1 Samuel 5:1-5
5:1 a Ebenezer: See study note on 4:1b.• Ashdod, one of the five important Philistine cities (see 6:17 b), was located along the same major trade highway (the Great Trunk Road) as Aphek.
5:2 c Dagon was one of the Philistines’ gods (see Judg 16:23-24 d). The name could be related to the Hebrew dag (“fish”), an appropriate name for a god of seafaring people. More likely, it reflects the Hebrew dagan (“grain”), suggesting a fertility or agriculture god.
5:4 e his head and hands had broken off: A symbol of God’s supremacy over the idol (5:7 f; see also 17:51 g).
5:5 h step on its threshold: While the Philistines might have believed that Dagon’s amputations resulted from their failure to honor the god properly, the true failure was in worshiping an idol rather than honoring the one true God (Isa 44:6-20 i).
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