1 Samuel 7:10

1 Samuel 7:10 says, And as Samuel was offering up the burnt offering, the Philistines drew near to battle against Israel: but the LORD thundered with a great thunder on that day upon the Philistines, and discomfited them; and they were smitten before Israel.  While Samuel was offering a burnt offering to God, the Philistines were drawing near to battle the Israelites.  We are told God thundered a great thunder, and the Philistines were discomfited, or made to feel uneasy by the thunder, and they were defeated by the Israelites.  There is nothing about the Israelites being made superior physically or becoming better armed, but God used the thunder to lead to Israel's victory.   We need to learn to put our faith in God above all else.  Verse eleven adds, And the men of Israel went out of Mizpeh, and pursued the Philistines, and smote them, until they came under Bethcar.  The men of Israel pursued the Philistines all the way to Bethcar.  God gave the people of Israel the victory once they repented and returned to Him.  We cannot expect to be victorious over the world today if we are being disobedient to God, but if we feel that we are being defeated, we need to simply look to Him in obedience.  Verse twelve states, Then Samuel took a stone, and set it between Mizpeh and Shen, and called the name of it Ebenezer, saying, Hitherto hath the LORD helped us.  Samuel made a memorial to God between Mizpeh and Shen, to commeriate God's giving the people of Israel the victory over the Philistines.  This was where the Israelites had been defeated by the Philistines twenty years earlier.  The longer it takes us to repent and ask God's forgiveness if we as followers of Christ have gone astray, the longer it will be before God restores us to a place of victory in the world today.  Of course, we will always have the everlasting victory, but that does not mean that if we fail to put our faith in God in all situations that we cannot be temporarily defeated.  Verse thirteen adds, So the Philistines were subdued, and they came no more into the coast of Israel: and the hand of the LORD was against the Philistines all the days of Samuel.  As long as Samuel lived, the Philistines never came to battle the people of Israel again, because the hand of God was against them.  We need to be like Samuel today, standing with God and calling on others to do so as well.  Verse fourteen continues, And the cities which the Philistines had taken from Israel were restored to Israel, from Ekron even unto Gath; and the coasts thereof did Israel deliver out of the hands of the Philistines. And there was peace between Israel and the Amorites.  All the land that the Philistines had taken from Israel was returned, and Israel was at peace with the Amorites, or those people who remained in the Promised Land.  We live with people of all beliefs and backgrounds today, but we should do our best to live at peace with them, without compromising our faith.  We are to be a light of the gospel to them, and this is easier to do if we are not looking to be at war with them.  Verse fifteen declares, And Samuel judged Israel all the days of his life.  Verse sixteen adds, And he went from year to year in circuit to Bethel, and Gilgal, and Mizpeh, and judged Israel in all those places.  Samuel was a Judge of Israel for the rest of His life, and he was actively involved in doing so. He did not just sit and wait for the people to come to him, but He traveled throughout Israel.  I believe that we today cannot just wait for people to come to us to hear the Gospel, but we must take it to them by any means possible. Verse seventeen continues, And his return was to Ramah; for there was his house; and there he judged Israel; and there he built an altar unto the LORD.  Samuel's residence was in Ramah, so he would return there after traveling the circuit.  He also built an altar to God there.  We need a place to call home that we can return to after we have been out in the world sharing the Gospel, and there should be an altar to God there, spiritually if not physically. 

