There I will meet with you; and from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim which are upon the ark of the testimony, I will speak to you about all that I will give you in commandment for the sons of Israel. - Exodus 25:22
In last week’s message, Samuel was a young boy when the LORD called to him during the night at the tabernacle. However, in today’s message, he appears to be a grown adult. This seems to suggest that several years have passed (approximately 15 or more) between the ending of chapter 3 and the beginning of chapter 4.
Also, in this morning’s passage we see a resurgence of the Philistines. Remember that Samson only began to deliver Israel from Philistine oppression (Judges 13:5). God used Samson to deal a mighty blow to the Philistines, but in the years after his death they obviously regrouped and continued their persecution of the Israeli tribes.
With these things in mind, let’s dig into today’s message. We will be reading and focusing on chapters 4 and 5. This sermon is called, “The Philistines Capture the Ark”.
I. THE ARK IS TAKEN (1 Samuel 4:1-11)
Samuel was widely known as a prophet throughout all of Israel and God spoke through him. Meanwhile, the resurgent Philistine army moved northward into the land of Israel and camped at Aphek. The men of Israel went out to meet them and a battle broke out near Ebenezer. The Philistines were victorious that day and killed about 4,000 men before Israel retreated back to their camp.
Having been soundly defeated in the 1st wave of the conflict, Israel’s elders decided to bring the Ark of the Covenant up from Shiloh to go with them into battle. Perhaps it would bring them good fortune. So they sent word to the tabernacle and Eli’s 2 corrupt sons, Hophni and Phinehas, brought the Ark. When they arrived at the camp with it, all of Israel shouted with excitement. The Philistines overheard the celebration, understood that the Ark had been brought up to Israel’s army, and became very afraid. The commanders of the Philistines encouraged their fearful soldiers to stand strong.
The battle resumed the next day. The Philistines defeated Israel again, slaughtering some 30,000 men. hose Israelites who survived fled to their tents. Both Hophni and Phinehas were killed during the fight, thereby fulfilling the words of the unnamed prophet to Eli (1 Samuel 2:34). Worse than that, the Philistines captured the Ark of the Covenant.
Throughout the exodus and the conquest of Canaan, the Ark of the Covenant went before the children of Israel into battle. God’s manifest presence was upon the Ark and it always brought them great success. The LORD literally led them into battle. But on this occasion the Ark was merely an afterthought. After suffering defeat on the 1st day of battle, Israel sent for Ark as some sort of good luck charm to help them turn the tide. God was clearly not pleased. The LORD should never be plan B - to be called upon only after our plans fail. When we disrespect Him like this, we can and should expect disappointment and defeat.
II. SORROW IN SHILOH (1 Samuel 4:12-22)
A survivor from the tribe of Benjamin hurried from the battlefield to Shiloh. He shared the news of Israel’s great loss and the entire city wailed. Now Eli was sitting in his chair nervously waiting for a report. He was very old - 98 to be specific - and could barely see. The messenger came to Eli and told him what had happened. He said that the Philistines had completely routed Israel and that both Hophni and Phinehas were dead. On top of that, they had taken the Ark of the Covenant. When Eli heard that the Ark had been captured, he fell backward off his seat, broke his neck, and died. Eli judged Israel for 40 years.
Phinehas’ wife, the daughter-in-law of Eli, was very pregnant at the time. When she learned that the Ark had been snatched by the Philistines, that Eli had died, and that her husband had been killed in the fighting, she went into heavy labor. She died as the result of the difficult childbirth, but not before naming her son Ichabod. The name Ichabod means “inglorious” or “there is no glory” and was given to express her grief over the Ark’s capture.
The glory of God had departed from Israel because the Ark was lost. Jesus made a similar declaration centuries later when the Jews rejected Him as their Messiah (Matthew 23:37-39). He announced that God’s favor upon and covenant with Israel would be suspended and that they would be desolate until He returned again. May we learn from their mistakes and not repeat their sins, lest the LORD’s glory depart from us also.
