Sunday Sermons
Worthless Men
1 Samuel 2:11-12 Though they were priests, the sons of Eli are describe as not knowing the Lord. Note, one can be a preacher, deacon or elder and yet not have a relationship with God. In this sentence not knowing the Lord means that they had no regard or respect for the Lord. In other words they did not take God seriously, and they could not bring themselves to believe that God meant what He said or that the Scriptures accurately expressed His will. Added to all these, at the moment it appeared to them that they were violating His will yet nothing bad was happening. Someone noted that the bottom line of their philosophy that could have been etched on their tombstones was there’s no need to take God seriously. And of course if you do not take God seriously then there is no need to take your marriage seriously, or the rearing of your children, or such character traits as submission, faithfulness, sexual purity, humility, repentance or honesty. Those who are contending with Jehovah (2:10) are not the people we might expect, such as the Canaanites or Philistines; instead those who are contending with the Lord, in this context, are the priests! “Worthless men”: This may sound extremely harsh to modern ears when it is asserted that there is “some good” in all men, or that everyone has contributed something positive to this world, yet God will not allow us to whitewash this situation. These men were unfaithful, and as such they had made themselves worthless, because God could not use them for good (2 Timothy 2:21). 2:13-17 Their arrogant disregard for the worship of God is manifested in several ways. “A worshipper is cooking his portion of a peace offering for the post-sacrificial meal he and his family will enjoy together. Here comes the ubiquitous (ever present) priest’s servant with his infamous three-pronged barbecue fork; he plunges it into the worshipper’s pot or kettle, and whatever the fork brings up he carts away to the priest’s quarters. The priest was already allotted the breast and the right leg (Leviticus 7:28-36), but the Shiloh fork-man was sent to stab more. It was worse. Before the fat was burned in honor of Yahweh (Leviticus 3), the priest’s lackey appears demanding fresh (uncooked) cuts from the worshipper. Should the worshipper remind the priest’s man that proper reverence should be shown Yahweh by first burning the fat on the altar, the young cleric would turn thug and threaten to take raw meat by force” (Dale Ralph Davis p. 30). Carefully observe that how we respond to the details of God’s law on some point does reveal the condition of our heart. If we respect God then we will naturally respect His law, even if that law goes against our preference for how we might want our meat cooked. Our modern religious world is in like manner filled with religious thugs. That is, people who will jump all over you if you simply point out that what they are doing is not what the Bible says. In addition, these men demanded their portion before the Lord received His and they demanded their portion on their terms. They had forgotten that the object of worship was God and not themselves.
2:17 From a human perspective it may look like God is ignoring the sinful actions of these priests (for they are still alive and well), but God sees everything. 2:18-20 Yet there is a ray of hope. “There are these short notes about little Samuel scattered through the text and standing in quiet contrast to the deeds of Hophni and Phinehas. They are silent witness to Yahweh’s provision. We might highlight them like this:
Samuel serving, 2:11
Religious sins, 2:12-17
Samuel serving, 2:18-21
Moral sins, 2:22-25
Samuel growing, 2:26
Prophecy of judgment, 2:27-36
Samuel serving, 3:1a
It must have seemed to many like there was no hope of improvement, no exit from the night. But in the middle of it all the text keeps whispering, ‘Don’t forget Samuel---you see how Samuel is serving’” (Dale Ralph Davis p. 31). Even though they are priests and the sons of Eli, Hopni and Phinehas are expendable; they can be replaced. Standing in the wings is Samuel. In a similar manner Judas could be replaced, and in his case, there were at least two men that could have taken his place (Acts 1:23).
Eli Responds
2:22-24 Eli was old, but he was not deaf and this is true of most parents. He was hearing the rumors about the immorality being practiced by his sons. To their earlier callous treatment of their fellow Israelites (13-16), they added sexual immorality—and with women who served at the tabernacle (Exodus 38:8). These actions, at least for Phinehas, may have meant open adultery (4:19). 2:25 Now the Lord does not take pleasure in the death of any sinner (Ezekiel 18:32; 33:11; 2 Peter 3:9),therefore the word “desire” in the statement that the Lord desired to put them to death does not mean that God took pleasure in condemning them. The phrase can also be translated, “it was the Lord’s will”. God allowed such men to remain in their sin, God didn’t intervene immediately, and God allowed them to harden their hearts against the pleas to repent (Romans 2:1-5). Let us tremble at the fact that God is not going to stop us from self-destructing—if that is our determined choice. The text is not teaching that God prevented these two boys from repenting (2 Peter 3:9). 2:26 Yet, remember Samuel, he is growing in favor both with the Lord and men (Luke 2:52).
