Reference: Dagon
American
Fish-god, a national idol of the Philistines, with temples at Gaza, Ashdid, etc., 1Ch 10:10. The temple at Gaza was destroyed by Samson, Jg 16:21-30. In that at Ashdod, Dagon twice miraculously fell down before the ark of God; and in the second fall his head and hands were broken off, leaving only the body, which was in the form of a large fish, 1Sa 5:1-9. See Jos 15:41; 19:27. There were other idols of like form among the ancients, particularly the goddess Derceto of Atergatis; and a similar form or "incarnation" of Vishnu is at this day much worshipped in India, and like Dagon is destined to be prostrated in the dust before the true God.
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and Gederoth, Beth-dagon, and Naamah, and Makkedah; sixteen cities with their villages;
and turns toward the sunrising to Beth-dagon, and reaches to Zebulun, and to the valley of Jiphthah-el toward the north of Beth-emek, and Neiel, and goes out to Cabul on the left hand,
And the Philistines took him and put out his eyes, and brought him down to Gaza, and bound him with fetters of brass. And he ground in the prison house. However the hair of his head began to grow again after he had been shaven. read more. Then the lords of the Philistines gathered in order to offer a great sacrifice to Dagon their god, and to rejoice. For they said, Our god has delivered Samson our enemy into our hand. And the people saw him and praised their god. For they said, Our god has delivered our enemy into our hand, and the destroyer of our country, who killed many of us. And when their hearts were merry, it happened that they said, Call for Samson and he will make sport for us. And they called for Samson out of the prison house. And he made sport for them, and they set him between the pillars. And Samson said to the lad who held him by the hand, Allow me to feel the pillars upon which the house stands, so that I may lean upon them. Now the house was full of men and women. And all the lords of the Philistines were there. And on the roof were about three thousand men and women who watched while Samson made sport. And Samson called to Jehovah and said, O, Lord Jehovah, remember me, I pray You, and strengthen me, I pray You, only this once, O God, so that I may be at once avenged of the Philistines for my two eyes. And Samson took hold of the two middle pillars upon which the house stood, and on which it was held up, of the one with his right hand, and of the other with his left. And Samson said, Let me die with the Philistines. And he bowed himself mightily, and the house fell upon the lords and upon all the people in it. So the dead whom he killed at his death were more than those he killed in his life.
And the Philistines took the ark of God, and brought it from Ebenezer to Ashdod. And the Philistines took the ark of God and brought it into the house of Dagon, and set it beside Dagon. read more. And when those of Ashdod arose early on the next day, behold, Dagon had fallen upon his face to the earth before the ark of Jehovah. And they took Dagon and set him in his place again. And when they arose early on the next morning, behold, Dagon had fallen on his face to the earth before the ark of Jehovah. 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. And neither the priests of Dagon, nor any that come into Dagon's house, tread on the threshold of Dagon in Ashdod to this day. And the hand of Jehovah was heavy on the people of Ashdod, and He destroyed them and struck them with hemorrhoids, Ashdod and its borders. And the men of Ashdod saw that it was so. And they said, The ark of the God of Israel shall not stay with us. For His hand is sore upon us and upon Dagon our god. And they sent and gathered all the lords of the Philistines to them. And they 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 around to Gath. And they carried the ark of the God of Israel around. And it happened after they had carried it around, the hand of Jehovah was against the city with a very great destruction. And He struck the men of the city, both small and great, and hemorrhoids broke forth in them.
And they put his armor in the house of their gods, and fastened his skull in the temple of Dagon.
Easton
little fish; diminutive from dag = a fish, the fish-god; the national god of the Philistines (Jg 16:23). This idol had the body of a fish with the head and hands of a man. It was an Assyrio-Babylonian deity, the worship of which was introduced among the Philistines through Chaldea. The most famous of the temples of Dagon were at Gaza (Jg 16:23-30) and Ashdod (1Sam 5:1-7|). (See Fish.)
Illustration: Fish-God from Khorsabad
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Then the lords of the Philistines gathered in order to offer a great sacrifice to Dagon their god, and to rejoice. For they said, Our god has delivered Samson our enemy into our hand.
