20260603 1 Samuel 2 Wednesday Bible Study Dave Dickmann

1 Samuel chapter 2. I guess this is working,

1 Samuel 2 · chapter mention

is that right? How's that? Is that better? We

looked at Hannah's prayer last week, and in this

chapter here, I guess it's from verse 11 through

the end of the chapter, and then verse 1 of chapter

3, we have this repeated contrast between Samuel

and Hophni and Phinehas, the two sons of Eli.

A curse comes upon Eli for his dereliction of

duty there in the tabernacle in Shiloh. And the

whole thing then puts Samuel in prominence. The

next chapter we're going to find out that he

knows the Lord, that he hears from the Lord,

and that he's a prophet. that stature and that

status of him always prophesying in the biblical

sense, which means he's never wrong. The Lord

establishes everything that he says, carries

through the rest of the book. It establishes

him as the mouthpiece of the Lord, the kingmaker,

and then we see what he does. The priesthood,

is a problem right now in Shiloh and in Israel.

And before the king is established by the Lord,

before the Lord's king is established, the priesthood

has got to be reformed and there has to be somebody

there that can speak and lead according to the

voice of the Lord. And Samuel is that man. But

we should remember that... prophet, priest, and

king in Israel, eventually in Christ, but as

they functioned in Israel, had a lot of overlapping

roles. They were all called to lead the people.

And throughout the Old Testament, in the, well,

even back in Judges, at least, well, all the

way back in Exodus, you have this continued cycle

of... Good times and bad times, and most of the

time, there are bad leaders in the bad times,

if not always. The underlying it all through,

and that's one thing that we should remember,

is that there was always a remnant. There was

always a group of people who were believing,

who were looking to the Lord and living by faith.

Even here in Samuel, we have the example of Elkanah

and his family. Problems, yes. seeking the Lord

and trying to honor the Lord. And that's, I think,

the application that we want to take from this

tonight, that the Lord blesses those people that

walk in His way, that do what He's called them

to do. They function sometimes in ways that the

world would despise or think nothing of in the

case of... Hannah and Elkanah, they come under

the blessing of the Lord. And why? Well, ultimately,

because God chose them. But what's in the story

here is they're just doing family stuff. That's

really what's going on. And you see this drastic

contrast between Eli's family and Elkanah's family.

Cursing comes upon those people that harden their

hearts against the Lord and go against His way.

In spite of instruction, in spite of warning,

however veiled or unclear that may be, the people

that harden themselves against the Lord, the

Lord kills. And you remember that that was part

of Hannah's prayer to the Lord. She declared

that it's the Lord that gives life, it's the

Lord that raises up, and it's the Lord that kills.

Alright, so with that as an introduction then,

if you're taking notes, you want to write these

down. I have verse 11 is about Samuel, and then

12 to 17 is about Hophni and Phinehas. Verse

18 then is another reminder of Samuel. Then 22

to 25 is... all about Hophni and Phinehas and

then 26 is about Samuel again you have these

one verses that bracket all this other stuff

that's going on and then it finally concludes

what 27 through the end of the chapter is about

Hophni and Phinehas and then 3 -1 is again this

declaration of Samuel so if you're trying to

follow the how the how the text makes Samuel

prominent. That's how it is. It's with these

contrasts. And that's how we know that this book

is not only the story of God's work in Israel

to bring about King, but it's also about Samuel.

He's the main character here at the beginning.

Let's see, so verse 11, chapter 2. And Elkanah

went to Ramah, to his house. And the child, that's

Samuel, did minister or serve unto the Lord before

Eli the priest. So there we have the first declaration

of Samuel serving the Lord. He's there with Eli.

He serves in front of him. He's, I'm sure, a

young man here at this point or a young boy at

this point in his life. And he's helping Eli

in everything that he does. And Elkanah, he just

goes home to his house. That's what he does.

Nothing spectacular. He goes home to his home

in Ramah. Verse 12. Now the sons of Eli were

sons of Belial. They're wicked. They know not

the Lord. Or they knew not the Lord. And the

priest's custom with the people was that when

any man offered sacrifice, the priest's servant

came while the flesh was in seething. with a

flesh hook of three teeth in his hand. So the

servant, they put the sacrifice in some boiling

water, and then the servant of the priest comes

with this three -pronged fork in his hand. And

verse 11, he struck it into the pan or kettle

or cauldron or pot. All that the flesh hook brought

up, the priest took for himself. So they did

in Shiloh unto all the Israelites that came thither.

