1 And the word of Samuel came to all Israel. Now
Israel went out against the Philistines to battle, and pitched beside
Eben-ezer: and the Philistines pitched in Aphek.
2 And the Philistines put
themselves in array against Israel: and when they joined battle, Israel was
smitten before the Philistines: and they slew of the army in the field about
four thousand men.
3 ¶ And
when the people were come into the camp, the elders of Israel said, Wherefore
hath the Lord smitten us to day before the
Philistines? Let us fetch the ark of the covenant of the Lord out of Shiloh unto us, that, when it cometh among
us, it may save us out of the hand of our enemies.
4 So the people sent to
Shiloh, that they might bring from thence the ark of the covenant of the Lord of hosts, which dwelleth between
the cherubims: and the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were there with the ark of the covenant of God. (1
Sam. 4:1-5)
Just some background on this—In the chapter before
this, Samuel has his first encounter with God, and is told that the Lord will punish
Eli the priest because he didn’t restrain his sons and the Lord will do
something in Israel that makes everyone’s ears tingle.
Now, in the situation of these verses, it is possible
the Israelites were attempting to reconquer the land or finish the job Joshua
started. Some of the things they do echo Joshua’s campaign against Jericho—calling
for the ark of the covenant to go with the army. Later verses say they also
shout, which reminds me of the shout that had once leveled the walls of Jericho.
However, if this was the case, these Israelites did
not go spiritually purified and prepared like Joshua’s army had. Joshua’s army
purified themselves, circumcised those not yet circumcised (which was a sign of
entering the covenant), and celebrated Passover. Further, they got their battle
plan from the prophet, who got it from God.
These Israelites all knew Samuel was to be a prophet,
but they didn’t consult him. Maybe they got Eli’s blessing and thought that was
enough. I get the impressing that with Eli and the corruption of his sons,
there was not much chance they would have been prepared in the first place.
This campaign ultimately fails, and they lose the ark
for a time. The failed campaign underlines to them the uselessness of trusting
in religious objects to save them, so in 1 Samuel 7, once they are suitably
chastened, we see Samuel persuading the people to put away their idols and to
prepare to serve God only. The people fast and confess their sins, they ask
Samuel to pray for them continuously, and Samuel offers sacrifice…and then the Lord helps the Israelites win
against the Philistines.
This becomes another religious tradition of battle to
have the prophet offer sacrifice and pray for the people, and sadly this
becomes misunderstood by King Saul, who becomes so anxious for the pre-battle
sacrifice that he offers it himself, usurping authority because Samuel is not
present “in time.”
Hopefully we can learn from this that it isn’t just
the religious ritual that is efficacious, but the practice paired with sincere
repentance and purity. Without the broken heart and contrite spirit, without
the consistent obedience to the commandments, religious ritual is empty, even
if done the right way with proper authority.
If we rouse ourselves to fight any kind of obstacle,
make sure to repent and seek sanctification first and be anxious to keep the
commandments.
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