Samuel becomes Judge

For twenty years after Eli’s death Israel had no real leader or sense of God’s power, and although they knew Samuel was a prophet of God, he was too young to officiate as priest.  Finally he reached the minimum age and began take the lead, encouraging them to follow God’s law, as we see in I Samuel 7:3-6.  “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.  Then the children of Israel did put away Baalim and Ashtaroth, and served the LORD only.  And Samuel said, Gather all Israel to Mizpeh, and I will pray for you unto the LORD.  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.”  T5he Israelites repented of the their sin and officially made Samuel their leader.

 

After the debacle resulting from their capture of the Ark, the Philistines had largely left Israel alone, but when Samuel became the leader, they decided they needed to prevent Israel from getting too strong and attacked, terrifying the Israelites as we see in I Samuel 7:7-8. “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.  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.”

 

When the people asked him to pray for them, Samuel did so, offering sacrifices, and God heard him, as I Samuel 7:9-11 describes.  “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.  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.  And the men of Israel went out of Mizpeh, and pursued the Philistines, and smote them, until they came under Bethcar.” 

 

If one has ever been in a thunder storm in the mountains when Lightening is striking things all around you, they can understand how unnerving such a storm can be.  The fear was compounded by the knowledge of how God had intervened on Israel’s behalf in the past, leaving the Philistines totally unnerved.  When the Israelites attacked, they fled for their lives.  The Israelites chased them until they came to an area where they were not as exposed to the lightening. 

 

Samuel set up a large stone monument to remind them how God had helped the, calling it Ebenezer.  It would be more than sixty years before the Philistines attacked Israel again, when Saul began losing control of Israel, as we see in I Samuel 7:12-17.  “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.  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.  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.

 

And Samuel judged Israel all the days of his life.  And he went from year to year in circuit to Bethel, and Gilgal, and Mizpeh, and judged Israel in all those places.  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.”

 

Though Samuel judged Israel his entire life, he would never move the Ark back into the Tabernacle, leaving it in at Kirjathjearim, in the house of Abinadab, where it remained until after David became king of all Israel.  With the ark and the Tabernacle separated it was not possible to keep the Levitical law completely, so Samuel established three places of Judgment, with the main center at Ramah, where he built an altar to worship God.   Not being High priest, Samuel had no authority to move the Ark or the Tabernacle.