"The Lord Revealed"
1Samuel 3
August 5, 2007
by C.W. Powell
In the passage before us this morning, we have the call of God to the servant that He had chosen, the young child Samuel. This was a rebuke to the whole nation of Israel, that they were to be led by a child, and that none among the adults was worthy. In His own way, God rebukes the pride and arrogance of men.-
1. He rebukes our defilement. Israel was corrupt. The priesthood was corrupt
2. He rebukes our ignorance: the word of the LORD was precious in those days. God takes light away from those who refuse the light. It is a very serious thing for men to turn their ears away from hearing the word of the Lord, whether by neglect or by stubbornness. God is long suffering and patient, but he will also remove His word from those who despise it. Spiritual judgments always preceed physical ones. “I will send a famine in the land,” He said. “Not a famine of meat and drink, but famine of hearing the word of the Lord.”
3. He rebukes our pride: He sent his word to Israel by a little child. If we do not follow the Lord—if proud adults refuse the word and walk in insolence before the Lord, God may very well raise up children to lead us. In this he reproves our perfectionism, as it God could lead us only according to our own requirements.
I. The call of God to Samuel. I Samuel 3:1-9:
- “1 And the child Samuel ministered unto the LORD before Eli. And the word of the LORD was precious in those days; there was no open vision. 2 And it came to pass at that time, when Eli was laid down in his place, and his eyes began to wax dim, that he could not see; 3 And ere the lamp of God went out in the temple of the LORD, where the ark of God was, and Samuel was laid down to sleep; 4 That the LORD called Samuel: and he answered, Here am I. 5 And he ran unto Eli, and said, Here am I; for thou calledst me. And he said, I called not; lie down again. And he went and lay down. 6 And the LORD called yet again, Samuel. And Samuel arose and went to Eli, and said, Here am I; for thou didst call me. And he answered, I called not, my son; lie down again. 7 Now Samuel did not yet know the LORD, neither was the word of the LORD yet revealed unto him. 8 And the LORD called Samuel again the third time. And he arose and went to Eli, and said, Here am I; for thou didst call me. And Eli perceived that the LORD had called the child. 9 Therefore Eli said unto Samuel, Go, lie down: and it shall be, if he call thee, that thou shalt say, Speak, LORD; for thy servant heareth. So Samuel went and lay down in his place.
A. God had removed His word from His people. There was no open vision. There were no prophets who received the word of the Lord.
B. Ere the lamp went out. Late in the night. Eli was asleep. Eli was old and his eyes, both physical and spiritual, were dim, for it was his responsibility to keep the worship of God pure, and he did not restrain the wickedness of his sons, Hophni and Phinehas. Their public sin was the corrupting of the worship of the Lord, so that men did not want to come to Shiloh to worship.
C. The priests had rooms outside the court of the temple, which was Holy unto the Lord. Samuel had his own room, but it was near to Eli’s whom he served. There were many tasks to do, and Samuel was faithful in them.
D. The ark was in the most inner room, the Holy of Holies, in the Tabernacle. Outside the veil was the Holy Place where the golden lampstand, the table of showbread, and the altar of incense were. No one could enter into the Holy of Holies where the Ark was, except the high priest on the Day of Atonement. Only the priest could minister in the Holy Place where the lampstand, the table, and the altar of incense were, so Samuel would not have been there. The priests did not sleep in the Court, but in rooms constructed outside the court, so this was where Samuel slept. The Ark of the Throne of God, the seat of His government of Israel, and there He revealed Himself. So God would have come from the Holy of Holies out to the Court where Samuel was. How holy and precious was this scene, as God stoops to address a child, that His word might be sent to the people whom He loved. But how sad that they so often despised His word and neglected the Word of God.
E. Samuel did not yet recognize the direct voice of the Lord. That would come later. This was not a dream or a vision, but a direct visitation, in an objective real way, a physical manifestation of that which is spiritual. There is great mystery, but we will believe and submit to the Scriptures.
F. Three times, the Lord called to Samuel, and three times Samuel awoke the old man, thinking he had called him. It was probably often that Eli would call Samuel, for Samuel waited on the old man, and Eli must have needed a lot of attention, being old and almost blind. The third time, Eli suspected that God was calling Samuel. II. God’s Visitation of Samuel: I Samuel 3:10-14:
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10 And the LORD came, and stood, and called as at other times, Samuel, Samuel. Then Samuel answered, Speak; for thy servant heareth. 11 And the LORD said to Samuel, Behold, I will do a thing in Israel, at which both the ears of every one that heareth it shall tingle. 12 In that day I will perform against Eli all things which I have spoken concerning his house: when I begin, I will also make an end. 13 For I have told him that I will judge his house for ever for the iniquity which he knoweth; because his sons made themselves vile, and he restrained them not. 14 And therefore I have sworn unto the house of Eli, that the iniquity of Eli’s house shall not be purged with sacrifice nor offering for ever.
A. The LORD came, and stood…. The Hebrew implies a concrete, objective manifestation to Samuel. This was not a dream or a vision, but a real manifestation that could been seen and hear by the eyes and ears of the body.
B. The repetition and the concrete, physical representation of God—we might assume in the form of the Angel of the Lord—was probably for the purpose of assuring Eli and Israel that this was a true word from the Lord, and not the imaginations of a child. Without some such verification, Eli might think that Samuel was just having wild dreams or hallucinations.
