“Then a man of God came to Eli and said to him, “Thus says the Lord: ‘Did I not clearly reveal Myself to the house of your father when they were in Egypt in Pharaoh’s house? Did I not choose him out of all the tribes of Israel to be My priest, to offer upon My altar, to burn incense, and to wear an ephod before Me? And did I not give to the house of your father all the offerings of the children of Israel made by fire? Why do you kick at My sacrifice and My offering which I have commanded in My dwelling place, and honor your sons more than Me, to make yourselves fat with the best of all the offerings of Israel My people?’ Therefore the Lord God of Israel says: ‘I said indeed that your house and the house of your father would walk before Me forever.’ But now the Lord says: ‘Far be it from Me; for those who honor Me I will honor, and those who despise Me shall be lightly esteemed. Behold, the days are coming that I will cut off your arm and the arm of your father’s house, so that there will not be an old man in your house. And you will see an enemy in My dwelling place, despite all the good which God does for Israel. And there shall not be an old man in your house forever. But any of your men whom I do not cut off from My altar shall consume your eyes and grieve your heart. And all the descendants of your house shall die in the flower of their age. Now this shall be a sign to you that will come upon your two sons, on Hophni and Phinehas: in one day they shall die, both of them. Then I will raise up for Myself a faithful priest who shall do according to what is in My heart and in My mind. I will build him a sure house, and he shall walk before My anointed forever. And it shall come to pass that everyone who is left in your house will come and bow down to him for a piece of silver and a morsel of bread, and say, “Please, put me in one of the priestly positions, that I may eat a piece of bread.” – 1 Samuel 2:27-36
If you know the living God of the Bible, you know well that He doesn’t leave sin unaddressed or unpunished. In our short series through this chapter thus far, we’ve seen the grave sin of Hophni and Phinehas in detail, along with the concern of their father, as Eli confronted his sons. We’ve also considered Eli’s sin in failing in his duties as both a father and high priest. Hophni and Phinehas refused to heed the voice of their father, as their hearts were hardened, by God’s will and plan, so that they would receive the wages of their sin through divine judgment. God would right what was wrong through the execution of His justice against them. And yet, though you may have expected Him to, God didn’t address Hophni and Phinehas, did He? No, He confronted their father, Eli, holding him accountable for his disobedience. He confronted Eli to bring him to repentance and save him. His children did wickedly, and he overlooked their sin, thus involving himself in the guilt.
Today’s focus text is centered on prophecy against Eli’s household where the details of that coming judgment were put forth to Eli. Like Nathan going to King David to bring the word of the Lord to him and against him in 2 Samuel 12, we find a man of God came to Eli, speaking the Lord’s words of His great grace and work of God to the house of Aaron, to the house of Eli, through rhetorical questions of Eli. Who was this man? We’re not told his identity. However, the term “man of God” in the Old Testament is often interchangeably used with a prophet. (see 1 Kings 13:15-18 and 2 Kings 5:8)
So, one of God’s prophets spoke words to Eli that have some similarity to the divine statements Nathan gave to David. Whereas an important question from God to David in 2 Samuel 12:9 was, “Why have you despised the commandment of the Lord, to do evil in His sight?”, considering David had Uriah killed, see God’s important question to Eli in verse 29 was, “Why do you kick at My sacrifice and My offering which I have commanded in My dwelling place, and honor your sons more than Me, to make yourselves fat with the best of all the offerings of Israel My people?” God had graciously revealed himself to his grandfather, Aaron (Exodus 4:27). God chose and called Aaron to be the first high priest to serve Him and His people. God was faithful in keeping His promises in providing support for those who are in His service. God had also done great things for Ithamar, Eli’s father, and his family. Further, He gave Eli honorable work and clear commands. Yet, Eli disobeyed Him. Eli should have confronted his sons with more than words. His failure to do so amounted to him honoring his sons above the Lord.
This is the prevalent pattern with sinful men, even today, isn’t it? God is gracious and thorough with all He reveals in His Word. He is perfectly faithful in keeping His promises, and yet we are repetitively unfaithful in obeying Him. Praise God for His grace and mercy to us in Jesus Christ as He draws us to repentance, shepherds, and guides us in His way. Praise Him for the work of His Spirit’s sanctifying work in chastening us, teaching us, helping us mortify sin and walk in righteousness, as He conforms us more and more to the image of Christ. Praise God for ministers and elders who are faithful in guarding their own hearts and lives, as well as the worship of Him, rightly honoring God as His people are led well in it. Indeed, God is pleased when His people honor and obey Him above all else!
But, such dishonor being true in Eli, what did God say would happen? Whereas Eli’s house was to walk in continual service before God, He would cut off the high priesthood from Eli’s family. Eli’s house would be decimated. There wouldn’t be “an old man” in his house, God says in verse 32. Their lives would be shortened. Their power would be broken. This cutting off would be evident in multiple phases. In verse 34, God promised a prophetic sign to Eli that this was true- Hophni and Phinehas would both die on the same day. This happened when the ark was captured (1 Samuel 4:11). Eli died old and heavy when he fell backwards off a chair and broke his neck (1 Samuel 4:18). It continued with Saul’s killing the priests of Nob (1 Samuel 22:17-19) and culminated in Solomon’s removing Abiathar from the priesthood, replacing him with Zadok (1 Kings 2:26-27).
Now, on the one hand, Samuel may have been the fulfillment of this prediction as a priest. Zadok was a more clear fulfillment, along with the son of Zadok, and his descendants who served as high priests from Solomon to the time of Antiochus Epiphanes and the Maccabees. On the other hand, ultimately, we again see the fulfillment of God’s words in verse 35 pointing to gloriously to Christ. For God would abolish the entire Aaronic priesthood and anointed the only perfect and faithful high priest, our Lord Jesus (Hebrews 2:17). He is the one who is better than Aaron (Hebrews 5,7). He is the one who fully and perfectly did according to what is in God’s heart and mind (John 6:38). His house, His people, His church that is being built will live and walk before Him in His presence eternally (Hebrews 3:6). Indeed, God is building a sure house, building it on the rock, so that the gates of Hell cannot prevail against it.
As you consider these things, what are some wonderful things to take with you?
1) The complete faithfulness of God across generations – From Aaron to Eli, and Eli on, God has done great and marvelous things in revealing Himself, keeping covenant with His people, making His law and commands clear, in this context especially in regards to worship, sacrifice, and prayer. Today we continue to study and apply the truths of Scripture as we guard His worship, in accordance with what He has prescribed therein.
2) The holiness and righteous justice of God across generations – God demonstrated his holiness and goodness in His commitment to keep His house and people pure and uncorrupted. When one dishonors God, he brings dishonor among men. Therefore, He did perfectly what Eli should have done with his sons. God judged and removed the guilty parties from office. As part of that judgment, He also cut off their house from the priesthood. Therefore, Christ’s undershepherds in the church need to be diligent in their duties, diligent in fleeing temptation in their walk, and diligent in dealing with sin promptly in their own lives as well as those of the sheep. May Christ’s church remain steadfast and disciplined in keeping herself pure in all generations.
3) The mercy of God to present and future generations – Though God’s threat of judgment was clear, in His mercy and faithfulness to Israel, God would raise up a faithful high priest in Zadok, as well as in time the faithful, eternal high priest that all of the earthly high priests pointed to- Jesus Christ. Indeed, He is the better Aaron, the one who has redeemed and is building His sure house that will stand, serve, and worship Him forever. Praise the Lord!