauſe they cannot be ſeen.
N. B. Theſe are moſt painful, and more hardly Cured, as not capable of any Applications, theſe fall out ordinary: But this Plague upon the Philiſtines was undoubtedly extraordinary, and of the latter ſort alſo; becauſe 'tis ſaid [The Lord ſmote them in their Secret Parts,] ver. 9. God wrote their Sin upon their Puniſhment. He Plagued them in their Diſhonourable Parts, for placing his Ark in a Diſhonourable place, by their Diſhonourable Dagon: God paid their Poſteriours, as Auſtere Maſters do their dull Puny-boys.
N. B. The dulneſs of thoſe Philiſtines under God's Rod was obvious, not only in Worſhipping Dagons Altar; but alſo Dagons Threſhold, when it was thrown down from its Altar; and ſtill perſiſted in their dull Duncery. Some ſay that Sodomy was their Sin, and therefore their Puniſhment was upon Their hinder parts, Pſal. 78.66. 'Tis certain it brought a ſhameful ſoreneſs on them in a contrary part, and of a contrary Nature to the honourable ſoreneſs of Circumciſion. Poſſibly this Diſeaſe had a complication of other Diſeaſes as the Diſentry, or Bloody-Flux; the Viſcerum Tormina, or Griping and Twiſting of the Guts; all which made it ſo Deſtructive as well as Dolorous to them.
The Philiſtines had before cryed out [Wo unto us] when the Ark came into Iſrael's Army, Chapter 4.8. They cryed then without cauſe, but now had they a juſt cauſe to cry [Wo unto us;] when the Ark was come into Aſhdod of the Philiſtines.
N. B. They found the Ark was now Too hot for them to hold, and therefore now cry, [The Ark ſhall not abide with us,] and [What ſhall we do with it?] v. 7, 8. Now had they learnt a little better language: Dagons fall was but a caſuality before, but now it is [The hand of God that is ſore upon us, and upon Dagon our God:] Vexatio dat intellectum, Their Affliction had been ſome Inſtruction to them; and had they conſulted with the Prieſts and People of God, they would have learnt better than to cry [Away with the Ark,] our Triumph over it, is become our Trouble by it. They ſhould have cryed, [Away with our Dagon, and with our Idolatry,] as Iſa. 30.22. and [Return the Ark to the Right owners.] But all the Five Cities of the Philiſtines, (ſaith Joſephus) muſt have their ſhare in Suffering as they had in Sinning.
N. B. The Scripture mentions only Gath, v. 8. and Ekron, v. 10. Thus they ſent the Plague of God up and down with the Ark to neighbouring Cities: Only Ekron (that did Cry out more keenly for grief, that the Ark was coming among them, than ever Iſrael had ſhouted for Joy at its coming into their Army,) had ſome allay to their Plagues; for all that were ſmitten with Emrods there, Died not, as they had done at the other Cities. The Reaſon is, becauſe the Ekronites only did deſire the Reſtoring of the Ark, v. 11, 12.