Then the lords of the Philistines gathered in order to offer a great sacrifice to Dagon their god, and to rejoice. For they said, Our god has delivered Samson our enemy into our hand. And the people saw him and praised their god. For they said, Our god has delivered our enemy into our hand, and the destroyer of our country, who killed many of us. read more. And when their hearts were merry, it happened that they said, Call for Samson and he will make sport for us. And they called for Samson out of the prison house. And he made sport for them, and they set him between the pillars. And Samson said to the lad who held him by the hand, Allow me to feel the pillars upon which the house stands, so that I may lean upon them. Now the house was full of men and women. And all the lords of the Philistines were there. And on the roof were about three thousand men and women who watched while Samson made sport. And Samson called to Jehovah and said, O, Lord Jehovah, remember me, I pray You, and strengthen me, I pray You, only this once, O God, so that I may be at once avenged of the Philistines for my two eyes. And Samson took hold of the two middle pillars upon which the house stood, and on which it was held up, of the one with his right hand, and of the other with his left. And Samson said, Let me die with the Philistines. And he bowed himself mightily, and the house fell upon the lords and upon all the people in it. So the dead whom he killed at his death were more than those he killed in his life.
And the Philistines took the ark of God, and brought it from Ebenezer to Ashdod. And the Philistines took the ark of God and brought it into the house of Dagon, and set it beside Dagon. read more. And when those of Ashdod arose early on the next day, behold, Dagon had fallen upon his face to the earth before the ark of Jehovah. And they took Dagon and set him in his place again. And when they arose early on the next morning, behold, Dagon had fallen on his face to the earth before the ark of Jehovah. 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. And neither the priests of Dagon, nor any that come into Dagon's house, tread on the threshold of Dagon in Ashdod to this day. And the hand of Jehovah was heavy on the people of Ashdod, and He destroyed them and struck them with hemorrhoids, Ashdod and its borders. And the men of Ashdod saw that it was so. And they said, The ark of the God of Israel shall not stay with us. For His hand is sore upon us and upon Dagon our god.
Fausets
Diminutive (expressing endearment) of dag, "a fish." The male god to which Atargatis corresponds (2Ma 12:26), the Syrian goddess with a woman's body and fish's tail, worshipped at Hierapolis and Ascalon. Our fabulous mermaid is derived from this Phoenician idol. She corresponds to the Greek foam-sprung Aphrodite. The divine principle supposed to produce the seeds of all things from moisture. Twice a year, water was brought from distant places and poured into a chasm in the temple, through which the waters of the flood were said to have been drained away (Lucian de Syr. Dea, 883). Derived from tarag, targeto, "an opening," the goddess being also called DERCETO; or else addir, "glorious," and dagto, "a fish."
The tutelary goddess of the first Assyrian dynasty, the name appearing in Tiglath. Dag-on was the national god of the Philistines, his temples were at Gaza and Ashdod (Jg 16:21-30; 1Sa 5:5-6). The temple of Dagon, which Samson pulled down, probably resembled a Turkish kiosk, a spacious hall with roof resting in front upon four columns, two at the ends and two close together at the center. Under this hall the Philistine chief men celebrated a sacrificial meal, while the people assembled above upon the balustraded roof. The half-man half-fish form (found in bas-relief at Khorsabad) was natural to maritime coast dwellers. They senselessly joined the human form divine to the beast that perishes, to symbolize nature's vivifying power through water; the Hindu Vishnu; Babylonian Odakon.
On the doorway of Sennacherib's palace at Koyunjik there is still in bas-relief representations of Dagon, with the body of a fish but under the fish's head a man's head, and to its tail women's feet joined; and in all the four gigantic slabs the upper part has perished, exactly as 1Sa 5:4's margin describes: now in the British Museum. The cutting off of Dagon's head and hands before Jehovah's ark, and their lying on the threshold (from whence his devotees afterward did not dare to tread upon it), prefigure the ultimate cutting off of all idols in the great day of Jehovah (Isa 2:11-22). Beth-Dagon in Judah and another in Asher (Jos 15:41; 19:27) show the wide extension of this worship. In his temple the Philistines fastened up Saul's head (1Ch 10:10).