So he, I guess, just by matter of chance, he

sticks the fork in there and whatever comes up,

he declares that to be the portion of the sacrifice

that belongs to the priest. And it says they

did in Shiloh unto all the Israelites. They did

this to the Israelites that were coming. So it's

not... There's no doubt, and it's by God's instruction,

that the priests and the Levites were to serve

at the expense of the people. They had a right

to take a portion of the sacrifice. But not in

this way. And not only according to the way the

Lord had set it up to be. And that wasn't the

way the Lord set it up. You can read it in...

In Leviticus, if you want. Also, verse 15, before

they burnt the fat. Now, the fat was the most

important part. And the fat belonged exclusively

to the Lord. Now, exactly what the fat is, I

don't know. I don't know if that's exactly what

we think of as fat. But the point is that this

fat portion belonged to the Lord. It was to be

burned entirely as unto the Lord. To be a sweet

savor to the Lord. So, it's like... The sacrifice,

it all belongs to the Lord. But this particular

part was especially and only and exclusively

reserved for the Lord. Also, before they burnt

the fat, verse 15, the priest's servant came

and said to the man that sacrificed, Give flesh

to roast for the priest, for he will not have

sodden flesh of thee, but raw. And if any man

said unto him, Let them not fail to burn the

fat presently or immediately, then take as much

as thy soul desireth, then the servant would

answer him, No, but thou shalt give it to me

now, and if not, I will take it by force. Wherefore

the sin of the young men was very great before

the Lord, for men abhorred the offering of the

Lord. So here we have the first. time here in

this book, not the first time that we've heard

it, but the first time in this book that we see

that the people who were supposed to be serving

the leaders, who were supposed to be serving

the people, who were supposed to be aiding and

encouraging them on in the Lord, are doing the

exact opposite. You get the picture that the

Israelites, however many of them there were,

they were coming in faith. They were coming to

offer sacrifice to the Lord, which they had been

commanded to do. And the priesthood, rather than

functioning in a way that would encourage their

faith, that would hopefully teach them and remind

them, help them to look forward to the day when

Messiah would come, are doing the exact opposite.

They are discouraging them from coming. They're

ruining the sacrifice. And later on, I think

it's... 24, somewhere around in there, the Lord

says that they're causing the people to sin.

Now that is a word of warning to anybody who's

a leader, particularly to those of us who are

in positions of leadership in the church. Not

that Israel is the church, but the general principle

carries through the entirety of Scripture. that

God puts certain men in authority over his people

for the sole purpose of encouraging them and

building them up in the faith, of protecting

them, guarding them. And to take that lightly

or to do the exact opposite thing of that is

a serious thing. It's not to be taken lightly.

If we want to apply it... More generally, and

I think that we can, then we would apply it to

everyone who's in a position of leadership. So

if you're here tonight and you're a man and you

have a wife, then you are in a position of leadership.

And if you have children, then you are further

and more of a leader than to more than just one

person. You women that are here and have children

at home, you are the person when your husband

is gone who your children are looking to. You're

the leader there in the home. Yes, you do that

leading under the authority of your husband and

by his and your considered plan. But you are

in that position and it's no small position.

And to take that lightly or to cast that aside

as if it didn't matter is a serious matter before

the Lord. He's entrusted to you and to me certain

people under our authority and he intends for

us. to love them, and to love them in a way that

he describes and he defines, which means servant

leadership, which means laying down your life

for them, guarding and protecting them, building

them up, not like the Gentiles do and not like

wicked men do, lording it over anyone, but laying

down your life for the good of those that the

Lord has given into your charge. These men were

doing the exact opposite. These men were using

their position as an advantage or an opportunity

to take advantage of and enrich themselves off

of these poor people who were intending only

to worship the Lord. It's despicable, really.

It's treacherous. So, you know, we all should

examine ourselves. Am I doing what the Lord has

called me to do in the way that the Lord has

called me to do it? The result of people being

in a relationship with me, building them up and

helping them, or is it rather the opposite and

I'm tearing people down and destroying them?

