The Hand of God - 1 Samuel, Part 12

1 Samuel 5:1–12 (ESV)

The Philistines return home from battle victorious, having captured the Ark of the God of Israel. However, that is not the end of the story!

The Philistines took the Ark from Israel’s location in Ebenezer (re 4:1) which poignantly means “up till now the Lord is with us”, to Ashdod one of the 5 main cities of the Philistine domain. The victors placed the Ark of the Covenant in the temple of their god, Dagon.  Dagon was the principle god of the Philistines.  Some think the word means “fish” and others think “grain”. “The practice of capturing the enemy’s gods was common in ancient Near East warfare and is often mentioned in documents such as the Assyrian royal inscriptions. It was understood that a people whose gods were in enemy hands was completely conquered.”^[1]

The story reflects quite the opposite.  Not only does the statue of Dagon fall prostrate and broken before the Ark but the author records (5:5) that the people remembered this humiliation even up to the time of writing.  Not only was their deity humiliated, but the people of Ashdod were afflicted with “tumors”.  Sharing their misfortune, they decided to send the Ark to the people of Gath who experienced a similar affliction.  From there the Ark went to Ekron.  No wonder the people of Ekron cried out, “They have brought around to us the ark of the God of Israel to kill us and our people.”^[2]

The result of this victorious capture was reacted to with deadly “panic” (5:9,11).  The analysis of these pagan peoples was repeatedly, “The hand of the Lord was heavy against [them]”^[3]; “his hand is hard against [them] and against Dagon”^[4]; “the hand of the Lord was against the city”^[5]; and “The hand of God was very heavy there.”^[6] “The Lord was pictured to be actively involved in judging the Philistines.”^[7]

When Dagon toppled to the ground, the author wrote, “both his hands were lying cut off on the threshold.”^[8] Although the pagan idol’s hands were rendered helpless, the hand of Jehovah was certainly not.  The “hand of God” is God’s involvement in the lives of men and women.  The God of the Bible is not the god of Deism.  The “hand of the Lord” is a dangerous hand regarding His enemies.  But His hand is a blessing to those on whom His favor rests (e.g., “Jabez was more honorable than his brothers; and his mother called his name Jabez, saying, “Because I bore him in pain.” Jabez called upon the God of Israel, saying, “Oh that you would bless me and enlarge my border, and that your hand might be with me, and that you would keep me from harm so that it might not bring me pain!” And God granted what he asked” (1 Chronicles 4:9–10, ESV)).

Regarding the early Church we read, “And the hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number who believed turned to the Lord.” (Acts 11:21, ESV).  It is good news to the Believer that even in times of discipline, God’s hand – His gracious hand is upon them.  David wrote, ““Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered . . . For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was dried up as by the heat of summer. Selah” (Psalm 32:1–4, ESV).

Rick Crandall writes, “When the Hand of the Lord is against you, you are in extreme danger. When the Hand of the Lord is against you, nothing and no one on earth can help you. And the Hand of the Lord is against His enemies, unless they turn to the Lord and receive Him.”[9]

For the Christian, the hand of the Lord is great comfort.  “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.” (John 10:27–29, ESV) [Emphasis Mine]

The “hand of God” is God’s interaction in human affairs.  He is not distant.  He is involved.  For His enemies, His hand is a fearful thing.  But for those who have obeyed the Gospel, His Hand, protrudes through the veil of eternity and holds His children, such that no shall be lost.  The security of the Christian rests firmly in the hand of God.

---

^[1] Crossway Bibles. (2008). The ESV Study Bible (p. 500). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

^[2] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (1 Sa 5:10). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

^[3] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (1 Sa 5:6). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

^[4] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (1 Sa 5:7). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

^[5] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (1 Sa 5:9). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

^[6] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (1 Sa 5:11). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

^[7] MacArthur, J., Jr. (Ed.). (1997). The MacArthur Study Bible (electronic ed., p. 385). Nashville, TN: Word Pub.