1 Samuel 7:1

1 Samuel 7:1 says, And the men of Kirjathjearim came, and fetched up the ark of the LORD, and brought it into the house of Abinadab in the hill, and sanctified Eleazar his son to keep the ark of the LORD.  The men of Kirjathjearim got the Ark, brought it to the house of house of Abinadab, and sanctified Eleazar Abinadab's son to keep it.  Matthew Henry said the Ark remained there for many years, never to have any more heard about it until David retrieved it, except for once in 1 Samuel 14:18.  He said the men there allowed what should have been a blessing to become a curse.  There definitely was no mention of them consulting God about anything that they did.  Still, God allowed the Ark to remain there, and they had made the effort to attend to it properly.  We likewise cannot just keep the Gospel to ourselves today, even if we attempt to keep its truth for ourselves.  Verse two adds, And it came to pass, while the ark abode in Kirjathjearim, that the time was long; for it was twenty years: and all the house of Israel lamented after the LORD.  As stated, the Ark remained there for twenty years while the people lamented to the LORD, not really very concerned about where the Ark was, even though it was back in Israel. We don't need to sit around lamenting God's seeming lack of action in the world today, because He is here if we will only obey Him.  Verse three states, And Samuel spake unto all the house of Israel, saying, If ye do return unto the LORD with all your hearts, then put away the strange gods and Ashtaroth from among you, and prepare your hearts unto the LORD, and serve him only: and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines.  During this time, Samuel called on the people of Israel to repent, return to God, and put away their false gods.  Then, if they did, God would free them from the hand of the Philistines.  If we want God to bless us as individuals or as a nation, we must do the same thing.  Verse four adds, Then the children of Israel did put away Baalim and Ashtaroth, and served the LORD only.  The people responded to Samuel's call, and put away their idols to Baalim and Ashtaroth, and served the LORD only.  If we have allowed idols, which is anything that comes between God and us, into our life, we need to put whatever it is away, and serve God only.  Verse five continues, And Samuel said, Gather all Israel to Mizpeh, and I will pray for you unto the LORD.  Samuel called on the people of Israel to gather at Mizpeh, and he would pray for them.  We need to be willing to gather together as the church today, spiritually and physically, and all be in prayer for God's will to be done in the world.  Verse six says, And they gathered together to Mizpeh, and drew water, and poured it out before the LORD, and fasted on that day, and said there, We have sinned against the LORD. And Samuel judged the children of Israel in Mizpeh.  The people took action to show that they had repented.  Matthew Henry says the pouring of the water on the ground was symbolic of their humiliation and contrition, since the water once poured out could not be gathered again.  We cannot undo our sins by our own power, but must allow God to forgive us by putting our faith Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord.  Verse seven adds, And when the Philistines heard that the children of Israel were gathered together to Mizpeh, the lords of the Philistines went up against Israel. And when the children of Israel heard it, they were afraid of the Philistines.  When the Philistines heard that the people of Israel were gathered at Mizpeh they went up against them, and the people of Israel were afraid.  They still were not totally trusting in the LORD.  We today as followers of Christ should never live in fear of the world, because we have already won no matter what happens in this life.  Verse eight continues, And the children of Israel said to Samuel, Cease not to cry unto the LORD our God for us, that he will save us out of the hand of the Philistines.  The people of Israel asked Samuel to pray that God would not forget them, and that He would deliver them out of the hands of the Philistines.  We as Christians today know that God will never forget us,and that He has already delivered us out of the hands of all our enemies. Verse nine concludes,  And Samuel took a sucking lamb, and offered it for a burnt offering wholly unto the LORD: and Samuel cried unto the LORD for Israel; and the LORD heard him.  Samuel offered a sacrifice of a young lamb to God as a burnt sacrifice, cried out to God, and God heard Him.  The only acceptable sacrifice for sin has already been made for us, and that is the death of Jesus Christ on the cross, and all we need to do is cry out to Him by faith, and He will hear us.