Serious reflection, men, women, has to be accomplished

in our own lives and to ourselves. And where

we can't see it, hopefully we have people that

we trust and who are our friends. who love us,

who are willing to tell us, this is a problem

for you. This has got to be taken care of. They've

got to do it in the right way. It's got to be

able to be received. But the hard words have

to be spoken when necessary. Self -examination

and getting better. We don't want to be the same

today that we were four years ago. We don't want

to be the same. Next year than we are today,

we want to improve husbands and wives. We want

to improve not only our relationship with one

another, but as mothers, as fathers, as grandmothers,

as great grandmothers and fathers. Why do we

want to get better? For the glory of the Lord

and for the good of those people that the Lord

has given into our care. Alright, that's a despicable

thing then. Any questions or comments? Anybody

want to say anything there? I'm trying to be

conversational. Nobody? No comments? Alright.

Verse 17, Wherefore the sin of the young men

was very great before the Lord, for men abhorred

the offering of the Lord. Verse 18, But Samuel,

there's a contrast, ministered before the Lord,

being a child, girded with a linen ephod. So

there's this contrast again. Here's Samuel. He's

just doing what the Lord has called him to do.

He's a young boy, but he is faithful to the Lord,

and he's ministering as before the Lord. In other

words, he's faithful. He's doing priest -like

stuff, assisting Eli in the temple. Verse 19,

Moreover, his mother made him a little coat and

brought it to him from year to year when she

came up with her husband to offer the yearly

sacrifice. Now, again, that doesn't seem like,

you know, it's just kind of a matter of fact.

But what does that tell us? Samuel wasn't out

of Hannah and Elkanah's mind, was he? It wasn't

like they dropped him off and said, okay, we

wash our hands of that kid. You get the picture

that throughout the year they were concerned

for him. And a demonstration or a manifestation

of that concern and that love for Samuel was

that they brought him clothes every year. That's

just family stuff, right? I mean, if that's not

a regular occurrence in your family, then there's

a problem. You're providing for your children.

You're praying for them. You're concerned for

them. Verse 20. And Eli, here's the result of

just that, what we would say is godly parenting.

Eli blessed Elkanah and his wife and said, The

Lord give thee seed of this woman for the loan

which is lent to the Lord. And they went unto

their own home. And the Lord visited Hannah so

that she conceived and bear three sons and two

daughters. And then we end this portion with

this sentence, And the child Samuel grew before

the Lord. Again, a great contrast. Now, was the

attitude of Hannah and Elkanah different than

what it should be for every parent? What was

their attitude towards Samuel? To whom did Samuel

belong? Okay, is that different than our attitude

towards our children? It better be the same,

right? It may work itself out differently, and

it will, because we don't have a temple anymore,

we don't have a priesthood, except we have...

an eternal priesthood, and a priesthood of all

believers, but not the way it was back here.

And so we don't have daily attendance here in

this place where people just drop off their kids

in the service of the Lord. But what Elkanah

and Hannah knew was that Samuel belonged to the

Lord the same way your children and my children

belong to the Lord. He's given them to us to

steward over them. To rear them up in the fear

and the admonition of the Lord. But always with

the idea that these children belong to the Lord.

They're not mine. In everyday language when we

talk to someone we claim them as our children.

I'm not saying that that's bad or that you should

not think of them that way. But if that is not

balanced in your mind with this idea that these

are precious to the Lord. Because he created

them and they're his. And he's told me. That

no matter what else happens in my life, I had

better make sure that I rear up these children

to know him. To know right from wrong. To know

that there is such a thing as a hell and there

is such a thing as heaven. They ought to know

what the gospel is. They ought to be able to

recite it and pour into their heads everything

that I can to let them know about the Lord and

prepare them to do whatever it is the Lord has

called them to do. That's what Hannah and Elkanah

did, and we should follow them in that. Now,

when we put it in those terms, all of a sudden

family life sounds like a pretty big deal, doesn't

it? And it is. It's a big deal. The Lord intends

for his people to be rearing up children that

are ready and prepared to do whatever the Lord

has called them to do. We don't know what our

children will do. We don't know if they'll go

this way or that way. But we do know that the

Lord has called us and charged us to be responsible

stewards of what he's given into our hands. Any

comments there? If you guys want to say anything,

talk about anything. All right, verse 22. Now,

somebody say something? No? Okay, verse 22. Now,

Eli was very old and heard all that his sons

did unto all Israel and how they lay with the

women that assembled at the door of the tabernacle

of the congregation. So now we have a certain

amount of time has passed. Eli's an old man and

he knows not only what they do with the sacrifices

and stealing from the Lord. discouraging the

people, making them despise the sacrifices. But

now, the very women who serve in or around the

tabernacle, doing whatever it is that they do,

his sons are sleeping with them. He knows it.

