I
Samuel 2
HANNAH’S SONG OF PRAISE (vs. 1-10).
1 "And Hannah prayed, and said, My
heart rejoiceth in the LORD,
mine horn is exalted
in the LORD: my mouth is enlarged over
mine enemies; because
I rejoice in thy salvation."
And Hannah prayed
and said. Like the Magnificat (Luke
1:46-55), Hannah’s
hymn of thanksgiving begins with the temporal mercies accorded to herself,
but
rises immediately into the realms of prophecy, foretelling
Christ’s
kingdom and the triumphs of the Church. From this prophetic element,
common more or less to all the hymns of the Bible, most of them
have been
used in Christian worship, and still merit a place in it, though we in the
liturgy of the Church of England now use only two, taken both from
the
New Testament. In v. 1, in four strophes of equal length, Hannah
declares how, first, her heart, the center with the
Hebrews, not merely of
the
physical, but also of the moral and intellectual life, rejoices in Jehovah;
while the exaltation of her horn, the symbol of strength
and vigor,
signifies that this inward joy is accompanied, or even occasioned,
by the
changed circumstances of her outward lot. Her mouth, therefore,
is opened
wide over her enemies, yet not for cursing and in bitterness, but for joyful
praise of the God who has answered her prayers. It is His
salvation, the
being delivered by Him, that makes her thus burst forth into
thanksgiving. It
is
a proof too of her faith and spirituality that she
thus refers all to Jehovah.
2"There is none holy as the LORD: for there is none
beside thee: neither is
there any rock like
our God." In v. 2 she gives her reasons for this holy joy.
The first is God’s absolute
holiness; the second His absolute existence, in which
she
finds the proof of His holiness. Hannah
may have meant to express only the
language of piety, but
she also stated a primary philosophical truth, which was early
grasped by the
deeply religious instinct of the Hebrews, that outside
of God is no
existence. Many necessary
deductions follow from this fundamental truth,
that God alone absolutely exists, and that all other existence is secondary
and derived; but no
deduction is more certain than Hannah’s own, that
such a Being must be absolutely holy. In calling Him a rock she assigns to
Him strength, calm, immovable, enduring, but a strength
which avails for
the
safety of His people (compare Deuteronomy 32:4, 15; Psalm 18:2).
For rocks, as being capable of easy defense, formed the
nucleus of
most ancient towns, and continued to serve as their citadels.
The Rock of
“Neither is there any rock like our God.” The figurative representations of
God which are given in His word enable us to attain
exalted, varied, and
most impressive views of His character. They are derived
from objects with
which the lands of the Bible abounded; and no other lands
on earth were
equally adapted to be the theatre of a Divine revelation
for men universally.
Of these representations, this is one of the most common.
It was first
employed by Jacob (Genesis 49:24 — stone, eben, or rock), with
allusion, perhaps, to ibid.
ch. 28:11, 22; afterwards by Moses
(Deuteronomy 32:4, 18, etc. — rock, tzur
= what is solid, firm,
enduring; a support, foundation, as in the text), who was
so familiar with
the rocks and mountains of Sinai; frequently by David (II
Samuel 22:3
— rock, sela =
height, cliff or crag, resorted to as a refuge) and the
prophets. Notice:
Ø
His power. “To know thy power is the root of immortality.”
Ø
His unchangeableness and faithfulness. “I
change not” (Malachi
3:6), with reference to His
merciful covenant.
Ø
His eternity. “From everlasting to everlasting.”
These attributes are
ascribed to Christ:
o
“all power” (Matthew 28:18);
o
“the same
yesterday, and today, and forever”
(Hebrews 1:8-12;
13:8).
o
“That Rock was
Christ” (I Corinthians 10:4).
He is the highest
and the only perfect manifestation of God.
“Jesus is that Divine Being
to whom we can draw near without
pride, and before whom we
can be abased without despair”
(Pascal).
Ø Weak.
Their very strength is
weakness compared with His infinite
power.
Ø Changeable. “All
men are liars,”
false, unworthy, and disappointing
objects of
trust.
Ø Transitory. They and
their works pass away, whilst the rock endures
for ever.
Ø Expect not true or lasting satisfaction
from any created object. “Cease
ye
from man” (Isaiah
2:22). Fear him not (ibid. ch. 51:12-13).
who live in direct fellowship
with Him, and show the reality of their
fellowship by walking in the
light and keeping His commandments. To them
He has promised to be all that
their true welfare requires.
Ø A support; “the immovable foundation on which they
may stand firm,
impregnable,
secure.”
Ø A
defence, protecting them against their enemies; “a shadow from the
heat,
a refuge from the storm;” bearing on Himself the tempest that would
have fallen on
them. “He that believeth shall not make haste,” or be terrified.
Ø A source
of strength, of peace, and of consolation. “Rabbi Maimon
has
observed that
the word tzur, which we translate rock,
signifies, when
applied to
Jehovah, fountain, source, spring. There
is no source whence
continual
help and salvation can arise BUT OUR GOD!
Ø To trust
in Him.
Ø Abide in Him; not merely fleeing to Him in a time of
trouble and danger
(as a traveler
may seek shelter in a hovel while the storm lasts, and
immediately
afterwards leave it), but making Him
our habitation and home.
Ø To make Him our portion and “exceeding joy.” “Trust ye in the Lord
forever;
for the Lord Jehovah is the Rock of Ages” (Isaiah 26:4).
“Rock of
Ages, cleft for me;
Let me
hide myself in thee.”
3 "Talk no more so exceeding proudly; let not arrogancy come out of your
mouth: for the
LORD is a God of knowledge, and by Him actions are weighed."
Here Hannah appeals to God’s omniscience, “for
Jehovah is a God of
knowledges,” the plural
being intensive, and signifying every
kind of
knowledge. As too
He weighs and judges human actions, how can men
venture to talk so arrogantly before Him, literally so proudly, proudly. The last
clause is one of those numerous places in which there is a
doubt whether
the Hebrew word lo means not, or by Him. If
the negative sense be taken,
which the Hebrew spelling favors, the rendering will be
“though actions
be not weighed.” Though wicked actions be not immediately
punished, yet
Jehovah is cognizant of them, and in due time will requite.
The Divine Judgment of Human Actions (v. 3)
“By Him actions are weighed.” It is customary to determine the worth of
many things by weighing them. For this purpose a fixed
standard is used,
and a comparison is made with it by means of a balance and
scales or other
instrument. Nothing can be more natural than to speak of
determining the
moral worth of actions in the same manner, and Justice is
commonly
represented as a woman holding in her hand a pair of scales
in which
“actions are
weighed.” In this sense the above expression
is employed; not,
however, of men, whose judgment is often mistaken or
unjust; but of
“God, the Judge of all.” His judgment is:
ancient Egyptians, there was
erected at the entrance of the unseen world a
balance or scales, over which
the Judge of the dead presided, and by it the
character of every man was
tested as soon as he died. In one of the scales
the figure or emblem of truth
was placed, and in the other the heart of the
deceased; and the result
determined his destiny. This is not an unworthy
conception of the judgment to
come. But their religion pertained chiefly to
what would be in the future,
rather than to what exists in the present. And
there are many at the present
day who never think that they have anything
to do with God or His judgment
except
when they come to die. They forget
that the living and all-seeing
God “pondereth their goings” (Proverbs 5:21),
“judgeth according to every man’s work” (I Peter 1:17), and that to Him
they
stand responsible (Hebrews 4:13 — “with whom is the account”). “Some
men’s
sins are open beforehand, going before to judgment; and some men
they follow after. Likewise also the good works of some are
manifest
beforehand; and they that are otherwise cannot be hid.” (I Timothy 5:24-25)
men form of themselves and
others is often false, because it is not formed
by means of such a standard. As
“weights and measures” need to be
examined and to be rectified by
an imperial standard, so the human
judgment and
conscience need to be examined and to be rectified by the
righteousness of
God as declared in the Law and the Prophets and the
Gospel of Christ. What is our relation to
this standard?
depend upon their “outward
appearance,” but upon the heart. In the sight
of God, who sees hearts as we
see faces, the inward motives, principles,
and intentions are in reality
the actions which are weighed (Proverbs
16:2; 21:2; 24:11-12; Isaiah
26:7-9). Our ignorance of these necessarily
makes our judgment imperfect,
even in relation to ourselves. But “He is a
God of knowledge,”
“searches the heart,” and perceives
the motives which
underlie all actions, and which
are often so different from what they are
thought to be (Psalm 139:23).
that have in them a moral
element; to the actions of every individual
soul
(for each soul stands before Him
in its separate personality, bearing its own
burden of responsibility and of
sin, and is dealt with by Him as though there
were no other); and to every one
of its actions, however apparently
insignificant, though it cannot
be really such because of its relation to God,
and its bearing upon character
and destiny. Even “every idle word that men
shall speak, they
shall give account thereof in the day of judgment.”
(Matthew 12:36)
ACCORDING TO HIS WORKS.
It is not useless and ineffective; but is
attended with important
consequences (Jeremiah 17:10). This life is not
simply one of probation; it is
also, in part, one of retribution. The
approbation or disapprobation of
God is always followed by corresponding
effects in the mind and heart
and conscience of men, and often by startling
providential occurrences; as
when it was said, “Thou art weighed in the
balances, and art
found wanting” (Daniel 5:27, 30); The
world’s
history is the world’s judgment;
and, “We
must all appear before the
judgment seat of
Christ” (Romans 14:12; II Corinthians
5:10).
Therefore:
Ø
Let us examine
ourselves. (II Corinthians 13:5)
Ø
Seek forgiveness of
the sins that are past.
Ø
“Walk before me,
and be thou perfect.” (Genesis 17:1)
4 "The bows of the mighty men are broken, and they that
stumbled
are girded with
strength. 5 They that were full have hired out
themselves
for bread; and
they that were hungry ceased: so that the barren hath born
seven; and she
that hath many children is waxed feeble."
6"The
LORD
killeth, and maketh alive:
He bringeth down to the grave, and bringeth up."
7 "The LORD maketh poor, and maketh rich: He bringeth low, and
lifteth up."
8 "He raiseth up the poor out
of the dust, and lifteth up the beggar from the
dunghill, to set
them among princes, and to make them inherit the throne
of glory: for the
pillars of the earth are the LORD’s, and He hath set
the
world upon
them."
In vs. 4-8 Hannah illustrates the working of this attribute
of the Deity by
enumerating the vicissitudes of human events, which are not
the result of
chance, but of that omniscience combined with holiness
which she has
claimed for Jehovah in vs. 2-3. She begins with the
vicissitudes of war;
but these are not more remarkable than those of peace, by
which the full,
the rich and wealthy, have to descend to the position of a
hireling; while
those previously hungry have ceased, i.e.
from labor, and keep holiday.
In a nation of small proprietors, where the land was tilled
by the owner and
those “born in his house,” the position of
the hireling, the “mean white” of
the southern States of America, was lower than that of the
slave, especially
in
serf or forced laborer. In the next clause the translation
may either be,
“She that was long barren hath borne seven,” or, “Until the
barren” etc.;
i.e. these
vicissitudes may even reach so far as to make a barren woman the
mother of seven, i.e. of a perfect number of
children, happily generalized in
Psalm 113:9 into “a joyful mother of children.” But
see Ruth 4:15;
Jeremiah 15:9. In this there is also a typical reference to
the long
barrenness of the Gentile world, to be followed by a
fruitfulness far
exceeding that of the Jewish Church, while it, prolific once in patriarchs,
and prophets, and saints, is now comparatively sterile.
In v. 6 “the grave”,
Hebrews Sheol, is “the
pit,” the hollow vault underground, which is the
dwelling of the dead - literally, therefore, Hannah’s words
might seem to imply
a belief in the resurrection; but her meaning rather was
that God brings a
man to the very brink of the grave, and then, when all hope
seems past,
raises him up again. In v. 8 beggar is simply needy, but the expressions
dust and dunghill add
dishonor to his poverty. To set might
more
correctly be translated to make them sit; sitting,
especially on a raised seat,
being a mark of honor among Orientals, who generally squat
on mats on
the ground. In the next clause the Authorized Version
particularizes what in
the Hebrews is quite general. “He will make them possess
(or enjoy) a glorious
throne.” Their seat among the princes is not
inherited, but acquired; and though
promoted thus to a place among men of hereditary rank, and
given an
honorable position among them, yet it was not necessarily “the
throne of
glory,” the
highest seat. Still even this was quite possible; for while the
tribal chiefs and heads of fathers’ houses obtained their
rank by inheritance,
nevertheless, in early days the judges, and among them Eli
and Samuel,
acquired rank and power for themselves. Subsequently, under
the kings,
the great officers of state took their place along with the
hereditary princes,
but were dependent upon royal favor. In the last clause the
word rendered
pillars is rare, being found
only here and in ch. 14:4. In both places the ancient
versions are uncertain as to its signification, but in the latter
it can only mean a
crag, or mass of rock. If then the rock masses of the earth
are Jehovah’s, and He
can lift up and poise upon them the inhabited world
(Hebrews rebel), how much
more easily can he raise up a man!
9 "He will keep the feet of His saints, and the wicked
shall be silent in
darkness; for by
strength shall no man prevail." The feet of His saints.
The Hebrews written text (ch’tib)
has His saint, singular; but
the word really
means not saint, i.e. one sanctified and holy, but pious, i.e. one
lovingly disposed
towards God. The sense,
therefore, is not affected by the number, but the singular
is more forcible “He will guard the steps, the earthly
course, of each one that loveth
Him;” while over against this watchful providence,
ever exerted for the safe keeping
of all who love
the light, stands God’s punitive justice, whereby the wicked
are finally
brought down to the dark silence of the grave. For they had only
human strength and prowess upon which to depend, and no man can
sustain
himself in the manifold conflict of life WITHOUT HELP FROM ABOVE!
God’s Guardianship of His Saints (v. 9)
“He will keep the feet of His saints.” Who are His saints?
1. The term is
sometimes used as one of reproach, by persons who are
destitute of religious life, concerning those who bear the
Christian name.
(I recommend Genesis 4 -
Spurgeon Sermon – TO THOSE WHO ARE
ANGRY WITH THEIR GODLY FRIENDS – this website – CY – 2016)
Pointing to the inconsistency of some of the latter, they
would thereby fain
persuade themselves and others that there is no such thing
as true godliness
to be found in the world. There are, doubtless, many who “profess to know
God, but in works deny him.” But there would be no counterfeit money
unless there were some genuine coin.
2. The word is also
used to designate those who have been “canonized;”
and who, having gone into heaven, are supposed to have
influence with
God in the granting of petitions presented on earth. But such a use of it is
unscriptural, and the doctrine is false and injurious.
3. The saints of God
are those who have been accepted by Him through
faith in Christ, who do His will and walk in the way to
heaven. Their way,
indeed, is often difficult and painful, like the uneven,
intricate, and stony
paths of
consolation and encouragement, it is promised that “He
that keepeth
will “keep their feet” firm and safe, so
that they may not fall and perish.
The promise is directly of preservation from temporal
calamity, but it may
be regarded as including also preservation from spiritual
failure and
destruction. Consider:
Ø From wandering out of the way. Obscurity may gather over it. Other
ways may appear
plainer, easier, and more pleasant, and tempt them to
leave it. Or
they may seem more direct and shorter than the circuitous and
wearisome path
they have to pursue. But kept by Him they will not go astray.
Ø From stumbling in the way. “It must needs be that offences (or
occasions of
stumbling) come.” Some of them consist of:
o
The
difficulties of Divine revelation: “things hard to be understood.”
o
The
mysteries of Divine providence, which have led many to say, “As
for
me, my feet were almost gone, my steps had well nigh slipped.”
(Psalm
73:2).
o
Direct
solicitations to evil.
o
“Afflictions
and persecutions that arise for the word, whereby many
are
offended.” But “great
peace have they that love thy law, and
nothing
shall cause them to stumble” (Psalm 119:165)
Ø From failing to reach the end of the way. Some start with bright hopes
which are not
afterwards altogether fulfilled in their experience: storms
gather, enemies
threaten, severe conflict must be waged; and they become
weary and
desponding, and ready to halt. “But the righteous shall hold on
his
way” (Job 17:9;
Isaiah 40:31).
Ø Providing means of help for them:
o
the Word, an instrument of guidance, refreshment, and defense;
o
prayer;
o
the fellowship of those
who are traveling in the same way;
o
the ministration of angels (Psalm
91:11; Hebrews 1:14).
Ø Watching over them at every step. They are not alone; but He is with
them; and they
are kept by the power of God (I Peter 1:5).
Ø Imparting grace and strength to them according to their need. “As thy
days,
so shall thy strength be.” (Deuteronomy 33:25) It matters not how
great the need
if “the supply of the Spirit” (Philippians 1:19) be equal to it.
And, “My grace,” He says, “is sufficient for thee.” II Corinthians 12:9)
Ø He has a special interest in them, for they are “His
saints,” “the portion
of
His inheritance.” (I recommend Deuteronomy ch.
32 v. 9 – God’s
Inheritance by
Arthur Pink – this website –
CY – 2016)
Ø He has already done much for them, which is an earnest (down payment)
of
continued preservation.
Ø He has high purposes to accomplish in them and through them. And,
Ø He
has solemnly promised “never
to leave them”
(Hebrews 13:5),
and “He
is faithful that promised (ibid. ch.10:23).
o
Rely
upon the promise.
o
Presume
not upon your security, nor think that without fulfilling
His
commandments that you can receive His promises.
o
Use
the appointed means of grace with all diligence.
10 "The adversaries of the LORD shall be broken to
pieces; out of
heaven shall He
thunder upon them: the LORD shall judge the ends
of the earth; and
He shall give strength unto His king, and exalt the
horn of His
anointed." The adversaries. In the Hebrew the nouns are again
singular, though
the verb is plural, showing that they are to be taken collectively.
Literally, the
translation is, “Jehovah they shall be broken in pieces, whoever it be
that contendeth with Him;” the word having reference to contentions in a
court of law, and the whole verse keeping the
administration of justice in
view. It proceeds, “Upon him He shall thunder in heaven;”
i.e. Jehovah,
seated on His throne in heaven, shall, as the supreme
Judge, utter the
sentence; and thunder was to the Hebrew God’s voice. He shall judge the
ends of the earth, i.e. the whole earth up to its remotest quarters. The last
distich is remarkable. It is a distinct prophecy of David’s
kingdom, and of
the king as the anointed one, but looking onwards to the Messiah, David’s
greater Son. So distinct a reference to a king before a
king existed has
made some regard the whole hymn as an interpolation of
later
times. But already Hannah’s thoughts had risen to a higher
level than the
fortunes of the literal
righteous government of the whole world, she prepares our
minds for the
corresponding thought of Jehovah
being the universal Saviour. Very
probably the whole national mind was set upon having a king
to enable
them to make head against the Philistines long before,
under Samuel, the
desire became so strong as to be irresistible. The thought
of a king was in
no respect alien from the Jewish commonwealth (Deuteronomy
17:14).
They had wished Gideon to hold this office (Judges 8:22); Jotham’s
parable in Judges 9. described the nation as eager to be
thus governed, but
the better minds as bent on declining
so dangerous a preeminence. There is
very much to prove that the nation had come to regard the
appointment of
a king as an eventual necessity, however long delayed. But
not here only,
but everywhere, the Jewish mind was constantly brooding
upon the future.
Hannah does no more than every patriarch and saint and
prophet of the old
dispensation. Prophecies such as that in Genesis 49:10
filled the hearts
of all alike. And though the present longings of the nation
for a king make
Hannah’s words not unnatural even in their lower sense, yet
the truer
exposition is that which acknowledges in
special purpose, and the bestowal by God upon its seers for
the carrying
out of this purpose of the gift of prophecy. And it was
this extraordinary
gift which bent and shaped the mind of the nation, and
filled it with future
aspirations; and not a causeless state of the national mind
which, excited by
vague hopes, made men from time to time give utterance to
anticipations
which by some strange coincidence always came true.