^[8] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (1 Sa 5:4). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

[9] https://sermons.faithlife.com/sermons/193807-the-hand-of-the-lord-in-scripture

Susanna Wesley - Search Me, Oh God

Before Susanna Wesley would enter into prayer, she would spend up to 15 minutes of preparing her soul to worship. She believed prayer was worship. She also spent a similar amount of time seking cleansing from sin. 

John Kirk in his biography of her records these words from her diary:

“You, above all others, have most need of humbling yourself before the great and holy God, for the very great and very many sins you daily are guilty of, in thought, word, and deed, against His Divine Majesty. What an habitual levity is there in your thoughts! How many vain, impure thoughts pass through the mind in one hour! And though they do not take up their abode for any long continuance, yet their passing through often leaves a tincture of impurity. How many worldly regards, even in sacred actions, with habitual inadvertence; seldom any seriousness, or composure of spirit; the passions rude and tumultuous, very susceptible of violent impressions, from light and inconsiderable accidents, unworthy a reasonable being, but more unworthy a Christian. Keep thy heart with all diligence,—thy thoughts, thy affections,—for out of them are the issues of life. Who can tell how oft he offendeth in this kind? Oh, cleanse Thou me from secret faults | Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. How many unnecessary words are you guilty of daily? How many opportunities of speaking for the good of the souls committed to your care are neglected? How seldom do you speak of God with that reverence, that humility, that gravity that you ought? Your words, as well as your thoughts, are deficient. You do not conceive or speak of God aright. You do not speak magnificently or worthily of Him who is the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, the Creator of the Universe!” (p186)

Far As the Curse is Found - 1 Samuel, Part 11

1 Samuel 4:12–22 (ESV)

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

---

^[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.

THINKING - Dr. Albert Mohler

Historian David Bebbington provided a definition of evangelicalism in terms of four distinctives: biblicism (a confidence that the Bible is the Word of God), conversionism (a belief that persons must come to a saving knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ), crucicentrism (a belief that the cross and the resurrection are the central acts whereby God saves sinners), and activism (evangelicals are people who hold crusades, build colleges and seminaries, go on mission trips, organize conferences, and create periodicals and publishing houses).  

Dr. Albert Mohler adds that absent from Bebbington’s list, however, is the idea that evangelicals are defined by their thinking. 

“I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” - Romans 12:1-2

https://youtu.be/YdN4-lX48U4

No More Lucky Charms - 1 Samuel, Part 10

1 Samuel 4:1–11 (ESV)

Some of the best stories have surprise endings.  If I was writing this story I’d start with “And the word of Samuel came to all Israel.”^[1]  That would set the tone.  No longer was the voice of God silent (3:1b).  Happy days ahead!  My story would tell of the self-sufficient failure of Israel’s first attempt at defeating the Philistines (4:2) and their humble recognition that without God’s Presence (the Ark of the Covenant) they could never win.  But upon retrieval of the Ark, it brought great fear on the enemy (4:7-9), so much so that they expressed two “woes” and a “fear not”.   Then I would tell of the battle and the decisive victory of God’s people over the enemy.  God was present.  That would be the guarantee.

However that’s not the ending. “So the Philistines fought, and Israel was defeated, and they fled, every man to his home. And there was a very great slaughter, for thirty thousand foot soldiers of Israel fell. And the ark of God was captured, and the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, died.” (1 Samuel 4:10–11, ESV)

That’s not the way I’d write the story.  What in the world happened? 

It seems that Israel treated God like magic, maybe a good-luck bracelet. The Ark of the Covenant, as special as it was, was a representation.  Like all of Israel’s ceremonial accoutrements, for there to be redemptive value it had to be accompanied by faith and obedience. Using symbols is the very heart of humanistic spirituality.  The value of using good-luck charms is that we get to control them.  However, God won’t be controlled or manipulated by man.  God is free.

In the sovereign, free-will of God he determined to punish Israel and kill Hophni and Phinehas. Manipulation of God through trinkets and magical trappings will never displace His will.  Manipulation of God through external, empty-hearted spiritual disciplines will never please God.  Manipulation of God through negotiation will not work.  Manipulation of God through self-mutilation and self-inflicted suffering will not change His mind.   Adding “in the name of Jesus” to a self-centered, unbiblical prayer will not open Heaven’s portals.  Putting the Lord’s Prayer on your wall beside a television that spouts out profanity and immorality will not balance the equation.