He's heard about it. And he said unto them, so

this is his response. Now, before we read it,

what should have been his response? That's all

you knew. You're a priest and a leader and a

judge in Israel. Your two sons who are priests

with you are stealing from the Lord. They are

ruining the people and they are sleeping with

these women who have come there presumably to

serve the Lord. What do you do? What's a proper

response? Put them to death. Okay. So Eli's got

I mean, he's got all kinds of things that he

could do in response to that. He could do the

right thing and put him to death. Or he could

do something close to that maybe, but he gets

as far away from that as he possibly can. And

we read in verse 23, he said to them, Why do

you such things? For I hear of your evil doings

by all the people. Nay, my sons, for it is no

good report that I hear. You make the Lord's

people to transgress. I can't think of a milder

rebuke than that. The Lord has called him to

kill his own sons. That's no small thing. There's

no doubt. But his sons are destroying the name

of the Lord. And they are harming his people.

And they are horrible leaders. They're leading

people astray. And Eli gives the weakest rebuke

that he possibly can and still maybe think that

he's done something. Now you may think that that's

hard on Eli. But when we read the cursing that

comes upon Eli, you'll realize that that's, I'm

not saying anything more than or less than what

the Lord is saying to him. The Lord expects us

and will hold us accountable to the way that

we... Steward over the things that he's given

us. And in Eli's case it's the priesthood. That's

primary. His sons are older. I don't think he's

going to take them out and spank them. The first

time that they did something wrong. But rebuke

and correction. And eventually when they refuse.

Death. It's no good report that I hear. Verse

25. If one man sin against another. The judge

shall judge him. In other words, if I, if me

and another man have a problem, there's somebody

that can sit over us and mediate between us and

figure out who's right and who's wrong. But if

a man sin against the Lord, who shall entreat

for him? Now, every time we sin, we sin against

the Lord, right? But there's a particularly treacherous

and heinous sin, and that is to be in the, and

this is what, Who's the other guy? Hophni and

Phinehas were doing. In the face of the Lord,

it was like they were, I mean, the Lord was the

Holy of Holies. It's right outside the Holy of

Holies. They're not off in some remote place.

They're not hiding in the woods or behind the

trees or in a cave somewhere. In the very presence

of the Lord, right on the other side of the curtain

that separates the most holy from the outer chamber

and then this tent. This is where all this stuff

is going on. And in the face of the Lord, they

are purposely, willfully, and eagerly destroying

the name of the Lord in front of the people.

Right in the face of the Lord. Now who's going

to get in between that? Who can go over when

you do that to the Lord God of hosts? Who is

it that's above him? Nobody. There's no hope

for you. That's what Eli is telling them. You've

not only sinned against the people, but you've

sinned in the face of the Lord. It's like you've

slapped the Lord God Almighty in the face. There

is no hope for you. That's what he's saying.

Now he should have demonstrated that to them

with a sword, but he didn't. And that's the reason

that the second half of the verse, notwithstanding,

they hearkened not unto the voice of their father,

because the Lord would slay them. The Lord wanted

to kill them, that's what we're told there. Why?

Because they had hardened their heart against

him. They had steadfastly refused any instruction

from anyone else. They had... Tossed off any

restraints that might come upon them from their

covenant writings of Moses and the instruction

that they had received. Now, this is four generations

since Aaron. That's what it was. Four generations.

It's no small thing to harden our hearts in sin

against the Lord. We don't know where that will

end. And that's what Hophni and Phinehas had

done. And Eli had not done what he had been called

to do to bring correction. To bring a solution

to this horrible problem. And then verse 26 again.

And the child Samuel grew on and was in favor

both with the Lord and also with men. So, do

you see the contrast? Hophni and Phinehas, a

slap in the face to the Lord, destroying people.

Samuel, in favor with the Lord and also with

the people. In other words, he was encouraging

to the people that were watching. Exact opposite.

Any questions? Statements? Does anybody want

to find fault with the Lord? I mean, it's a brutal

picture. I'm not trying to sugarcoat it for you.

I'm not trying to make it easier for us all to

digest. But that's the fate of any person that

raises a fist to the Lord. I guess I had a comment.

Go ahead. So when we think about the qualifications

for elders in the New Testament, that they're...

as opposed to have their family under control

or whatever. And this would be, I guess, the

kind of perfect example of the opposite of that.