Salvation (vs. 1-10)
The facts implied and indicated in the song are:
1. Hannah’s
deliverance from grief and realization of desire are perfected.
2. God is recognized
as the author of the great salvation.
3. Under Divine
inspiration Hannah sees in her own personal experience a
type of various triumphs which God achieves for His people.
4. She is conscious of
an overwhelming joy in her own deliverance, and in
the prevision of future triumphs of the Church.
5. A clear and joyous
recognition of Christ’s final triumph as the climax of
all. The burden of this glorious song is the salvation
wrought by God, and
this may be considered as:
and its application is
“exceeding broad,” being inclusive of deliverance
from evils and a realization of
positive good. It may be applied to an
episode in personal experience,
as in the case of Hannah, David, and
others; a soul’s restoration to
God through Christ; a nation’s rescue from
calamity and elevation to
relative influence, as when
from the waters of the
deliverance of the Church from
persecution, as in apostolic days and
subsequently; and especially the
completion of Christ’s triumph over all
enemies and the gathering into
one of the redeemed children of God
(Titus 2:13; Hebrews 9:28;
Revelation 7:9-17). The episode in
the life of Hannah was typical
of all other salvations to be wrought by the
same merciful God. As in the
physical world the trained eye can detect
what are called “typical forms,”
so in the records of God’s dealings with
the saints the spiritually
enlightened can see in the personal experience of
individuals a foreshadowing of
numerous instances yet to occur in human
experience. Omnia
in Uno (all
of them from one and in the one thing all)
will hold true here. The
elements of all salvations are found in the blessing
vouchsafed to the “woman
of sorrowful spirit.” For there is in her case, as
in all, a deep human need, arising
from a pressure of a heavy burden, and the
non-realization of the very end
for
which life was supposed to be given; utter
despair of human resources for the removal of the evil and the
acquisition of
the good; Divine energy graciously acting directly on the
hidden forces by
which sorrow or joy are governed
and produced; Divine patience in working
out the processes by which the want and sorrow shall be
made to pass away;
completeness of result in the bestowment of the very boon so long desired
and waited for; connection
of the result attained with some ulterior issue
of still wider blessing;
and employment throughout of visible and invisible
second causes in working out the
purposes of mercy. Each item found
reality
in Hannah’s experience, and
has its counterpart in our deliverance from
trouble; in the restoration of
the lost soul; in the rescue of a nation or
Church from destruction; and in
the completion of the desire of Him who
from the travail of His soul
looked on through the ages, saw, and was
satisfied. Every deliverance of every saint now is a shadowing forth
and a
prediction sure and certain of the great salvation,
in the bliss of which
Christ, and angels,
and men shall share.
the great event of the life. It means freedom, rest,
enrichment, full, sunny
favor of God. Hannah could not
but sing. Moses led the joy of
the shores of the
“comfort of the
Holy Ghost.” The fatted calf and dance
awaited the
restored prodigal son. The very
advent of the one true Saviour awoke the
chorus of the skies, and heaven
will resound with the joyous acclaim of
innumerable hosts when the woes
of earth are past, and all power submits
to Christ (Revelation 19:1). It
is noteworthy that the joy awakened by
accomplished salvation is not
a mere selfish delight in one’s own
happiness. It is JOY IN GOD! In “thy salvation” do I rejoice. “In
the Lord”
is my “horn exalted.” “The
heart” is not set on the bliss of a Samuel’s love, it
“rejoiceth in the
Lord.” Again, it is joy in God saving through His
Anointed. The “promised
seed,” the foreordained Messiah, was the spring
of all inspired Hebrew expectation
of blessing. The birth of a son called
forth Hannah’s song. It is
curiously sweet to notice how like the echo of
some distant melody is this
song, reminding us of a Child more holy than
even Samuel. Surely in the
invisible spheres angels recognized here the
substance of that hymn they on a
later day sang over the plains of
Hannah had been trained to pass
over in vision to a salvation more perfect
than what Samuel would effect
for
of God. The songs of faith and of fulfillment find alike their
inspiration in
“His King” and “my Saviour.”
But the relationship to His chosen One grows
closer and dearer as the ages
roll on. What shall it be at last! And what joy
will it awaken! Also, the condition
of sharing in this joy is twofold, being
personally a saved one, and
cherishing full sympathy with “His King.”
Hannah, blessed with a great
deliverance from sorrow and desolation,
could sing and, laying all at
the feet of God in holy sympathy with the
coming kingdom, she found
inspiration for song beyond the range of her
own experience. A “new song” is
learned on earth, in so far as its first notes,
by all who have known in their
personal experience the salvation of God;
and it becomes sweeter and more
inspired as the freed spirit sees by faith
the blessed day when the ends of
the earth shall also see the King in his
beauty.
God’s acts are revelations.
Nature, as we call the beautiful system around
us, is but the shadow of the Eternal
Presence. The Eternal Power and
Godhead are clearly seen through
the visible creation. (Romans 1:20) In
the
Incarnation of God in Christ we
have, therefore, a higher expression of a
general truth; so that in one
respect the most stupendous and mysterious
of all supernatural facts is in
keeping with Nature. Especially is every
instance of salvation, whether
typical or antitypical, individual or national,
a revelation to
the universe of the ever blessed One.
From Hannah’s
deliverance from sorrow and
desolation, on through the ages of mercy,
to Christ’s final victory over
death and sin, the same attributes are revealed
in the deeds and processes by
which the salvation in each instance is effected.
Ø Mercy, as seen in
compassion shown to the sorrowful and helpless.
Ø Holiness, inasmuch as
the salvation is wrought out against evil powers
and persons, for
only good and pure issues, by exacting and nourishing into
maturity holy,
unselfish motives, and ordaining suffering and deferred good
only for pure
and blissful ends.
Ø Power,
demonstrating that
“beside’’ Him “there is none,” as seen in
complete
control over the hidden forces of Nature, and full realization of
all that is
promised.
Ø Wisdom, counteracting
the devices of the proud, and causing the
bitterest grief
and protracted suffering to contribute at last to depth and
fulness
of joy.
Ø Faithfulness, unshaken
and firm as a “rock,” insuring that all the
strength and wisdom
of the Divine nature shall be exercised for the final
bestowment of
the covenanted blessings. The retrospect of a personal
history was to Hannah the means of reading the
outlines of the
manifestation
of the Divine glory, especially
in the salvation of the Church.
She, like us,
saw only the beginnings of things. The remote glory shone
through a glass
darkly. It was for Paul and John to declare the same
truth in fuller
and more precise terms, as the one tells of the “manifold
wisdom
of God” being made known
“by
the Church” unto “principalities
and
powers in heavenly places” (Ephesians 3:10), and the other, of Him
who by virtue
of what He has wrought out for His redeemed is “worthy”
of all that is
due to the only Lord of glory. Men
are now intent on studying
the
material framework of the universe; the day will come when the best
minds
will study with unbounded delight the perfections of God as seen in
the
restoration of spiritual order, beauty, and joy out of the chaos of sin and
sorrow.
jealous and cruel Peninnah was proud in her strength and abundance. Also
Pharaoh, and other oppressors of
resources. The infant Church in
primitive times was as nothing in
comparison with the numerical
and social power of her enemy. The
exceeding proud talk and arrogancy of men who proclaim their vast
superiority in secular
knowledge to the mass of Christians, is in keeping
with the conduct of the
kings and princes who “take counsel
against the
Lord and against
his Anointed” (Psalm 2:2). But as Hannah’s fear and
trembling yielded to
confidence and joy, consequent on the casting down of
her proud enemy and the
lifting up of the sorrowful spirit, so the same ever
recurring triumphs of the
Redeemer, awakening in His people the song of
salvation, reads out in clear and forcible terms the instructive
lesson to the
proud to “talk” no more, and to
the arrogant to “shut their mouth,” and to
the seemingly prosperous that all
“actions
are weighed” by Him who is a
“God of
knowledge.” It is ever true that no
weapon formed against God’s
children can prosper. In what
God has effected for the lowly pious in time
past, the proud, the wise, the
strong may find instruction; and, if they will,
learn both how vain it is to
curse in heart or mouth whom God has blessed,
and how important for themselves
that they “kiss the Son,” lest they perish,
“while his wrath
is kindled but a little.” (ibid. v. 12)
former apparently unequal and
undesirable distributions of favor by
breaking the bows of the strong
and giving strength to the feeble; by
causing the self-satisfied Peninnah to feel the lack of a satisfaction not to be
obtained by the cruel, and the
yearning Hannah to want for nothing more.
The once proud mother of many
children, from causes in the home life,
fails in her joys, while the
unfruitful attains to the perfection of earthly
bliss. In the one case hopes and
joys are smitten; in the other, created. The
rich in home delights becomes
poor, by possibly erring sons, or enfeebled
health; the poor and sorrowful
is enriched with a treasure for the use of all
ages. Thus does Hannah see in
outline the reversions ever occurring in the
working out of God’s salvation
in the individual, the nation, or the Church.
Ø In the human soul saved by Christ,
forces of evil once strong and self-
satisfied,
lacking nothing, and usurping authority, are brought low,
enfeebled, made
conscious of their impotence, and finally killed; while the
poor, faint,
struggling spirit of love and faith is, when once “made alive,”
girded with
strength, satisfied with good, and made finally dominant over
the entire
nature. Doubts, fears, and mighty temptations are laid low.
Hopes, joys,
and victories of faith are called forth; and, as a final issue, the
once outcast,
unhappy soul is enriched with the full bliss of a child of God.
Ø In national affairs. The strength
of Egypt sinks in the sea; the
helplessness of
in pride of
their resources set aside the practice of righteousness, one by
one are brought low by the corruption concealed
beneath their material
splendor; while the feeble people who live in the
fear of God go from
strength to
strength, and “delight
themselves in the abundance of peace.”
Ø In the Church. The wealth, power,
and wisdom of Rome and Greece fell
before the
rising power and spiritual know]edge of poor fishermen. The
mighty evils of
an age are at length brought down, and the despised “things
that
are not” are caused
to be the most potent and blessed of all agencies.
was of God, and not of man. In
all the second causes cooperating towards
the completion of her desire
she, with true spiritual instinct, saw the work
of the First Cause. “The
Lord” it was who “killed and made alive.” “The
Lord” “brought
low” the proud rival, and “lifted
up” “the woman of
sorrowful spirit.” He it is who “keeps the feet of his saints,” and
causes the
wicked at length “to
be silent.” So through the unfolding ages it is “the
Lord” who works to destroy the evils of the soul, and to create
and nourish
the good. All the triumphs of
the Church over political scheming, pseudo-
learning, violent persecution,
and satanic opposition are by the might and
power of Him who raiseth up the wise and good, checks the rage of man,
and in the invisible sphere
frustrates the “gates of hell.” All things are of
God, who worketh all and in all. It is not crude anthropomorphism that
refers all the processes of
individual, national, and Church salvation to the
energy of God. It is the most penetrating
philosophy, born of the inspiring
Spirit of God. There are “pillars”‘
or foundations, or bases, of all terrestrial
things. We may call this a
cause, and that an effect. We may clothe matter
with qualities, and point out
their uniform and necessary interaction. But
still they are all traceable
down to some original constitution inherent in the
elemental forces and materials;
and that constitution, that firm and grand
arrangement of invisible
“pillars” or bases, is what it is because God made
it so, and for no other reason. Wisely and beautifully,
therefore, does the
prophetess anticipate the
philosophies of the coming ages by referring all
the agencies and powers involved
in the accomplishing of salvation for men
to “the
Lord.” Not unto us, but to thy name be
the glory. (Psalm 115:1)
eye looks on through the
material disorder of Eli’s day to a typical King in
shadow of the enduring order and
unfading prosperity of the “Anointed,”
who is in the highest spiritual
sense to “exalt” His “horn,” and “judge the
ends of the
earth.” What though, meanwhile, “adversaries”
may combine,
and the occasional “strength”
of the wicked threaten to cast down “the
saints;” he that sitteth in the heavens
has in reserve His swift and awe
inspiring forces (Psalm 2) to
shatter all opposition, and ultimately insure a
peaceful reign over mankind. It
was some years before Peninnah s ground
of annoyance to Hannah was
removed, and the lowly one was raised to joy
and full satisfaction; so,
proportionately to the vaster deliverance to be
wrought out for mankind, it may
require many centuries to cast down all
foes and create and perfect the
bliss of the redeemed. But the "strength” of
the “King” will bring it to
pass by a combination of invisible and visible
forces more subtle and
intricate, but not less obedient to His will, than those
which brought a mother’s joy to
Hannah. Here we see the beautiful unity
of all Scripture reference to THE FINAL TRIUMPH OF MESSIAH! The
“serpent’s head” is to be “bruised” was consolation to our
weeping ancestors,
bereft of
that made Abraham’s life one of
large sympathy with the future. “To Him
shall the
gathering of the people be” was the
solace of Jacob’s dying hour.
And thus, aided by Hannah’s
joyous song of victory, as though already real,
the holy, blessed succession
ran on, telling of the “kingdom” that “shall have
no end,” and the day when to the
Name that is “above every name” every
knee shall bow, and every tongue
confess that HE IS LORD AND CHRIST!
From this survey of truth
concerning “salvation” note a few important
Practical truths:
Ø See here a beautiful instance of how a
single life’s experience, when
under the holy
discipline of God, may be rich in
instruction and inspiration
for men in all ages. This is brought about not by mere natural genius, but
by a woman’s pure and full consecration to
Christ, and
passionate desire to
accelerate the
advent of His kingdom. Happy they who can live so as to
inspire and
help posterity! Let our life become a song of thanksgiving to
our successors.
This is possible to ALL in some degree.
Ø An underlying current of faith in
Christ’s complete triumph runs
through the ancient
Church, and this should embolden us. True saints live
much in the
future, while not careless of present duties. There may be
much
inspiration for work from the
prospect of what is to be.
Ø
The effect
of true faith is to enlarge the vision and broaden the
sympathies. Hannah’s faith in a coming Christ caused
her spirit to be open
to those
inspirations which carried the vision over the weary ages to the
true golden
age, and she felt with all the saints
in all time. Religion
of this
kind becomes an
expansive power in whatever nature it dwells.
Ø The proper unity of the Church lies
in the one faith which holds the life
to Christ,
whether to come, or having come; and this will insure sympathy
with His
kingdom and with purity of life, as well as consecration of what is
most precious
to its realization.
Rejoicing in the Lord (vs. 1-10)
“My heart rejoiceth in the Lord.”
The song of Hannah, “the Magnificat of
the Old Testament Church,” was the outburst of her deep and
holy joy in
the Lord. Whilst watching over the infant Samuel at Ramah,
she had
silently pondered the ways of God, and the condition and
prospects of His
people and kingdom. After several years of absence from the
central
sanctuary at
on the well remembered spot where she had prayed in her
distress, she
fulfils her vow, and gives back to God the sacred treasure
entrusted to her
care. The trouble of former years recalled, provocations
and inward
conflicts ended, the sunshine of Divine favor experienced,
cause her full
heart to “bubble up like a fountain,” and pour itself out
in lofty poetic
strains (v. 1). What a contrast does this language indicate
between her
condition at the time of the previous visit and her
condition now!
1. Then her heart was
full of grief; now it “rejoiceth in the
Lord.”
2. Then her “horn”
(strength, a figure taken from animals whose strength is
in their horns, and here first employed. (II Samuel 22:3;
Luke 1:69)
was trampled in the dust; now it is “exalted,” and she is
endued with
strength and honour “by
the Lord.”
3. Then her mouth was
shut, in silent endurance, beneath the provocation
of her adversary (ch. 1:6); now
it is “enlarged,” or opened in holy
exultation, “above her enemies.”
4. Then she was
petitioning for the help of the Lord now she “rejoices in
His salvation,” or
the deliverance which He has wrought on her behalf; and
it is “because” of this that she utters
aloud her thanksgiving and praise. Her
soul with all its powers, like a harp of many strings,
touched by the Divine
Spirit, gives forth exquisite music. The Divinely inspired
song of Hannah
is like a golden key for the interpretation of the whole
book. Compare this song
with the song of Miriam (Exodus 15) and of Deborah (Judges
5). Those compositions
are grand, indeed, and elevated, and worthy of that
inspiration which produced them;
but they have not that tenderness of spirit, that
personality of devotion, and that
eucharistic anticipation of good things to come which
characterize the hymn of
Hannah. It is the model after which the song of the Virgin
Mary was formed,
though there are notable points of difference between them.
Considered in relation
to the circumstances, and in its general nature, her song
was a song of:
those who look
no further than the blessings bestowed upon them, she
looked from the
gift to the Giver, and praised him with joyful lips. Her
heart rejoiced
not in Samuel, but in the Lord.
afresh. The
more we give to God, the more our heart is enlarged, by the
shedding abroad
of His love therein, and filled with exceeding joy.
in the past.
Philistines;
and, identifying herself with them, she almost lost sight of what
God had done
for her in the contemplation of what He would do for them.
From this
particular mercy she had received from God she takes occasion,
with an
elevated and enlarged heart, to speak of the glorious things of God,
and of his
government of the world for the good of the Church. She
discerned in
her own individual experience the general laws of the Divine
economy, and
its signification in relation to the whole history of the
f. Prophetic hope. She beheld
the dawn of a new day, and was glad. In all
and above all:
g. Joy in the Lord. “My
heart rejoiceth in the Lord;” not merely before Him
(Deuteronomy
12:12); but in Him, as the Object and Source of its joy;
in communion
with and contemplation of Him, and in the admiration,
affection, and
delight thereby excited. “My meditation of him shall be
sweet:
I will be glad in the Lord” (Psalm 104:34). “When I think of
God,” said Haydn (on being asked the reason why the style of his music
was so
cheerful), “my soul is so full of joy that the notes come leaping and
dancing from my
pen.” More especially observe that Hannah rejoiced in:
perfections must not, indeed, be
thought of as existing in God separate and
distinct from each other; they
are essential attributes of His living
personality, and are all really
present in His every purpose and act. What is
here declared of God is, that:
Ø
He alone is “holy.”
o
Supremely excellent; whatever excellence exists in any other
being falls
infinitely
short of his (Isaiah 6:3).
o
Morally perfect; invariably willing what is right and
good;
transcendently
glorious in the view of conscience (Leviticus 11:44).
o
Absolutely existent, which is the ground of His excellence and
perfection. “For there is none except thee.” “God is the most perfect
Being,
and the cause of all other beings.” His moral perfection is a
peculiar
distinction of the revelation which He made to His chosen
people, needs
to be specially magnified in times of corruption, and
can only be
rejoiced in by His saints. The conception which men
form of God is
an evidence of their own character, and exerts a
powerful
influence upon it (Luke 1:49).
Ø He
alone is strong.
“A Rock.”
o
Firm,
unchanging, enduring; a sure foundation for confidence.
o
None
can be compared unto Him. They may not be trusted in, and they
need not
be feared.
o
Happy
are those who can say, He is “our God.”
That which is a terror
to others is a
consolation to them. “The children of a king do not fear what
their father
has in his arsenal.” “Let the inhabitant of the rock sing.” But
men often speak
proudly and arrogantly (v. 3), as if they were
independent of
Him, and could do whatever they pleased. Let them not
boast any more;
for:
Ø
He is the All-wise; a “God of knowledge” (literally knowledges) of all
knowledge. “The
Lord knoweth the thoughts of man, that they are
vanity”
(Psalm 94:11;
138:6). His knowledge is:
o
immediate,
o
perfect,
and
o
universal.
And,
Ø He is the Judge of human actions. He determines how far they may go
before they are
effectually checked by the manifestation of His power and
wisdom. “By
strength shall no man prevail.” He also forms a just
estimate of
their moral worth, and gives to every man his due reward. His
righteousness
and justice, as well as his strength and wisdom, when
contemplated
by the good, fill them with great joy.
operations of
the laws of which are the
uniform methods of His activity, and more
especially in human affairs;
wherein, whilst there is room for human
freedom and prudence, and the
use of means, His will encircles and
overrules all things, and His
hand moves in and through those events which
are commonly attributed to
chance or accident, and directs and controls
them for the good of those who
love Him (Romans 8:28). In and by
these operations —
Ø
He manifests the perfections of His character: His holiness,
power,
wisdom, and justice. “The
Lord is righteous in all his ways." (Psalms
97:2; 145:17).