“Now they are made to see their folly in trusting to their external privileges which they had by their wickedness forfeited them, and fancying that the ark would save them when God had departed from them.”^[2]    “And without faith it is impossible to please him . . .” (Hebrews 11:6a, ESV).  “. . . For whatever does not proceed from faith is sin.” (Romans 14:23b, ESV)

 There’s no magic to a true relationship with God.  It’s by faith and the resultant obedience.  The Gospel that saves, is a gospel of faith. “For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.”” (Romans 1:17, ESV)

Faith in God and His Word.  Not lucky charms.

---

^[1] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (1 Sa 4:1). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

^[2] Henry, M. (1994). Matthew Henry’s commentary on the whole Bible: complete and unabridged in one volume (p. 389). Peabody: Hendrickson.

Speak Lord - 1 Samuel, Part 9

1 Samuel 3:1–18 (ESV)

I’m sure that every Sunday School age child has heard the story of the boy Samuel hearing the voice of the Lord.  The story is prefaced by making us aware of the scarcity of God’s revelation to the nation. We read “Now the boy Samuel was ministering to the Lord in the presence of Eli. And the word of the Lord was rare in those days; there was no frequent vision.” (1 Samuel 3:1, ESV).  I am reminded of the Proverb 29:18.  As opposed to most organizational misappropriations this verse, it is intended to communicate the notion that where there is no vision (better: revelation) the people live unbridled lives. The positive side is that obedience is a blessing.  Where the Word of God does not rule, anarchy does.

How might a situation like that come to pass?  The narrative links “the iniquity of Eli’s house” to the context.  The Septuagint reads: “his sons blasphemed God”.  Such a behavior was worthy of capital punishment (Leviticus 24:11-16, 23).  Eli is included in God’s condemnation because he failed to intervene and deal with his sons.

The story of Samuel’s struggle with knowing how to respond to this nighttime voice was really about the fact that “Samuel did not yet know the Lord, and the word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him.” (1 Samuel 3:7, ESV). This should not surprise us because the New Testament affirms that “long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets.”^[1]  It would be important for young Samuel to know the voice of God.  Should we anticipate hearing God’s audible voice in our human ears?  No.  The New Testament is equally clear that “in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son.”^[2] Through the progress of revelation Jesus has communicated truth through the Apostles (John 14:26) who wrote the New Testament for our edification. As someone has said, “If you want God to speak to you, read your Bible.”

When Eli demanded to know what God had said, the young Samuel relented.  The judgment of God was clear and irrevocable. Eli’s response is interesting. “It is the Lord. Let him do what seems good to him” (1 Samuel 3:18b, ESV). There is a humble acceptance of God’s ruling.

Jesus made it very clear that “when he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice.” (John 10:4, ESV).  God is not somehow encumbered in a way that He cannot speak audibly to His Church today.  However, the occurrence of it is highly doubtful and extremely rare if at all.  God, in these days, speaks via the Incarnate Word through the Inspired Word. We know it’s God’s voice because it is in full agreement and harmony with holy Scripture (2 Timothy 3:16-17).

Clearly sin can muffle and stifle the voice of God in His Word.  Sin robs the joy of reading God’s Word.  Sin dulls the senses perverting the interpretation.  Handwritten in the cover of his Bible, John Bunyan wrote these words: “Either this book will keep you from sin, or sin will keep you from this book.” “Therefore, put away all filthiness and rampant wickedness and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.” (James 1:21, ESV).  

Those who are born of the Spirit; those who deal with sin in their lives; those who spiritually ingest God’s Word on a regular basis, will find not only an increasing hunger for His Word, but a key discernment that recognizes His Voice amid the confusing voices of our society. 

---

^[1] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Heb 1:1). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

^[2] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Heb 1:2). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.