Paul Kretzmann Commentary - 1 Samuel 3:11 - 3:21

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Paul Kretzmann Commentary - 1 Samuel 3:11 - 3:21


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The Prophecy Against Eli

v. 11. And the Lord said to Samuel,
in a Revelation which was his call to the office of prophet in Israel, Behold, I will do a thing in Israel at which both the ears of every one that heareth it shall tingle, with sudden dread and horror, which almost cause a person to lose his senses over the fearfulness of the impending doom.

v. 12. In that day I will perform against Eli all things which I have spoken concerning his house,
the destruction foretold by the prophet, 1Sa_2:27-36; when I begin, I will also make an end, He would both begin and also conclude what He had decided upon as punishment.

v. 13. For I have told him that I will judge his house forever for the iniquity which he knoweth,
punish him and his entire family on account of the transgression of his sons, of whose guilt he had become a partaker; because his sons made themselves vile, deliberately placed themselves under the curse of the Law, and he restrained them not, made no serious, emphatic move to interfere with them.

v. 14. And therefore I have sworn unto the house of Eli,
by an oath which made the sentence of punishment irrevocable, that the iniquity of Eli's house shall not be purged with sacrifice nor offering forever. It was no longer a warning, but a definite statement of a curse which was about to descend upon Eli and his house for his neglect of the duty which he should have performed to his sons as father, high priest, and judge, by employing severe chastisement und punishment upon them. The harm done by the crimes of the priests affected the whole family, even their descendants. This story should be heeded more in our days, when mawkish sentimentality is making a farce of bringing up children.

v. 15. And Samuel lay until the morning,
sleeping in his bed, untroubled by an evil conscience, and opened the doors of the house of the Lord, those of the entrance to the court, so the people might come in for the morning worship. And Samuel feared to tell Eli the vision, the Revelation which he had received, since it. threatened evil to the house of his master.

v. 16. Then Eli called Samuel and said. Samuel, my son! And he answered, Here am I.
Even the divine Revelation which had been vouchsafed him did not change the simple obedience of Samuel.

v. 17. And he,
Eli, said. What is the thing that the Lord hath said unto thee? He felt that the Revelation concerned him, and he was eager to know it. I pray thee hide it not from me; God do so to thee, and more also, in a severe punishment, if thou hide anything from me of all the things that He said unto thee. Eli's excitement is seen in the climax formed by his words. "He asks for the word of the Lord; he demands an exact and complete statement; he adjures Samuel not to conceal anything from him. " (Lange. )

v. 18. And Samuel told him every whit,
placing the pathetic demand of Eli above his own fear and sorrow, and hid nothing from him. Thus Samuel entered upon his prophetic office. And he, Eli, said, It is the Lord; let Him do what seemeth Him good. He expressed his humble submission to the will of the Lord, for with all his weakness and in spite of his transgression he was a believer in Jehovah of Israel, and he realized the justice of the punishment.

v. 19. And Samuel grew,
he reached full manhood, and the Lord was with him, not only by general manifestations of His goodness and mercy, but also by special Revelation s and gifts of the Spirit which the Lord imparted to him as His prophet, and did let none of his words fall to the ground, what he prophetically announced as the Word of Jehovah was fulfilled.

v. 20. And all Israel from Dan,
on the extreme northern boundary, even to Beersheba, the city in the extreme south, knew that Samuel was established to be a prophet of the Lord, throughout all Israel, in the entire land of Canaan, Samuel was known as a faithful, trustworthy prophet, upon whose words one could depend.

v. 21. And the Lord appeared again in Shiloh,
He continued to manifest Himself there; for the Lord revealed Himself to Samuel in Shiloh by the Word of the Lord. God made known His will to the people by the Revelation of His Word to Samuel, who was thus the first exponent of the permanent prophetic order. It has happened repeatedly in history that the Lord graciously visited His people after a season of spiritual drought and gave them His Gospel in rich measure.