Ø
He apportions the
different conditions of men,
and accomplishes the
varied changes of their condition.
o
Makes
the strong weak and the weak strong (v. 4).
o
The full
empty and the empty full (v. 5).
o
Increases
the lonely and diminishes the numerous family.
o
Brings
into great distress, even to the verge of the grave, and
again
restores to health and prosperity (v. 6).
o
Makes
poor and makes rich.
o
Brings
low and raises up.
Prosperity
and adversity alike, when received from the hand of God
and used
aright, become occasions of joy; and the changes of life are
morally
beneficial (Psalm 55:19; Jeremiah 48:11; James 1:9-10).
Ø
He
does great things,
especially for the lowly (v. 8). Stooping to them
in their utmost
need and shame (Psalm 113:7-8), and raising them to
the highest
honor and glory. “God does nothing else,” said an ancient
philosopher,
“but humble the proud and exalt the lowly.” “Set thyself in the
lowest place, and
the highest shall be given thee; for the more elevated the
building is
designed to be, the deeper must the foundations be laid. The
greatest saints
in the sight of God are the least in their own esteem; and the
height of their
glory is always in proportion to the depth of their humility”
(Thomas a Kempis).
Ø He supports
the earth and all that is upon it. His dominion is supreme;
and He has therefore the power, as He has the
right, to do whatever may
please
Him. An unfaltering
trust in Providence is a cure of undue anxiety
and a cause of
abounding peace and joy. “Certainly it is heaven on earth to
have a man’s
mind move in charity, rest in
poles of truth”
(Bacon). “The prophets of the Old Testament inculcate with
a remarkable
perspicuity and decision the overruling agency of God’s
providence in
the affairs of the world. Their whole prophecy is more or less
a commentary on
this doctrine What a basis is laid by it of peace and
tranquility to
every thoughtful and most feeling mind; and how different
the aspect of
the world becomes when we have reason to know that all
things in it,
and every combination of them, whether in the fortunes of
kingdoms or in
a more private state, are
under the control of an intelligent
and
gracious Ruler. Were
we in the chains of chance, how gloomy would
our case be.
Were we in the hands of men, too often how fearful, how
humiliating,
how conflicting. But the impression of the scene is changed
when we admit
into it the direction of an
All-Wise and perfect Being, in
whose rectitude
and goodness we may acquiesce through the whole course
of His
providential dispensation” (Davison ‘on Prophecy,’ p. 59).
“One
adequate support
For the
calamities of mortal life
Exists, one
only; — an assured belief
That the
procession of our fate, howe’er
Sad or disturb’d, is order’d by a Being
Of
infinite benevolence and power,
Whose
everlasting purposes embrace
All
accidents, converting them to good”
(Wordsworth).
moral governor, and directs His
providential operations with a view to the
setting up of a kingdom of
righteousness upon earth. This kingdom existed
from the first, was more fully
exhibited in the theocracy of
culminated in the rule of
Christ, who “must reign until he hath put all
enemies under his
feet.” In every stage of development
it involves conflict.
But:
Ø He will protect, its subjects; His saints (literally, pious, those who love
God),
against whom
the wicked will contend in vain (v. 9).
Ø He will overthrow its adversaries (v. 10); their overthrow being:
o
certain,
o
unexpected,
o
complete
— “broken
to pieces,” — and
o
signally
indicative of the interposition of heaven (ch. 7:10).
Ø He will extend its borders to the ends of the earth, and,
Ø He will clothe with strength, honor, and majesty the king whom He
appoints
and anoints for the accomplishment of His purposes. Hannah
commenced her
song with rejoicing on account of the strength and honor
conferred upon
herself, and she closes it with rejoicing on account of the
strength and
honor which would be conferred on Him who should be
“higher
than the kings of the earth.” “Let the children of Zion be joyful in
their
king.” “The anointed
of the Lord, of whom Hannah prophesies in the
spirit, is not
one single king in
king, though
not a mere personification of the throne about to be
established,
but the actual king whom
which
culminated in the Messiah. The exaltation of the horn of the
anointed of
Jehovah commenced with the victorious and splendid
expansion of
the power of David, was repeated with every victory over the
enemies of God
and His kingdom gained by the successive kings of David’s
house, goes on
in the advancing spread of the
eventually
attain to its eternal consummation in the
judgment of the last
day, through
which all the enemies of Christ will be made His footstool!
The Prayer Song of
Hannah (vs. 1-10)
In her prayer of asking Hannah was intent not merely on
having a child, but
on giving to the service of God a priest, and to the
government of
judge, very different from the sons of Eli — a Nazarite, a second and a
better Samson. No wonder, then, that when she brought her
son to the
sanctuary, her prayer of thanksgiving took a large scope,
and revealed even
a prophetic fervor. What religious poetess has made such an
impression
as Hannah with one ode? Reproduced in Psalm 113., and yet
again in the
song of the blessed Virgin Mary, commonly called the Magnificat, it may
be said to have continued in devout minds, Hebrew and
Gentile, for about
3000 years. The first verse is the introduction, and
strikes the key in which
all that follows is pitched — a tone of warm and grateful
confidence in
God. Then follow the praises of the Lord, with some
anticipation of better
days to come.
Ø Because of His sublime attributes (vs. 2, 3). “There is none holy as
Jehovah.”
The root idea of
holiness is always that of separateness from
what is evil or
profane. The God of Israel was the Holy One, absolutely
unique,
immaculate, inviolate, and inviolable. None among the gods of the
nations might be
likened to Him. So He called and required Israel to be a
holy nation, i.e.
separate from the nations of the world, who are idolatrous
and unclean. So
under the New Testament the saints are the separated ones
who touch not
the unclean thing. “Neither
any rock like our God.” (I
recommend: Acts 17 - Moody Sermon - The Great
Redemption - this website
CY - 2016) God's protection cannot be invaded. His
purpose does not vacillate.
His power does
not fail. He is the Rock of Ages. This was what made Israel
unconquerable
so long as faithful to God. The “rocks” of the nations, i.e.
the gods in
whom they trusted, were not as
God of
knowledge.” Let not the wicked boast proudly. No word of scorn
cast at the
humble, no haughty glance of the eye, is unobserved by the
Lord; and
nothing is more certain than that, sooner or later, He will abase
the proud. “And
by him actions are weighed.” In His estimate of human
conduct He
holds the balances of a perfect equity.
Ø Because of His mighty works (vs. 4-8). Ruling in holy sovereignty,
God often
reverses the conditions of men, lowering the exalted and
exalting the
lowly. He even kills and makes alive, leads down into Hades,
and leads up
from it again. Sheol or Hades was no mere pit of
extinction
from which
there could be no uprising. God was able to raise even the
dead. Such being His power, what could the boastful effect against
Jehovah? What might not the humble hope from Him? This
is the central
thought of Hannah’s
song, and it is still more finely expressed in that of the
blessed Virgin.
“He
hath showed strength,” etc. (Luke 1:51-53). Of the
elevation of
the despised, celebrated here and in Psalm 113., how many
illustrations
in sacred story! Joseph, Moses, Gideon, before the time of
Hannah; and
afterwards, David, and the great Son of David, the Man
Christ Jesus,
and His Galilean apostles. This fact is not to encourage
contempt of, or
impatience under, earthly dignities; but it is to cheer those
who
are or may be depressed by worldly disadvantage of poverty or
obscurity. God’s grace is no appanage
of the rich or powerful. Was not
Martin Luther a
poor miner’s son? David Brainerd a small farmer’s son?
John Bunyan a tinker’s son, brought up to follow the same craft?
Were not
the good
missionaries Carey and Knibb apprentices, the one
bound to a
cobbler, the
other to a printer? And are not such men among the princes of
God’s people?
The house of Elkanah was of no eminence in Israel;
but
thence God was
raising up this child Samuel, whom Hannah brought to His
courts, to be,
if not king, king maker, and to stand at the head of a line of
prophets who
should be the guides of the kings and the people so long as
the kingdom
stood.
prayer song has a prophetic
strain (vs. 9-10). Hannah was confident of
God’s preservation of His
saints, and of the correlative truth of the
perdition of ungodly men. Not
that He has any pleasure in their death; but
that if men
will fight against eternal order and
righteousness, THEY MUST
FAIL IN THE
STRUGGLE, THEY MUST PERISH! “As for Jehovah,
those who contend against Him
are broken.” The prophetic element shows
itself in the closing
expressions of the song. The government of Israel at the
time may be described as that of
a commonwealth, so far as concerns human
administration. It was a
theocracy, as it had been from the time of the
exodus; but the actual
administration was carried on through leaders, or
judges. The eye of Hannah opened
on a new epoch, foresaw a king to
whom Jehovah would give strength
as His Anointed. It is the first mention
of a Messiah in Holy Writ. No
doubt Hannah’s words are a prediction of
David, whose horn of power the
Lord was to exalt, giving him a career of
victory over all his enemies.
But whether or not it was clear to Hannah’s
mind, the Spirit who rested on
her signified a King greater than David, and
a more illustrious kingdom. It
is He of whom the angel said to Mary, “He
shall be great,” etc. (Luke 1:32-33). We see not yet His kingdom. We
see not all things put under
Him. But we see Jesus crowned with glory and
honor; and we
wait for His appearing and His kingdom.
The longings of
many generations, the hopes of
many Hannahs, the visions of many seers
and prophets, O may they come to
pass speedily! "Even so, Come. Lord
Jesus!" (Revelation 22:20)
The King Messiah (v. 10)
The last word of the song of Hannah is the first mention of
the Lord’s
Anointed, Messiah, Christ.
1. Her language was a
direct prediction of the appointment of a theocratic
king, for which Samuel prepared the way, and which, under
Divine
direction, he was the chief agent in effecting.
2. It was an indirect
prediction of One who had been long expected
(Genesis 3:14-15; 12:1-3; 22:17-18; 49:10; Numbers
24:17-19;
Deuteronomy 18:15-19), and in whom the idea of such
a king would
be completely realized.
3. It marks the dawn
of a splendid series of prophecies founded on the
reign of David, and ever brightening to the perfect day (II
Samuel 7.; 23:1-7;
Psalms 2; 110; Isaiah 9:6-7; Daniel 9:25; Micah 5:2;
Malachi 4:2.
Consider:
Ø To unite
a divided people
(Genesis 49:10). Nothing was more
needed in the days
of the judges.
Ø To save
them from their enemies. “Thy salvation” (v. 1;
Psalm 18:50;
95:1; Matthew 1:21).
Ø To rule
over them, judge them in
righteousness, and establish among
them
order peace, and happiness. The regal office of our Saviour
consisteth
partly in the ruling, protecting, and rewarding of His people;
partly in the
coercing, condemning, and destroying of His enemies.
It was the
fatal mistake of
and imposing,
rather than an inward, moral, and spiritual fulfillment of this
purpose. The
same mistake has, to some extent, pervaded Christendom.
“My
kingdom is not of this world.” “The
peace,
and joy in the Holy Ghost.” “Alexander, Caesar, Charlemagne, and
myself have
founded empires. But upon what did we rest the creations of
our genius?
Upon force. Jesus Christ alone founded
his empire upon love;
and at this
moment millions
would die for him”
(‘Table Talk and Opinions
of Napoleon
Bonaparte’).
(Psalm 2:6; 18:50).
Ø The
choice was of God. “Chosen
out of the people”
(Psalm 89:19).
Even Saul, a
man after the people’s heart rather than after God’s heart,
was selected
and appointed by Him. The invisible King of Israel did not
relinquish His
authority.
Ø Founded on personal
eminence. David. The ancient Persians believed
that their
ruler was an incarnation of the eternal light, the object of their
worship, and
therefore rendered him Divine honor. This was a reality in
Christ.
Ø Confirmed
and manifested by the anointing of His Spirit (ch. 10:1;
16:13;
II Samuel
2:4); the outward act being a symbol of the inward endowment
(Matthew
3:16; Luke 4:18). “God giveth not the Spirit by measure unto
Him”
(John
3:34; Hebrews 1:9).
Ø After a state of humiliation;
implied in the language here used; also
indicated in v.
8; and typified by the lowly origin of David and his course
to the throne.
Ø By
the right hand of God. “He
will give strength;” “All power is given
unto
me in heaven and in earth” (Matthew 28:18); exhibited in His
resurrection,
ascension, and possession of supreme honor, authority, and
power.
Ø To a kingdom universal and eternal. “The Lord shall judge the ends of
the
earth” (Psalms 2:8;
72:2-5; 132:18; Luke 1:31-33, 69). Whilst
Jesus lives and
reigns in heaven, He also lives and reigns on earth. He does
so by the
continued and ever increasing power of His example and
teachings, His
wondrous life, and still more wondrous death. The truths and
principles
which He declared and embodied are, at this moment, accepted
by the loftiest
intellects, the purest consciences, and the tenderest
hearts
amongst men.
Who now reverses a single judgment which He pronounced
upon men or
things? Who can conceive any character more worthy of
reverence and
affection than His? The lapse of time has only served to
invest His
words and character with fresh interest and power. Other kings
and conquerors
are fading away amidst the shadows of the past; but He is
ever
rising before the view of mankind more distinctly, and living in their
thoughts,
their consciences, and their hearts more mightily. Yea, more, He
lives
and reigns on earth by His Divine presence, His providential working,
and
the power of His Spirit. Just as the sun, shining in mid-heaven, sheds
down his rays
upon the earth; so
Christ, the Sun of righteousness (though
no longer seen
by mortal eye), pours
down the beams of His influence upon
us
continually, and rules over all things for the complete establishment of
His
kingdom.
SAMUEL’S MINISTRATIONS AT
11 "And Elkanah went to Ramah
to his house. And the child did
minister unto the
LORD before Eli the priest."
The child did
minister. Left by his parents at
ministered unto the Lord; that is, certain duties were
allotted him to
perform suited to his age; but few at first, when he was
but three years old,
but increasing in importance as time went on; for the words
refer to the
whole period of his service, until Eli’s death. At first
Samuel would be but
a scholar, for, as we have mentioned on ch.
1:21, there were, no
doubt, regulations for the training of children devoted to
the service of the
sanctuary. The peculiarity about Samuel was that he was
devoted for life,
for possibly it was a not uncommon practice for young
persons to receive
some training at
gathered youths round him at Naioth
in Ramah for educational purposes.
Learning practically was confined to the priesthood, and we
can scarcely
imagine that the knowledge which Phinehas
and the family of Aaron
brought with them out of
certainly had himself received careful instruction (see on ch. 10:25),
and this could scarcely have happened if the training of
young
persons had not been part of the priests’ duties at
explains why Samuel was brought to Eli at so tender an age,
and why the
charge of so young a child was undertaken without a murmur.
Before Eli
means under his general superintendence. Everything done at
done before Eli, as being the chief ruler there.
Samuel’s Childhood and Growth (v. 11)
“And the child did minister unto the Lord before Eli the
priest.” “And the
child Samuel grew on, and was in favour
both with the Lord, and also with
men” (v. 26). (ch.
1:24; here, vs.18-19, 21; 3:1.) “Great is the
reverence due to children.” It is said of an eccentric schoolmaster
in
appeared before his boys without taking off his hat and bowing very
humbly before them. “Who can tell,” said he, “what may not rise
up amid
these youths? There may be among them those who shall be learned
doctors, sage legislators, nay, princes of the empire.” Even then
there was
among them “the solitary monk that shook the world.” But a much
greater
than Luther (with whom he has been compared — Ewald)
was the little
Nazarite, who with unshorn locks ministered in the tabernacle at
and
at a very early age he gave signs of his future eminence. “Even a child
is known
by his doings” (Proverbs 20:11). “The
child is father to the
man.”
But what he will be depends greatly on his early training; for “the
new
vessel takes a lasting tincture from the liquor which is first poured in”
(Horace); “the soft clay is easily fashioned into what form
you please”
(Persius); and “the young plant
may be bent with a gentle hand, and the
characters engraved on the tender bark grow deeper with the advancing
tree” (Quinctilian). Consider:
consisting of:
Ø Impressions under the parental roof. He did not leave his home at an
age too early
to prevent his receiving deep and permanent impressions
from the
example, prayers, and instructions of his parents. His destination
would be
explained to him by his mother, and made attractive and
desirable;
so that when the time came for the fulfillment of her vow he
might
readily make it his own. The memory of those early days must have
been
always pleasant to him; and the sacred bond of filial affection would
be
renewed and strengthened by the annual visit of his parents, and by the
yearly
present which his mother brought to him (v. 19). The making of
the “little
coat” was a work of love, and served to keep her absent boy in
mind,
whilst the possession of it was to him a constant memorial of her
pure
affection. The first impressions which he thus received were a
powerful
means of preserving him from evil, and inciting him to good.
“Every first
thing continues forever with the child; the first color, the first
music,
the first flower paint the foreground of life; every new educator
affects
less than its predecessor, until at last, if we regard all life as an
educational
institution, the circumnavigator of the world is less influenced
by all
nations he has seen than by his nurse” (Locke).
Ø Association with holy things. Everything in the tabernacle was to his
childish
view beautiful and repressive, and overshadowed by the
mysterious
presence of the Lord of hosts. “Heaven lies about us in our
infancy.”
And the veil which separates the invisible from the visible is then
very
attenuated. When he afterwards saw how much beneath the outward
form was
hollow and corrupt, he was strong enough to endure the shock,
and
distinguished between “the precious and the vile.” Association
with
sacred
things either makes men better than others, or else very much
worse.
Ø Occupation in lowly services. Even when very young he could perform
many
little services in such a place as the tabernacle, and in personal
attendance
on Eli, who was very old and partially blind. A part of his
occupation
we know was to open the doors (ch. 3:15). By means
of such
things he was trained for a higher ministry.
Ø
Instruction in sacred truth, given by his kind hearted guardian in
explanation
of the various objects and services in the tabernacle, and, still
more,
gained by the perusal of the religious records stored up therein
(ch. 10:25).
Ø Familiarity with public life. There at the center of government, he must
early
have become conversant with the weightiest concerns of the people.
Ø Observation of the odious practices of many, especially Hophni and
Phinehas. For this also must be mentioned among the
influences that went
to form
his character. It as impossible to keep a child altogether from the
sight of
vice. External safeguards
are no protection without internal
purity.
On the other
hand, outward circumstances which are naturally perilous
have
often no effect on internal purity, except to make it more decided and
robust. “The jarring contrast which he had before his eyes in the
evil
example of
Eli’s children could but force more strongly upon his mind the
conviction
of the great necessity of the age, and impel to still more
unflinching
rigor to act up to this conviction” (Ewald). But this
could
only take
place by:
Ø The power of Divine grace, which is the greatest and only effectual
teacher
(Titus 2:11-12). The atmosphere of prayer which he breathed
from
earliest life was the atmosphere of grace. The Holy Spirit rested upon
him in an
eminent degree, and he grew up under His influence, “like a tree
planted by the rivers of water,” gradually and surely to perfection.
these influences. He “grew on” not only physically and
intellectually, but
also morally and spiritually, manifesting the dispositions
which properly
belong to a child, and make him a pattern to men (Matthew 18:3).
Ø
Humble submission.
Ø Great docility, or readiness to learn what he was taught.
Ø Ready obedience to what he
was told to do. How promptly did he
respond to
the voice of Eli, who, as he thought, called him from his
slumber (ch. 3:5). The
watchword of childhood and youth should
be “Obey.” And it is only those that learn to obey who will be fit to
command.
Ø Profound reverence. For “he
ministered before the Lord,” as if under His
eye, and
with a growing sense of His presence. “He was to receive his
training
at the sanctuary, that at the very earliest waking up of his spiritual
susceptibilities he might receive the impression of the sacred presence of
God” (Keil).
