Monthly Archives: September 2011

The people of Israel endured terrible consequences for their religious complacency at the beginning of 1 Samuel.  Many of them died in battle and more died when they took the ark of the covenant as a common object.  Finally the … Continue reading →

Arnold writes: The Philistines were not unlike other nations of the ancient Near East, for whom polytheism was a fundamental assumption that lay at the heart of their worldview.  Though some people only served one god or a few gods … Continue reading →

God odes not allow himself to take second place.  He suffers no rivals.  Jesus reflects this same sentiment in the New Testament.  If anyone puts anything else before Jesus, they are not worthy to be his disciple.  God’s ark was put in … Continue reading →

Eli was looking for news about the war with the Philistines.  He was anxious about the ark seemingly more than he was anxious about his sons.  He knew that taking the ark into battle was a cheap trick with no … Continue reading →

The Israelites assumed that they were God’s people and so their actions did not matter.  They believed that gods could be manipulated by practicing cultic rituals.  In essence this is magic.  Magic manipulates supernatural forces to bend them to the … Continue reading →

The story of little Samuel responding to God’s word is well known to anyone with just a cursory understanding of the Bible.  However, why did God give his word to Samuel in this way?  It seems that God was about … Continue reading →

We don’t know how Eli, in the Bible, raised his sons.  It is implied that he spoiled them.  In fact sons were seen as such a blessing that many men spoiled their sons.  Hophni and Phinehas, the sons of Eli, … Continue reading →