1 Samuel 6:12

1 Samuel 6:12 says, And the kine took the straight way to the way of Bethshemesh, and went along the highway, lowing as they went, and turned not aside to the right hand or to the left; and the lords of the Philistines went after them unto the border of Bethshemesh.  The two cows pulling the Ark of the Covenant took a straight path to Bethshemesh.  This was the next city in the land of Israel, and a priests city.  They did not turn aside on their way there.  The Philistines had taken the Ark as a trophy, and had possibly thought to ransom it, but they were as glad to get rid of it as they had been to take it.  We should never attempt to profit from things that belong to God.  Verse thirteen adds, And they of Bethshemesh were reaping their wheat harvest in the valley: and they lifted up their eyes, and saw the ark, and rejoiced to see it.  The people of Bethshemesh were at work, reaping their wheat.  They were not expecting this blessing from the lord, and it was a blessing.  We never know as we go about our everyday life as followers of Christ when we will receive an unexpected blessing, but then again shouldn't all blessings be unexpected?  We should not live sitting around waiting for God to bless us, but should be at work for Him every day.  Verse fourteen continues, Like the people of Israel then, we should rejoice in the lord when these unexpected blessings come out way.  Verse fourteen continues, And the cart came into the field of Joshua, a Bethshemite, and stood there, where there was a great stone: and they clave the wood of the cart, and offered the kine a burnt offering unto the LORD.  The cows came to a halt in the field of Joshua, a resident of Bethshemesh, and the placed the Ark on a great stone and used the wood of the cart to make a burnt offering of the cows to God.  Matthew Henry points out that after bearing the Ark of the Covenant, the cart could have never been used for anything else, and the two cows, once they were used to pull the cart had already been given to God.  We should never attempt to profit materially from the things already given to God.  Verse fifteen states, And the Levites took down the ark of the LORD, and the coffer that was with it, wherein the jewels of gold were, and put them on the great stone: and the men of Bethshemesh offered burnt offerings and sacrificed sacrifices the same day unto the LORD.  The Levites had already taken possession of the Ark and the coffer containing the jewels and gold and had placed the Ark on the great stone, as the people offered burnt offerings and sacrifices the same day.  We should never put off rejoicing at that blessings that God bestows on us.  Verse sixteen adds, And when the five lords of the Philistines had seen it, they returned to Ekron the same day.  When the five lords of the Philistines saw what had happened, they returned to Ekron.  They had received no ransom for the Ark, but had actually paid to get rid of it.  We cannot ransom God's word today, and if we attempt to, we will pay the price for doing so.  The lords of the Philistines had seen evidence of the reality and power of God by the cows returning straight to God's people with the Ark, but they simply returned home.  Not everyone who sees evidence of the reality and power of God put their faith in Him.  Verse seventeen continues, And these are the golden emerods which the Philistines returned for a trespass offering unto the LORD; for Ashdod one, for Gaza one, for Askelon one, for Gath one, for Ekron one;  The lords of the Philistines had offered golden statues for each of their five cities.  Verse eighteen says, And the golden mice, according to the number of all the cities of the Philistines belonging to the five lords, both of fenced cities, and of country villages, even unto the great stone of Abel, whereon they set down the ark of the LORD: which stone remaineth unto this day in the field of Joshua, the Bethshemite.  They had also included five golden mice in the offering, and the stone the Ark sat on was there for a memorial to God thereafter.  We need to teach our children about the blessings that God has given us, so that they might know of His power and hopefully come to put their faith in Him.  Verse nineteen adds, And he smote the men of Bethshemesh, because they had looked into the ark of the LORD, even he smote of the people fifty thousand and threescore and ten men: and the people lamented, because the LORD had smitten many of the people with a great slaughter.  Instead of being able to continue worshipping God, He struck down over fifty thousand of the people of Bethshemesh because they had shown disrespect for the sanctity if the Ark of the Covenant by looking inside it.  We should never disrespect the things set aside for God.  Verse twenty continues, And the men of Bethshemesh said, Who is able to stand before this holy LORD God? and to whom shall he go up from us?  The remaining people of Bethshemesh asked who could stand before the Holy Gad and who could go up to God for them.  The answer to their questions is that no one of their own merit can stand before God, but He graciously sent His only begotten Son Jesus Christ to go up before Him for us, if we will put our faith in Him.  Verse twenty-one continues, And they sent messengers to the inhabitants of Kirjathjearim, saying, The Philistines have brought again the ark of the LORD; come ye down, and fetch it up to you.  The people of Bethshemesh then sent messengers to Kirjathjearim, asking them to come take the Ark.  They now would not even touch the Ark of the Covenant themselves, though they had rejoiced at its return earlier, and had then become guilty of profaning it.  If God blesses us today, we should be careful that we do not begin to profane Him by misusing the things He blesses us with.