Ø Transparent truthfulness and guilelessness.
Ø Purity and
self-control (I
Timothy 4:12; II Timothy 2:22).
Ø Sincere devotion to the purpose of his dedication to the Lord. In this
manner he
gradually grew into the possession of a holy character. Like
John the
Baptist, “he grew and waxed strong in spirit” (Luke 1:80); and
his
childhood is described in the very words employed to describe
the
childhood
of our Lord:. “And Jesus increased in favor with God and man”
(Luke 2:40,
51-52).
Ø With God, who looked
down upon him with delight, beholding in him
the
effect of His grace, and a reflection of His light and love. For “the
Lord
taketh pleasure in his people” (Psalm 149:4).
Ø With men. The gratification
which Eli felt in his presence and service
appears
in the benediction he uttered on his parents when they visited the
tabernacle,
and in accordance with which they were compensated with
three
sons and two daughters for “the gift which they gave unto the Lord”
(vs. 20-21). Even Hophni and Phinehas must have regarded
the young
Nazarite with respect. And the people who brought
their
offerings
to the tabernacle looked upon him with admiration and hope. So
he was
prepared for the work that lay before him.
12 "Now the sons of Eli were sons of Belial; they knew
not the LORD."
Now the sons of
Eli were sons of Belial, i.e. worthless men
(see on ch. 1:16). They knew not Jehovah. He had never
been
revealed to their consciences, and so His fear had no influence
upon their
lives. The next words, in v. 13, are difficult, but
literally mean, “The legal
right of the priests, towards, or as respects, the people.”
On this account
the Vulgate and several commentators couple the sentence
with what
precedes: “they knew neither Jehovah, nor their own legal
rights.” But the
word also in v. 15 is incompatible with this
rendering; for if what is
mentioned there be illegal, so must also the practice be
which is recorded
here. But neither does custom give the sense; for the
Hebrews has not
priest’s (singular) as the Authorized Version, but of
the priests, of all priests
generally, and not of Eli merely and his sons. The right
translation is that given
by the Septuagint, Syriac, and Chaldee, namely, “the due of the priests from the
people,” on which see Leviticus 7:31-35. In the original
this is put
absolutely “And as to
the priests’ due from the people, when,” etc., but our
language requires some insertion to make it read more
smoothly. “And as
to the due of the
priests from the people, the manner of its exaction was as
follows: When,” etc. But besides the due and legal portion, which,
nevertheless, they took in an illegal way, they demanded a
part of the flesh
reserved for the feast of the offerer,
and to which they had absolutely no
right (see Leviticus 8:31; II Chronicles 35:13). The legal
due of the priest was
the right shoulder and the wave breast; but before he took
them they were to be
consecrated to God by the burning of the fat upon the altar
(Leviticus 3:5; 7:31, 34).
It is worth observing that the people seem well acquainted
with the words of the Law,
and are indignant because the priests, its proper
guardians, do not abide literally by
them. This contempt of the Law distressed their religious susceptibilites,
while the cupidity of Eli’s sons offended their moral
nature. And so men
abhorred the
offering of Jehovah. Literally, it is the minchah,
the unbloody
sacrifice, or meat offering, but it is put here for every kind
of sacrificial offering.
13 "And the priest’s custom with the people was, that,
when any man
offered
sacrifice, the priest’s servant came, while the flesh was in
seething, with a fleshhook of three teeth in his hand;
14 And he struck it into the pan, or kettle, or caldron, or
pot; all that
the fleshhook brought up the priest took for himself. So they
did in
15 Also before they burnt the fat, the priest’s servant came,
and said
to the man that
sacrificed, Give flesh to roast for the priest; for he
will not have
sodden flesh of thee, but raw.
16 And if any man said unto him, Let them not fail to burn the
fat
presently, and
then take as much as thy soul desireth; then he
would answer him,
Nay; but thou shalt give it me now: and if not, I
will take it by
force.
17 Wherefore the sin of the young men was very great before
the
LORD: for men
abhorred the offering of the LORD.
Great
Sinners
The sons of Eli were the greatest sinners of their
degenerate age. From the
most favored home the worst men came forth. All sin is a
great evil. It is
the curse of man, the abomination of God. In its essence it
is rebellion
against the All-wise and Holy One. For all lack of
conformity to His will
implies a will supposed to be a more desirable guide than
His, which is
insult and insubordination. But the Bible represents some
sins as of deeper
dye than others. There are beings deserving to be “beaten
with many
stripes.” (Luke 12:47) The tests by which the enormity
of sins is estimated are,
after reference of all to the perfect purity of God.
sons of Eli were of the vilest kind.
In themselves they were calculated to
awaken the most intense disgust
and abhorrence of every pure and reverent
mind. It is hard to conceive how
men blessed with early privileges could
sink so low, were it not that
modern Christian times have produced the
darkest sins in the professedly
religious. The sins of open profanation of
the sanctuary, of despite to the
solemn sacrifice, of pollution in guiltiest
lust, were but the outward expression of a state of soul foul, reckless,
defiant beyond
all description. So, generally, the
dark, horrid deeds on
which men look are but the
indicators of a very hell of iniquity deep down
in the soul. There are:
men that they were the sons of the priest of God.
It is a grave responsibility
to be born of parents endued
with any degree of piety. Especially are they
under strong obligation to avoid
sin who are, by virtue of their connection
with the ordinances of worship,
taught out of the law of the Lord, and
surrounded by the hallowed
influences of the sanctuary. Every wise book
read, every kind influence
exercised, every prayer offered in public, or by
parents at home, gives
additional light and power wherewith to avoid the
paths of sin. It requires a long and hard inward struggle to keep down
conscience so as to become a desperate sinner. Men do not sink to
lowest
depths of vice suddenly. Every
successive step is taken against clear light
and restraining powers, and when
the final surrender to guilty deeds is
made, the whole privileges of
the past speak out the greatness of the evil.
The poor idolater ignorantly
causing his sons to pass through the fire to
Moloch is less’ guilty than the
sons of
every sacred feeling, they turn
from all the light of years to profane the
sanctuary by violence and lust.
viler. The sin of despising a holier Sacrifice
than of bulls and lambs is often
committed by men blessed with
faithful teaching.
priest was most sacred. The
reverence cherished for the office was
transferred in some degree to
the person who filled it. Hence, perhaps, the
patience and submission with
which the worshippers endured the greed and
violence of the guilty sons of
Eli. In itself, being a consecration of life to
the holiest of employments, and
considered, also, as a type of the one
perfect Priesthood, there was
solid reason for the common sentiment. No
position is morally higher than
that of him who stands between man and
God for the performance of most
solemn duties. Hence in all ages it has
been recognized that the
ministers of the sanctuary, whether priests, as
anciently, or pastors and
teachers, do exercise an influence which, while
increasing the force of
goodness, also aggravates their guilt when sin is
committed. Power, when used
sinfully, means magnified sin. A professed
Christian sinks relatively very
low when he does what other men do. A
pastor by one
act may come under a condemnation from which on earth he
will never
recover. A judge who sells justice is the most despised of men. A
statesman who
barters truth and peace for personal greed is worse than a
common forger. Holiness is to be loved and sought for its own sake, yet
it
is helpful to ask, “What
manner of persons ought we to be” (II Peter 3:11),
who stand out in society as
rulers, magistrates, pastors, teachers, parents?
If the ordinary sinner cannot
escape the swift judgment of God, where shall
they appear who by virtue of
exalted position become intensely and grievously
sinful when they sin?
heavy bodies in still water,
produce wider and more violent effects than do
others. The effect is always
pernicious, but when prominent
men and
professed
servants of God sin, the consequences are
painfully and
conspicuously
injurious. The sons of Eli by their
crimes not only debased
their own nature and fell to
lower depths of shame, but they brought the
holiest services into
disrepute, alienated from the sanctuary the
feelings of
the people, caused intense
anguish in the minds of the pious Jews, gave
encouragement to wicked men more
freely to transgress (like David who
gave “great occasion to the enemies of
the Lord to blaspheme” –
II Samuel 12:14), and thus did
more than others could do to exterminate
morality and religion from the
land. It is a serious question for every one,
and especially
ministers and all persons in positions of influence,
how far the neglect of
religion by multitudes is the natural
effect of their
own short comings. It is a mark of a great sinner when, by reason of his
conduct, the “wicked blaspheme.’’
Also, our Lord has branded those as
great sinners who wantonly cause
offence to “one” of His “little ones.”
(Matthew 18:6) If skepticism and antagonism to Christianity
are most
lamentable evils, it is a matter
of grave consideration how far the presence
of these evils is due to the
formality, the greed, the gross inconsistencies of
those professing to exhibit and
love the religion of Christ. It behoves all to
see to it that they lift up “holy
hands,” and speak a “pure language.”
Otherwise the terrible woes
pronounced by the Saviour over would be
religious men may find an
application to modern great
sinners. Arising
from this subject we may notice
certain:
and of
conscience, a proper estimate of the responsibility of his
position as
a professed Christian,
a parent, a minister of the gospel, a teacher, or civil ruler.
finer sensibilities of earlier days shall become almost annihilated, and
deeds be done
with impunity which once were most
abhorrent.
elements
of religious degeneracy
may be unconsciously at work
in the soul;
the more so as
it is characteristic of spiritual
declension to make us
blind
to
the
fact of declension.
official
services, the elements of decay
should enter the
spiritual life, and,
consequently,
the duties of self-scrutiny and watchfulness be shunned.
Degenerate Sons (vs. 11-17)
1. Eli’s sons manifest
their extreme wickedness by profaning the worship of God.
2. As a consequence, a
grievous scandal is caused, and Divine worship comes
into disrepute.
3. In spite of many
evil surroundings, Samuel grows up in the blameless
discharge of
religious duties.
4. Hannah continues to
visit and take a deep interest in her son’s spiritual
life. The
sorrowful experience of Eli in old age is sometimes repeated in
modern times. Many
a good man is bowed down even to the grave by
the
irreligion of
sons of
whom better things had been expected. No
more
painful condition
can a father be in than when he scarcely dare name his
children to those
who ask after their welfare. The world and the Church
look on with
wonder and pain at the spectacle of vile children issuing from
a pious home. The
feeling of surprise with which men read of the family of
the high priest
of
conviction that
desperately bad youths ought never to issue from Christian
homes. Such an
event is contrary to all just expectations. The presumption
that the offspring
of pious parents would be holy is based on various
considerations,
which for the most part apply to the case of Eli.
5. There are various promises and
statements to encourage the belief that
the children
of the pious will share in special mercies (e. g. Deuteronomy
30:2, 6; Proverbs
22:6; Isaiah 44:7; Malachi 2:15; I Corinthians 7:14).
6. In so far as susceptibility to
religious impressions is affected by
inherited
qualities, they have an advantage over
others.
7. The means of
grace, instruction, example, and prayer are more
employed for them than for the majority.
8. The power of
early habit, which plays so important a part in the
formation of
character, is likely to be on the side of godliness where
religious
influences early operate. The causes which account for the
ungodliness of
the children of the pious are diverse,
intricate, and partly
inscrutable. A
broad margin must be left for the mysterious action of a free
being, even under
the most favorable conditions. It is not possible to trace
the lines and say
where parental responsibility ends and the responsibility of
the child begins.
The two factors are to be recognized. Moreover, anterior
physical causes,
operating perniciously through ancestors, may act
detrimentally on
the mental and moral condition. But allowing for these
and other
untraceable elements of the case, there are causes
of this sad
feature of
domestic life:
It is the first foe to be encountered
in seeking a child’s salvation. Its subtle
power is beyond all knowledge.
There may not be the complications of
wickedness which exist in the
full-grown nature of the adult after years of
developed sin, but the power is
persistent and insinuating. Eli’s children
shared this tendency in common
with others. The special propensities
inherited are sometimes very strong, and seem to partake of the force
of
the old habits of the ancestors
from whom they were derived. It is also a
fact that where a malformation,
or unequal development of the physical
system, supervenes on the
inheritance of special evil propensities, these
latter gain immensely in force.
A line of pious ancestors, as a rule, would
guarantee freedom from such
abnormal developments, because continuous
piety tends to the symmetrical
development of the entire man; but
occasionally there are backward
leaps in nature, and old elements reappear.
Possibly some of Eli’s blood
relatives were not so good as they ought to
have been. No doubt grace can
subdue even the worst natures, but the
elements referred to must be
considered in connection with other causes.
respect. Few persons consider
how much of care, of wisdom, of
forethought, of yearning
sympathy, of specific, well adapted guidance, and
of prayer is involved in the “nurture and admonition” required in training
children for God. There may be a
fatal lack of faith in the very possibility of
infant piety; an expectation that,
as a matter of course, a child will grow up
in sin till an age for
conversion arrives; a cold, cruel casting of the spiritual
welfare of a child on teachers,
attendants, official aids — the parent, under
pressure of business, declining
to bear his offspring ever on his heart before
God; (If the parent does
not do his work, it is for ever undone!–
copied –
CY – 2016); or a lack of
discretion in dealing with each soul according to its
temperament. Absence of a
mother’s deep and tender interest tells most
prejudicially. An unwise method
of instilling religious truth; an assertion of
mere authority in severe tones;
a lack of discipline to check wrong
tendencies; a constant appeal to
a sense of fear; an avoidance of the
essential truths of the gospel,
or a low, groveling representation of them,
may create aversion, awake
silent resistance, and finally set the entire
nature against what is falsely
supposed to be religion. Perhaps there is no
department of religious
obligation so little studied as this. The
tender,
susceptible nature of children
cannot be safely treated without much
thought and
prayer. No wonder if the promise which
hangs on a faithful
discharge of most delicate and
solemn duties carried on year by year should
sometimes not be fulfilled. Parents
have need to pray, “Search me and try
me.”
and unconscious influence, it
may be regarded as distinct from direct
efforts. Children learn more of
religion from what they observe in parents
than by any other means. The
life they see lived is their daily book of
lessons. If it is selfish, hard, formal, worldly, no amount of verbal
teaching
or professed interest will avail. There is no surer encouragement for a child
to despise all religion than a
discovery of insincerity in the professions of a
parent. Real character comes
into clear view in the home, and those who,
under influence of public
considerations, restrain themselves in the world,
but give freedom to unhallowed
feelings in private, cannot wonder if
children do not covet the piety
they witness.
youth and early manhood,
exercise much influence over character. It is not
every youth that is solely formative
on others. Most young people receive
more from companions than they
impart. The good of home may be largely
neutralized by
the tone of society outside the home.
(Thus the danger to
American culture by the
indulgent secular influence! – CY – 2016)
Eli’s sons were not strong
enough to counteract the evil tendencies of the age,
and their father erred in not
taking precautions adequate to the occasion.
Probably one reason why the sons
of good and eminent men sometimes
become notoriously godless is, that
the utter absorption of the parent in public
affairs, albeit religious, gradually issues in alienation of sons from home
interests and committal to
friendships evil in tendency. The charm of
novelty is powerful where home
life is rendered dull through inattention to
the tastes and enjoyments of the
young, and hence consent is given to
enticing sinners. If, in any
instance, there are in operation causes, either
singly or combined, of the
nature referred to, it is inevitable that a home,
though in some degree pious,
should be distressed by the presence of
ungodly sons.
So far as man’s conduct determines
religion or irreligion in
offspring, it would be contrary
to the action of natural laws for pious sons
to be the product of efforts inadequate
to the end in view. If sons are godly
in spite of errors and bad
influence at home, it is because God in His mercy
has brought other and more
blessed influences to bear. Even defective
training may be ultimately remedied by a more true use of prayer
for mercy.
A Degenerate Priesthood (vs. 12-17)
“The best things when corrupted become the worst.” It is
thus with official
positions such as were held by the priests of old. Their positions
were an
hereditary right, and their duties consisted largely of a prescribed
routine of
services. It was required,
however, that their personal character should
accord with their sacred work (Malachi 2:7); and their influence was
great for good or evil. Whilst they reflected in their character
and conduct
the
moral condition of the times, they also contributed in no small degree
to
produce it. The sons of Eli employed their
high office not for the welfare
of men and the glory of God, but for their own
selfish and corrupt
purposes, and afford an
example of “great and instructive wickedness.”
Concerning them the following things are recorded:
conception of Him as holy and just, and they did not consider that He
observed and hated sin by whomsoever it was committed, and would
surely
punish it. They had no
communion with Him, no sympathy with His
purposes, and no sense of their own obligations to Him. They were
unspiritual men, and practically infidel. And they were such
notwithstanding the instructions they received, the opportunities they
possessed, and the services they rendered. Although the servants of
God,
“they knew not God,”
and were “without excuse.” Amidst a blaze of light
men may be dark within. “And if the light within thee be darkness,
how
great is that darkness!” (Matthew 6:23)
liberal portions of the peace offerings which were legally
assigned to them
(the
breast and shoulder), they claimed other and larger portions, to which
they were not entitled, and robbed the people for the
gratification of their
own appetites. What they would have fiercely denounced in
others they
deemed venial offences in privileged men like themselves. How
often do
official positions and selfish indulgences blind men to the
injustice of their
conduct, and harden them in
iniquity.
the Levitical law that the fat
should be burnt on the altar before the offering
was divided between the priest and the offerer;
but instead of doing this,
the priest sent his servant beforehand to demand his portion
with the fat,
that it might be better fitted for roasting than boiling, which was not to
his
taste. He thus appropriated to his private use what belonged to the Lord,
and “robbed God” of his due. It was a gross act of disobedience, sacrilege,
and profanity, prompted
by the same pampered appetite as his dishonesty
toward men; and, in addition, it hindered the people from fulfilling
their
religious purposes, and made his own servant a partner in his sin.
people gently remonstrated, and promised to give up their own
portion if
the fat were first burnt on the altar, it was said to them, “Nay,
but thou
shalt give it me now, or else I will come and take it by force.” Reason as
well as right was overridden. Instead of regarding himself as a
servant of
God for the good of men, the priest made himself a “lord over God’s
heritage” (I Peter 5:3).
Having cast aside the authority of God, he
made his own arbitrary dictum the law of others, and urged
obedience to it
by the threatening of force. By
the same means, backed by spiritual terrors,
he has often sought to accomplish his wishes in every age.
abstained from presenting as many offerings as they would have
given, or
even from presenting them at all, being repelled from the
service of God by
the evil conduct of His ministers. “Ye make the Lord’s people to
transgress” (v. 24). One
unworthy priest has often made many
unbelievers. Instead of strengthening what is noblest and best in men,
he
has destroyed it, and made its restoration impossible. And, generally,
ungodly conduct on the part of professed servants of God is a great
hindrance to the spread of
truth and righteousness, and a
powerful
influence in extending error and evil in
the world. “One sinner destroyeth
much good.” (Ecclesiastes 9:18)
To complete the picture, two other things
must be added, viz.:
nothing of self-control, gave the rein to their lusts, and
indulged in vices
which the heathen commonly associated with their idol worship, and
which
made that worship so terrible a temptation to
scarcely cared to disguise their participation in similar
indulgences, and
made the tabernacle of the Lord like a heathen temple.
insensible to the presence of the invisible King, they treated His
services as a
mere outward ritual, which may be performed without any felt
inconsistency
between it and any amount of immorality. Why should they observe it at all?
From self-interest and from
superstition, they still supposed that there was
some mysterious benefit inseparably connected with the ark, and
enjoyed
by those who possessed it, apart from their moral and
spiritual state. Their
religion had become a superstition, like that of the heathen. And
hence they
took the ark into the battle field, in sure confidence of their safety,
and were
deprived of it by the heathen, and
THEY THEMSELVES DESTROYED!
Ø It is possible for men to possess the
highest privileges, and yet sink into
THE
DEEPEST DEGRADATION!
Ø The patience of Heaven toward sinners, is
wonderful, and designed to
lead
them to REPENTANCE!
Ø When men despise the goodness of God, and persist in transgression,
they are
certain to meet with SIGNAL PUNISHMENT!