In a New Testament church, Eli would not be suited

to be an elder or a leader because of the way

his sons were acting. He wouldn't be qualified

to be a leader because he was derelict in his

duties. So if he was established as an elder,

he'd be removed for not tending to the congregation

of the Lord. But it wouldn't be because his adult

sons had gone astray. There's no indication that

we don't know what kind of father Eli was when

his boys were young. It would be wrong for us

to say, well, he must not have spanked them.

How many children have been spanked, taught,

and corrected, and yet have decided to go their

own way. And when an adult decides to go their

own way, no matter what I may want to do, I can't

physically change that, and I certainly can't

change the condition of their heart inside to

make them go after the Lord. The Lord hasn't

given me that to do. So you wouldn't see him

as necessarily an example? That's right. Yeah,

we don't know. Could have been. As bad as he

could have been or might have been, or as good

as he might have been or could have been, the

Lord puts the responsibilities of these grown

adults on their own shoulders. That's right.

We're about to hear God's response to Eli. Verse

27, And there came a man of God unto Eli, and

said unto him, Thus saith the Lord. Now, this

is just as an aside, but that phrase, man of

God, I think that may be the first time it's

in the Bible. I can't remember if we had a man

of God in Judges. But that's the same word that

Paul uses to Timothy. Man of God. The scripture

is able to. Make you. Go do these things. So

I think there's a connection there. Anyway. There

came a man of God unto Eli. And said unto him.

Thus says the Lord. Did I plainly appear unto

the house of thy father. When they were in Egypt.

In Pharaoh's house. And did I choose him. Out

of all the tribes of Israel. To be my priest.

To offer upon mine altar. To burn incense. to

wear an ephod before me? And did I give unto

the house of thy fathers all the offerings made

by fire of the children of Israel? Now, of course,

the answer is what? Yes, to all those things.

What does that tell us about Aaron and about

his descendants? They were privileged, weren't

they? They came into... position of blessing

to the Lord if they followed him. It was a great

privilege to be able to serve the Lord in that

way. And yet here they are. Now what does that

tell us? Just because you come into a place of

blessing does not guarantee that the end of your

life is going to be blessing or that anywhere

through your life is going to be blessing. What

does blessing from the Lord depend on? Walking

in His way, obedience. It doesn't have anything

to do with where you came from. Just because

the Lord was gracious or merciful to you in your

youth is no guarantee that as an adult, if you

decide to go your own way, you can expect anything

but trouble in your life. The only way to be

blessed of the Lord is to follow him. And you

notice that he made provision for them. I mean,

the Lord provided for these guys everything they

needed and more. But it wasn't enough for them.

We all have to beware. What the Lord gives us,

we ought to be able to be content with that.

It's a problem. It's a sin if we're not. Now,

here's another thing. When the Lord blesses you,

you're obligated at least to be thankful. Right?

You're obligated and the Lord obligates us to

serve Him. Now He gives us a heart that doesn't

view our service to Him as some terrible obligation

that I just have to do. He gives us a heart that

wants to please Him. And we want to do it because

we love Him. And we love to do what He says.

But to think for one minute that we can dismiss

the blessings of the Lord in our life and not

and just reap the benefit without having to do

the hard work is sin. If we want to put that

in the context of the church, what? There are

benefits of being in a church. Right? Is anybody

going to deny that? But there's responsibilities.

There's hard work that has to be done in the

church. The two always go hand in hand. The blessing

of the Lord comes upon those people who will

obey Him. You can't, in our day, if we want to

think of it in the way that people presume to

relate to Jesus, you can't just claim him as

your savior. You can't just, you know, take his

name and, you know, think that you've got him

now some hell insurance. But you're not going

to take him as Lord. You can't think, well, of

course I have my faith placed in Jesus. That

doesn't have anything to do with the way that

I live or the way that I do business or the way

that I husband my wife or the way that I am a

wife to my husband or a father to my children.

It's no excuse. You want to come to the Lord?

You don't just get the benefits. You've got to

take the responsibilities. Jesus said that, right?

Take up your cross and follow me. Get ready for

a life of service. Get ready for a hard life.