1 Samuel 6:1

1 Samuel 6:1 says, And the ark of the LORD was in the country of the Philistines seven months.  The Philistines kept the Ark of the LORD for seven months, but what they thought was a symbol of triumph over God turned out to be a curse.  People today may think they have triumphed over God, and even desecrate the things of God, but they will one day find out it was a curse.  Verse two adds, And the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners, saying, What shall we do to the ark of the LORD? tell us wherewith we shall send it to his place.  The Philistines called for their priests and diviners, those who served Dagon, to tell them what to do with the Ark.  They wanted to know if they should return it to the people of Israel.  People still rely on false gods to tell them what to do about the one real God.  Verse three continues, And they said, If ye send away the ark of the God of Israel, send it not empty; but in any wise return him a trespass offering: then ye shall be healed, and it shall be known to you why his hand is not removed from you.  The priests at least gave the people some wise advice, and that was to return it.  Then, they gave some not so wise advice from its motivation.  They said if they returned it, to return it with a trespass offering, even though they didn't believe in God.  This was more of an attempt to buy God's forgiveness than an actual trespass offering, since they didn't believe in God.  God's forgiveness cannot be bought with material things though.  Verse four states, Then said they, What shall be the trespass offering which we shall return to him? They answered, Five golden emerods, and five golden mice, according to the number of the lords of the Philistines: for one plague was on you all, and on your lords.  After asking what the trespass offering should be, the priests said five golden emerods, or hemorrhoids which they were all afflicted with, and five golden mice, according to the number of the Lords of the Philistines, since they were all involved in taking the Ark.  Of course,  God really had no need of golden statues, but I believe to their way of thinking, they believed this would impress God.  What we need to acknowledge is that God is not impressed with material things,but only with a penitent heart.  Verse five adds, Wherefore ye shall make images of your emerods, and images of your mice that mar the land; and ye shall give glory unto the God of Israel: peradventure he will lighten his hand from off you, and from off your gods, and from off your land.  They were then told to make the golden emorods and mice into graven images, and offer them as a trespass offering to God.  The priests said that God might take His hand off the Philistines and their gods.  They acknowledged, even if without intending to, the superiority of God over their gods.  Verse six continues, Wherefore then do ye harden your hearts, as the Egyptians and Pharaoh hardened their hearts? when he had wrought wonderfully among them, did they not let the people go, and they departed? The priests then told them not to harden their hearts as the Egyptians and their Pharaoh had done.  They were at least familiar with God and His power, though they were not submitting to Him.  Some people today may acknowledge the power of God and yet still serve false gods.  Verse seven says, Now therefore make a new cart, and take two milch kine, on which there hath come no yoke, and tie the kine to the cart, and bring their calves home from them:  The priests began to give them specific instructions on how to return the Ark.  They were to put it in a new cart and have it pulled by two milk cows who had never pulled a cart before, and would be inclined to return home, since theircalves would be locked away from them.  Verse eight adds, And take the ark of the LORD, and lay it upon the cart; and put the jewels of gold, which ye return him for a trespass offering, in a coffer by the side thereof; and send it away, that it may go.  They were the told to put the Ark on the new cart and put jewels in with it as a trespass offering, and then let the cows find their way to Israel.  They were not to lead or drive them, but this was evidently to be a test of God's power by seeing if He would bring them to Israel.  People still tempt God today by trying to prove or disprove His power.  Verse nine continues, And see, if it goeth up by the way of his own coast to Bethshemesh, then he hath done us this great evil: but if not, then we shall know that it is not his hand that smote us; it was a chance that happened to us.  The priests then said if the cows brought the Ark back to Israel that they would know that it was God's hand that was punishing them, and not just some random misfortune.  Of course, whether the cows returned the cart to Israel or not, it was still God Who was punishing them.  We cannot make the existence of God be based on any criteria that we might propose, but must accept by faith that God is Who He says He is.  Verse ten states, And the men did so; and took two milch kine, and tied them to the cart, and shut up their calves at home:  Verse eleven adds, And they laid the ark of the LORD upon the cart, and the coffer with the mice of gold and the images of their emerods.  The lords of the Philistines did as the priests had told them to do, including locking the calves up at home, which would have tended to make the cows go there.  Like the Philistines, people often attempt to stack the deck in an attempt to prove or disprove the power of God.   