18 But
Samuel ministered before the LORD, being a child, girded with a
linen
ephod." But Samuel ministered. While
the misconduct of Eli’s sons
was thus bringing religion into contempt, and sapping the
nation’s morals,
Samuel was advancing in years and piety, and was gaining
that education
which made him fit to retrieve the evil of their doings. He
is still styled
na’ar, a boy; for the word,
according to the Rabbins, may be used up to
fifteen years (ch. 1:24). In the
sense of servant there is no limit of
age; and as it is the word translated “young men” in v. 17, it
probably
means there not Eli’s sons, but the servants by whose
instrumentality their
orders were actually carried out. Samuel’s dress, an ephod
of white linen,
was probably that worn by the Levites in their ordinary
ministrations; for
the ephod of the priests was richer both in material and
color (Exodus
28:6-8). As being thus the simplest ministerial garment, it
was apparently
worn also by laymen when taking part in any religious
service, as by David
when he danced before the ark (II Samuel 6:14).
Youthful Piety (v. 18)
It is not without significance that the sacred historian
breaks the thread of
his ordinary narrative by frequent references to the child
Samuel (vs. 11,
18, 21, 26; compare ch. 3:1, 18).
The contrast with ungodly priests is striking. “But
Samuel ministered before the Lord, being a child.” “The child was young.”
“The child grew before
the Lord.” Beautiful progression! “Following
on”
to “know the Lord.” “The path of the just” grows brighter. Here in face of
evil is the “perseverance of
the saints.” The case of Samuel may be
regarded as a typical instance of youthful piety. The
frequent allusions to
him, combined with the tenor of his subsequent life, go to
prove that he
was a religious child from earliest days. Humanly his piety
was the product
of his mother’s intense earnestness. Hannah had faith to
believe that a child
may be God’s from the
very dawn of life. In essential
features his piety was
the same as that of all God’s people. There were special
reasons for its
assuming the form it did in that entire and early
separation from home.
1. A mother’s prevision had respect to a new and higher office to be
created and duly
authenticated.
2. Extraordinary
preparation was needful for the great work to be finally
entered on, and
such as separation to the hallowed service of the sanctuary
would secure.
3. The mother could
thus evince her freedom from mere selfish
gratification in seeking a child from the Lord, and at the same time do
all
within her power
to advance the coming kingdom.
4. There was a secret
providence in this preparing the
way for
the first
great step in the
reformation of the people, namely, the authoritative
announcement of national disaster (ch. 3:11, 20). Taking, then,
Samuel’s as an instance of typical youthful piety, we
may notice:
Samuel’s case. Since all children
are psychologically alike; are born under
the same covenanted mercies; and
are, therefore, open to the same
Divine
regenerating
influence, the position might be
considered as established. But
the Church has been slow to
believe the truth; and much of the nurture of
families seems to proceed on the
supposition that, as a rule, at least early
manhood must be reached ere
piety be regarded as trustworthy. The causes
of this unfortunate distrust of
child piety are varied. They may be indicated
as:
Ø The habit of estimating all piety by
the forms and manifestations
appropriate
to adult life, which habit is based on:
Ø A misconception of what constitutes
the essence of all true religion.
Ø The long continued neglect of the
Church, as a consequence of this
misconception, issuing in a scarcity
of youthful piety.
But the possibility of it is
seen in:
Ø The nature of a child being capable
of the essentials of true piety. In
Samuel, and so
in every child, there was a capability of:
o
recognizing
the Great Unseen and Holy
One;
o
cherishing
pure love for the
living, ever present Friend;
o
trusting
on Almighty care with
an unusual absoluteness;
o
learning
the truth concerning
the works and ways of God,
both by
witnessing and sharing in acts of worship,
o
listening
to special instruction; and of
o
obedience
to a sovereign Will.
Indeed, in
some respects the nature of a child, being free from the
burdensome
cares of life and the unhappy suspicions of mature years,
is much
more susceptible of holy, elevating influences than is that of men.
Ø The remarkable welcome to children
given by Christ. The child Samuel
was welcome in
the house of Jehovah. He “grew up
before the Lord,” and
was in “favour with God.” Thus in his case we see a
beautiful congruity
with, and may
we not say prophetic of, the loving welcome given later on
by the blessed Saviour Himself, in terms never to be forgotten. Possibly
some officious
priests might deem the presence of the child clad in sacred
ephod an
innovation and a nuisance in the tabernacle, just as some in
excessive but
erring zeal would not have Christ troubled with little ones
who could not
be supposed to understand His profound teaching. The only
recorded
instance of Christ being “much
displeased” is when it was
supposed that
He was indifferent to the spiritual condition of little children.
(Matthew 10:14)
Ø
The
harmony of Hannah’s conduct and Samuel’s piety with the general
tone of Scripture. Hannah both consecrated and nurtured her son for the
Lord, thus
exemplifying the precepts, “Train up a child in the way he
should
go,” “Bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord,”
and also
illustrating the just expectation of the apostle, who seemed to take
for granted
that pious parents rightly conforming to all their covenanted
duties and
privileges would have “holy” children (I Corinthians
7:14).
NURTURE. All
religion needs culture. It is the most delicate as also the
most precious of our treasures.
The production of piety in children, though
of God, as the
Source of all grace, is intimately connected with the prayers
and faith of
parents. Hannah travailed in spirit
for a holy child long before
Samuel was born, and the
succeeding nurture was only an expression of
the same earnestness. There is
no warrant to think that the world would
have been blessed with a pious
Samuel apart from the deep piety of a
Hannah; and so the presence and
growth of piety in our children rests with
the Church of God. The very condition of children in a sinful world
suggests a care
on their behalf most wise, tender, and constant. The
elements of true nurture are seen in Hannah’s care of Samuel. There was:
Ø The one and perpetual devotement of the child to the Lord — the
absolute giving
up to the grace of God with a faith that would take no
denial. This
act was repeated in spirit day by day for years:
o
when
leaving him in
o
when
silently bowing before God at home;
o
when
engaged in making the little ephod;
o
when
refitting it, as year by year he grew:
o
when
with joyous heart visiting
the
mother carried Samuel on her heart before God,
and gave him up to be
blessed.
This is what mothers can ever do for their loved ones, and they
sorely
need such care in this
sinful world.
Ø The impressive teaching imparted. Surely
Samuel was not placed in the
house of the
Lord without much teaching suited to his capacity as to the
holy life he
was to live. It is something to make a child believe that he is the
Lord’s, to see
the beauty and joy of being given up to His service. With
exquisite
delicacy did Hannah teach her son that he must forever be holy.
The girding
with the ephod meant to him, “Thou
art a servant of God, a
child
of the sanctuary, thou canst
not do any unworthy deeds or speak
unholy
words. Remember thou belongest to the Lord, my son.” Happy
they who know
the art of showing their sons the beauty of holiness, and
the manner of
persons they ought ever to be.
Ø Association with the sanctuary. The hallowed associations of the house
of God
exercised power over the tender child; and so the principle is set
forth that in
our nurture of youthful piety we must seek to encourage a
love
for the worship of the Lord and of all pertaining to His service. It is a
great gain when
our youth can rejoice in the Sabbath services, feel that in
the sanctuary
they have a much loved spiritual home.
4. Engagement in useful
religious work. It was a wise choice of this
mother to
divert the child’s attention from the evil habits of the age by
absorption in
works suited to his little powers, and under the immediate
eye of a
venerable man of God. Whatever love to God may dwell in the
heart of a
child is strengthened and guarded by being exercised in deeds
pertaining to
His service. And the service of God is very wide and varied.
There are many
ways in which youthful piety may be exercised. Let
children be
caused to feel that they by life, by simple prayers, and by
sympathy can
bless the sorrowing world, and their piety will grow and the
world
will be enriched. The
momentous interests involved in the presence
or absence of
youthful piety should awaken deep concern on several:
Practical questions:
Ø To what extent does it prevail in Church
and home?
Ø How far the lack of early piety is due to
parental neglect, erroneous
views,
defective Church organizations, or unhealthy literature?
Ø In what form can the existing piety of
children be more utilized for their
own benefit and for the good of the
world?
Ø How is it possible to render the services
of the sanctuary more
interesting
and helpful to the young?
Ø How can the missing link between the
youthful and more mature piety of
the Church
be restored?
Ø By what means can Christian parents be led
to manifest an all-absorbing
concern
for the development of piety in their offspring?
Ø What would be the effect on the ultimate
conversion of the world if the
Church could be
so wrought upon to exercise faith in the possibility of
early piety as
to save the need of employing agencies to convert in adult
age any who
have passed through its hands?
19 "Moreover his mother made him a little coat, and
brought it to him
from year to
year, when she came up with her husband to offer the
yearly
sacrifice." His mother made him a little
coat. The coat, meil, was
worn by priests
(Leviticus 8:7), by kings and their sons (ch.18:4),
by prophets (ibid. 28:14), and even by women (II
Samuel 13:18). It
was an under garment of wool, woven throughout without
seam, with
holes for the head and arms, and reaching nearly to the
ground: when used
by women it had sleeves (ibid.). Under it
they had a tunic or shirt fitting so
closely that a man simply so clad was considered naked (ch. 19:24),
and over it priests and Levites wore the ephod, and so also
David
on the occasion mentioned above (I Chronicles 15:27). The meil
seems, moreover, to have often been a handsome dress, as
that of the
priests was of purple blue, with embroidery of pomegranates
in three
colors, and golden bells (Exodus 28:31-34); and when made
of
delicate materials for the use of the rich, it and the
tunic are the soft
luxurious clothing spoken of in Matthew 11:8. As the meil was the
ordinary dress of all classes of people, it was made for
Samuel at home,
and can have no special meaning; but the ephod shows that
he was brought
up in the daffy practice of holy duties. This annual
present, however, of
clothing made by the mother’s hands proves that the
dedication of her son
to God was not allowed to interfere with home affections,
and both parents
and child must have looked forward with joy to happy
meetings at each
recurrence of the family visit to the sanctuary.
Faith’s Symbols
Judged by the customs of the age, it was a daring thing for
Hannah to
clothe her child with
the ephod, the every day robe of the priest, seeing
that her son was only a Levite (I Chronicles 6:19, 23;
compare Exodus
39:27; ch. 22:18). She clearly
intended him to be invested with
the prerogatives of the priest. The holy daring went
further in her making
for him the “little coat,” which properly was
part of the dress of the high
priest, and sometimes of princes and nobles. The act is in
perfect keeping
with the first deed of consecration, and with the tenor of
the inspired song.
To her prophetic vision this child was from birth ordained
to be an
extraordinary servant of God, for the reformation of that
age and the
advancement of that kingdom the glories of which she saw
afar. It is not
likely that a woman of such strong and exalted hope would
be ready to
speak out in detail what was in her heart, and yet the
force of her faith
would demand adequate expression. Some natures are not
demonstrative
by words, but prefer silent acts to both indicate their
thoughts and to
nourish their faith and hope. Therefore the clothing of
Samuel with the
pure “ephod” and the “little coat” was the
creation of permanent symbols
of faith for his instruction and impressment,
and her own satisfaction and
support. It is not for mere notice of casual incident that
the sacred writer
refers to the event, but evidently to set forth valuable
truth.
WOULD SEE NOTHING. It
is probable that neighbors reflected on the
eccentric conduct of the mother
who so unnecessarily parted with her
child. To them he was as other
children. The spiritual travail of his birth
was hidden from them. But
Hannah, being in sympathy with God’s
merciful purposes to mankind,
saw in her son the man of the future, the
defender of the faith, the
restorer of pure worship, the consecrated spirit
which has spiritual right to do
priestly work, and it was rest to her soul to
express this faith not by words
which might be contradicted, but by a
solemn act full of instruction
to the child, and a permanent record of what
she knew would be. So is it
ever. The eye of faith sees in the infant Church
of God the promise of a “glorious
Church.” Simeon saw in a babe the
“Salvation” of
God. A few poor men saw in the “Man of sorrows”
the
coming “King of glory.”
The true believer now sees in the occasional
triumphs of the gospel the
earnest of a world’s subjugation to Christ.
was no one to whom Hannah could unfold
in words all that was grasped by
her faith. To her the presence
of this holy child in the house of God,
serving Him in the minor details
of daily routine, was virtually the
realization of the prophet’s
office, and the enhancement of Messiah’s glory.
“Faith is the substance of things hoped for.” (Hebrews 11:1) The essential
reality of the remote is already
in the heart. The future is as though it were
present. Prevision and accomplishment become
subjectively one. This holy
mysticism of the highest
spiritual life is foolishness to the unspiritual, but, is
a profound and blessed fact in
the experience of the true children of God.
God s word given
is as good as fulfilled, and the soul finds
more in the
consciousness of
this truth than can ever be indicated in language. There is
always a vast reserve of
religious feeling that can never find expression.
Life is more than the forms of
life. The “ephod” and “little robe,” and the
annual visits to the child, were
outward signs — symbolical forms — of a
something which was too great
for utterance. They were the shadows of a
great reality too sacred, too
rich, too varied in its issues to be set forth in
ordinary terms. So likewise our
faith holds a Christ more glorious and
precious than any terms can
utter. He is “formed in the heart.” He is the
“unspeakable gift.” Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, nor heart conceived
what is grasped by the
Christian’s faith as an ever present treasure. Human
speech, in prose or song, falls
below the soul’s sense of blessedness in
Christ.
EXPRESSING ITSELF.
Holding converse with realities which lie beyond
the ordinary mind, it deviates
from routine, and carves out new and rare
modes of indicating its existence.
Hannah could not rest content with
telling Elkanah,
Eli, and Samuel, in casual conversation and fleeting words,
what she knew this ministering
child was to be in days to come, and what
she knew of the coming kingdom.
Jacob made a coat of many colors to
gratify a questionable feeling
of partiality. Jochebed made a covering of
bulrushes to save a precious
life, possibly with a trust in a wise
But Hannah had a faith in God,
in the revival of religion, in the Messiah’s
glory, which not only sought
vent for itself, but dared to create new and, to
the eye of man, questionable
forms of expression. Persistently, year by
year, as the sacred ephod
required readjustment to varying stature, did the
faith reassert itself in every
stitch and every trial of approval. Innovation it
might be, but it was true to
faith, and faith loves reality, and seeks
congruity between itself and its
outward forms. The apostle writing to the
Hebrews on the triumphs of faith
recognizes its heroism, its superiority to
conventional forms, its
intense energy in asserting itself (Hebrews
11.).
There are modern instances of
the same holy daring. Symbolism may, like
other things, sometimes be the
resort of weak minds and superstitious
tendencies, yet it may be a
legitimate outgrowth of strong faith. The stately
sanctuary; the hushed feeling in
listening to the word of God; the surrender
of fortune to the propagation of
the gospel; the adoption of righteous
usages against the current of
opinion and custom, are only some of the
symbols of a faith that longs
and dares to indicate its presence. As feelings
grow in power when exercised, so
faith nourishes itself by fit permanent
expressions, especially when in
some bold and truthful deed.
Ø How far the faith of these times is a
reality as distinguished from a
formal
consent to what is commonly believed.
Ø Whether the
future toil in
the acquired results of present toil.
Ø To what extent the individuality of a
powerful religious life proves itself by
deeds of
daring devotion.
Ø The distinction to be drawn between a safe
or unsafe symbolism in
stated forms of
worship, and the natural spontaneous symbolism of an
energetic
personal faith.
Ø The possibility of a masterful FAITH in degenerate times, rightfully
deviating from
established practices, and being used by God as preliminary
to great
reformations.
20"And Eli blessed Elkanah and
his wife, and said, The LORD give
thee seed of this
woman for the loan which is lent to the LORD.
And they went
unto their own home. 21 And the LORD visited
Hannah,
so that she
conceived, and bare three sons and two daughters. And the
child Samuel grew
before the LORD." The
Lord give thee seed, etc.
The manner in which Eli
blesses Elkanah shows that this surrender of a
very
young child to religious service was not looked upon as imposing a burden upon
the sanctuary, but as
the bestowal of a valued gift. Loan and lent by no means give
the whole sense,
which is in fact beyond the power of our language to express; for
the Hebrew is remarkable for its manner of saying a great
deal in a few
words, by using them indefinitely. Besides the sense, then,
of lending the
child to God, the Hebrews also conveys the idea of Samuel
having been
obtained by prayer, but by prayer for Jehovah. Hannah had not asked
simply for a son, but for a son whom she might dedicate to God. And now
Eli prays that Jehovah will give her children to be her own
(see on ch. 1:28).
Solid Character (vs. 20-21)
The facts are:
1. Eli forms a
favorable estimate of the conduct and character of Elkanah
and Hannah.
2. God enriches them
with several children.
3. Samuel advances in
years and gains in repute.
4. The sons of Eli,
becoming more dissolute, are rebuked by their father.
Time had gradually brought out to the view of Eli the solid
character of
Elkanah and his wife. Their regular attendance on worship at the
appointed
seasons, and their reverent spirit, were in striking
contrast with the
degenerate habits with which Eli was too familiar. Their
quiet, unassuming
conduct harmonized with Hannah’s early professions of
piety, and the child
which they had presented to assist Eli in his ministrations
had fully
answered his expectations. Here, then, we have solid
character:
succession of years had enabled
Eli to form a favorable estimate of these
obscure dwellers on
his priestly benediction because
of the rash words with which he once
(ch.
1:13-14) wounded a “sorrowful spirit.” It is a blessed thing
to enjoy the approval of the
good. A good name is a precious treasure.
There is a sweet reward for
years of toil, and possibly under
misapprehension and neglect, in
being at last fairly appreciated for what
one is and has done. Although
there are proud ungodly men who will
despise the godly poor, yet the
conditions of character being appreciated
by the better sections of
society are within the reach of the most lowly.
These conditions are:
Ø Constancy in the discharge of religious duties. Observance year by year
of public
worship and of all the ordinances of God is a good sign of a
religious
spirit. Eli was not wrong in supposing that there must be solid
worth in a
family that kept to the ways of the Lord when so many
neglected
religious duties. A man cannot claim a reputation by asking for
it. The
testimony of faithfulness in religious worship is admitted by all.
Fluctuations in
religious zeal always awaken distrust. Constancy is an
element always
honored.
Ø Manifestation of an unostentatious spirit. This must have impressed Eli
very strongly.
The quiet, unpretending spirit of the Levite and his wife
gained on the venerable
man year by year. And so always the quiet, even
tenor of life
tells an irresistible story. All sensible men shrink from the
egotism and
ostentation which sometimes assume the garb of religion. The
proper thing
for all is an earnest, lowly mind, more
concerned with quietly
doing
what is right and pleasing to God than with making an impression on
man. Those who think much of what men will say
and think, and make
corresponding
demonstrations of zeal, are sure to fall into the snare of “eye
service.” Like the steady influence of light and
dew, quiet goodness at
home and in the
Church and world is a real power. There
are thousands of
such
lives in Christian homes. (“The Lord knoweth
them that are His:
(II Timothy 2:19)
Ø Self-denial in God’s service. Though Hannah’s joy in giving her heart to
God took off
the edge of self-denial, yet Eli could not but be deeply
impressed with
the unusual self-sacrifice of both husband and wife. The
true religious
spirit of a man comes out in spontaneous offerings to the
efficiency of
the services of the sanctuary and the advancement of Christ’s
kingdom.
Character expressed in free, unconstrained surrender of money,
or time, or
sons for religious purposes cannot but be appreciated. It is in
the
power of all to perform some acts of self-denial for God, and apart
from such acts,
no professions will establish a reputation in the true Church
of God. The intrinsic
value of self-denial lies much in its freeness, its
timeliness, its
form. The surrender of a Samuel at such a time, in such a
spirit, is an
example to all ages. Are there no other Hannahs? Is
all the
“precious
ointment” of the
Christian Church exhausted?
but through Christ; yet He
honors fidelity by His special favor and greater
blessing. Hannah had been
honored variously; e.g. in being heard, in
having a son according to
promise, in being permitted to consecrate him to
the special service of God, in
receiving grace to part with him from home if
not from heart, and in being
enabled to enjoy a blessed vision of One
greater and more holy than
Samuel. But the fidelity wherewith she and her
husband had, during the period
covered, served God in home and in public
life, as also by the general tenor of their lives, was crowned
with a great
increase of
domestic joy. The home of Hannah
emptied for God became
full. The surrendered child was
returned in fivefold form. The long, pining
years of early life were
followed by old age of blessed satisfaction. Thus do
all ages show that “there
is that scattereth and yet increaseth.”
