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The Beginning of the End
Samuel was filled with fear and amazement at the thought of
having received such a terrible message. In the morning he went
about his duties as usual, but with a heavy burden on his young
heart. The Lord had not commanded him to reveal the fearful con-
demnation, so he remained silent. He trembled in the fear that some
question would force him to reveal the divine judgments against
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the one whom he loved and reverenced. Eli was confident that the
message predicted some great calamity to him and his house. He
called Samuel and told him to relate faithfully what the Lord had
revealed. The youth obeyed, and the old man bowed in humble
submission to the dreadful sentence. “It is the Lord,” he said. “Let
Him do what seems good to Him.”
Eli Loses His Last Chance
Yet Eli did not show true repentance—He did not forsake his
sin. Year after year the Lord delayed His threatened judgments. Eli
might have done a lot to redeem the failures of the past, but the aged
priest did not do anything effective to correct the evils that were
polluting the Lord’s sanctuary and leading thousands in Israel to
ruin. The patience of God caused Hophni and Phinehas to harden
their hearts and become still bolder in transgression.
Eli made known to the whole nation the messages of warning
and reproof to his family. By doing this, he hoped to undo the evil
influence of his past carelessness, but the people disregarded the
warnings, as the priests had done. The people of surrounding nations
also became bolder in their idolatry and crime. They felt no sense
of guilt for their sins, as they would have felt if the Israelites had
preserved their integrity. It became necessary for God to intervene,
to maintain the honor of His name.
“Now Israel went out to battle against the Philistines, and en-
camped beside Ebenezer; and the Philistines encamped in Aphek.”
The Israelites undertook this expedition without counsel from God,
without the agreement of high priest or prophet. “Then the Philistines
put themselves in battle array against Israel. And when they joined
battle, Israel was defeated by the Philistines, who killed about four
thousand men of the army in the field.” As the shattered, discouraged
force returned to their camp, “the elders of Israel said, ‘Why has the