Samuel, Judge and Prophet

GOLDEN TEXT: “And Samuel spake unto all the house of Israel, saying, If ye do return unto the Lord with all your hearts, then put away the strange gods and Ashtaroth from among you, and prepare your hearts unto the Lord, and serve him only: and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines.” —I Samuel 7:3

I SAMUEL 7:5-17

IN OUR last lesson we saw the hand of the Lord operating in the raising up of Samuel to be a judge and prophet in Israel, and noted the first message given to him by the Lord, a message to be delivered to Eli, the priest, concerning the iniquity of his sons. Now we find him matured, and serving all Israel as judge, and pointing out to the people the only condition upon which they can hope that the Lord’s favor will return to them, and that by his power they can be delivered from the hands of their enemies, the Philistines.

That condition was repentance of their sins and the forsaking of the false gods to which they had turned in worship. This is set forth in the Golden Text, and clearly exemplifies the principle contained in the words of James, “Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you.” (James 4:8) Jehovah thus demands the exclusive and wholehearted worship of his creatures because he knows that the worship of other gods leads to sin, debasement, slavery, unhappiness, and death. He wants his people to be happy, and he knows that the only condition upon which this can be attained is obedience to him and to his righteous laws.

Samuel was well-grounded in truth and righteousness. To him the cause of Israel’s afflictions was not complex. It was simply that they had turned their backs upon their God. By seeking the sensual pleasure derived from the worship of false gods, they had forfeited the right of protection and blessing by Jehovah, the only true and living God. The false gods to which they had turned were unable to defend them against their enemies.

Samuel directed that the people gather at Mizpeh, that there he might pray for them. This afforded a wonderful opportunity for the Lord to demonstrate his ability to protect them; for, when the Philistines learned of the presence of so many Israelites in one area, they saw an opportunity to accomplish their wholesale slaughter, and the subjugation of the remnant to their control. The Israelites realized this also, when, from the human standpoint, it would have been too late to do anything about it.

But Samuel was not afraid. He knew that now the Israelites were in a repentant attitude of heart, so he prayed for them, and also offered a lamb as a burnt offering to the Lord. Even while he was offering the lamb in sacrifice the Philistines drew near to attack the Israelites. It was a crucial test of Samuel’s faith, but the Lord stood by him; and just as the situation looked hopeless for the Israelites, “the Lord thundered with a great thunder … upon the Philistines, and discomfited them; and they were smitten before Israel.”

This was a great encouragement to the Israelites; and seeing that the Lord was so definitely on their side, they gave chase to the confused and frightened Philistines, and thus completed the victory. The Lord did not do everything for them, but used just enough of his power on their behalf to enable them to gain a victory over their enemies. Thus is illustrated the fact that the Lord wants his people to do what they can for themselves, and that he uses his strength merely to supplement their weakness.

The enemies of spiritual Israelites today are of a different sort; but they are formidable, and we need the Lord’s help in overcoming them. But before we can expect him to help us, our hearts must be fully loyal to him. If we permit our hearts to set up idols of one sort or another which supplant our Heavenly Father in our affections, we cannot expect him to fight our battles for us.

Our enemies, primarily, are the world, the flesh, and the devil. These are our “Philistines” which, whenever we are in a vulnerable position, are ready to attack in an effort to beat our courage down, and to separate us from our God. But we can be assured of victory through faith in the blood of the antitypical Lamb, our Lord Jesus Christ; for do we not read, “Thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ”?—I Cor. 15:57

Samuel erected a stone to commemorate the victory, and called it Ebenezer, which means “the stone of help.” It will be a wonderful blessing to us to have our Ebenezers; that is, to be able to look back and realize that “hitherto hath the Lord helped us.” (vs. 12) This assurance will surely give us strength for the battles which lie ahead.

QUESTIONS

Upon what conditions could the Israelites expect the Lord to help them?

What practical lesson may we draw from this?

How will we be able to be victorious over our enemies?

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