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1 Samuel 5 – Praying through the Bible #85 – A Prayer of Believing Unbelievers
What do normal, non-religious people have in common with pagan polytheists of 3000 years ago? The following story is touched by God’s unique humor.
Israel treats God’s Ark of the Covenant like a graven image, a common idol. After Yahweh refuses them victory, they scheme like pagans: “Let’s bring the ark of the LORD’s covenant from Shiloh. Then it (IT) will go with us and save us from the hand of our enemies” (1 Samuel 4.3). Not only do they treat the Ark like a god, they treat God like a puppet; as if forcing God to help by using His “talisman.”
Seeing the Ark enter the camp, the Philistines are terrified: “Woe to us, who will rescue us from the hand of these magnificent gods?” (4.8). They call Yahweh “gods” possibly because of the two cherubim above the ark. These pagans believe this “God” exists; they just don’t worship Him. How many non-religious people admit God exists? Most. How many reverence Him? Less than “most.” That is the first commonality between these pagan unbelievers and today’s unbelievers.
Then the Philistines acknowledge, “These are the gods that slaughtered the Egyptians with all kinds of plagues in the wilderness” (4.8). The pagans get parts of their Hebrew history correct. Israel’s God is magnificent and did strike the Egyptians with plagues, just not in the “wilderness.” In the wilderness, God mainly struck down Israelites; while the plagues took place in Egypt. So the second shared trait between these pagans and most non-religious people today is, they mix their facts. They know Bible stories, they just bungle and bundle them. Moses did not take the animals into the ark two by two.
After the Philistines capture the Ark, they place their trophy and defeated “gods” in Ashdod, in the temple of their god, Dagon. Here begins’ God’s humor. The next morning Dagon is flat on his face before the Ark as if bowing (5.3). The second morning, the same thing happens except now Dagon’s head and palms are broken off and lying on the floor. Only the torso remains bowed (5.4). Then Yahweh terrorizes and afflicts the people with…well, remember this story is tinged with God’s unique humor. Most versions say, “tumors.” A dictionary defines it as “tumors (from dysentery);” and another says, “hemorrhoids.” Moving the Ark to Gath and Ekron just makes the situations there, well, “inflamed.” Desperately, they send back the Ark with a restitution offering – five golden hemorrhoids (6.4-5)! Are you smiling? The chapter ends, “the outcry of the city went up to heaven” (6.12). This is the third similarity: these pagans and so many today, pray only when in trouble. Being a believing unbeliever is no laughing matter.
Prayer Challenge: Pray being believers is more than knowing God exists and knowing a few Bible facts and stories. Pray our connection to God will always be more than just when we need something; and that we will always treat God as holy.
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