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Good morning my “Walking with Jesus” friends,
Have you ever been entrusted with a message of bad news, that you were asked to deliver to someone? What was the message? How long did you wrestle with the responsibility and how did you finally communicate that news? How was the bad news received?
We’re in 1 Samuel 3 today, beginning in verse 11. Samuel is young, perhaps 8-10 years old, or maybe a bit older. I see some gaps of time in his story, where he was growing up… 2:18,19 and between 2:26 & 27, and between the end of chapter 2 & beginning of chapter 3.
In chapter 3, Samuel is having a powerful encounter with God. In fact for the first time in his life, God awakened young Samuel from his sleep and is speaking audibly a profound and painful message to Samuel. In fact God said this was so significant it will make “…the ears of everyone who hears of it tingle.” (1 Samuel 3:11)
Samuel, you may recall, was living at Shiloh, and working each day at the Tabernacle of God, under the oversight of Eli the High Priest and his priestly sons Hophni and Phinehas. But by God’s description, Hophni and Phinehas were so wicked, God had determined they should die (1 Samuel 2:25) . God had sent a ‘man of God’ to Eli with a specific and painful message of judgement. We saw that in 1 Samuel 2:27-36.
We do not know if Samuel was aware of this prophet of doom visit with Eli, nor how much time had passed since that visit, but now Samuel is called by God into this mess. Listen to the message from God to Samuel: “At that time I will carry out against Eli everything I spoke against his family – from beginning to end. For I told him that I would judge his family forever because of the sins he knew about: his sons made themselves contemptible, and he failed to restrain them.” (1 Samuel 3:12,13)
Oh my, what a powerful statement of judgement! The next verse says Samuel lay down till morning. You’ll recall this was a middle of the night encounter with God. You’ll also remember 3:3 tells us Samuel was laying down in the Holy Place.
This was the place of worship where the priests entered each day to put hot coals & incense on the altar of incense as they prayed. Remember this was the place, about 1000 years later, in the Temple, where Zechariah the priest was praying when the angel Gabriel appeared to him with news that his prayers had been heard and God was going to bless he and Elizabeth his wife with a miracle son, John the Baptist. (Luke 1)
This Holy Place also had the golden lampstand which I’m sure Samuel was being taught how to trim the wicks and fill with oil. The lampstand flickering light, was symbolic of the light of God’s truth and His Holy presence with His people. Also this room had the table of ‘shewbread’ with the 12 loaves of fresh baked bread symbolic of the twelve tribes of Israel total dependence upon God for His supply of all they need at all times. Here’s an artists’ rendition which may help us imagine what this room was like for Samuel.
And of course Samuel knew that behind the veil, in the Most Holy Place, was something called the Ark of the Covenant, which we assume Samuel had never seen, but surely he had heard much about. All of these artifacts were fabricated by Holy Spirit anointed men, under Moses’ watchful eye, hundreds of years before, in the desert at Mount Sinai (Exodus 35-40). They had been brought here by Joshua as the people had followed him into God’s promised land, centuries before, and erected as the Tabernacle here, at Shiloh. (Joshua 18:1)
I doubt Samuel slept a wink that night, after his encounter with God… what do you think? He was now among those like Abraham, Jacob, Moses, and Joshua, men to whom God had spoken a clear message, which would require obedient, courageous action!
But for Samuel, this would mean speaking to old Eli, the High Priest, the man who was caring for Samuel and raising him as his own son. But the message that Samuel had received from God was terrible, painful, horrible. What should he do? What would he say when Eli will surely ask him about what happened in the night? What would you have done my friends? Oh the agony of this young man that night!
“Samuel lay down until morning and then opened the doors of the house of the LORD. He was afraid to tell Eli the vision, but Eli called him and said, ‘Samuel my son… what was it He said to you? Do not hide it from me. May God deal with you, be it ever so severely, if you hide from me anything He told you.” (1 Sam. 3:15-17)
Put yourself there. Eli knew Almighty God had visited Shiloh that night, but not to speak with him the High Priest, nor with his priestly sons. God had come to speak with young Samuel. How do you imagine that made Eli feel?