C. It was a terrible message that God had for Eli and his house. Delivered to Eli by a child, but it came with the authority of God and was not to be despised.
a. The ears of Israel would tingle at the deed that God would do. The house of Eli was to be rejected by God and removed from the priesthood. At the end of chapter two, an unknown prophet had earlier, maybe many years before this, announced these things, warning Eli, but there had been repentance, no turning from evil, no restraint of the evil sons
b. What God starts, He will finish. God is long suffering and patience, but when He begins His terrible work it will come as a thief in the night; or as a overwhelming tempest, or as a terrible earthquake that shakes all before it.
c. “I have told him that I will judge his house for ever for the iniquity which he knoweth; because his sons made themselves vile, and he restrained them not.” Eli’s knowledge compounded the iniquity, which was further compounded by his neglect. Sins of neglect are equally worthy of judgment. Choosing to do nothing when the fire is raging in the house is reprehensible choice. Eli could not stir himself; he could not summon the energy and strength to do what he must do. Noah built an ark to the salvation of his house; Eli could not stir. In the bible Eli is always pictured as sitting or sleeping. He never is seen with energy, walking or acting. In speech he is always responding to things. We must beware of spiritual and moral laziness: in the words of the great Apostle Paul, “Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light.” (Eph 5:14 AV)
d. There would be no sacrifice for sin for Eli’s house. It is a terrible thing to corrupt the worship of the Lord.
- 15 And Samuel lay until the morning, and opened the doors of the house of the LORD. And Samuel feared to shew Eli the vision. 16 Then Eli called Samuel, and said, Samuel, my son. And he answered, Here am I. 17 And he said, What is the thing that the LORD hath said unto thee? I pray thee hide it not from me: God do so to thee, and more also, if thou hide any thing from me of all the things that he said unto thee. 18 And Samuel told him every whit, and hid nothing from him. And he said, It is the LORD: let him do what seemeth him good.
A. Samuel was afraid. What a terrible message he had to bring to the old man. He was a modest, sensitive, and humble child.
B. Eli called Samuel to him, and insisted that Samuel tell him everything.
C. Eli’s response was fitting to his character: “It is the LORD: let him do what seemeth him good.”
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a. This is not an admirable response. On the surface it looks good.
b. It was an offer of mercy which was given to Eli, even in the announcement of judgment. Although it appeared to be a final announcement, who knows what God would have done if Eli had stirred himself to repentance and vigor:
c. This response revealed a deficiency in Eli’s knowledge of the God of Israel. We need to be reminded of the account of Matthew:- “And it came to pass, as Jesus sat at meat in the house, behold, many publicans and sinners came and sat down with him and his disciples. 11 And when the Pharisees saw it, they said unto his disciples, Why eateth your Master with publicans and sinners?” 12 But when Jesus heard that, he said unto them, They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick. 13 But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” (Mt 9:10-13 AV)
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i. Even Cain cried out to God and received a mitigation of punishment, by means of a mark.
ii. Even Ahab, received a mitigation, for the judgment came not in his lifetime.
iii. Even Nineveh, that great city, when they heard the preaching of doom by the word of Jonah, put on sackcloth and ashed, and God turned away the judgment.
iv. Eli, Eli, Eli. What would it hurt to humble yourself, cry aloud to the Lord, and call for mercy and grace upon your house. Do not forget the sinner door, the way that God promised to redeem His people and show mercy and grace to them. Only, let them not harden their hearts; let them not neglect the way of mercy and grace.
v. How great was the example of Moses, who threw himself as it were against the edge of God’s anger, and obtained a reprieve for the nation of Israel.
vi. It was very late in the day, but who knows what the secret purposes of God are? As we read in Joel 2:- “11 And the LORD shall utter his voice before his army: for his camp is very great: for he is strong that executeth his word: for the day of the LORD is great and very terrible; and who can abide it? 12 Therefore also now, saith the LORD, turn ye even to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning: 13 And rend your heart, and not your garments, and turn unto the LORD your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil. 14 Who knoweth if he will return and repent, and leave a blessing behind him; even a meat offering and a drink offering unto the LORD your God? 15 Blow the trumpet in Zion, sanctify a fast, call a solemn assembly: 16 Gather the people, sanctify the congregation, assemble the elders, gather the children, and those that suck the breasts: let the bridegroom go forth of his chamber, and the bride out of her closet. 17 Let the priests, the ministers of the LORD, weep between the porch and the altar, and let them say, Spare thy people, O LORD, and give not thine heritage to reproach, that the heathen should rule over them: wherefore should they say among the people, Where is their God?” (Joe 2:11-17 AV)
- 19 And Samuel grew, and the LORD was with him, and did let none of his words fall to the ground. 20 And all Israel from Dan even to Beersheba knew that Samuel was established to be a prophet of the LORD. 21 And the LORD appeared again in Shiloh: for the LORD revealed himself to Samuel in Shiloh by the word of the LORD.”
A. What a contrast with Eli: Samuel let none of God’s words “fall to the ground.” He ignored none of them, but labored to fulfill all things.
B. The Lord revealed Himsef to Samuel.
a. What a great gift Samuel was to the nation of Israel.
b. Samuel would restore good worship and good government to Israel
i. By the prophets
ii. By King David
iii. Ultimately by the word of the Lord, the replacement of Eli’s house in the priesthood.
Well, we have tried to make application as we proceeded through this passage. May God bless you in your hunger after obedience and patience.
Amen and Amen.