Who was Dagon in the Bible?

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. Judges 16:23; 1 Sam. 5:2-7; 1 Chr. 10:10.

The ark was brought to Ashdod, the leading city of the Philistines, and set up in the temple dedicated to Dagon, the chief god of the people. It was half fish and half man, the symbol of fertility. Before this idol the ark was set up. In their blindness they imagined that Dagon had conquered the God of Israel. The next morning they found Dagon fallen with his face to the earth before the ark. It was the Lord who did it and not an accident. The next morning the whole idol-image, except the fish-part, is fallen upon the ground. "The head of Dagon and both the palms of his hands lay cut off upon the threshold." The God of Israel demonstrated His power over the gods of the Philistines, yet they continued to reverence even the threshold where the fragments of their idol had lain. Such is the darkness of fallen man.

The reason the ark is mentioned as carried then into the temple is because the tabernacle was in ruin. Once men carried it into Dagon's house (this being an idol, part man and part fish), and when the ark went in, the man fell down, and the fish only was left in place. This had its meaning. Now Shiloh was all pulled to pieces when Solomon took the ark and set it in the temple. The Philistines had taken it, but God maintained His own glory (all else must go for nothing); and He watched over it step by step wherever they led it about, and finally took it from them.

The Philistines did not worship the true God, they had their own gods (Judges 10:6), one of whom is named as Dagon in 1 Samuel 5. However they came to possess their lands, they knew not what it was to be delivered out of Egypt by the hand of God, to be sheltered by the blood of the lamb that was slain, to be brought across the Red Sea by divine power, to be sustained by the bread of God and refreshed by water from the flinty rock while crossing the wilderness, to pass over Jordan dry shod because of the presence of the ark of God, and to have Jehovah fight for them in dispossessing the nations of Canaan.

Though God had allowed the Philistines to gain the victory, He very soon spoils their pleasure in having captured the ark, taking it to Ashdod. They think the most fit place for it is in the house of Dagon, the fish-god (half fish, half man). No doubt they even considered they were patronizing Israel's god by giving it this place!

But the next morning Dagon was found fallen on its face before the ark, and they were given the work of lifting their god back into its place! The second morning, however, they were not able to restore the damage; for as well as being fallen again, the head of Dagon and the palms of his hands had been cut off. It was a message to the Philistines that if they thought Dagon had intelligence, he had not even a head: if they thought he could do anything, he had no hands to do it. Since the damage had been done on the threshold of his house, the priests of Dagon adopted the superstitious custom of never stepping on the threshold as they came in the door. They did not come to the sensible conclusion, however, that they should give up the worship of this impotent idol.

Israel's loss was judgement to the foe. The Philistines in their pride of heart carried the ark into the temple of their fish-god Dagon. In their benighted minds Dagon had triumphed over Jehovah. But the God of Israel soon vindicated His majesty, and made His presence felt. First, Dagon fell before the ark, and then, on being set up again, was broken before it. Moreover, God plagued the inhabitants of the temple-city, Ashdod, so that they were glad to pass the ark on to Gath. Gath also suffered, so that it was removed thence to Ekron. Ekron's cry of dismay led to the suggestion to return the ark to Israel, their mode of procedure — the use of two milch kine with their calves tied up at home — making it abundantly clear that it was no mere epidemic that had broken out amongst the Philistines, but that Jehovah's hand had come down upon them.

The Philistines have looked upon this capture of the ark not only as their victory over Israel, but over God as well. They ascribe both to their own god, Dagon, and in acknowledgement of his triumph over Israel's God, they put the ark in Dagon's temple.

The Philistines had trembled when they heard that the ark had come into the camp of Israel. Now that the ark has been delivered into their hands, with bold daring they place it in the house of their idol, as if to celebrate its capture as a victory for their god Dagon over the God of Israel. Their former trembling was as needless as their present daring is misplaced.

But when the ark fell into the hands of the Philistines God had to teach them there was a divine meaning behind the symbol. They placed it beside their own god, Dagon, as if the two were on a level, perhaps in their judgment their god the superior, seeing they had overcome the Israelites and captured their ark.

But it is only to discover Dagon fallen on his face to the ground before the ark of the Lord. They set their god up again. It had been well for them had they taken heed to God’s intervention. Next day they found Dagon fallen again, a mere stump, his head and the palms of his hands cut off, and a decimating plague burst out in all its fury amongst them. Thus would God teach them that there was a moral meaning behind the symbol.

"And the Philistines took the ark of God, and brought it from Eben-ezer to Ashdod. When the Philistines took the ark of God, they brought it into the house of Dagon, and set it by Dagon." Here we are presented with the sad and humiliating result of Israel's unfaithfulness. With what a careless hand and faithless heart had they kept the ark of God when it could ever be brought to find a lodging-place in the temple of Dagon! How deeply Israel had failed! They had let go everything; they had given up that which was most sacred, to be profaned and blasphemed by the uncircumcised.