(Proverbs
11:24) “I sent you forth;” “lacked ye
anything’?” (Luke 22:35) There
is a
promise of a “hundredfold” for
all
that has been forsaken for Christ (Mark
10:30). In one way or another
God will prove that He is not unrighteous to
forget the work of faith and
labor of love. “Them that honour me I will
honor.”
Ø Let the lowly be patient in their endeavor
to follow out the light they
enjoy in
worship and in service.
Ø Many individuals and families can win
for themselves the precious
treasure
of human and Divine favor, even though the wealth and fame
coveted in the
world fall not to their lot.
Ø The multiplication of quiet,
unostentatious religious characters is an end
earnestly to
be sought, as adding in every sense to the WELFARE OF
THE
WORLD!
Ø The severity of our trials in the cause of
Christ, if entered into rightly, is
sure
to be crowned with blessing. (“....be thou faithful unto death,
and
I
will give thee a crown of life.” Revelation 2:10)
ELI’S COMPLICITY IN THE SINS OF HIS SONS
(vs. 22-26).
22 "Now Eli was very old, and heard all that his sons did
unto all
how they lay with
the women that assembled at the door of the tabernacle of
the
congregation." Eli… heard all that his sons did. To the profanity and greed
described in vs. 12-17 the
sons of Eli added unchastity; and their sin was
the greater because the women whom they corrupted were
those dedicated
to religious service (see Exodus 38:8). The order of
ministering women
instituted by Moses probably lasted down to the destruction
of the temple,
and Anna may have belonged to it (Luke 2:37); afterwards it
appeared
again in a more spiritual form in the widows and
deaconesses of the
Christian Church. The word rendered assembled means “arranged in
bands,” and shows not merely that they were numerous, but
that they had
regular duties assigned them, and each one her proper place
and office. The
frequent sacrifices, with the feasts which followed, must
have provided
occupation for a large number of hands in the cleaning of
the utensils and
the cooking of the food. But
though Eli heard of the depraved
conduct of
his sons in thus defiling those who ministered in the
tabernacle, he gives
them but the faintest rebuke, and that apparently only because their
misdeeds were in everybody’s mouth; for the last clause of v. 23 really is,
“For I hear of
your evil doings from all this people.”
Eli’s old age may have
increased his indifference, but his
religious character could never have had
much depth or earnestness, to allow him to regard such
heinous sins so
lightly. It seems
even as if he chiefly felt the annoyance occasioned to
himself by the expostulations urged upon him “from
all this people.” Still
all that he says is wise and thoughtful. The sins of men in
high station do
not end with themselves; they make others also to
transgress. And as Eli’s
sons were Jehovah’s ministers, and they had led into
wickedness those who
also were bound to holy service, their misconduct was a sin against
Jehovah Himself.
23 "And he said unto them, Why do ye such things? for I
hear of your
evil dealings by
all this people. 24 Nay, my sons; for it is
no good report that
I hear: ye make
the LORD’s people to transgress. 25 If one man sin against
another, the
judge shall judge him: but if a man sin against the LORD, who
shall intreat for him? Notwithstanding they hearkened not unto
the voice of
their father,
because the LORD would slay them. 26 And the child Samuel
grew on, and was
in favor both with the LORD, and also with men."
Eli’s words are very obscure, but “Ye make Jehovah’s people to
transgress”
is upon the whole the best rendering of the clause. Both the
Septuagint and Syriac
have a different reading: “Ye make Jehovah’s people cease
to worship Him”
In the next verse there is no sufficient reason for
supposing that Elohim, God, here
means a judge. Elohim was
the head of the theocracy, the ruler of
things, and He would set to rights these
delinquencies of “one man against another”
by the ordinary exercise of His
judicial functions. So far all is easy, and we
must translate, “If one man sin against another, God shall
judge him.” But
in the last clause there is one of those plays upon words
to which the
Hebrew language, with its numerous conjugations, so readily
lends itself
(see on ch. 1:28); and it is
rarely possible to transfer to another
language the force of passages in which the sense depends
upon the terms
in the original having a double meaning. The verb rendered shall
judge in
the first clause is used again by Eli in the second, but in
a different
conjugation, in which its usual meaning is to pray. According
to the
lexicon, therefore, we must translate: “If a man sin against Jehovah,
who
shall pray for him?”
But surely it was just the occasion in which the only
remedy left was intercessory prayer. Bearing then in
remembrance the use
made by Eli of the verb in the first clause, we must
translate: “Who shall
act as judge for him?” “Who shall interpose as arbitrator
between him and
Jehovah to settle the quarrel?” The verb itself, moreover, is a rare and old-
fashioned one, and apparently means to settle a
dispute. So it is used of
Phinehas, who by his righteous zeal put an end to the rebellion
against
God’s laws (Numbers 25:7-8; and accordingly in Psalm
106:30, where our
version renders “executed judgment,” the, Vulgate
has placavit, appeased
Jehovah’s anger. The
sense then is, In case of wrong done between
man and man,
God as the supreme Arbitrator settles the dispute; but where the two parties are
God and man, what third power is there which can interfere?
The quarrel
must go on to the bitter end, and God, who is your opponent, will also
punish you. The
same idea is found in Job 9:33. Naturally to so mild a
remonstrance, and founded
upon so low a view of the Divine nature, the
sons of Eli paid but slight attention, and by thus
hardening themselves in
sin they made their
punishment inevitable, “because
it pleased Jehovah to
slay them.” Man
can bring upon himself neither good nor evil except by the
working of God’s will, and the
punishment of sin is as thoroughly a part of
God’s will as the rewarding
of righteousness. An intense
conviction of the
personality of God was the very foundation of the religious
life of the
Israelites, and lies at the root of the words of Eli here
and of those of Job;
and it was this which made them ascribe to God that
hardening of the
wicked in sin which is the sure means of their punishment.
We ascribe it to
the working of natural laws, which after all is but saying
the same thing in a
round about way; for the laws of nature, in things moral as
well as in the
physical world, are the laws of God. In v. 26, in contrast with Eli’s sons
ripening for punishment, and daily more abhorred to God
and man, we
have Samuel set before us advancing in age and “in favor with Jehovah
and also with men,”
like Him of whom in so many respects he was a type
(Luke 2:52), our blessed Lord.
Ineffective Reproof (vs. 22-25)
A man may possess many amiable qualities, and be, on the
whole, a good
man,
and yet be marked by some defect which mars his character, prevents
his
usefulness, and makes him the unintentional cause of much mischief.
Such a man was Eli. Of his early life nothing is recorded.
He was a
descendant of Ithamar, the youngest son of
Aaron, and held the office of
high priest, which formerly belonged to the elder branch of the Aaronic
family, that of Eleazar (Numbers
20:26), but which was now
transferred to the younger, from some unknown cause, and which
continued therein until the time of Solomon. At the age of
fifty-eight he
became judge, and “judged
first mentioned he must have been at least seventy years old.
His sons were
children of his old age; for some time afterwards they were spoken
of as
young men (v. 17), and, as is not uncommon in such cases, he
treated them with undue indulgence. He was hasty and severe in
reproving
Hannah, but slow and mild in reproving
them. The inefficiency of his
reproof appears in that:
go wrong generally appears at an early age; and it must have
been seen by
him in his sons long before the rumor of their flagrant
transgressions
reached him, if he had not been blind to their faults. But he had
no
adequate sense of his parental responsibility, was old and weak, of
a gentle
and easy going temperament, and omitted to reprove them (I
Kings 1:6)
until they had become too strongly devoted to their evil ways to
be
amenable to expostulation. A little plant may be easily rooted up,
but when
it has grown into a tree it can only be removed by
extraordinary efforts. If
some children are “discouraged” (Colossians 3:21) by
too much
strictness, far more are
spoiled by too much indulgence.
“Indulgence never
produces gratitude or love in the heart of a child.”
Gentle reproof may
sometimes be most effective, but here it was out of place.
Ø It was not sufficiently pointed in its application; being given to them
collectively rather
than individually, in indefinite terms, by way of
question, and concerning things which he had
heard, but into the certainty
of which
he had not troubled himself to inquire.
Ø It exhibited no sufficient sense of the evil of sin (v. 25). He spoke of
the
consequences rather than of the nature, the “exceeding sinfulness” of
sin, and
spoke of them in a way which indicated little deep personal
conviction.
Ø It showed no sufficient determination
to correct it. He did not say that
he would
judge them for their injustice toward men; and with reference to
their sin
against the Lord, which was their chief offence, he simply
confessed
that he could do nothing but leave them to the judgment of a
higher
tribunal. “In the case where the rebuke should have descended like a
bolt from
heaven we hear nothing but low and feeble murmurings, coming,
as it
were, out of the dust. Cruel
indeed are the tenderest mercies of
parental weakness and indulgence. And the fate of Eli shows that by such
tender
mercies the father may become the minister of vengeance unto his
whole house.
The law
of Moses in the case of disobedient children was very severe
(Deuteronomy 21:18-21). But Eli
neither observed this law “when they
hearkened not to his voice” (v.
25), nor took any further steps to prevent
the continuance of the evil which he reproved. He had none of
the zeal for
which Phinehas the son of Eleazar was approved (Numbers 25:11-13);
but as a father, a high priest, and a judge he was guilty of culpable
infirmity
and wilful disobedience (ch. 3:13).
contempt of reproof showed that they were already infatuated,
hardened,
and abandoned to destruction; or (reading for — therefore), it
filled up the
measure of their iniquities, and exposed them to inevitable
judgment. “He
that hateth reproof shall die” (Proverbs 15:10).
Ø
Reproof is often a
solemn obligation.
Ø
It should be given in
an effective manner.
Ø
When not so given it
does more harm than good.
Ø
When justly given it
should be humbly and obediently received.
Abandoned (vs. 22-26)
The facts are:
1. Eli in advancing
years hears of the abominable deeds of his sons.
2. He remonstrates
with them, pointing out the con sequences of their conduct.
3. Heedless of the warning, they persist in sin, being abandoned
by God.
The narrative of the sacred historian seems to take in two
extremes — two
elements working on in moral antagonism till the one passes
away and the
other becomes ascendant. The abominations and profanations
of Eli’s sons,
and Samuel’s purity and entire devotion to God, are placed
in striking
contrast. The history of the former is sketched as
explaining the course of
The stage in the course of the dissolute priests here
indicated brings into
view:
in the most abominable
crimes men could commit. The descent to
shamelessness and utter corruption
becomes very rapid. (It is very
troublesome to see how quickly
the United States has declined! CY - 2016)
One can hardly imagine these
vile sons of Belial as once having been gentle
youths taught to revere
Jehovah’s name, and to tread His courts with awe.
The momentum gained by
evil desires when once let loose is among the most
fearful features of human
experience. It is the same sad story as often told
now to the hearts of wailing parents:
Ø
disobedience,
Ø
aversion to holy things,
Ø
formal observances,
Ø
secret associations of
evil,
Ø
seared conscience,
Ø
loss of self-respect,
Ø
profanation of sacred
places,
Ø
contempt for religion,
Ø
self-abandonment to
lust, and
Ø
defiance of God.
What tears fall to earth nightly
over erring ones! What blasted hopes lie on
life’s pathway! What cruel
triumphs of sin over all that is fair and strong in
human nature! Holy Saviour, many of thy followers share in thy tears once
shed over sin finished in
righteous doom! (James 1:15). When, when shall
the mighty power come in answer
to the cry of try Church to turn back the
tide of woe, and drive the curse
from the heart and home of man? “How long,
O Lord, how long?” (Revelation
6:10)
the vices of the age, and above
all the crimes of his sons, and he performed
a father’s part in remonstrating
with them on account of their deeds,
warning them of the dangers to
which they were exposed at the hand of the
invisible Judge. But the day for warning and remonstrance was past, and
the day for swift,
unsparing punishment HAD COME! As judge in civil
capacity, and as high priest in
spiritual capacity, the course of Eli was clear
— immediate banishment from office and capital punishment
(Leviticus 18:6, 20, 29; 20:10;
21:6-7, 17, 23). We see how a man
good in many respects, may recognize duty and not perform it. Eli knew
that the sin of contempt for the
ordinance of sacrifice, utter disregard of
the honor due to God,
prostitution of the holiest office to the vilest uses,
was past condoning, past
covering even by sacrifice. For God, as Eli puts
it, makes no
provision to pardon and save those who wantonly scorn the
means of pardon and salvation. No sacrifice! no
intercessor! Yet the
appointed judge in
refraining from an exercise of
the powers wherewith he is invested for the
vindication of justice and the
maintenance of order. Moral weakness
was
the sin of Eli. The imperious claims of God, of public welfare, of religious
purity, appealed to the sense of
duty in vain, because of some personal
sentiment or lack of resolution.
Cases often arise in national affairs, Church
discipline, home life, where duty comes into collision with private
sentiments and
personal affection. Sometimes, as with
Nathan in accusing
David, and Ambrose in placing
Theodosius under the ban, moral strength is
conspicuous. Often, as with Eli,
Jonah, and David in one instance, sense of
duty yields to inferior
impulses. True moral courage is
a quality of high
order. It
confers great honor on those in whom it appears, and is a most
important element in securing
the welfare of the individual, the home, and
the public. Its presence in most
perfect Christian form may be ascribed to
the combination of various
elements.
Ø A
natural sense of justice — a psychological condition in which moral
perceptions
have more prompt influence than transitory emotions.
Ø A
careful culture of the conscience through
early years, and in relation
to the minutiae
of life.
Ø
Intelligent faith in
the inviolability of moral law.
Ø Formation of the habit of immediate
submission to moral dictates, on
the general
principle that in morals first thoughts are truest.
Ø Strength of will to endure present suffering, as not
being the worst of
evils.
Ø
A
nature brought fully under the quickening influence of practical
Christianity,
as consisting in radical
renewal, obedience to the precepts
of
Christ,
fellowship with a holy God, and perpetual aspiration after holiness.
There are instances
still in which failure in moral courage is the one great
blot on an otherwise excellent life. Where such
occur sin flourishes, and the
righteous
mourn. The severe hand of justice is frequently the hand of true
kindness. Favoritism and subordination of
righteousness to personal ends,
in public and
domestic life, cause
iniquity to abound, and
sooner
or later
these
will be visited by THE JUDGMENT OF GOD!
to their deserved doom. They heeded not remonstrance,
for they had gone
so far into sin as to be left
destitute of that gracious influence from God,
without which the soul is held
fast in the cords of its iniquity. The outward
fact of despising the father’s
warning was evidence to the historian that
God had judicially abandoned
them. “They hearkened not, because
the
Lord would slay. them.” The solemn truth is
clear that men
may persist in
sin so utterly as TO BE GIVEN UP BY GOD WITHOUT MERCY to all its
consequences.
Ø The evidence of this is full.
o
Men
are sometimes smitten with death as a consequence of persistent
sin, as in case
of Sodom, and the rebellion of Korah, all means of
repentance
being judicially cut off. (Genesis 19; Numbers 16)
o
The
New Testament references to the sin against the Holy Ghost, and
the apostasy of
counting the blood of Christ an “unclean thing.”
(Hebrews 10:29)
o
The
fact that at the end of life the impenitent are given over to look for
“tribulation
and anguish.” (Romans 2:9)
Ø The rationale of this is partly
discoverable. It is not mere arbitrariness,
nor is it the
effect of imperfect benevolence.
o
It is
consonant with the working of natural law. Physiology and
psychology prove
that there is a tendency to permanence of character
in all. This is
especially true of those who persist in strong
unhallowed
desires.
o
There
are transgressions even in society which admit of no
restoration to society.
o
In a
wise and endlessly ramified moral government which rests on an
eternal right,
there can be no proof that a moral Ruler, whose existence
is bound up
with right and order, is obliged to cover the past of free
beings who have
deliberately persisted in evil, by
giving them a new
power which
shall make them different from what
they prefer to be.
o
The
judicial abandonment of the intensely sinful acts as a
wholesome
deterrent on the moral universe, by vindicating the holiness of God,
and the claim
of universal society on the pure, loving life of each of
its
constituents, and this too while giving to free beings only what
they
prefer.
Ø The
importance of guarding against first tendencies to deviate from the
path of purity and truth.
Ø The value of early habits of devotion, regard for right
and purity, as a
preventive of habits of a reverse character.
Ø The extreme danger to the Church of a professional religion in
alliance
with a tendency
to sensual indulgence, and the
need of watching closely
against
such a possible combination.
Ø The
value of an early training of. the moral sense, and its constant
culture, as against the inferior
elements of our life.
Ø The
use of the lessons of history, as illustrating the terrible power of sin,
and the damage done to society and the
Church by defective discipline.
THE DIVINE JUDGMENT UPON ELI AND HIS HOUSE
(vs. 27-36).
27 "And there came a man of God unto Eli, and said unto
him, Thus
saith the LORD, Did I
plainly appear unto the house of thy father,
when they were in
out of all the
tribes of
to burn incense,
to wear an ephod before me? and did I give unto the
house of thy
father all the offerings made by fire of the children of
29 "Wherefore kick ye at my sacrifice and at mine
offering, which I
have commanded in
my habitation; and honorest thy sons above
me, to make
yourselves fat with the chiefest of all the offerings
of
usual appellation
of a prophet in the books of Judges, Samuel, and Kings, and
as such is
applied by Manoah to the angel who appeared to him
(Judges 13:6, 8).
Though the recorded interpositions of the Deity in those
times
were generally by angels, still the readiness with which Manoah gave his
visitant this title makes it probable that prophets did
appear from time to
time; and the mission of one, though, as here, without a
name, is recorded
in Judges 6:8. As regards the date of this visitation of
the man of God,
we find that Eli was ninety-eight years of age when the ark
was captured
(ch. 4:15). At that time Samuel
was not merely a man, but one whose reputation
was established throughout the whole land, and who was
probably regarded not
merely as a prophet, but as Eli’s successor in the office
of judge (ch. 3:19-20).
But Eli was “very old” (v. 22) when he rebuked
his sons, probably between seventy
and eighty, for Samuel is then called a child (v. 26);
whereas he can scarcely
have been much less than thirty years of age when the
Philistines destroyed
led to the revival of the agitation for a king, he is
himself described as
already “old;” but as he lived on till nearly the end of
Saul’s reign, he could
not at that time have been much more than sixty.
Even when God spake by
him to Eli he is still described as a boy, na’ar (ch. 3:1),
though
the higher position to which he had attained, as is proved
by his duties,
would lead to the conclusion that he was then verging on
manhood. As
some time would naturally elapse between two such solemn
warnings, we
may feel sure that the visit of the man of God occurred
shortly after
Samuel s dedication. Then,
as Eli neglected the warning, and the
wickedness of his sons grew more inveterate, some eight or ten years
afterwards the warning was
repeated in sharper tones by the voice of his
own youthful attendant. Meanwhile Eli seems himself to have grown in
personal piety, but he could do nothing now for his sons.
Past eighty years
of age, the time of activity had gone by, and resignation was the sole virtue
that was left for him to practice. And so the warning given by the mouth of
Samuel is stern and final. Ten or fifteen more years must
elapse before the
ruin came. But the gloom was deepening; the Philistines
were increasing in
power, and the valor of
there was a short violent crash, and the house of Eli met
its doom.
The prophet begins by enumerating Jehovah’s mercies to “the house of thy
father,” that is,
the whole family of Aaron, in selecting them for the
priesthood (on the choice of the house of Aaron, see Exodus
28. and 29.), and
in richly endowing the office with so large a portion of
every sacrifice.
