This program of daily devotions is designed to take you through the Bible in three years. It is our desire to help you gain a better general understanding of God's Word.
Please understand that in a study this brief, we will be concerned with only the major emphases and context of the Scriptures.
Each day a devotion for one or two chapters is posted, beginning with chapter one of Genesis and going through chapter twenty-two of Revelation. You are free to print each page as it appears. If you miss a day, you may contact us and request that devotion. Please send your request, along with $.50 (p&h) for each page to:
Bruce McGee,Pastor
205 Adams
Columbia, LA 71418
HERE
Bro. Bruce's commentaries for the
books of Genesis, Exodus, and Leviticus are
now available in hard copy for $7.50. Just mail your request for
COMMENTARY ON GENESIS to the address above.
1SAMUEL
1 And the Philistines took the ark of God, and brought it from Ebenezer unto Ashdod.
2 When the Philistines took the ark of God, they brought it into the house of Dagon, and set it by Dagon.
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.
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.
5 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.
The Philistines took the ark of the covenant and placed it beside the statue of their god (Dagon) in their temple. Perhaps they thought they could worship this God also. But God is a JEALOUS God, and He will not receive worship in conjunction with any other (See Exodus 20:2-5).
6 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.
7 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.
8 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.
9 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: and he smote the men of the city, both small and great, and they had emerods in their secret parts.
10 Therefore they sent the ark of God to Ekron. And it came to pass, as the ark of God came to Ekron, that the Ekronites cried out, saying, They have brought about the ark of the God of Israel to us, to slay us and our people.
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.
12 And the men that died not were smitten with the emerods: and the cry of the city went up to heaven.
Those that try to partake of the Lord and His grace "unworthily" are made sick and weak - and some even die (see 1Corinthians 11:29-30).
This leads to a discussion question I don't often get to put in these short commentaries. "IS SICKNESS GOD'S PUNISHMENT FOR SINS?"
However, one cannot always atribute an outbreak of plague to God's hand of discipline. For instance, many people who never smoked or drank have cancer and die.
Please continue to follow along with us in Bible Study.
CHAPTER 5
ALL things and people are subject to God Almighty, and He will be subject to none (verses 3-4).
Isn't it weird how some people will make a god of that which must be handled and carried? (for instance money?)
The 2nd time Dagon fell, his head and his hands were broken off and lay on the threshold of the temple. From that time on, the Philistines deemed the threshold "holy" and would not step on it.
Later God would reprove Israel for "leaping over the threshold" to worship other gods (Zephaniah 1:9). Indeed, worshipping idols "fills..house with wickedness and deceit."
God brought a tremendous disease upon the people in Ashdod: a disease which humbled them.
Emerods are mentioned in Deuteronomy 28:27, and are connected with acute dysentery.
Also there is some evidence that "emerods" refers to swellings which could be tumurous or hemorrhoidal (or both). The mention of mice in 6:11 could mean that something like the bubonic plague spread among the people. Some mice carry fleas that cause bubonic plague when it bites humans.
At any rate, the "emerods" were in their private parts (verse 9), and they were greatly troubled, humbled and many died.
All the "lords" (elders, leaders) of the Philistine nation came together to decide what to do about this problem.
They decided to send the ark of the covenant to Gath (verse 8), then to Ekron (verse 10). But the same thing happened in each city (plague?).
Finally they decided to send the ark of the covenant back to the rightful place (verse 11).
Well, now that's a tough question.
When sickness and disease can be directly connected to sin, then we probably ought to realize that it is sent as punishment from God. There are many instances of this in history. Up until about 1960, most veneral disease could be traced back to animals. That was obviously a God-sent sickness as punishment for perverted and/or illicit sex.
How about the throwing up party the morning after a drinking binge?
Sickness is not always the result of God's discipline for sin. But in the case in this chapter, it WAS!