God Responds
2:27-30 An unnamed man of God reminds Eli that God had revealed Himself to his ancestor Levi’s house before the Exodus. Indeed, Aaron had been chosen to serve the Lord as the first in a long line of priests, yet the sons of Eli had kicked at the Lord’s offerings by gorging themselves on the best parts of the sacrifices. By doing basically nothing about the problem (which must have been going on for some time), Eli had demonstrated that he loved his sons more than God (Matthew 10:37). While the priesthood of Aaron was perpetual, this branch of the family would be eliminated. Gaebelein writes, “Was Eli’s participation in his son’s gluttony one of the reasons why, at the time of his death, he had become “heavy” (4:18)?” (p. 587). Also notice the word “yourselves” in 2:29. Children need to be reminded that their sins can serve as a stumbling block or temptation to their parents. 3:31-34 The distress associated with the tabernacle, would be the capture of the ark (4:11) by the Philistines. “First, the current generations of Eli’s family would suffer penalties: Eli himself would witness distress in the Lord’s dwelling, and Eli’s sons Hophni and Phinehas would die on the same day. Secondly, future generations of Eli’s family would suffer penalties. They would persistently experience untimely deaths, so that males who lived to old age would not be found among Eli’s descendants. By being denied elders, the most socially powerful age group of individuals in clan-based societies, the line of Eli would be denied a significant form of power and influence in society” (Bergen pp. 83-84). 2:35 The faithful priest mentioned in this verse might initially refer to Samuel, and eventually this might also be a reference to the Messiah. But Samuel certainly did not have an enduring house (a long line of faithful priests are not found in his family). The slaughter of the priests at Nob (1 Samuel 22:11-33) and Solomon’s banishment of Abiathar, the last representative of the house of Eli, certainly fulfilled a portion of the prophecy made to Eli (1 Kings 2:27). At this time the high priesthood was transferred to the family of Zadok, who remained faithful to David at the time of Adonijah’s rebellion (1 Kings 1:7-8). How refreshing is God’s determination! He will have a faithful priest! God is determined and He will have proper leadership for His flock. “This may mean that judgment must begin at the house of God (1 Peter 4:17)” (Dale Ralph Davis p. 39).
2:36 “As for the member’s of Eli’s house, once fattened on priestly perquisites, soon not even the least benefit of priestly office would be theirs” (Gaebelein p. 588). “The priestly line of Eli would become so unimportant in the religious power structure of future generations that they would not even be eligible to receive payment for the services they rendered” (Bergen p. 84).
God speaks to Samuel
3:1 During this period of time messages from God, either auditory or visionary, were rare. “For this reason the narrative goes into some detail about the first revelatory experience of Samuel” (Smith p. 253). The text is helpful, because in certain religious circles it is assumed that God directly speaks to every believer, or that God is speaking every day to someone. Even when God spoke, when the Scriptures were being revealed, there were times when God didn’t say anything. Compare with Amos 8:11-12 “A pragmatic American would puzzle over this. His response would be: ‘No problem; let’s just send more fellows to Bible College, or open a prophet’s vocational tech school.’ But if the word of Yahweh was rare it means that the word from Yahweh was rare. If a word does not come from Yahweh there will be no word of Yahweh. Man cannot coerce, manufacture, manipulate, or produce that word” (Dale Ralph Davis p. 42). 3:11 What Samuel heard from the Lord was basically what the man of God had told Eli at the end of chapter 2. What God had to say would make the ears of everyone who heard it “tingle”. The message would be so shocking that it would cause the ears of those who heard it to “ring like hammer blows on a bell”(Bible Knowledge Comm. p. 435). There is a lesson here for us. People erroneously assume that all messages from God will sound pleasing to the ear, but there are messages from God that do not tickle the ears (2 Timothy 4:3), rather they will shock the listener. “Samuel’s first act as prophet was perhaps his most difficult; though only a child, he had to announce the Lord’s fatal judgment against Israel’s most powerful family” (Bergen p. 85). Compare with 2 Kings 21:12 and Jeremiah 19:3.
3:12 Everything that God had previously said to Eli would happen—from beginning to end, the entire prophecy would be fulfilled. 3:13 Eli was responsible because he knew what had been going on in reference to his sons. The death penalty would be exercised against Eli’s sons because they showed contempt for the priesthood (Deuteronomy 17:12), as well as disobeyed their father (21:18-21). Eli was implicated because he did not restrain them. This verse infers that the rebuke that Eli did give his sons in the previous chapter was simply too little, too weak or too late. In addition, in cases like this, God expected more than simply a rebuke. Eli should of have his sons at the very least, removed from office, if not stoned for their behavior.
3:14 No sacrifice could avert the coming judgment. “Eli’s conscious failure to enforce divine law in his own family amounted to a high-handed (deliberate) sin; as such it could never be atoned for by sacrifice or offering (Numbers 15:30-31). 3:15 Samuel struggled with this revelation. Eli had cared for him as a father, and now Samuel had to tell Eli that God would judge him and his sons. Samuel is caught in the dilemma that many elders and preachers have experienced. He must preach the word (2 Timothy 4:2), yet the word condemns someone that he loves and who has been very good and kind to him. “There is always this tension in the word of God, and any authentic messenger of that word knows and lives in it. If a preacher, for example, never places you under the criticism of God’s word, never tells you your sin, but only smothers you with comfort, you must wonder if he is a phony. If his preacher contains only the judgment note and seldom offers comfort and encouragement, one must ask if he actually cares for God’s people” (Dale Ralph Davis p. 47).
3:16-18 Give Eli this much credit. He accepted what God had said, yet I do not see Eli falling down, fasting, pleading for mercy, or seeking God in prayer (Psalm 51). Maybe he did, but this text is silent. Most commentators see Eli manifesting a godly resignation, that is he resigns himself to accept whatever comes from God. But resignation can also cover a hard heart as well---there people who do not get angry at God when they are rebuked, and yet neither do they get motivated.