These portions are termed literally firings, or fire
sacrifices, but the term
soon became general, and in Leviticus 24:7, 9 is applied
even to the
shew bread. Added then to the tithes, and to the cities with
their suburbs
given them to inhabit, this share of every sacrifice gave the house of Aaron
great wealth, and with it they had also high rank. There was no one above
them in
endowments of the kings was the skins of animals offered in
sacrifice
(Herod., 6:56). Why then do
Eli and his sons, who benefit so greatly by
them, “kick at Jehovah’s
sacrifices and offerings?” The word is
taken from
Deuteronomy 32:15, and refers to the efforts of a pampered steer
violently to shake off the yoke. Eli’s sons treat the
ordinances which have
raised them to rank, and given them wealth and power, as
if they were an
injury and wrong. And Eli, instead of removing them from the office which
they disgraced, preferred
the ties of relationship to his duty to
God and the
moral welfare of the people.
30 "Wherefore the LORD God of
house, and the
house of thy father, should walk before me for ever:
but now the LORD saith, Be it far from me; for them that honor
me I will honor,
and they that despise me shall be lightly esteemed."
I said indeed. By thus
acting Eli became an accomplice in the
irreligion of his sons, and God therefore revokes His grant of a perpetual
priesthood. The promise had been made to Aaron’s family as
a whole
(Exodus 29:9), and had then been renewed to the house of Eleazar
(Numbers 25:13). But the house of Ithamar
was now in the ascendant,
probably owing to Eli’s own ability, who during the
anarchical times of the
Judges had won for himself, first, the civil power, and
then, upon some
fitting opportunity, the high priesthood also, though I
suppose the heads of
the houses of Eleazar and Ithamar were always persons of great
importance, and high priests in a certain sense. Eli had
now the priority,
and had he and his family proved worthy, the possession of
this high
station might have been confirmed to them. Like Saul in the kingdom, they
proved unworthy of it,
and so THEY LOST IT FOR EVER! Their names,
as we have seen above, do not even occur in the genealogies.
I said .... but
now Jehovah saith.
Can then a promise of God be
withdrawn? Yes, assuredly. Not from mankind as a whole, nor
from the
Church as a whole, but from each particular nation, or
Church, or
individual. To each separate person God’s promises are
conditional, and
human action everywhere is a coworker with the Divine
volition, though
only within a limited sphere, and so as that the Divine purposes MUST
FINALLY BE ACCOMPLISHED!
Eli
then and his sons may suffer forfeit
of the promise by not fulfilling the obligations which,
whether expressed or
implied, are an essential condition of every promise made
by God to man.
But the high priesthood will continue, and will perform its
allotted task of
preparing for the priesthood of Christ. “Them
that honor me I will honour,”
states one of these conditions essential on man’s part to
secure the fulfillment
of
God’s promises.
A Message of Approaching Judgment (vs.
27-30)
1. This message came
from God, who observed, as He ever does, the sins
of
His people, and especially His ministers, with much displeasure, and after
long forbearance resolved to punish them (Amos 3:2; I Peter. 4:17).
2. It came through a
man whose name has not been recorded, and who was
probably unknown to him to whom he was sent. When God sends a
message it matters little by whom it is brought. He often makes His most
important communications in a way the world does not expect, and by
men
who
are unknown to fame. The authority of the Lord invests His
messengers with dignity and power. And their best credentials are
that they
“commend themselves to the
conscience” (II Corinthians 4:2).
3. It came through a “man
of God,” a seer, a prophet, and not directly from
God to Eli, the high priest. He chooses for special service men who
live
near to him, and are in sympathy with His purposes, in preference to those
who
occupy official positions, but are possessed of little personal worth.
For a long season no prophet had spoken (Judges 4:4; 6:8; 13:6); and
when the silence of heaven is suddenly broken, it is an intimation that great
changes are impending.
4. It came some time
before the events which it announced actually
transpired. “The Lord is slow to anger” (Nahum
1:3), and executes
judgment only after repeated warnings. Predictions which are
absolute in
form must often be understood as in their fulfillment conditioned by the
moral state of those whom they concern (Jeremiah 18:7-10; Jonah
3:4, 9-10).
The purpose for which this message was sent was to lead to
repentance, and it was not until all hope of it had disappeared that
the blow
fell. (America and the world's nations and peoples
need to ponder this!
CY - 2016)In substance the message
contains:
God, and shown:
Ø By the revelation of Himself to those who were in a condition of abject
servitude
(v. 27).
Ø By His selection of some, in
preference to others, for exalted and
honorable
service (v. 28).
Ø By His liberal provision for
them out of the
offerings made by the people
to Himself.
Religious privileges always involve responsibilities, and should
be
faithfully used out of gratitude for their bestowment.
for which the priests were endowed with these privileges was
not the
promotion of their own honor and interest, but the honor of God and
the
welfare of His people. But they acted in opposition to that
purpose.
Ø By irreverence and self-will in His service. “Wherefore do ye trample
under foot my sacrifice?”
Ø By disobedience to His will. “Which I have commanded.”
Ø By pleasing others in preference to
Him. “And
honorest thy sons above
me.” Eli’s toleration of the conduct of his sons, from regard to
their
interest
and his own ease, involved him in their guilt.
Ø By self-enrichment out of the religious
offerings of the people. The
idol
which
man in sin sets up in the place of God can be none other than
HIMSELF! He makes self and self-satisfaction the highest aim of life. To
self his
efforts ultimately tend, however the modes and directions of sin may
vary. The
innermost essence of sin, the ruling and penetrating principle, in
all its
forms, is selfishness. When men use the gifts of God for selfish ends
they
render themselves liable to be deprived of
those gifts, and to be
punished for their misuse.
which God acts in His procedure with men (v. 30). They have been
apt to
suppose that privileges bestowed upon themselves or inherited from
their
ancestors were absolutely their own, and would be certainly
continued. But
it is far otherwise; for:
Ø The fulfilment of
the promises of God and the continuance of religious
privileges
depend on the ethical relation in which men stand toward Him.
His covenant
with Levi was “for the fear with which he feared me”
(Malachi 2:6-7);
but when his descendants lost that fear they
“corrupted the covenant,” and ceased to have any claim upon its
promised
blessings.
It was the same with the Jews who in after ages vainly boasted
that they
were “the
children of Abraham.” In the sight of the Holy One
righteousness is everything, hereditary descent nothing, except in so far as
it is promotive of righteousness.
Ø Faithful service is rewarded. HONOR FOR HONOR. “Them that
honor me I will honor.” Consider:
o
The ground:
not merely His relationship as moral Governor, but His
beneficence
in bestowing the gifts of nature, providence, and grace.
o
The method:
in thought, word, and deed.
o
The reward:
his approbation, continued service, extended usefulness,
etc.
Ø Unfaithful conduct is punished. Promises and threatenings
are made to
individuals
because they are in a particular state of character; but they
belong to
all who are in that state, for "God is no respecter of persons.”
“He
will give to every man according to his works.”
of Eli (vs. 31-34). Consisting of:
Ø The deprivation of strength, which had been abused. Their power would
be broken
(Zechariah 11:17).
Ø The shortening of life, the prolonging of which in the case of Eli had
been an occasion of evil rather than of good. “There shall not be an old
man in thine house
forever;” the result
of weakness; repeated in v. 32.
Ø The
loss of prosperity;
the temporal benefits that would otherwise have
been
received. “Thou shalt see distress of dwelling in all
that brings
prosperity
to Israel.”
Ø The infliction of misery on those who continue, for a while, to minister
at the altar,
and of violent death (v. 33; 22:18).
Ø Although these things would not take place
at once, their
commencement, as a sign of what would follow, would be witnessed by Eli
himself
in the sudden death of the two chief offenders “in one day” (ch. 4:11)
If anything
could rouse the house of Eli to “flee from the
wrath to come,” surely such a fearful message as this was
adapted to do so.
Fear
of coming wrath, although it never makes men truly religious, may,
and often does, arouse and restrain them,
and bring them under the
influence of other and higher motives. The closing sentences contain:
that which had proved faithless (vs. 35-36). “I
will raise up a faithful
priest,” etc., i.e. a
line of faithful men to accomplish the work for which the
priesthood has been appointed, and to enjoy the privileges which the
house
of Eli has forfeited. In contrast with that house, it will do
my will, and I
will cause it to endure; and it will continue to live in
intimate fellowship
and cooperation with the anointed kings of
that the surviving members of the fallen house will be entirely
dependent
upon it for a “piece of bread.” The prediction was
first of all fulfilled in
Samuel, who by express
commission from God acted habitually as a priest;
and afterwards in Zadok, in whom the
line of Eleazar was restored; but the
true underlying idea of a priest, like that of a king, has its full realization in
JESUS CHRIST
ALONE! The gloomiest of prophetic
messages generally
conclude with words of promise and hope.
Honor and Dishonor (v. 30)
Concerning the moral attitude assumed by men toward
God, which is here
described, observe:
Our relation to others is a
light thing compared with what it is to Him. This
is everything; and knowledge, power, riches, reputation, etc.
nothing.
Ø Because of His nature (“There
is none holy as the Lord”), His
government
(moral, supreme, universal), and His claims. It is the
effectual
test of our character, what we are really and essentially.
Ø It is the principal means of
forming and strengthening it. What are we in
His sight?
What does He think of me?
“Honor me.” “Despise me.”
Ø
Honor; by reverence (the fundamental principle of the
religious life),
trust,
prayer, obedience, fidelity, living to His glory.
Ø Despise; by forgetfulnesss, unbelief, self-will,
pride, selfishness,
disobedience, sin of every kind.
Ø There is no other alternative. “For
me or against me” (Exodus
32:26; Jeremiah
8:1; Matthew 6:24; 7:13-14; 12:30).
CONSEQUENCES. “I
will honor.” “Shall be lightly esteemed.”
Ø Honor; by His friendship, appointment to honorable service, giving
success
therein, open acknowledgment before men here and hereafter.
“Enter
thou into the joy of thy Lord.”
Ø Lightly esteemed; by Himself, men, angels, despised even by
themselves,
and cast
away among the vile. “He that sayeth
his life shall lose it.”
(Luke 9:24)
Ø There is a strict correspondence between
character and consequences,
both
generally and particularly, in kind and measure. And the joy and
misery of
the future will be the consummation and the ripened fruit of
WHAT
EXISTS NOW! (Galatians 6:7).
ABSOLUTELY CERTAIN.
Men often think otherwise. But “be not
deceived.” Consider:
Ø The natural constitution and
tendencies of things, as ordained by Him
who is “above
all, and in all, and through all.” (Ephesians 4:6)
Ø The recorded and observed facts of
life.
Ø The express declarations of Him “who
cannot lie.” (Titus 1:2)
“I will honor.” “They shall be lightly esteemed.”
Office Nothing without Character (v. 30)
The worthlessness of rank or hereditary position without
corresponding
wisdom or virtue is a commonplace of moral reflection. But it is
startling
to
find how strongly it is affirmed in Holy Writ of those who hold high
office in the house of God. The priesthood in
in
point of fact the regularity of the succession was often broken; but such
hereditary office was never meant to protect unworthy men like the sons of
Eli. Their position was forfeited by their misconduct, and their
priestly
functions were transferred to other hands. The principle is for all time, and
for
general application. Does one reach and occupy a high station in the
Church? No matter what his line of “holy orders” may be, or who laid
hands of ordination on his head, or what functions he is held
competent to
perform, he must be judged by this test — Does he honor God in his
office, or honor and serve
himself? Does he so live and act as to
commend and glorify Christ? And the same test must be applied to
the man
professing himself a Christian who occupies a throne on the earth, or
who
holds high dignity in the state, or who has power as a writer or
an orator
over the minds of men, or who as a capitalist has great means and
opportunities of usefulness. Does he in his station glorify God? If not,
his
rank, or office, or grand position avails him nothing.
this implies. To know Him truly, to reverence
and love Him. In vain any
verbal or formal homage without the honor rendered by the heart
(see
Matthew 15:8). He whose heart cleaves to God will show it in his daily
conduct. He will be careful to consult God’s word for direction,
and
observe His statutes. He will openly respect God’s ordinances,
and give
cheerfully for their maintenance, and for the furtherance of
righteous and
charitable objects. He will honor the Lord with his substance, and with
the first fruits of all his increase. He will worship God
with his family, and
teach his children “the fear of the
Lord.” In
his place or station he will
make it his aim, and hold it his chief end, to glorify God.
And, without any
vaunting or ostentation, he will show his colors — avow his faith
and
hope openly. The boy king,
Edward VI., showed his colors when he sat
— alas!
for how short a time — on the English throne. So did
Sir
Matthew Hale on the bench, and
Robert Boyle in the Royal Society, and
William
Wilberforce in the highest circles of political life. So did Dr.
Simpson among their patients in
counting house at
These men were not in what are
called religious offices; but, in such offices
or positions as
religious, God fearing men. And
others there are in places and callings
more obscure who are quite as worthy of esteem; those who, in
houses of
business among scoffing companions, in servants’ halls, in
workshops, in
barrack rooms, in ships’ forecastles, meekly but firmly honor the
Lord,
and ennoble a lowly calling by fidelity to conscience and to
God. The Lord
sees and remembers all who honor Him. (II Timothy 2:19) Nay,
He honors
them; but after His own manner, not after the fashion of the
world. He honors
faithful servants in this world by giving them more work to do. He
honors
true witnesses by extending the range for their testimony.
Sometimes He
honors those with whom He is well pleased by appointing them to
suffer
for His cause. Paul evidently deemed this a high honor.
Witness his
words to the Philippians: “Unto you it is given in the behalf of
Christ, not
only to believe in his name, but also to suffer for his sake.” Some He calls
away in early years out of the world, but they leave behind a
fragrant
honored name, and they go to “glory, honour, and immortality” (Romans
2:7) in a better land. It is
right to value the good opinion of our fellow men;
but there are always drawbacks and dangers in connection with
honor which
comes from man. In seeking it one is tempted to tarnish his
simplicity of
character, and weaken his self-respect. There is a risk of envying
more
successful, or exulting over less successful competitors for
distinction. But it
need never be so in seeking “the
honor which comes from God only.”
(John 5:44) We seek it best not when we push ourselves
forward, but when
we deny ourselves, honor Him, and by love serve the brethren.
And then in
our utmost success we have
no ground of self-glorying, for all is of
grace.
Nor is there room for grudging
or envying. With the Lord there is grace
enough to help all who would serve him, and glory enough to reward
all who serve him faithfully.
esteemed.” Despise the Lord God Almighty! Amazing insolence of the
human heart, yet not
infrequent. The sons of Eli openly slighted Jehovah by
their rapacity in the priest’s office, and their profaning the
precincts of His
house with their debauchery. Long after this, priests of
by the prophet Malachi for despising the name of the Lord of
hosts,
making His table contemptible by laying on it polluted bread, and
dishonoring His altar by offering maimed animals in sacrifice. The
warning
then, in the first instance, is to those who
bear themselves profanely or
carelessly in sacred offices,
and in familiar contact with religious service.
But the sin is one which soon
spreads among the people. Ezekiel
charged
the people of
profaned His sabbaths” (Ezekiel 22:8). This sin is a common thing in
Christendom. Men do not in terms deny God’s existence, but make light of
Him; never read His
word with any seriousness; never pray unless they are
ill or afraid; count Church service and instruction a
weariness. The base
gods of the heathen receive more respect and consideration from
their
votaries. Allah has far more reverence from the Moslem than the
great God
of heaven and earth obtains from multitudes who pass as
Christians. They
live as if He had no right to command them, and no power to judge
them.
They lift their own will and
pleasure to the throne, and despise the Lord of
hosts. With
what result? They shall be lightly esteemed. Even in this world,
and this life, the ungodly miss the best distinctions. They are not the men
who gather about them the highest confidence or most lasting
influence
and esteem. After they leave the world, a few are remembered
who had
rare force of character or an unusually eventful career; but
how the rest are
forgotten! A few natural tears from their nearest kindred, a few
inquiries
among friends about the amount and disposal of their property, a
decorous
silence about themselves on the principle that nothing but what is
good
should be said of the dead, and so their memory perishes.
But all is not
over. A TERRIBLE HEREAFTER
AWAITS the despisers of the Lord.
“As a dream when
one awaketh; so, O Lord, when thou awakest, thou shalt
despise their image.” (Psalm 73:20)
The clear alternative in this text is one
that cannot be evaded. One
may try to assume a negative attitude, and allege
that he remains in a state of suspense, and does not find the
recognition of a
Divine Being
to be an imperative necessity; but this is practically to despise
the Lord — making light of his word, and pronouncing his very
existence to
be a matter of doubtful truth and of secondary importance. Reject not
wisdom’s counsel; despise
not her reproof. “Today, if ye will hear the
voice of the Lord, harden not your hearts.” (Hebrews 3:7-8)
31 "Behold, the days come, that I will cut off thine arm, and the arm of
thy father’s
house, that there shall not be an old man in thine
house."
I will cut off thine arm. The arm is the usual metaphor for
strength. As Eli had preferred
the exaltation of his sons to God’s honor,
he is condemned to see the strength of his house broken. Nay, more; there
is not to be an “old man in his house.” The young
men full of energy and
vigor perish by the sword; the Survivors fade away by
disease. The Jews
say that the house of Ithamar was
peculiarly short-lived, but the prophecy
was amply fulfilled in the slaughter of Eli’s house, first
at
at Nob by Doeg
the Edomite at the command of Saul. (ch. 22) There is
nothing
to warrant an abiding curse upon his family. The third or
fourth generation is
the limit of the visitation of the sins of the fathers upon
the children.
32 "And thou shalt see an enemy
in my habitation, in all the wealth
which God shall
give
house for
ever." Thou shalt
see an enemy. The translation of v. 32 is very
difficult, but is probably as follows: “And thou shalt behold, i.e. see with
wonder and astonishment, narrowness of habitation in all
the wealth which
shall be given unto
“enemy,” but as that for habitation is the most
general term in the Hebrews
language for a dwelling, being used even of the dens of
wild beasts
(Jeremiah 9:10; Nahum 2:12), the rendering an “enemy of
dwelling”
gives no sense. Hence the violent insertion of the pronoun my,
for which
no valid excuse can be given. But narrowness
of dwelling, means distress,
especially in a man’s domestic relations, and this is the
sense required. In
the growing public and national prosperity which was to be
under Samuel, Saul, David, and Solomon, Eli was to see, not in
person, but
prophetically, calamity attaching itself to his own family. His house was to
decay in the midst of the progress of all the rest. Upon
this denunciation of
private distress naturally follows the repetition of the
threat that the house
of Ithamar should be left without
an old man to guide its course onward to
renewed prosperity.
33 "And the man of thine, whom I
shall not cut off from mine altar,
shall be to
consume thine eyes, and to grieve thine
heart: and all
the increase of thine house shall die in the flower of their age."
The man of thine, etc. The meaning of the Hebrews is here
again changed by the insertion of words not in the
original. Translated
literally the sense is good, but merciful, and this the
Authorized Version
has so rendered as to make it the most bitter of all
denunciations. The Hebrews
is, “Yet I will not cut off every one of thine from my altar, to consume thine
eyes
and to grieve thy soul;” that is, thy punishment shall not
be so utter as to leave
thee with no consolation; for thy descendants, though
diminished in
numbers, and deprived of the highest rank, shall still
minister as priests at
mine altar. “But the majority of try house —
literally, the multitude of thy house
— shall die as men.” This is very well rendered in the
Authorized Version “in the
flower of their age,” only we must not explain this of dying of disease. They were
to die in their vigor, not, like children and old men, in
their beds, but by
violent deaths, such as actually befell them at
34 "And this shall be a sign unto thee, that shall come
upon thy two
sons, on Hophni and Phinehas; in one day
they shall die both of them."
