1 Samuel 5:11

1Sa 5:11 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.

Ver. 11. Let it go again to his own place.] Hoc magno mercentur Hebraei. It is reported of the people in the East Indies, in the isle Ceylon; that having an ape’s tooth got from them, which was a consecrated thing by them, they offered an incredible mass of treasure to recover it. But what an ape’s face was the devil {a} to set Herodotus {b} the historian a-work, to say that at Ascalon, a city of the Philistines, Venus had a temple, - Dagon is by some thought to be Venus, - which when certain thieves robbed, they were smitten with emerods!

{a} Satan est Dei Simia.

{b} Joseph., lib. x. cap. 1.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

1Sa 5:11-12. There was a deadly destruction through all the city — That is, in every city where the ark of God came, some were struck with the pestilence and died, and others lingered under intolerable pains, which made them cry out in an inexpressible manner. The cry of the city went up to heaven — A hyperbolical speech; things that are exceeding great, beyond expression, being often said to reach to heaven, Deu 1:28.

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

The wicked when they feel the hand of God, grudge and reject him, where the godly humble themselves, and cry for mercy.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

they sent--that is, the magistrates of Ekron.

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 11. Send away the ark] It appears that it had been received at Ekron, for there was a deadly destruction through the whole city. They therefore concluded that the ark should be sent back to Shiloh.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

(11) Send away the ark.—The lords of the Philistines were a long time before they could make up their minds to get rid of this deadly trophy of their victory. They had grown up with an undefined awe of the “golden chest,” which, as they supposed, had so often in the days of the famous Hebrew conqueror, Joshua, led the armies of Israel to victory; and now at last it was their own. It was indeed a sore trouble for them to yield it up to their enemies again; to see the historical sacred treasure of Israel, so long veiled in awful mystery, at the feet of their fish-god idol, was a perpetual renewal for Philistia of the glorious triumph of Aphek, which avenged so many years of bitter humiliation. The plague and misery which afflicted the cities of Philistia in the day when the sacred Ark dwelt an unhonoured guest in their midst suggest many and grave thoughts. Is there not an unseen power ever protecting God’s institutions, His ordinances, and His ritual, the sacred House dedicated to His solemn worship, the vessels of the sanctuary, the very lands and gold consecrated to His service, even though all these things, owing to the faults and errors of His servants, have lost apparently their holy and beneficial influence over the hearts and homes of men?

Does not this old loved story warn rash and careless souls against laying rough hands on any ark of the Lord, though the ark in question seem to be abandoned by God, and destitute of power and dignity?

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

11. and gathered together all the lords] A second council of state was held, but the protest of the Ekronites was not listened to. The league was unwilling to part with the trophy of its victory.

a deadly destruction] A deadly panic: dismay caused by the fatal character of the disease.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

So they sent and gathered together all the lords of the Philistines,.... As the men of Ashdod had done before on the same account, Sa1 5:8.

and said, send away the ark of the God of Israel; as these lords were united in their government, and made one common cause of it against Israel, one could not dispose of this capture without the consent of the rest; otherwise the lord of Ekron, with his princes, were clearly in it that it was right and best to send it away out of any of their principalities:

and let it go again to its own place; to the land of Israel and Shiloh there, though to that it never returned more:

that it slay us not, and our people; that is, all of them, for great numbers had been slain already, as follows:

for there was a deadly destruction throughout all the city; a mortal disease went through the whole city, and swept away a multitude of people:

the hand of God was very heavy there; it seems by the expression to haste been heavier on the inhabitants of this city than upon those of Ashdod and Gath, which made them the more pressing to get rid of the ark.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Throughout all the city, to wit, the city of Ekron, during its short stay there. Or, in every city, to wit, where the ark of God came; for it came also to Gaza and Askelon, and produced the same effects there, as may be gathered from 1Sa 6:4,17, though for brevity sake it be here omitted.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

11. A deadly destruction throughout all the city — מהומה מות, confusion of death in all the city; that is, consternation caused by many sudden deaths. Ekron, as well as Gath and Ashdod, is smitten with the plague, and many die. Therefore they abandon all hopes of keeping their prize within their borders, and at once resolve to send it away to its own place.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

The city - In every city, where the ark of God came.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

the ark of the God of Israel

See how you translated similar words in 1 Samuel 3:3. This is the a same as the "ark of the covenant of God" in 1 Samuel 4:3-4.

the God of Israel

Possible meanings are 1) they were speaking the proper name of the God of Israel or 2) they believed that Israel worshiped one of many gods, "the god of Israel." See how you translated this in 1 Samuel 5:7.

there was a deathly panic throughout the city

"people all over the city were afraid that they were going to die"

the hand of God was very heavy there

The hand is a metonym for God punishing the people. "Yahweh was punishing the people there very severely" (See: Metonymy)

The men who did not die

This implies that many men actually died. (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)

tumors

Possible meanings are 1) painful swelling under the skin or 2) hemorrhoids. See how you translated this in 1 Samuel 5:6.

the cry of the city went up to the heavens

The word "city" is a metonym for the people of the city. Possible meanings are 1) the words "went up to the heavens" is an idiom for "was very great." AT: "the people of the city cried out very loudly" or 2) the words "the heavens" is a metonym for the people's gods. AT: "the people of the city cried out to their gods" (See: Metonymy and Idiom)

translationWords

Philistines

ark of the covenant

die

hand

heaven

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.

Deadly upheaval. All upheavals [mentioned in Scripture] are caused by thunder. The following is the origin: "Adonoy thundered with a great noise on that day against the Philistines, making them panic. It is so explained in the Aggadah of Thirty-Two Rules of R. Eliezer, the son of R. Yose Haglili.

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.