I imagine Samuel was quiet for a little while. Perhaps tears running down his young cheeks. Probably he was wringing his hands, maybe paced back and forth, looked away from Eli, perhaps prayed silently. Oh my, what should he say? What a terrifying message God had given him, yet Eli had now pronounced judgement on him if he didn’t tell Eli everything? Do you know the old phrase ‘stuck between a rock and a hard place’? Or maybe the phrase “a no win situation”? Silence… Silence…
Then finally, a deep breath and I would imagine with fear and some trembling Samuel spoke. Verse 18 says “So Samuel told Eli everything, hiding nothing from him.”
It must have knocked the wind out of old Eli. I imagine he turned away from Samuel. Perhaps they had been standing on the steps leading into the Tabernacle Holy Place, and I can see Eli looking into that Holy Place and remembering all the times that he had prayed there. I imagine Eli thought about Moses and Aaron, and times in the past when God’s judgment poured out from that place (Numbers 16:35). Eli had no defense, no excuse. All Eli could say was “He is the LORD, let Him do what is good in His eyes.”
Eli knew God is Holy, Compassionate, Loving, but God is also JUSTICE and Eli was guilty as charged. He and his sons had defiled the sacred office of priest, and the holy work of worship. Eli had failed miserably by allowing his wicked sons to mock God, in so many ways. It was only God’s mercy that had not struck Eli and his sons dead by now.
Now God was raising up a new spiritual leader, Samuel, and the time would soon come that God’s judgment would indeed fall on Eli and his sons. I imagine that day changed everything for all four of them!
There’s a gap of time described in verse 18-21, my friends. Listen: “The LORD was with Samuel as he grew up, and He let none of His words fall to the ground. And all Israel, from Dan to Beersheba recognized that Samuel was attested as a prophet of the LORD. The LORD continued to appear at Shiloh, and there He revealed Himself to Samuel through His Word. And Samuel’s word came to all Israel.”
Now that’s a powerful paragraph. God continued to visit Shiloh by the power of His Holy Spirit, instructing Samuel, as Samuel spent vast amounts of time reading the sacred scrolls of the Scriptures of God there. Perhaps Eli had some opportunity to teach Samuel what he had learned from those who taught him? We may presume there were more visions, in which God spoke directly to young Samuel, instructing him, over these years.
Do you notice Samuel came to be known by the people as a “prophet” not a “priest” like Hophni and Phinehas. There was a big difference between those two roles. A “prophet” was a person who received from God strong and powerful messages for the people and he delivered them with courage as “this is what the LORD says to you”. It was usually words of warning and calling the people to repentance and come back to God, from their spiritual drift. Historically, the people were judged severely by God if they disregarded the prophet’s message, which he had received from God.
The ‘priests’ were men who helped the people in their worship, with their sacrifices, and cared for the Tabernacle and all the artifacts inside. Do you see the big difference?
And the final line: “And Samuel’s word came to all Israel”. Oh, that’s a very strong statement. While Eli was officially the High Priest, clearly the hand of God’s anointing had been removed from him and was now on Samuel. Samuel was the young man now delivering God’s Word to the people. Old Eli was simply there, growing old and feeble.
I believe Eli knew God had set him aside, and it seems to me the best he could do was pray for and encourage Samuel, while he grieved his failure and he watched Hophni and Phinehas continue in their rebellious ways. God was raising up a new spiritual leader, Samuel.
This is a very powerful word from God today isn’t it my friends? Spiritual leadership is a very, very serious privilege and responsibility. God will not be mocked, and He will set aside spiritual leaders who do not fulfill His mandate for them well.
Parenting is also a serious privilege and responsibility and we parents will be called to account for how we parented, especially how we shaped the moral and spiritual character of our children. I think it’s time for some reflection isn’t it my friends?
Oh Lord God Almighty. . .
Have a comment or question about today’s chapter? I’m ready to hear from you, contact me here.
Pastor Doug Anderson 262.441.8785
“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, with our eyes fixed on Jesus…” (Heb. 12:1,2)
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