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and Gederoth, Beth-dagon, and Naamah, and Makkedah; sixteen cities with their villages;
and Gederoth, Beth-dagon, and Naamah, and Makkedah; sixteen cities with their villages;
and turns toward the sunrising to Beth-dagon, and reaches to Zebulun, and to the valley of Jiphthah-el toward the north of Beth-emek, and Neiel, and goes out to Cabul on the left hand,
and turns toward the sunrising to Beth-dagon, and reaches to Zebulun, and to the valley of Jiphthah-el toward the north of Beth-emek, and Neiel, and goes out to Cabul on the left hand,
And the Philistines took him and put out his eyes, and brought him down to Gaza, and bound him with fetters of brass. And he ground in the prison house.
And the Philistines took him and put out his eyes, and brought him down to Gaza, and bound him with fetters of brass. And he ground in the prison house. However the hair of his head began to grow again after he had been shaven.
However the hair of his head began to grow again after he had been shaven. Then the lords of the Philistines gathered in order to offer a great sacrifice to Dagon their god, and to rejoice. For they said, Our god has delivered Samson our enemy into our hand.
Then the lords of the Philistines gathered in order to offer a great sacrifice to Dagon their god, and to rejoice. For they said, Our god has delivered Samson our enemy into our hand. And the people saw him and praised their god. For they said, Our god has delivered our enemy into our hand, and the destroyer of our country, who killed many of us.
And the people saw him and praised their god. For they said, Our god has delivered our enemy into our hand, and the destroyer of our country, who killed many of us. And when their hearts were merry, it happened that they said, Call for Samson and he will make sport for us. And they called for Samson out of the prison house. And he made sport for them, and they set him between the pillars.
And when their hearts were merry, it happened that they said, Call for Samson and he will make sport for us. And they called for Samson out of the prison house. And he made sport for them, and they set him between the pillars. And Samson said to the lad who held him by the hand, Allow me to feel the pillars upon which the house stands, so that I may lean upon them.
And Samson said to the lad who held him by the hand, Allow me to feel the pillars upon which the house stands, so that I may lean upon them. Now the house was full of men and women. And all the lords of the Philistines were there. And on the roof were about three thousand men and women who watched while Samson made sport.
Now the house was full of men and women. And all the lords of the Philistines were there. And on the roof were about three thousand men and women who watched while Samson made sport. And Samson called to Jehovah and said, O, Lord Jehovah, remember me, I pray You, and strengthen me, I pray You, only this once, O God, so that I may be at once avenged of the Philistines for my two eyes.
And Samson called to Jehovah and said, O, Lord Jehovah, remember me, I pray You, and strengthen me, I pray You, only this once, O God, so that I may be at once avenged of the Philistines for my two eyes. And Samson took hold of the two middle pillars upon which the house stood, and on which it was held up, of the one with his right hand, and of the other with his left.
And Samson took hold of the two middle pillars upon which the house stood, and on which it was held up, of the one with his right hand, and of the other with his left. And Samson said, Let me die with the Philistines. And he bowed himself mightily, and the house fell upon the lords and upon all the people in it. So the dead whom he killed at his death were more than those he killed in his life.
And Samson said, Let me die with the Philistines. And he bowed himself mightily, and the house fell upon the lords and upon all the people in it. So the dead whom he killed at his death were more than those he killed in his life.
And when they arose early on the next morning, behold, Dagon had fallen on his face to the earth before the ark of Jehovah. 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.
And when they arose early on the next morning, behold, Dagon had fallen on his face to the earth before the ark of Jehovah. 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.
And they put his armor in the house of their gods, and fastened his skull in the temple of Dagon.
And they put his armor in the house of their gods, and fastened his skull in the temple of Dagon.
The lofty looks of man shall be humbled, and the pride of men shall be bowed down, and Jehovah alone shall be exalted in that day.
The lofty looks of man shall be humbled, and the pride of men shall be bowed down, and Jehovah alone shall be exalted in that day. For the day of Jehovah of Hosts shall be on every proud and lofty one, and on every lifted up one; and he shall be brought low,
For the day of Jehovah of Hosts shall be on every proud and lofty one, and on every lifted up one; and he shall be brought low, And it shall be on all the high and lifted up cedars of Lebanon, and on all the oaks of Bashan,
And it shall be on all the high and lifted up cedars of Lebanon, and on all the oaks of Bashan, and on all the high mountains, and on all the lifted up hills;
and on all the high mountains, and on all the lifted up hills; and on every high tower, and on every fortified wall;
and on every high tower, and on every fortified wall; and on all the ships of Tarshish, and on all pleasurable craft.
and on all the ships of Tarshish, and on all pleasurable craft. And the pride of man shall be bowed down, and the loftiness of men shall be made low; and Jehovah alone shall be exalted in that day.