1 Samuel 5:1

1 Samuel 5:1 says, And the Philistines took the ark of God, and brought it from Ebenezer unto Ashdod.  The Philistines relocated the Ark of the Covenant from Ebenezer to Ashdod, where Dagon’s temple was.  They did not destroy or desecrate it.  Verse two adds, When the Philistines took the ark of God, they brought it into the house of Dagon, and set it by Dagon.  They then took it into the temple of Dagon and set it up by Dagon’s statue.  They may have thought this would make God under Dagon’s rule.  I once saw a home with a cross over a statue of Buddha, and the homeowner said she just wanted to keep her bases covered.  Of course, God was not in the Ark of the Covenant, nor is He confined to any place today.  Verse three continues, And when they of Ashdod arose early on the morrow, behold, Dagon was fallen upon his face to the earth before the ark of the LORD. And they took Dagon, and set him in his place again.  When the people of Ashdod got up the next morning, the statue of Dagon was face down on the ground in front of the Ark of the Covenant, or of the LORD as it is referred to here.  They returned the statue of Dagon to its place.  They should have gotten the message, that all false gods are going to fall down before the one true and Living God, and the statue was unable to return itself to its place.  I believe this is another reason we don't need statues of God.  They would only be inanimate objects, and we serve a Living God.  Verse four states, And when they arose early on the morrow morning, behold, Dagon was fallen upon his face to the ground before the ark of the LORD; and the head of Dagon and both the palms of his hands were cut off upon the threshold; only the stump of Dagon was left to him.  They next morning when they arose, and Dagon was once again face down before the Ark of the LORD, but this time his hands and head had been cut off.  The message should have been becoming clearer.  Verse five adds, Therefore neither the priests of Dagon, nor any that come into Dagon’s house, tread on the threshold of Dagon in Ashdod unto this day.  After that, no one, not even the priests of Dagon, would step on the threshold of the temple of Dagon.  They considered it holy according to Matthew Henry, but if it was, it wasn't because of Dagon.  People may consider a lot of places holy today, but if they do, they will not be holy unless God declares them to be.  Verse six continues, But the hand of the LORD was heavy upon them of Ashdod, and he destroyed them, and smote them with emerods, even Ashdod and the coasts thereof.  The hand of God was heavy on Ashdod because they refused to heed His warning and still worshipped a fallen idol instead of repenting and turning to Him.  We are told Ashdod was destroyed, and those who survived were afflicted with hemorrhoids as we would call them, and everyone who worships idols will one day suffer spiritually forever.  God has already sent the warning through Jesus Christ, His only begotten Son.  Verse seven declares, And when the men of Ashdod saw that it was so, they said, The ark of the God of Israel shall not abide with us: for his hand is sore upon us, and upon Dagon our god.  The Philistines may have thought they had triumphed when they took the Ark, but now they realized that God was going to punish them for attempting to keep it.  Those who believe that they have triumphed over God will always find that they are wrong.  Verse eight adds, They sent therefore and gathered all the lords of the Philistines unto them, and said, What shall we do with the ark of the God of Israel? And they answered, Let the ark of the God of Israel be carried about unto Gath. And they carried the ark of the God of Israel about thither.  After calling all the lords of the Philistines together, they asked what were they going to do with the Ark of the God of Israel, and it was determined that they would take it to Gath.  Verse nine continues, And it was so, that, after they had carried it about, the hand of the LORD was against the city with a very great destruction: and he smote the men of the city, both small and great, and they had emerods in their secret parts.  Changing the location of the Ark did not change the outcome.  The people who did not die were afflicted with hemorrhoids just as the people of Ashdod had been.  God is not limited in His power just because we change locations.  Verse ten says, Therefore they sent the ark of God to Ekron. And it came to pass, as the ark of God came to Ekron, that the Ekronites cried out, saying, They have brought about the ark of the God of Israel to us, to slay us and our people.  They then took the Ark to Ekron, and the people there were not pleased to have it brought there.  Matthew Henry says since it was sent by the council, they could not refuse it.  The people of Ekron said that the council was out to destroy them.  It must be sad that in some places today that people have no choice in worshipping.  Verse eleven adds, So they sent and gathered together all the lords of the Philistines, and said, Send away the ark of the God of Israel, and let it go again to his own place, that it slay us not, and our people: for there was a deadly destruction throughout all the city; the hand of God was very heavy there.  They again gathered the lords of the Philistines, and asked that the Ark of the Covenant be returned to Israel where it belonged, because until it was, the hand of God was going to be heavy on them.  As long as people today worship idols, and especially if they attempt to make God inferior to those idols, God's hand is going to be heavy on them, spiritually if not physically.  Verse twelve continues, And the men that died not were smitten with the emerods: and the cry of the city went up to heaven.  They stated the fact that the people in the cities where the Ark was kept either died or suffered because of it.  Those who worship idols today might be wealthy in this lifetime, but the hand of God is always heavy on them spiritually. 

