1 Samuel 3:10-4:310And the Lord came, and stood, and called as at other times, Samuel, Samuel. Then Samuel answered, Speak; for thy servant heareth. 11And the Lord said to Samuel, Behold, I will do a thing in Israel, at which both the ears of every one that heareth it shall tingle. 12In that day I will perform against Eli all things which I have spoken concerning his house: when I begin, I will also make an end. 13For I have told him that I will judge his house for ever for the iniquity which he knoweth; because his sons made themselves vile, and he restrained them not. 14And therefore I have sworn unto the house of Eli, that the iniquity of Eli's house shall not be purged with sacrifice nor offering for ever. 15And Samuel lay until the morning, and opened the doors of the house of the Lord. And Samuel feared to show Eli the vision. 16Then Eli called Samuel, and said, Samuel, my son. And he answered, Here am I. 17And he said, What is the thing that the Lord hath said unto thee? I pray thee hide it not from me: God do so to thee, and more also, if thou hide any thing from me of all the things that he said unto thee. 18And Samuel told him every whit, and hid nothing from him. And he said, It is the Lord: let him do what seemeth him good. 19And Samuel grew, and the Lord was with him, and did let none of his words fall to the ground. 20And all Israel from Dan even to Beer-sheba knew that Samuel was established to be a prophet of the Lord. 21And the Lord appeared again in Shiloh: for the Lord revealed himself to Samuel in Shiloh by the word of the Lord. 1And the word of Samuel came to all Israel. Now Israel went out against the Philistines to battle, and pitched beside Eben-ezer: and the Philistines pitched in Aphek. 2And 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. 3And 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. (1 Samuel 3:10‑4:3).
Obedient Samuel had lain down for the third time, when he heard the voice speaking to him again. It says here that “the Lord came, and stood, and called as at other times.” It was the Lord who was calling Samuel, not Eli, and so Samuel answered, “Speak; for Thy servant heareth.” The Lord then told Samuel of all that was coming upon the household of Eli because of his wicked sons, and because he had allowed such evil things to go on unchecked.
This story of the Lord calling little Samuel, makes one think of many boys and girls today, who do not know that the Lord is calling them, as He did Samuel here. They hear their parents speak to them many times about the Lord Jesus. They sit in Sunday school and listen to the sweet story of His love and grace over and over again, but still they have never realized that this is the Lord’s way now, of bringing the message to them, and that it is He who is calling them. Perhaps they do not like to hear the message of judgment, like Samuel heard, and they are afraid; but when God speaks, it is a serious thing not to listen. Do not refuse, dear children — and older ones too — for God must warn of the judgment which will surely fall upon all those who reject His Son. The promised judgment fell upon Eli’s household, just as God had said it would.
Samuel lay in his bed until the morning. I doubt if he slept that night at all! In the morning he got up and opened the doors of the Lord’s house. He was afraid to tell Eli what the Lord had said, but Eli told him he must do so. Let me encourage you, dear young reader, to tell of what the Lord has spoken to you. It is well, when we see children exercised before the Lord, to seek to draw them out too. His Word says, “If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.” Romans 10:99That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. (Romans 10:9). Perhaps we could say that Samuel’s mouth was opened here, and oh, how faithfully he spoke the Word of the Lord afterward. Samuel told Eli everything the Lord had said.
This was the beginning of a real work in the heart of dear little Samuel, and as he grew, it says, “The Lord was with him.” Even children can have this wonderful knowledge that the Lord is with them, and others can see it too, for it says here that “all Israel from Dan even to Beer-sheba knew that Samuel was established to be a prophet of the Lord.” There was a reality seen in Samuel’s life that made everyone know he was seeking to please the Lord. The Lord spoke to Samuel again in Shiloh, as He had before. What a joy this dear lad must have been to his parents’ hearts; who had so willingly given him to the Lord. What a contrast to poor Eli, who had honored his sons before the Lord, and reaped bitter sorrow for it.
The word of Samuel now came to all Israel. The Philistines then gathered an army and fought against them, and the men of Israel were defeated, about four thousand of them being killed in battle. When the Israelites returned home, they wondered why they had been defeated by the Philistines, but sad to say, they did not seem to feel any exercise as to the real reason for it. They then decided that they would send to Shiloh to get the ark of God and bring it into the camp.
ML 04/25/1954