And the pride of man shall be bowed down, and the loftiness of men shall be made low; and Jehovah alone shall be exalted in that day. And the idols shall completely vanish.
And the idols shall completely vanish. And they shall go into the holes of the rocks, and into the caves of the earth for fear of Jehovah and for the glory of His majesty, when He arises to shake the earth terribly.
And they shall go into the holes of the rocks, and into the caves of the earth for fear of Jehovah and for the glory of His majesty, when He arises to shake the earth terribly. In that day a man shall cast his idols of silver, and his idols of gold, which they made for him to worship, to the moles and to the bats;
In that day a man shall cast his idols of silver, and his idols of gold, which they made for him to worship, to the moles and to the bats; to go into the clefts of the rocks, and into the tops of the ragged rocks, for fear of Jehovah and for the glory of His majesty, when He arises to shake the earth terribly.
to go into the clefts of the rocks, and into the tops of the ragged rocks, for fear of Jehovah and for the glory of His majesty, when He arises to shake the earth terribly. Cease from man, whose breath is in his nostril; for in what is he to be esteemed?
Cease from man, whose breath is in his nostril; for in what is he to be esteemed?
Hastings
A god whose worship was general among the Philistines (at Gaza, Jg 16:23,1Ma 10:83-84; 1Ma 11:4; at Ashkelon, 1Sa 5:2; prob. at Beth-dagon [wh. see], which may at one time have been under Philistine rule). Indeed, the name Baal-dagon inscribed in Ph
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Then Samson went to Gaza. And he saw a harlot there, and went in to her.
Then the lords of the Philistines gathered in order to offer a great sacrifice to Dagon their god, and to rejoice. For they said, Our god has delivered Samson our enemy into our hand.
And the Philistines took the ark of God and brought it into the house of Dagon, and set it beside Dagon.
And when they arose early on the next morning, behold, Dagon had fallen on his face to the earth before the ark of Jehovah. 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.
And they sent and gathered all the lords of the Philistines to them. And they 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 around to Gath. And they carried the ark of the God of Israel around.
And they said, What shall be the guilt offering which we shall return to Him? And they answered, Five golden hemorrhoids, and five golden mice, for the number of the lords of the Philistines. For one plague was on you all, and on your lords. And you shall make images of your hemorrhoids, and images of your mice which mar the land. And you shall give glory to the God of Israel. Perhaps He will lighten His hand from off you, and from off your gods, and from off your land.
And the golden mice were according to the number of all the cities of the Philistines for the five lords, of fortified cities and of country villages, even to the great meadow on which they set down the ark of Jehovah to this day, in the field of Joshua the Bethshemite.
And they put his armor in the house of their gods, and fastened his skull in the temple of Dagon.
Morish
Da'gon
The national god of the Philistines, whose principal temples were at Gaza and Ashdod. The name has been traced by some to dag, a fish; others however associate the fish-god with EA, the water-god; and trace Dagon to dagan 'corn' as a god of agriculture. This was the idol that fell to pieces before the ark of Israel, and it was in its temple subsequently that the Philistines hung the head of Saul. A representation of a god found at Khorsabad has the head and hands of a man, and the body and tail of a fish. Jg 16:23; 1Sa 5:2-7; 1Ch 10:10.
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Then the lords of the Philistines gathered in order to offer a great sacrifice to Dagon their god, and to rejoice. For they said, Our god has delivered Samson our enemy into our hand.
Smith
Da'gon
(a fish), apparently the masculine,
correlative of Atargatis, was the national god of the Philistines. The most famous temples of Dagon were at Gaza,
and Ashdod.
The latter temple was destroyed by Jonathan in the Maccabaean wars. Traces of the worship of Dagon likewise appear in the names Caphar-dagon (near Jamnia) and Beth-dagon in Judah,
and Asher.
