1 Samuel
Chapter 7
The people of Kiriath-jearim came for the Ark of the Lord. They brought it into Abinadab’s house on the hill and consecrated his son, Eleazar, to take charge of it.
A very long time passed from when the Ark was lodged at Kiriath-jearim. For some twenty years, all Israel mourned and longed for the Lord.
Then Samuel told the Israelites: “If you turn back to the Lord in all sincerity, get rid of the foreign gods and your Astartes, then, when you have set your heart on the Lord and serve no one but him, he will deliver you from the Philistines.”
So the Israelites rid themselves of their Baals and Astartes and began serving no one but the Lord.
Then Samuel said: “Gather all Israel in Mizpah, and I will pray to the Lord on your behalf.”
They gathered at Mizpah. They drew water and poured it out before the Lord. They fasted that day and said: “We have sinned against the Lord.” It was Samuel who led this assembly of Israel at Mizpah.
When the Philistines heard that the people of Israel had gathered at Mizpah, the chiefs of the Philistine cities went up to Israel’s land. The Israelites became afraid when they learned this.
They said to Samuel: “Pray without ceasing to the Lord our God on our behalf so that he may save us from the Philistines.”
Samuel then took a suckling lamb and offered it to the Lord as a burnt offering, appealing to him on behalf of the people. And the Lord answered him.
At the very time Samuel was offering the sacrifice, the Philistines launched an attack against Israel. But the Lord’s voice thundered loudly amid the Philistines; they were suddenly confused and defeated by Israel.
The Israelites left Mizpah, pursuing and slaying the Philistines to a point beyond Beth-car.
Samuel, then, took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Jeshanah and named it Ebenezer, for he said: “Unto this place, the Lord has helped us.”
After this defeat, the Philistines did not dare enter the territory of Israel, and the Lord held them in check for as long as Samuel lived.
The Israelites recovered the towns from Ekron to Gath, which the Philistines had seized from Israel. Israel rescued their territories. And there was peace, even between the Israelites and the Amorites.
Samuel was the judge in Israel for the rest of his life.
He went to Bethel, Gilgal, and Mizpah every year and judged Israel in all these places.
Then he would return to Ramah, where his home was. He judged Israel there, and he built an altar to the Lord.
Commentaries
Return of the Ark.
The Philistines and their god can no longer withstand the presence of the Ark of the Covenant. The description of the Ark’s departure from Philistine territory, along with the conditions for its transport and the payment of restitution, reflects the priestly mindset of Israel. Note that since Chapter 4, the primary focus of the story has been the Ark, which has been moved from place to place, causing major upheaval in enemy territory. The Ark returns to Israel, but the people remain aimless and confused. Then Samuel appears, and his words enlighten the people: “If you return to the Lord with all your heart… he will deliver you from the power of the Philistines” (7:3). Repentance opens the door for the people to walk again with their God. Paul would have preached to them about the need to abandon the old self to embrace the new self (cf. Eph 4:22-24); Jesus would have demanded that they be born again of the Spirit (cf. Jn 3:3-7). The period summarized in 7:15 thus highlights the turn Israel needed to take. How did this opportunity come about, and what kind of life and commitments did it require? The following chapters will clarify this for us.