III. GOD IS PROVOKED (1 Samuel 5:1-12)
So the Philistines took the Ark from Ebenezer and brought it to Ashdod, where they placed it in the temple of their pagan god Dagon. When they came in the next morning, the idolatrous statue of Dagon had fallen on its face before the Ark. So the Philistines stood Dagon up and reset him in his place. The next morning, Dagon had fallen before the Ark again. This time his head and hands had broken off, leaving only his body intact. In the years that followed, neither the priests of Dagon nor all who entered his house walked on the threshold where he fell for fear of the LORD’s judgment.
The hand of God was heavy upon Ashdod and the surrounding area. He ravished them with severe tumors and sores. So they sent the Ark of the Covenant to Gath, another prominent city in Philistia. However, God smote the people of Gath with great confusion and painful tumors broke out on them also. In desperation, they sent the Ark to Ekron. The citizens in Ekron didn’t want it because they knew the affliction that it brought. Sure enough, the LORD struck them with tumors and confusion, too. They urged the Philistine lords to send the Ark back to Israel.
The Philistines had provoked God’s anger by taking the Ark of the Covenant. They defiled the Ark by placing it beside Dagon in a pagan temple. Dagon fell on his face twice before the Ark, symbolizing that even the false gods bow and are broken before the LORD. In addition, God tormented the Philistines with tumors and confusion. They acknowledged the LORD’s mighty power, and realized that they needed to return the Ark immediately. While they didn’t trust in Him for salvation, they certainly feared His strength (James 2:19).
CONCLUSION
Let’s do a quick recap of today’s major lessons. The LORD is not a good luck charm or a backup plan we turn to only when we get in trouble. If we treat Him in such a cavalier way, we risk the revocation of God’s glory from among us. And what’s the value of our faith and service apart from God’s glory? Finally, even the LORD’s enemies we someday bow before Him and acknowledge His almighty power.
With Eli’s death, Samuel became the final judge of the judicial era. He began his judgeship under the most dire of circumstances. The Ark of the Covenant had fallen into the hands of the hated Philistines. What would become of Israel and could they recover from this unspeakable setback? Join us next week as we find out what happens and wrap up our series on “The Conquering and Independent Church”.
In last week’s message, Samuel was a young boy when the LORD called to him during the night at the tabernacle. However, in today’s message, he appears to be a grown adult. This seems to suggest that several years have passed (approximately 15 or more) between the ending of chapter 3 and the beginning of chapter 4.
Also, in this morning’s passage we see a resurgence of the Philistines. Remember that Samson only began to deliver Israel from Philistine oppression (Judges 13:5). God used Samson to deal a mighty blow to the Philistines, but in the years after his death they obviously regrouped and continued their persecution of the Israeli tribes.
With these things in mind, let’s dig into today’s message. We will be reading and focusing on chapters 4 and 5. This sermon is called, “The Philistines Capture the Ark”.
I. THE ARK IS TAKEN (1 Samuel 4:1-11)
Samuel was widely known as a prophet throughout all of Israel and God spoke through him. Meanwhile, the resurgent Philistine army moved northward into the land of Israel and camped at Aphek. The men of Israel went out to meet them and a battle broke out near Ebenezer. The Philistines were victorious that day and killed about 4,000 men before Israel retreated back to their camp.
Having been soundly defeated in the 1st wave of the conflict, Israel’s elders decided to bring the Ark of the Covenant up from Shiloh to go with them into battle. Perhaps it would bring them good fortune. So they sent word to the tabernacle and Eli’s 2 corrupt sons, Hophni and Phinehas, brought the Ark. When they arrived at the camp with it, all of Israel shouted with excitement. The Philistines overheard the celebration, understood that the Ark had been brought up to Israel’s army, and became very afraid. The commanders of the Philistines encouraged their fearful soldiers to stand strong.
The battle resumed the next day. The Philistines defeated Israel again, slaughtering some 30,000 men. hose Israelites who survived fled to their tents. Both Hophni and Phinehas were killed during the fight, thereby fulfilling the words of the unnamed prophet to Eli (1 Samuel 2:34). Worse than that, the Philistines captured the Ark of the Covenant.
