The Israelites are in a battle with the Philistines,
It is not going well. They call for the ark to be brought to the battlefield,
hoping, I suspect, that’s its charm will turn the course of the Battle. On the contrary, Eli’s sons, Hophni and
Phinehas are killed; and the Ark of the Covenant is captured.
A messenger, a soldier from the tribe of Benjamin, the
tribe of the future king Saul came to Israel bearing the sad news. He arrives
in suitable attire: “with his clothes torn and with dirt on his head.”[1]
The tearing of one’s clothes and throwing dirt upon one’s head
were customary ways of showing sorrow and grief. For example: “And on the third day, behold, a man came
from Saul’s camp, with his clothes torn and dirt on his head. And when he came
to David, he fell to the ground and paid homage” (2 Samuel 1:2, ESV); and also, 2
Sam. 1:11; 3:31; 13:19, 31; 15:32; and Job 2:12.
This was a day of great tragedy in Israel. Israel has
fled, many troops have died, Eli’s sons have been killed, and the ark of God
has been captured. The latter event
seemed to have a debilitating and demoralizing effect. The entire city of
Shiloh was in grief and the news precipitated the death of Eli. “Now Eli was ninety-eight years old and his eyes were set so that he
could not see . . . the man was old and heavy. He had judged Israel forty years” (1 Samuel 4:15, 18b ESV).
This message caused Phineas’ wife
to prematurely go into labour. She died
in childbirth but named her “son Ichabod, saying, ‘The
glory has departed from Israel!’ because the ark of God had been captured and
because of her father-in-law and her husband.”[2]
“The glory has departed from Israel, for the ark of
God has been captured.”” (1 Samuel 4:22, ESV).
Ichabod mean, “no glory”. The loss of
the ark, the symbol of God’s presence was gone.
Israel viewed the disaster as God was no longer with His people. God had removed himself from them. This is the ultimate and most feared
scenario. The greatest blessing for
Israel was encapsulated with the these words:
“The
Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be
gracious to you; the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.” (Numbers 6:24–26, ESV)
The greatest curse on Israel
could be converted to read: The Lord cease his blessings on you and remove his
protection; the Lord’s proximity will no longer shine on you and he will remove
all grace; the Lord turn his back on you and bring nothing but conflict into
your life. Ichabod: The glory has
departed.
The reaction of the citizens of
Shiloh and the reaction of Eli and Phineas’ wife is appropriate to the
problem. It should bring the greatest
consternation, the greatest trepidation, the greatest dread, to have the
presence of God depart. It might be said
that this is the definition of hell. “Nothing is more cutting, more killing, to a faithful Israelite, than
the want and loss of these. If God go, the glory goes, and all good goes. Woe
unto us if he depart!”[3]
Fast forward
several millennia later and we look at the Cross of Jesus Christ. In almost too familiar words we read, “And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying,
“Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken
me?””
(Matthew 27:46, ESV) Jesus experienced an eternal Ichabod in a
moment of time. There on the Cross,
making atonement for His people, hung our Substitute. He was forsaken by God, so that all who come
to Christ in faith will never be forsaken.
For all who have saving faith he says, “I will make with them an everlasting
covenant, that I will not turn away from doing good to them.”[4] He says also “I will never leave
you nor forsake you.”[5] In fact when Christ rose to gain
his eternal throne, he sent his Holy Spirit, the very Presence of God to abide
in his elect. He said, “And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever,” (John 14:16, ESV) [Emphasis
Mine]
For
the child of God, the greatest fear facing mankind has been removed by the
mercies of Christ. “For I am sure that neither death
nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers,
nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to
separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:38–39, ESV)
No more let sins and sorrows grow
Nor thorns infest the ground
He comes to make His blessings flow
Far as the curse is found, far as the curse is found
Far as, far as the curse is found
Nor thorns infest the ground
He comes to make His blessings flow
Far as the curse is found, far as the curse is found
Far as, far as the curse is found
[1] The
Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (1 Sa 4:12). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.
[2] The
Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (1 Sa 4:21). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.
[3] Henry, M. (1994). Matthew Henry’s commentary on the whole Bible: complete and
unabridged in one volume (p. 390). Peabody: Hendrickson.
[4] The Holy Bible:
English Standard Version. (2016). (Je 32:40). Wheaton, IL:
Crossway Bibles.
[5] The Holy Bible:
English Standard Version. (2016). (Heb 13:5). Wheaton, IL:
Crossway Bibles.
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