With this the sign here given exactly agrees. Hophni and
Phinehas died fighting valiantly in battle, and then came the
sacking of
this followed a long delay. For first Eli’s grandson, Ahitub, the son of
Phinehas, was high priest, and then his two sons, Ahiah and Ahimelech,
and then Abiathar, the son of Ahimelech. It was in Ahimelech’s
days that
the slaughter took place at Nob,
from which the house of Ithamar seems
never to have fully recovered.
35 "And I will raise me up a faithful priest, that shall
do according to
that which is in
mine heart and in my mind: and I will build him a
sure house; and
he shall walk before mine anointed for ever."
I will raise me up
a faithful priest. This prophecy is explained in three several ways,
of Samuel, of Zadok, and of
Christ.
at length in his ‘De Civ. Dei,’
17:5, argues that it cannot be reasonably said that a
change in the priesthood foretold with so great
circumstance was fulfilled in Samuel.
But while we grant that it was an essential characteristic
of Jewish prophecy to
be ever larger than the immediate fulfillment, yet its
primary meaning must
never be slurred over, as if it were a question of slight
importance. By the
largeness of its terms, the grandeur of the hopes it
inspired, and the
incompleteness of their immediate accomplishment, the Jews were taught
to look ever onward, and so became a Messianic people. Granting then
that Christ and His Church are the object and end of this
and of all
prophecy, the question narrows itself to this — In whom was
this
prediction of a faithful priest primarily fulfilled? We
answer, Not in Zadok,
but in Samuel. Zadok was a
commonplace personage, of whom little or
nothing is said after the time that he joined David with a
powerful
contingent (I Chronicles 12:28). Samuel is the one person
in Jewish
history who approaches the high rank of
(Jeremiah 15:1). The argument that he was a Levite, and not
a priest,
takes too narrow and technical a view of the matter; for
the essence of the
priesthood lies not in the offering of sacrifice, but in
mediation. Sacrifice is
but an accident, being the appointed method by which the
priest was to
mediate between God and man. As a matter of fact, Samuel
often did
discharge priestly functions (ch.
7:9, 17; 13:8, where we find Saul reproved for
invading Samuel’s office; ch.
16:2), and it is a point to be kept in mind that the
regular priests disappear from Jewish history for about
fifty years after the
slaughter of themselves, their wives, and families at
Saul’s time that Ahiah, the
great-grandson of Eli, appears, as once again ministering
at the altar (ch. 14:3). The
calamity that overtook the nation at the end of Eli’s reign
was so terrible that all ordinary ministrations seem to
have been in abeyance. We are
even expressly told that after the recovery of the ark it was
placed in the house
of Abinadab at Kirjath-jearim in
Eleazar, though a Levite only, ministered there before it by no
regular
consecration, but by the appointment of the men of that
town. During this
time, though Ahitub, Ahiah’s father, was probably high priest nominally,
yet nothing is said of him, and all the higher functions of
the office were
exercised by Samuel. Instead of the Urim
and Thummim, he as prophet
was the direct representative of the theocratic king.
Subsequently this great
duty was once again discharged by Abiathar
as priest, and then a mighty
change was made, and the
prophets with the living voice of inspiration
took the place of the
priest with the ephod. For this is a far more important
matter than even the fact that Samuel performed the higher
functions of the
priesthood. With him a new order of things began. Prophecy,
from being
spasmodic and irregular, became an established institution,
and took its
place side by side with the priesthood in preparing for
Christ’s advent, and
in forming the Jewish nation to be the evangelizers of the
world. The
prediction of this organic change followed the rule of all
prophecy in taking
its verbal form and expression from what was then existent.
Just as the
gospel dispensation is always described under figures taken
from the
Jewish Church and commonwealth, so Samuel, as the founder
of the
prophetic schools, and of the new order of things which
resulted from
them, is described to Eli under terms taken from his priestly
office. He was
a “faithful priest,” and much more,
just as our Lord was a “prophet like
unto Moses”
(Deuteronomy 18:15), and a “King set upon the holy hill
of
at the time when these prophecies were spoken. As regards the specific terms
of the prophecy, “the building of a sure house” (ch. 25:28; II Samuel 7:11;
I Kings 2:24, 11:38; Isaiah 32:18) is a metaphor
expressive of assured prosperity.
The mass of the Israelites dwelt in tents
(II Samuel 11:11; 20:1, etc.; I Kings
12:16), and to have a fixed and permanent dwelling was a
mark of
greatness. From such passages as I Kings 2:24; 11:38, it is
plain that
the idea of founding a family is not contained in the
expression. As a matter
of fact, Samuel’s family was prosperous, and his grandson Heman had high
rank in David’s court and numerous issue (I Chronicles
25:5).
Probably too the men of Ramah, who with the men of the
Levite town of
Gaba made up a total of 621 persons (Nehemiah 7:30),
represented the
descendants of Samuel at the return from
contrast is between the migratory, life in tents and the
ease and security of
a solid and firm abode, and the terms of the promise are
abundantly
fulfilled in Samuel’s personal greatness.
In the promise, “he shall walk before mine anointed
forever,” there is the
same outlook upon the office of king, as if already in
existence, which we
observed in Hannah’s hymn (ch.
2:10). Apparently the expectation that Jehovah
was about to anoint, i.e. consecrate, for them some
one to represent Him in civil
matters and war, as the high priest represented Him in
things spiritual, had taken
possession of the minds of the people. It had been clearly
promised them, and
regulations for the office made (Deuteronomy 17:14-20); and
it was to be Samuel’s
office to fulfill this wish, and all his life through he
held a post of high dignity in
the kingdom.
But the promise has also a definite meaning as regards the prophets,
in
whom Samuel lived on. For St. Augnstine’s
error was in taking Samuel
simply in his personal relations, whereas he is the
representative of the
whole prophetic order (Acts 3:24). They were his successors
in his
work, and continued to be the
recognized mediators to declare to king and
people the will of
Jehovah, who was the supreme authority in both Church
and state; and in political matters they were the appointed
check upon the
otherwise absolute power of the kings, with whose appointment
their own
formal organization exactly coincided. From Samuel’s time
prophet and
king walked together till the waiting period began which
immediately
preceded the nativity of Christ.
A Faithful Priest (v. 35)
In the strictest sense Christ alone is now a Priest. In Himself
assuming the
office, He has forever abolished it in others. Hence none are
called priests in
the
New Testament, except in the modified sense in which all who believe
in
Him are so called (I Peter 2:9; Revelation 1:6). But taking the
expression as equivalent to “a faithful ministry,” consisting of men
appointed by Christ to a special service for Him (Malachi 2:6-7;
Acts 6:4; Ephesians 4:11; Colossians 1:7; II Timothy 2:2), and
faithfully
fulfilling the purpose of their appointment, it leads us to notice:
Ø HE ALONE can do it. From Him come natural gifts and, still more, spiritual
graces,
eminent faith and patience, humility, courage, meekness, tender
compassion
“on
the ignorant and on them that are out of the way,”
(Hebrews 5:2)
Ø He has promised and made provision
for it (Jeremiah 3:15). “I will
build him a sure (enduring) house.” The death of
Christ hath a great
influence
unto this gift of the ministry. It is a branch that grew out of the
grave of
Christ; let it be esteemed as lightly as men please, had not Christ
died for
it we had not had a ministry in the world. He “will be inquired of”
for it.
If Churches would have “good ministers of Jesus Christ,” they must
seek them
from God (Matthew 9:38).
heart and in my mind.”
Ø Supreme regard to His will as the rule of character and labor.
Ø Clear insight into His mind in relation to the special requirements of the
time,
place, and circumstances.
Ø Practical, earnest, and constant devotion to it in all things, the least as
well as
the greatest. Even as “Christ himself.” “I have given you an
example.”
anointed forever.”
Ø Enjoyment of the King’s favor (Proverbs 16:15).
Ø Employment in the King’s service; in continued, honorable,
beneficent,
and
increasing cooperation with Him.
Ø Participation in the King’s glory forever. “Be thou faithful unto death,”
(Revelation
2:10). “To him that overcometh will I grant to sit
with me
in
my throne” (Revelation
3:21).
36 "And it shall come to pass, that every one that is
left in thine house
shall come and
crouch to him for a piece of silver and a morsel of
bread, and shall
say, Put me, I pray thee, into one of the priests’
offices, that I
may eat a piece of bread." Piece of silver is
literally a small
silver coin got by begging and the word marks the extreme
penury into which
the race of Eli fell. Gathered round the sanctuary at
sufferers by its ruin, and we have noticed how for a time they fall entirely out of
view. During the miserable
period of Philistine domination which followed,
Samuel became to
the oppressed nation a center of hope, and by wise government
he first reformed
the people internally, and then gave them freedom from foreign
rule. During this period we may be sure that he did much to
raise from
their misery the descendants of Eli, and finally Ahiah, Eli’s grandson,
ministers as high priest before Saul. Though his grandson, Abiathar, was
deposed from the office by Solomon, there is no reason for
imagining that
the family ever again fell into distress, nor do the terms
of the prophecy
warrant such a supposition.
Impending Retribution (vs. 27-36)
The facts in this section are:
1. A Divine message
declares to Eli the coming doom of his house.
2. The justice of the judgment
is brought home to him by a reference to
past privileges enjoyed and sins committed.
3. A painful sign of
the certainty of the whole prediction being ultimately
fulfilled is given in a reference to the sudden death of his
two sons, in due
time to be realized.
4. Another faithful
servant of God is to be raised up to vindicate the
honor which has been despised. The patience of God in
allowing men free
scope to develop what is in them has its limits. Eli and his
sons, though
differing in kind and degree of sin, alike are amenable to a
LAW which
must
be
maintained. Although the sons were in
the ordinary sense the most
guilty, it is significant that the weight of the doom here
indicated is
intended to fall on the aged parent, thus showing to all
ages the solemn
responsibility attached to public conduct, and the
certainty of terrible
chastisement of official transgressors, even though they be
not cut off from
the covenant mercies that cover sin and save the soul.
REASSERT THEMSELVES. Eli got rid of the pressing duty of punishing
his sons by substituting a paternal remonstrance, and thus for
the time
evaded the pain of suppressing the urgency of personal affection and
the
distress of a family exposure. But “duty” never dies; and the
trouble it
entails, always passing away when duty is done, continues in aggravated
form when duty is neglected. No safer rule in life than to do duty when it is
due. The demands of justice
will be asserted sooner or later, and
they
gather in force the more they are shunned. The whole visible and
invisible
forces of nature, the undeveloped resources that lie in the womb
of the
future, are on the side
of right, and will converge some day on its
maintenance. The first trouble in the path of duty is the least.
Embarrassments are born of
procrastination; for the rule applicable to
imperfect knowledge in the midst of difficult circumstances does not
apply
to the clear decisions of conscience. No time should ever be lost in
vindicating the honor of God, the purity of the sanctuary, and the claims
of national righteousness.
If we do not execute God’s will
because of the
personal inconvenience and pain it may cause, He will execute it by
other
means, and nameless griefs shall follow us. History shows how true this is
in national, Church, domestic, and private life.
given, and THEY BECOME in their immediate effects PART OF THE
RETRIBUTION. Many
are the “servants” of God that come visibly or
invisibly to the disobedient with intimations of what is in store
for them.
The “man of God” who came to
Eli is representative of the forms of the
Divine voice which comes to the
guilty to disturb the ease they had hoped
for in neglecting onerous duties. To the fraudulent, the
sensual, the
unrighteous ruler, the unfaithful parent and pastor, conscience,
leading
events, and converging circumstances tell the sad tale of coming
woe. The
lines of justice are straight, and the wicked are compelled to
look along
them far ahead. Two important elements enter into the
forebodings of
coming retribution.
Ø A revived power of conscience. The privileges and favors conferred on
the house
of Eli are brought home to the dormant conscience in contrast
with his
personal and official conduct. So likewise, by the interaction of the
laws of
thought, or by converging of painful events, or by some strong
passage
of Scripture, or by a faithful friend, or by the silent, reflected light
of some
holy Christian life, the privileges and favors of bygone years are
flashed
before the spirit, to the sudden terror and quickened action of
conscience.
Past mercies cannot be thought of in isolation; by a well known
mental
law they raise up the ghosts of former sins committed in the face of
mercies. As the aged Eli saw the truth of the words of the “man
of God,”
so do
others see their former selves, and feel their inward condemnation.
Ø A conviction of the fixed character of coming events. “Behold, the days
COME.” The guilty man sees the dismal train of
events, and knows, on
highest
authority, that the decree is fixed. To the prophetic eye the future is
as the
present; events that are to be are recorded on the spirit as done, with
all their
natural effects realized by the discerning mind. Nature, with her
usual
quiet certainty, was at work elaborating events out of the sins
perpetrated
by father and sons; and therefore to the Hebrew mind that
recognizes
nature only as the dumb instrument of the Eternal, the coming
disasters
are recognized properly as the fixed elements of the deserved
retribution. There is the same conviction in others who have
sinned. The
human mind,
in spite of its sins, answers to the course of nature. It mirrors
in its
conviction of certain punishment the regularity and fixity with which
the laws
of nature are at work. In the instance of many a man, powers have
been set at
work by his sins in virtue of the operation of which:
o
family
reputation will fade and perish;
o
premature
decay will fall to the lot of descendants;
o
sorrow
and trouble will cast shadows over their pathway; and
o
life
generally will be marred.
Yes; and he
knows it now. The committal of sin is as the unloosing of forces
of ill
which enter of necessity into all the ramifications of subsequent life.
The sorrow and pain consequent
on this certain knowledge is no
slight
element in
the retribution experienced.
UNBORN, AND THE UNBORN THROUGH THE LIVING. Sin injures
and degrades the sinner, but does not end in himself. Every
being is related
to every other being. Interactions are as real and constant
in the moral
sphere as in the sphere of physics. An act of
sin is an act of will, and
therefore the production of a wave of influence which moves on and
modifies the totality of life.
Wisely and beautifully, then, does the Bible
teach truth in harmony with the usual order of things when it
represents
Eli’s sin as:
o
cutting off the arm (strength) of his father’s house,
o
shortening the days of his children,
o
lowering their position in the world, and causing
them to bear the sorrow of
seeing a culmination of their
ancestor’s sin in the “presence of an enemy” to mar the
wealth of blessing properly enjoyed by
Ø A general law is exemplified
in Eli’s punishment. The Bible teaches that
the sins
of the fathers bring woe on children. The course of nature
establishes
the fact. No man can give out from himself any influence above
what his
real constitution and character are fitted to produce. A defective
moral
courage works detrimentally on descendants by example as truly as
do
imperfect manners. Social laws insure that a lost reputation modifies the
relative
position of offspring. The
degenerate habits of a Hophni and a
Phinehas
cannot but lessen the years and enfeeble the moral and physical
vigor of several generations. God’s laws are uniform in all ages and
climes.
The experience of Eli’s family is repeated in the home of the
drunkard,
the sensual, the educationally neglected, the morally weak, and
in the
effects of wicked statesmanship. But the law has two aspects. The
living
affect the unborn, but also the known future condition of the unborn
affects
the condition of the living. Wisely
men are constituted so as to be
deeply
affected by what may happen to their future reputation and their
descendants. That the good fame of his house should perish; that his
descendants
should be reduced in social position, and variously injured in
consequence
of the guilt of himself and sons, was a bitter element in Eli’s
punishment. Nor is this a rare case, for as a rule men are more
influenced
by what
comes to their children than by what personal pain they themselves
suffer.
In his descendants man sees himself repeated in multiplied form.
Ø The general law is subject to limitations. The evil that comes to
posterity
through sin of ancestors does not shut out from the mercy that
saves the
soul. Disgrace, loss of health, early death, poverty
may be part of
the curse
of a father’s sin; but through
the mercy of God in Christ these
sufferers may find renewal of spirit, pardon, and eternal life. “By
one man’s
disobedience” we all have suffered physically and spiritually; but by one
Redeemer
we may find power to
become the true children of God. (Romans
5:19) It is true Eli’s
descendants, if renewed, would not become so good and
physically
perfect men as though the ancestors had not sinned; and we on
earth,
though saved in Christ, cannot be so physically perfect as though the
curse had
never fallen on us; yet
the spirit will at length be set free from the
bondage of corruption, and be perfect before God.
Ø This law is a great and beneficent power in life. Those who rail against
these
Biblical announcements of retribution, because they affect
descendants,
are profoundly ignorant or perverse. The Bible tells only what
is in
nature, with the additional information that God vindicates His holiness
by what
occurs in nature. Any objection to the Biblical doctrine is
therefore,
this fact being admitted, the
result of a perverse spirit. Human
experience
testifies how beneficially the law of retribution works in
ordinary
affairs. No arithmetic can calculate the amount of woe escaped by
the
restraining action of a knowledge of this law on human tendencies. On
the other
hand, the reverse side of the law — the
reward of goodness in the
happiness of a posterity — is one of the most healthful
stimulants and
guides of human exertion. It is only the morally indisposed that do
not like
law. Did
we but know the whole intricate relationships of a moral universe
stretching
through all time, even the
severest laws would then be seen to be
an expression of BROADEST BENEVOLENCE!
AN ULTIMATE PURPOSE IS COMPATIBLE WITH THE
REALIZATION OF THAT PURPOSE. As factors in the development of
the Jewish economy, both Eli and his sons were instruments in
preparing
the way for the coming Messiah and the final supremacy of His
kingdom.
The house of Ithamar
inherited, in common with others, the promise made
to the Aaronic house. As long as
there was need for an earthly high priest
to shadow forth the enduring high priesthood of Christ, the
promise (v. 30)
to Aaron would hold good. But the completion of that purpose
was
not frustrated by the disgrace and displacement of the section
of the house
represented by Eli in consequence of unfaithfulness. God has, in His
foreknowledge of what will be required, as also in His resources to
provide
for the erratic action of human wills according to that
foreknowledge,
legions awaiting His creative call to come forth and prepare the
way for the
Christ. He who could “of
these stones raise up children to Abraham”
(Matthew 3:9) was at no loss to
dispense with the leadership in His ancient
Church of a
degenerate family. If the old injured
instruments are judicially
confined to lower forms of service, as in the case of Ahiah, grandson of
Phinehas (ch. 14:3), a holy Samuel is
raised up for the emergency till a Zadok
assumes the orderly high priestly functions; thus teaching us that
in spite of
all sins and their punishment the
rise and fall, dark seasons of priestly corruption may afflict
the Church,
apostates may spread consternation; but, foreseeing all, the Eternal
has in
reserve, and is quietly sending forth, men like Samuel and David
and Paul
and Luther, men who shall not cease to be employed in the high
service of
the “Anointed” even
when they cease to speak by words.
Ø It is worth considering how
much is lost to the world of mental and
physical power by the indwelling of sin, and what a valuable
contribution
to
the sum total of a nation’s welfare is a righteous life, by conserving and
improving
and making the most of all the powers of body and mind.
Ø The essential folly of all sin is capable of being illustrated in what it
entails,
fails to avoid, and also takes
away from the elements of individual
and public well being.
Ø There is a philosophical argument in
support of the claims of Christianity
in the
fact that, as it seeks, and is proved by numerous facts to have the
power of
perfecting, the moral life, it thereby contains the solution of all
our
physical and economical difficulties, and needs only to become actual
in
individual life to constitute a real millennium.
Ø There is ample ground in history for
confidence in the vindication of
right,
even though rulers may for a season avoid disaster.
Ø In the lives of most men there must be
seasons when they are visited by
a
messenger from God; and it is a question whether, if that messenger be
disregarded,
another may not come bringing tidings of more terrible things.
Ø In any case, where by former sins physical
and social evils have come on
others,
it is an encouragement to know that we
may labor to bring those
so suffering to the great Physician for
spiritual healing, and that the
spiritual health will in some measure counteract
the inherited evils.
Ø The comforting aspect of retribution lies
in that for every one who
suffers
from it, possibly thousands and millions indirectly gain permanent
good in
the influence it exerts on existing evils and on otherwise
forthcoming
evils; and also that the same purpose which thus works out
deserved judgment insures the fulfillment of all the
promises.
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