51. Beginner Bible Course: The story of Samuel the judge and prophet

EPISODE 51  The simple Bible overview of…THE STORY OF SAMUEL

You'll turn your page from judges and see the book of Ruth...

1

00:00:06

We covered her earlier in the middle of judges. The next history book is first Samuel actually, it should just be Samuel first and second Samuel were one book. They're one continuous story. But over the years, they were separated into two accounts, probably because the scroll was too large. As you begin for Samuel suddenly God's tent. The tabernacle shows back up. We were told in Joshua 18, as the Israelites under Joshua conquered the West side of the promised land, the tent of meeting or tabernacle were set up at Shiloh in the tribe of Ephraim dead center of this promised land. It's mentioned again in chapter 19 of Joshua, as where they made the decision on who got what territory that remained, then it disappears.

1

00:00:54

It's not mentioned in judges. That's pretty shocking. I should mention something about the size of the West side of the promised land. You kind of get the ideas you read. It's Texas size. It's not the area of the 12 tribes settled in, and it is approximately 160 miles from top to bottom and 75 miles from East to West. I live in Minnesota and that's about a sixth, the size of our state with the tabernacle in the dead middle, nobody was more than 80 miles from it. A majority of the people were within 40 miles of it or, or one or two days journey even on foot.

1

00:01:34

So it's very surprising. God's tent or tabernacle at Shiloh is not even mentioned in the book of judges. And then again, maybe it's not so surprising for 330 years, it sat there. The old Testament is silent on how it was maintained or even used by the people of Israel. His mom and dad were El Canna and Hannah, Hannah couldn't have a child and she desperately wanted one. She went up to Shiloh to the tabernacle and was in the tent of meeting, pouring her heart out to God, asking for a child. She begged God for a baby and said, if you would give me this child, I'll give him back.

1

00:02:14

I'll dedicate them to you for service in this place, the top dog at the tent of meeting the high priest, Eli saw her in the tent of meeting, pouring her heart out to God. Her lips were moving, but she wasn't speaking out loud. Eli thought she was drunk and he Scholes her. Apparently coming crock was not an unusual incident that the tabernacle Hannah goes home, becomes pregnant and delivers a baby. She calls him, Samuel asked of God, God had fulfilled his part of the deal. So Hannah fulfills hers after the child is weaned. Remember that was three to four years old in old Testament times, Hannah takes a little Samuel up to Shiloh to the tabernacle and hands them over.

1

00:02:59

Eli. If you've ever seen child dedications in churches, that child dedication probably came out of this old Testament incident. We're told in the text that each year Hannah would make a cloak for little Samuel each year, a little bigger were then introduced to some of Samuel's new family at the tabernacle to Eli and his two sons Hophni and Phineas Hophni and Phineas are a piece of work. God calls them worthless men when an all knowing and loving God calls you a worthless man, you've got a problem. First Samuel explains what that problem was. They completely ignored God's rules for sacrifice, liking their meat, grilled, not boiled and fatty, not lean.

1

00:03:45

They took whatever they wanted. Even against Eli's rebuke. The text also tells us they were real Playboys with the ladies who visited the tabernacle one night Samuel perhaps now a young teen is awake. And when his name is called in the middle of the night, he runs to Eli and asked, why did you call? Eli said, I didn't call go back to bed. This happens three times on the third time, Eli wanders. Hmm? Maybe God's calling his name and instructs. Samuel how to respond when his name is called again, Samuel responds and God gives them a message for Eli and his sons. The messages this warnings are over your sons are blaspheming, no sacrifice or offerings will ever forgive their sin.

1

00:04:32

Ouch, soon, the Philistines attack Israel and the battles going very badly. Someone gets the bright idea. Go get the Ark. You know, God's box our rabbit foot, our good luck charm Hophni and Phineas. Bring the arc to the Battlefront. The Philistines go crazy and fight for their lives. They kill many in Israel and take the Ark. A messenger comes back to Shiloh with the news. He tells Eli sitting at the gate Hophni and Phineas are dead. And the Ark has been taken. When you lie here is that the arc has been taken. He falls over backwards, breaks his neck and dyes. The text tells us he was a very fat man.

1

00:05:14

It makes you wonder how did he get fat? Did he like his sacrifice meat fatty to when Phineas wife heard that her husband was dead, she went into labor and gave birth to a son. She named that son. It kabod. The glory has departed. The arc was gone. The arc that the cloud hovered over indicating God's presence and blessing on Israel was gone. The Philistines put the arch in the temple of their God. Dagon the next morning they found Dagan tipped over on his face in front of the Ark. They set them back up in the morning after they found him on his space. Again, this time with his face and his hands broke off.

1

00:05:57

Pretty tough. When your God falls on his face twice in a row and gets broken to pieces, then God breaks out on the Philistine people. A plague will find it probably had something to do with an infestation of rats and an outbreak of boils on the Philistines. They move the Ark from Philistine city to Philistine city. It's like radioactive waste. Finally, they come up with a plan. We'll put it on a cart, hook it up to a cow. That's just had a baby. And see if that cow will pull it back to Israel. We want to know if it's coincidence or if this is a real God who brought these plagues on us. I mean, talk about stacking the deck, expecting a cow to walk away from her baby calf, but that's exactly what she does.

1

00:06:42

Not only does she walk away from her baby calf, but she happily mus the whole way along the Philistine send an offering with the Ark replicas of rats and boils made out of gold, a superstitious yet respectful nod to the God of Israel. In many ways, the Philistines are showing more honor to God. Then God's people are speaking of which when it gets into Israelite territory, guess what? Some of God's people do, they peek into the Ark. We're only told 70 died, not how though. Scenes from Raiders of the lost art. Come to mind at this point, Samuel must have been fully grown with Eli Hophni and Phinehas dead.

1

00:07:24

He steps up. He summons the people of Israel to Ms. Path for confession and renewal while they're they're the Philistines gird up and attack. God this time steps in for Israel, claps of thunder from heaven, put the Philistines into a dead panic. It's pretty obvious. God has returned to Israel side. Samuel dedicates a stone and names that Ebenezer our God of help following this delivery by God there's the time of peace. The Philistines are pushed back. Big time. We're told Samuel wrote a circuit to three cities around Israel end and lead the people and was their profit or SERE giving them guidance from God.

1

00:08:06

Maybe Samuel spent too much time on the road, or maybe not. We're told that Joel and Abijah Samuel his two sons were also scallywags. Samuel tried to make them his era. Parents appointing them as judges, but the people wouldn't have it. Joel and Abijah were known to be greedy and to twist justice. Not a good thing for judge Samuel began to hear murmurings. We want a King, like the other nations, give us a King. Then those murmurings became shouts from the crowd. We want the King, like the nations around us Samuel was very wounded and ask God about it. God said, get over yourself.

1

00:08:45

Samuel they're not rejecting you. They're rejecting me. You're my prophet. Warn them. What comes in the package of getting a King? And that's what Samuel does. You'll be sorry. Power corrupts. He'll take the best of everything you have. It had been a period of peace since God had pushed back the Philistines under the wise leadership of the judge and prophet Samuel where the people wake up and see that and continue that the Theocracy under God or would they demand a King, a monarchy. So they could be like the other nations around them. I'm betting. You can guess which way they'll go and we'll meet the King. They demand Israel's first King in our next wordpicture.