John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - 1 Samuel 5:3
And when they of Ashdod arose early on the morrow , Either the people, the inhabitants of the place, who came early to pay their devotions to their idol, before they went on their business; or the priests of the idol, who came to sacrifice in the morning: and, behold, Dagon was fallen upon his face to the earth before the ark of the Lord ; as if he was subject to it, and giving adoration to it, and owning it was above him, and had superior power over him: and they took Dagon, and set... read more
Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - 1 Samuel 5:1-5
Here is, I. The Philistines? triumph over the ark, which they were the more pleased, the more proud, to be now masters of, because before the battle they were possessed with a great fear of it, 1 Sam. 4:7. When they had it in their hands God restrained them, that they did not offer any violence to it, did not break it to pieces, as the Israelites were ordered to do by the idols of the heathen, but showed some respect to it, and carefully carried it to a place of safety. Whether their curiosity... read more