1 Samuel 4:12

1 Samuel 4:12 says, And there ran a man of Benjamin out of the army, and came to Shiloh the same day with his clothes rent, and with earth upon his head.  After the defeat of the army of Israel and the capturing of the Ark of the Covenant by the Philistines, a survivor came to Eli to tell him the news, including the fact that his two sons had been killed I would assume.  When something terrible happens to us today as Christians, we need to go to God with our concerns, though we don't have to go to a priest as they did in those days.  Verse thirteen adds, And when he came, lo, Eli sat upon a seat by the wayside watching: for his heart trembled for the ark of God. And when the man came into the city, and told it, all the city cried out.  Eli was sitting on a seat by the wayside watching when the man came to him, because he was concerned about the Ark of the Covenant.  When the man told the people what had happened, the whole city cried out.  If we see something bad happening in the church today, we need to cry out to God about it.  Verse fourteen continues, And when Eli heard the noise of the crying, he said, What meaneth the noise of this tumult? And the man came in hastily, and told Eli.  When Eli heard the noise of the people crying out, he asked what it was about, and evidently this was when he was told, though we are earlier told that the man ran to him.  This is a clarification and not a contradiction though.  Since Eli sat at the gate, the man had inadvertently passed him by and told the people of Shiloh first.  Verse fifteen states, Now Eli was ninety and eight years old; and his eyes were dim, that he could not see.  Eli was ninety-eight at this time and nearly blind.  This might have contributed to his allowing his sons to do what they did with the Ark of the Covenant, but he was still the high priest.  Our age and infirmities should never be used as an excuse to keep us from doing what God has called us to do.  Verse sixteen adds, And the man said unto Eli, I am he that came out of the army, and I fled to day out of the army. And he said, What is there done, my son?  The man told Eli that he was from the army of Israel and had fled from the battle.  Eli then asked him what had happened.  If we are to effectively serve God, we must do so based on the truth of any situation we find ourselves in.  Verse seventeen continues, And the messenger answered and said, Israel is fled before the Philistines, and there hath been also a great slaughter among the people, and thy two sons also, Hophni and Phinehas, are dead, and the ark of God is taken.  The man shared the bad news with Eli.  Verse eighteen declares, And it came to pass, when he made mention of the ark of God, that he fell from off the seat backward by the side of the gate, and his neck brake, and he died: for he was an old man, and heavy. And he had judged Israel forty years.  When Eli heard the news about the Ark of the Covenant, he fell off the wall, broke his neck and died.  He had judged Israel for forty years at this time, and now he and his sons were all dead, but it was the loss of the Ark of the Covenant that distressed Eli most.  Also, though the Ark of the Covenant was soon returned to Israel , it never returned to Shiloh.  We should be more upset by God's will not being done or being perverted today than we are by any worldly thing that happens.  Verse nineteen adds, And his daughter in law, Phinehas’ wife, was with child, near to be delivered: and when she heard the tidings that the ark of God was taken, and that her father in law and her husband were dead, she bowed herself and travailed; for her pains came upon her.  Phinehas wife was pregnant at that time, and when she heard about Phinehas and Eli, she had her child but she herself died.  Matthew Henry says she was a woman with a very tender spirit and the news was too much for her to bear, especially while giving birth.  Sometimes, it may seem that life is just too much for us to bear, but if we are truly a follower of Christ, the Holy Spirit will always give us the strength to carry on.  Verse twenty continues, And about the time of her death the women that stood by her said unto her, Fear not; for thou hast born a son. But she answered not, neither did she regard it.  The woman with her during the birth told Phinehas's wife that she had a son, but she never heard her.  Sometimes, good news may come too late for us to hear it, but it is still good news.  Verse twenty-one says, And she named the child Ichabod, saying, The glory is departed from Israel: because the ark of God was taken, and because of her father in law and her husband.  The woman had gave the child the name Ichabod, which meant the glory is departed from Israel.  He by fact of his name would be a memorial to what had happened to Israel.  Though I don't believe that we should do it by the naming of our children, I believe that we should always remember what God has been doing in our lives as His people, especially if we have allowed ourselves to be defeated in the battle against sin and evil because we have put our faith more in the things of the world than in God Himself.   Verse twenty-two adds, And she said, The glory is departed from Israel: for the ark of God is taken.  This verse is just a restatement of the meaning of the son's name. 

