Seeds For Thinking

Link: http://seedsforthinking.oldgleaner.com/

Scripture: “And when they arose early the next morning, there was Dagon, fallen on its face to the ground before the ark of the LORD.” (1 Samuel 5:4, NKJV)

In the way of a pun, I say that it sounds a little ‘fishy’ to me. Not the Biblical account of Dagon, an idol of the Philistines, but that people would worship an image that had the torso and head of a man and the tail of a fish. The image of a ‘merman,’ something that exists only in fantasy. Not even a mere man, but something worshiped as one having supernatural powers.
Dagon was the idol-god of the Philistines with temples at Beth-dagon in the tribe of Asher (Joshua 19.27), in Gaza (Judges 16.23, which tells how the temple is destroyed by Samson as his last act). The temple in Ashdod is mentioned in 1 Samuel 5.2–7. Dagon was apparently associated first with grain and vegetation, and later had the form of a fish from his navel down, (whence his name, Dagon), and from his navel up, the form of a man. 1.
1 Samuel, chapter 4, describes a great battle between the Hebrews (Israelites) and the Philistines. Even though the Hebrews brought the ark of the LORD from Shiloh, they were defeated; there was a great slaughter. The Philistines captured the ark of God, and the two sons of Eli, judge of Israel, Hophni and Phineas, were killed.
The Philistines brought the ark of God into the house of their idol, Dagon. But when they arose the next morning to check on their trophy of battle, they found the idol, Dagon, fallen on its face before the ark of the LORD. I can imagine the consternation they felt, seeing their idol, bowing down, as it were, before the ark of the LORD.
They set it upright again, but the next morning presented an even more startling sight - Dagon was not only prostrate before the ark, but its head and the palms of it hands were broken off on the threshold that supported the ark.
The men of Ashdod saw the impact the ark had on their idol, and apparently took the ark out of the house of Dagon. Now the city itself suffered great destruction, and The LORD struck the men of the city with a plague of tumors. They next took the ark to another of their cities, Ekron, and the hand of The LORD was heavy there, with great destruction of the city, and the men who did not die were stricken with tumors.
Yes, they finally got rid of the ark, sending it back to The LORD with a trespass offering. That is another story in its own right.
Idols of stone may not be in fashion today, as in the 1st millennium BC, but there are idols a-plenty among us. Wealth, power, privilege, and possessions often come before obedience to God. Like Dagon, they will fall, and The LORD will triumph over all!
October 24, 2010

1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dagon