MPV Commentary

The Philistines Are Smitten with Emerods.

The hand of the Lord was heavily upon those in Ashdod, punishing their presumption with a severe judgment - a pestilence that ravaged them.

This affliction took the form of bleeding piles (or hemorrhoids), a condition considered particularly egregious by ancient cultures. As such, the people of Ashdod would have been acutely aware that this disease was likely seen as a divine punishment for their transgressions against God.

The ark of God was subsequently removed from Ashdod to other major towns in the region, but the same pestilence broke out in each place, forcing the authorities to send it back into Israel (1Sa 5:8-10).

In Ekron, the magistrates sent a delegation to address this crisis.

The cries of anguish from the city rose up to heaven as people suffered intensely from this painful and debilitating disease.