Dagon was represented with the face and hands of a man and the tail of a fish.
The fish-like form was a natural emblem of fruitfulness, and as such was likely to be adopted by seafaring tribes in the representation of their gods.
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and Gederoth, Beth-dagon, and Naamah, and Makkedah; sixteen cities with their villages;
and turns toward the sunrising to Beth-dagon, and reaches to Zebulun, and to the valley of Jiphthah-el toward the north of Beth-emek, and Neiel, and goes out to Cabul on the left hand,
And the Philistines took him and put out his eyes, and brought him down to Gaza, and bound him with fetters of brass. And he ground in the prison house. However the hair of his head began to grow again after he had been shaven. read more. Then the lords of the Philistines gathered in order to offer a great sacrifice to Dagon their god, and to rejoice. For they said, Our god has delivered Samson our enemy into our hand. And the people saw him and praised their god. For they said, Our god has delivered our enemy into our hand, and the destroyer of our country, who killed many of us. And when their hearts were merry, it happened that they said, Call for Samson and he will make sport for us. And they called for Samson out of the prison house. And he made sport for them, and they set him between the pillars. And Samson said to the lad who held him by the hand, Allow me to feel the pillars upon which the house stands, so that I may lean upon them. Now the house was full of men and women. And all the lords of the Philistines were there. And on the roof were about three thousand men and women who watched while Samson made sport. And Samson called to Jehovah and said, O, Lord Jehovah, remember me, I pray You, and strengthen me, I pray You, only this once, O God, so that I may be at once avenged of the Philistines for my two eyes. And Samson took hold of the two middle pillars upon which the house stood, and on which it was held up, of the one with his right hand, and of the other with his left. And Samson said, Let me die with the Philistines. And he bowed himself mightily, and the house fell upon the lords and upon all the people in it. So the dead whom he killed at his death were more than those he killed in his life.
And when those of Ashdod arose early on the next day, behold, Dagon had fallen upon his face to the earth before the ark of Jehovah. And they took Dagon and set him in his place again. And when they arose early on the next morning, behold, Dagon had fallen on his face to the earth before the ark of Jehovah. 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. read more. And neither the priests of Dagon, nor any that come into Dagon's house, tread on the threshold of Dagon in Ashdod to this day.
And neither the priests of Dagon, nor any that come into Dagon's house, tread on the threshold of Dagon in Ashdod to this day. And the hand of Jehovah was heavy on the people of Ashdod, and He destroyed them and struck them with hemorrhoids, Ashdod and its borders.
Watsons
DAGON, ????, corn, from ???, or ??, a fish, god of the Philistines. It is the opinion of some that Dagon was represented like a woman, with the lower parts of a fish, like a triton or syren. Scripture shows clearly that the statue of Dagon was human, at least, the upper part of it. 1Sa 5:4-5. A temple of Dagon at Gaza was pulled down by Samson, Jg 16:23, &c. In another, at Ashdod, the Philistines deposited the ark of God, 1Sa 5:1-3. A city in Judah was called Beth-Dagon; that is, the house, or temple, of Dagon, Jos 15:41; and another on the frontiers of Asher, Jos 19:27.
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and Gederoth, Beth-dagon, and Naamah, and Makkedah; sixteen cities with their villages;
and turns toward the sunrising to Beth-dagon, and reaches to Zebulun, and to the valley of Jiphthah-el toward the north of Beth-emek, and Neiel, and goes out to Cabul on the left hand,
Then the lords of the Philistines gathered in order to offer a great sacrifice to Dagon their god, and to rejoice. For they said, Our god has delivered Samson our enemy into our hand.
And the Philistines took the ark of God, and brought it from Ebenezer to Ashdod. And the Philistines took the ark of God and brought it into the house of Dagon, and set it beside Dagon. read more. And when those of Ashdod arose early on the next day, behold, Dagon had fallen upon his face to the earth before the ark of Jehovah. And they took Dagon and set him in his place again. And when they arose early on the next morning, behold, Dagon had fallen on his face to the earth before the ark of Jehovah. 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. And neither the priests of Dagon, nor any that come into Dagon's house, tread on the threshold of Dagon in Ashdod to this day.