The House of Eli’s punishment

11. May 2009 by Bernice Davis.

Hello:

I hope everyone had a wonderful mother’s day weekend.   I am a chaplain at a prison here in Atlanta, so I hung out with the women at the prison on yesterday and ministered there.   My mom died a couple of years ago, so mother’s days just aren’t quite the same for me though I was excited to see the love expressed by so many people to their moms on yesterday.  

Today our lesson gives us the judgment for Hophni and Phinehas and Eli. Here is the story.

I Samuel 2:27 Now a man of God came to Eli and said to him, “This is what the Lord says: ‘Did I not clearly reveal myself to your father’s house when they were in Egypt under Pharaoh? 28 I chose your father out of all the tribes of Israel to be my priest, to go up to my altar, to burn incense, and to wear an ephod in my presence. I also gave your father’s house all the offerings made with fire by the Israelites. 29 Why do you scorn my sacrifice and offering that I prescribed for my dwelling? Why do you honor your sons more than me by fattening yourselves on the choice parts of every offering made by my people Israel?’ 30 ”Therefore the Lord, the God of Israel, declares: ‘I promised that your house and your father’s house would minister before me forever.’ But now the Lord declares: ‘Far be it from me! Those who honor me I will honor, but those who despise me will be disdained. 31 The time is coming when I will cut short your strength and the strength of your father’s house, so that there will not be an old man in your family line 32 and you will see distress in my dwelling. Although good will be done to Israel, in your family line there will never be an old man. 33 Every one of you that I do not cut off from my altar will be spared only to blind your eyes with tears and to grieve your heart, and all your descendants will die in the prime of life. 34 ”‘And what happens to your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, will be a sign to you–they will both die on the same day. 35 I will raise up for myself a faithful priest, who will do according to what is in my heart and mind. I will firmly establish his house, and he will minister before my anointed one always. 36 Then everyone left in your family line will come and bow down before him for a piece of silver and a crust of bread and plead, “Appoint me to some priestly office so I can have food to eat.”‘”

The text opens up with a man of God coming to Eli and telling him what would be the fate of him and his sons.  He first reminds him that from the time of Pharaoh, God choose the family of Eli which was the Levites to be his chosen people to take care of the house of God.  The High Priest was to be the oldest living descendant of Aaron.    God then goes on to ask Eli a series of questions which include why would he allow his sons to defile the offering that is meant for the house of God and why did he honor his sons above HIM.  

The Lord then gives a strong rebuke to Eli.  He tells him that he promised that his household and his father’s house would minister before the Lord forever, but now God was going to honor those who honor him and cut off those that despise him. 

This is a clear example of how just because we have a promise from God, we cannot act anyway that we want to.   We are accountable for our actions and “be not deceived, God will not be mocked, whatsoever a man soweth that shall he also reap.”  There are major consequences for our actions.   The text continues with the specific details about the punishment for Eli’s house and the sign that it would happen being that his two sons Hophni and Phinehas would both die on the same day.  Please remember this, this prophecy will come true shortly in our text.

But in the midst of all this doom, the Lord promises that he will raise up a faithful priest who will do what is in my heart; says the Lord.  Oh!!!!!!!  That really blessed me.  So often in my profession, I hear complaints of how people are discouraged with the church and what they see in leadership in the church.   While I do know that this is a problem, I also know that we have some great churches too.    But I also know that in the midst of evil, God always has a remnant; People who have not compromised and who will do what is in God’s heart to be done.  

Yes, Samuel was growing.   God was raising up a faithful priest to take over governing his people.      God is just in control.  It took me a minute in my spiritual life to get this concept  though I have heard it all the time but when you really embrace it, then it takes the stress out of living and you can just relax, enjoy life, and be content in whatsoever state you find yourself in knowing that this is the will of God concerning you.   God will work it out, HE always does.  Ohhhhhhhhhh,   God is so faithful.

Even though we are about to have a changing of the guards in our story it still will not be the monarchy.    Just wanted to remind you where we are going with this study.   We are leading up to how Israel went from a theocracy to a monarchy.

Stay encouraged!!!!!!!

Don’t forget to pray and read God’s word daily.

Posted in Uncategorized | 2 Comments »