Throughout the exodus and the conquest of Canaan, the Ark of the Covenant went before the children of Israel into battle. God’s manifest presence was upon the Ark and it always brought them great success. The LORD literally led them into battle. But on this occasion the Ark was merely an afterthought. After suffering defeat on the 1st day of battle, Israel sent for Ark as some sort of good luck charm to help them turn the tide. God was clearly not pleased. The LORD should never be plan B - to be called upon only after our plans fail. When we disrespect Him like this, we can and should expect disappointment and defeat.
II. SORROW IN SHILOH (1 Samuel 4:12-22)
A survivor from the tribe of Benjamin hurried from the battlefield to Shiloh. He shared the news of Israel’s great loss and the entire city wailed. Now Eli was sitting in his chair nervously waiting for a report. He was very old - 98 to be specific - and could barely see. The messenger came to Eli and told him what had happened. He said that the Philistines had completely routed Israel and that both Hophni and Phinehas were dead. On top of that, they had taken the Ark of the Covenant. When Eli heard that the Ark had been captured, he fell backward off his seat, broke his neck, and died. Eli judged Israel for 40 years.
Phinehas’ wife, the daughter-in-law of Eli, was very pregnant at the time. When she learned that the Ark had been snatched by the Philistines, that Eli had died, and that her husband had been killed in the fighting, she went into heavy labor. She died as the result of the difficult childbirth, but not before naming her son Ichabod. The name Ichabod means “inglorious” or “there is no glory” and was given to express her grief over the Ark’s capture.
The glory of God had departed from Israel because the Ark was lost. Jesus made a similar declaration centuries later when the Jews rejected Him as their Messiah (Matthew 23:37-39). He announced that God’s favor upon and covenant with Israel would be suspended and that they would be desolate until He returned again. May we learn from their mistakes and not repeat their sins, lest the LORD’s glory depart from us also.
III. GOD IS PROVOKED (1 Samuel 5:1-12)
So the Philistines took the Ark from Ebenezer and brought it to Ashdod, where they placed it in the temple of their pagan god Dagon. When they came in the next morning, the idolatrous statue of Dagon had fallen on its face before the Ark. So the Philistines stood Dagon up and reset him in his place. The next morning, Dagon had fallen before the Ark again. This time his head and hands had broken off, leaving only his body intact. In the years that followed, neither the priests of Dagon nor all who entered his house walked on the threshold where he fell for fear of the LORD’s judgment.
The hand of God was heavy upon Ashdod and the surrounding area. He ravished them with severe tumors and sores. So they sent the Ark of the Covenant to Gath, another prominent city in Philistia. However, God smote the people of Gath with great confusion and painful tumors broke out on them also. In desperation, they sent the Ark to Ekron. The citizens in Ekron didn’t want it because they knew the affliction that it brought. Sure enough, the LORD struck them with tumors and confusion, too. They urged the Philistine lords to send the Ark back to Israel.
The Philistines had provoked God’s anger by taking the Ark of the Covenant. They defiled the Ark by placing it beside Dagon in a pagan temple. Dagon fell on his face twice before the Ark, symbolizing that even the false gods bow and are broken before the LORD. In addition, God tormented the Philistines with tumors and confusion. They acknowledged the LORD’s mighty power, and realized that they needed to return the Ark immediately. While they didn’t trust in Him for salvation, they certainly feared His strength (James 2:19).
CONCLUSION
Let’s do a quick recap of today’s major lessons. The LORD is not a good luck charm or a backup plan we turn to only when we get in trouble. If we treat Him in such a cavalier way, we risk the revocation of God’s glory from among us. And what’s the value of our faith and service apart from God’s glory? Finally, even the LORD’s enemies we someday bow before Him and acknowledge His almighty power.
With Eli’s death, Samuel became the final judge of the judicial era. He began his judgeship under the most dire of circumstances. The Ark of the Covenant had fallen into the hands of the hated Philistines. What would become of Israel and could they recover from this unspeakable setback? Join us next week as we find out what happens and wrap up our series on “The Conquering and Independent Church”.