1 Samuel 4:1

1 Samuel 4:1 says, And the word of Samuel came to all Israel. Now Israel went out against the Philistines to battle, and pitched beside Ebenezer: and the Philistines pitched in Aphek.  The statement that the word of Samuel does not seem to have any relationship to the rest of the story here.  The people of Israel decided to go to war against the Philistines, Matthew Henry says probably about halfway through their captivity by the Philistines.  We are not told that they consulted God about this.  As Christians, if we find ourselves once again captive to any sin today, we need to first go to God in repentance.  Verse two adds, And the Philistines put themselves in array against Israel: and when they joined battle, Israel was smitten before the Philistines: and they slew of the army in the field about four thousand men.  When the people of Israel went to war against the Philistines without God's guidance and power, they were soundly defeated, having about four thousand men killed.  We are just as powerless when we go into battle against the evil of the world without God's guidance and power.  Verse three declares, And when the people were come into the camp, the elders of Israel said, Wherefore hath the LORD smitten us to day before the Philistines? Let us fetch the ark of the covenant of the LORD out of Shiloh unto us, that, when it cometh among us, it may save us out of the hand of our enemies.  When the rest of the army of Israel returned to camp, they asked the elders where God had been during the battle, but they still didn't consult God.  If we don't consult God before we take any action today, we should not ask anyone, even religious leaders, where He as if we fail.  Still without consulting God, they decided to take the Ark of the Covenant into battle with them.  All the symbols that represent God today are not going to make us more powerful if God is not directing us in our actions.  Verse four adds, So the people sent to Shiloh, that they might bring from thence the ark of the covenant of the LORD of hosts, which dwelleth between the cherubims: and the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were there with the ark of the covenant of God.  They sent to Shiloh to get the Ark of the Covenant, while Eli's sons, Hophni and Phinehas the corrupt priests, were with the Ark.  The people were acting without God's guidance and were relying on corrupt priests to empower them simply by having something that was symbolic of the presence of God with them.  We cannot afford to make the same mistake today.  Verse five continues, And when the ark of the covenant of the LORD came into the camp, all Israel shouted with a great shout, so that the earth rang again.  When the Ark of the Covenant came into their camp, the people of Israel shouted so loudly that the ground shook.  They were zealous, but they were misguided in their zeal.  We may be caught up in zeal today over what seems to be success over the evil of the world, but if God is not in it, all our zeal will get us nowhere.  Verse six states, And when the Philistines heard the noise of the shout, they said, What meaneth the noise of this great shout in the camp of the Hebrews? And they understood that the ark of the LORD was come into the camp.  When the Philistines heard the great shout of the people of Israel, they asked what it meant and realized that the Ark of the Covenant had come into the camp of Israel.  This had been a symbol of God's power before the people of Israel before so the Philistines recognized it as such at that time.  Once more, things that are symbolic of God today, even if recognized by the people of the world as such, will not empower us if we have not sought God's guidance and endorsement of our actions.  Verse seven adds, And the Philistines were afraid, for they said, God is come into the camp. And they said, Woe unto us! for there hath not been such a thing heretofore.  The Philistines were initially afraid, because they said God had come into the camp of Israel, and nothing like this had ever happened before.  Verse eight continues, Woe unto us! who shall deliver us out of the hand of these mighty Gods? these are the Gods that smote the Egyptians with all the plagues in the wilderness.  Though they recognized the power of God, Who had indeed delivered the people of Israel out of Egypt, they did not really know Who God is, referring to Him in the plural instead instead of the One and only true God.  The people of the world today can never truly understand Who God is, because this knowledge only comes from putting one's faith in Jesus Christ.   Verse nine states, Be strong, and quit yourselves like men, O ye Philistines, that ye be not servants unto the Hebrews, as they have been to you: quit yourselves like men, and fight.  Even recognizing the power of God, the Philistines called on their army to be strong and fight like men.  Even if they have heard of God's powerful actions in the past, the people of the world are still willing to go into battle against God's people today.  Verse ten adds,  And the Philistines fought, and Israel was smitten, and they fled every man into his tent: and there was a very great slaughter; for there fell of Israel thirty thousand footmen.  This time, the army of Israel was once again soundly defeated, having thirty thousand soldiers killed and the rest fleeing.  All their zeal at the symbolic presence of God did them no good without God's actual presence with them, nor will God's symbolic presence do us any good today.  Verse eleven continues, And the ark of God was taken; and the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were slain.  Not only did they lose the battle and thirty thousand men, the people of Israel also lost the Ark of the Covenant to the Philistines.  Though this represented the presence of God, it was not God, but had evidently become somewhat of an idol to the people of Israel.  We cannot afford to allow things symbolic of God to replace a real relationship with Him.  Hophni and Phinehas, who were to take care of the Ark, were also killed at this time.  They had evidently proven themselves to be corrupt priests, and they brought the Ark of the Covenant into battle without seeking God's guidance in the situation.  Spiritual death and everlasting punishment is the fate of all who do not put their faith in Jesus Christ alone as the only way to salvation.