And the Philistines took the ark of God, and brought it from Ebenezer unto Ashdod.
Ashdod - or Azotus, one of the five Philistine satrapies, and a place of great strength. That it was always a fortified place is evident from its name, which signifies power, like the Arabic shedeed, 'strong' (Wilkinson in Rawlinson's 'Herodotus'). It was an inland town, 34 miles north of Gaza, now called Esdud.