The Philistines removed the ark in triumph to Ashdod, one of their five principal cities, and placed it in the house of their god Dagon. They imagined that the power which had hitherto attended the ark would be theirs, and that this, united with the power of Dagon, would render them invincible. But upon entering the temple on the following day, they beheld a sight which filled them with consternation. Dagon had fallen upon his face to the earth before the ark of Jehovah. The priests reverently lifted the idol and restored it to its place. But the next morning they found it, strangely mutilated, again lying upon the earth before the ark. The upper part of this idol was like that of a man, and the lower part was in the likeness of a fish. Now every part that resembled the human form had been cut off, and only the body of the fish remained. Priests and people were horror-struck; they looked upon this mysterious event as an evil omen, foreboding destruction to themselves and their idols before the God of the Hebrews. They now removed the ark from their temple and placed it in a building by itself.

Det var ikke tilstrækkeligt, at Israel havde arken og helligdommen i deres midte. Det hjalp heller ikke, at præsterne bragte ofre, og at folket blev kaldt Guds børn. Herren bønhører ikke de mennesker, som gemmer på synd i deres hjerte. Der står skrevet, at "den, der vender sit øre fra loven, endog hans bøn er en gru". Ord. 28, 9.