But throughout that life, remember that I'll

be right there with you. I'll give you what you

need. And I'll give you the strength to do what

I've called you to do. And these guys, Eli in

particular, cast that off. Wherefore, in verse

30, the Lord God of Israel says, I said indeed

that thy house and the house of thy father should

walk before me forever. But now the Lord says,

be it far from me. For them that honor me I will

honor, and they that despise me shall be lightly

esteemed. There you see it. Behold, the days

come that I will cut off thine arm and the arm

of thy father's house, that there shall not be

an old man in thine house. And thou shalt see

an enemy in my habitation, in all the wealth

which God shall give Israel, and there shall

not be an old man in thine house forever. And

the man of thine, whom I shall not cut off from

mine altar, shall be to consume thine eyes, and

to grieve thine heart. And all the increase of

thine house shall die in the flower of their

age. And this shall be a sign unto thee, that

shall come upon thy two sons, on Hophni and Phinehas.

In one day they shall die, both of them. me up

a faithful priest that shall do according to

that which is in my heart and in my mind and

I will build him a sure house and he shall walk

before mine anointed forever and it shall come

to pass that everyone that is left in thine house

shall come and crouch to him for a piece of silver

and a morsel of bread and shall say put me I

pray thee into one of the priest's offices that

I may eat a piece of bread Now again, that sounds

an awful lot like Hannah's song, doesn't it?

That's the way Hannah's song continues throughout

the book. Everything that she prayed there in

that song is coming to pass. These people that

were born in privilege are now begging for a

morsel of bread. These people that had everything

that they needed are begging for bread. Now it

doesn't say that God is going to kill every one

of Eli's descendants, but that they're all going

to die in the flower of their youth. That's a

hard thing. And it's exactly what happened. None

of them got to be an old man. Now they continued

on for a while. When did the new line of priests

come into service in Israel? Who was king when

that happened? Nobody knows? Take a guess. We

are in 1 Samuel. Be brave. Alright, there we

go. That was Eliezer's line. And they continued

on. That's the curse that came upon a leader

of God's people who did not do what God had called

them to do. I can't imagine that James wasn't

thinking of this in some kind of way when he

said, beware those of you who want to be leaders

in the church. Beware you that want to be an

elder. It's a terrifying thing, really. It comes

with lots of joy and lots of privileges and lots

of exciting stuff. But it is a terrifying thing

to know that God is going to ask me, What's going

on there? I've got to be able to give an answer.

Now, for each of us, in whatever sphere the Lord

has called us, we will have, we act and we know

that the Lord requires of us faith, faithfulness

to his word. And there are, I'm confident that

I'm going to see Eli in heaven. priest and a

judge in Israel. I can't believe that I'm not

going to see him there. But this is the consequence

of sin. And he's going to feel it. Now, it's

not going to, I don't know, you know, in our

day we would say that this is not God punishing

Eli. But this is God bringing Chastening and

allowing the consequences of our own sin to come

upon us. He doesn't require us to pay for our

sin. In other words. We're not doing penance.

Jesus paid it all. All to him I owe. But when

we go astray. And there's no guarantee. I hope

we are all there. You young people. There is

no guarantee that when you allow yourself to

fall into sin and embrace it, you don't know

if you'll ever come out. You don't know if that

thought is going to one day consume you. And

that's what's happening here to Eli. He didn't

do it. He resisted. He kicked against the Lord.

And the next thing you know, The consequence

of that is that every one of his descendants

is going to die in the flower of their youth.

And his own sons are both going to die on the

same day. That's the reality of sin. That's the

ugliness of sin. It's a serious thing. That one

stray thought that you decide to cuddle up to.

That one small sin that you say, I'm just not

going to deal with that right now. It may cost

you in the long run more than you can ever imagine.

Be careful. And then verse 1 of chapter 3. And

the child Samuel ministered unto the Lord before

Eli. And the word of the Lord was scarce in those

days. There was no open vision. So that opens

us up to anticipate, invites us to anticipate

that that's going to change. The voice of the

Lord wasn't heard. It was scarce. But here's

Samuel, who's just ministering before the Lord.

And something's going to change. And I guess

we'll look at that next. Next Wednesday we'll

look at chapter 3. Anybody want to say anything

or have a question or a comment? I just wanted

to say that reading this about Eli's sons and

the contrast of Hannah, it just makes parenting

more weighty. The realization of what we're doing

for our kids. It's a serious thing. Go ahead.

Is that real similar language to what was said

about Jesus? Yes, it is. Do you have any observation

based on that? Well, yeah, all the Bible points

us to Jesus. And it's not surprising to us when

the Gospel writers borrow language from the Old

Testament to speak that. I mean, I don't... Samuel's

not a type of Christ, is he? I don't think I've

ever heard anybody say that. But he prophesies

Jesus in the fact that he is a prophet who speaks

God's word. Is that it? Alright then.