1 Samuel 7

7:1 The men of Kiriath-jearim who transported the Ark and Eleazar were probably Levites (see 6:15; Num 1:47-51). • in charge of it: The same verb describes the Levites’ duty of guarding the Tabernacle (Num 1:53; 3:7).

7:2 Twenty years covers the time until Samuel assembled the people at Mizpah (7:5-6). David later brought the Ark to Jerusalem (2 Sam 6:1-19).

7:3-10 The change in the people’s standing with God, not the presence of the Ark (see 4:3-11), led Israel to victory against the Philistines.7:3 People cannot expect God’s blessing unless they get rid of what is contrary to his will (see Gen 35:2; Josh 24:14). • Ashtoreth was the Canaanite goddess of fertility associated with Baal (1 Sam 7:4). Worship of Canaanite deities was an ongoing problem throughout Israel’s history. The people started worshiping idols during the twenty-year period mentioned in 7:2, or perhaps they had done so ever since the days of the judges (8:8; Judg 6:25; cp. Amos 5:25-26). Israel’s devastating defeat by the Philistines was due not only to the sins of Eli’s two sons but to several generations of unfaithfulness to God.

7:5 Mizpah was an administrative center and rallying point for the nation (see 7:16; 10:17; Judg 20:1). • I will pray . . . for you: Eli’s question in 1 Sam 2:25 is answered here; Samuel was the intercessor Israel needed.

7:6 drew water . . . poured it out: This type of ceremony is not mentioned elsewhere in the Old Testament. • At times Israelites went without food to express grief or to seek the Lord’s favor (2 Sam 1:12; 12:22-23; 1 Kgs 21:27; Ezra 8:21-23; Neh 9:1; Esth 4:3, 16; Joel 2:12; cp. Luke 2:37; Acts 13:2-3; 14:23). • To have Samuel as Israel’s judge was refreshing compared to Eli’s failed leadership (see 1 Sam 4:18 and corresponding study note) and the leadership of some other judges (e.g., Gideon, Judg 8:22-27; Jephthah, Judg 11:30–12:7; and Samson, Judg 13:1–16:21).

7:9 The whole burnt offering was probably for forgiveness of sin (see Lev 1:1-4). • The Lord answered with a forceful thunderclap (1 Sam 7:10).

7:10 voice of thunder: See 2:10. God often used similar tactics to throw Israel’s enemies into confusion and defeat them (e.g., Exod 14:24; 23:27; Josh 10:10; Judg 4:15).

7:12 Ebenezer: The location of this stone memorial is unknown. The Philistines had defeated Israel and captured the Ark at a place with the same name (4:1; 5:1). Samuel erected this memorial to commemorate God’s help in turning the tide against the Philistine attacks.

7:13 The Philistines were quiet for some time—until Saul became king (see 13:5). • God’s powerful hand, not Samuel’s giftedness, was the key factor in Israel’s deliverance from the Philistines.

7:14 The Amorites had inhabited Canaan and the region east of the Jordan before Israel’s conquest of the Promised Land (see Gen 15:16; Deut 3:8; Josh 2:10). Some Amorites remained in the area after the conquest (see 2 Sam 21:2).

7:15 judge for the rest of his life: Once Saul became king (ch 10), Samuel’s role was more judicial than military.

7:16 Bethel and Mizpah were places of national assembly in the judges era (Judg 20:1, 18, 26; 21:1-2). Bethel’s significance went back to the days of Abraham (Gen 12:8; 13:3-4; 28:10-22; 35:1-15). • Gilgal, located near Jericho, had been a sacred place since Joshua’s day (Josh 4:19-24; 5:2-10). From this circuit, Samuel influenced “all the people of Israel” (1 Sam 10:17).

7:17 Ramah was Samuel’s hometown (see 1:1).