1 Samuel 2:12-4:1; Proverbs 6:20-35

 Read

 

Read I Samuel 2: 12 - 4: 1; Proverbs 6: 20-35

Verse chosen for meditation: I Samuel 3: 4 ESV

Then the Lord called Samuel, and he said, “Here I am!”

 

Reflect

 

The good and bad priests are contrasted in the passage. What are the dissimilarities?

 

As chief priest, what did Eli do wrong and what did he do right?

 

How did Samuel respond to the Lord’s call?  What can we learn?

 

Relate

 

There are at least 3 tiers of priestly positions observed in the passage: high priest, priest in attendance and priest in training. The high priest is the overall in charge who oversees the entire training and duties of the priests under his charge. In those days, it was common practice to allow sons of the high priest to be priests, as was the case here. 

 

The sons of Eli who were the priests in attendance abused their power blatantly. They did the unimaginable as priests. They considered portions of meat offered to the Lord as their rightful share. They did it, perhaps for personal consumption (the fats) or personal gains (reselling the raw meat). They even engaged in immoral acts with the female servers of the temple. What’s more, these were committed right under the nose of their father, Eli, the high priest.

 

Though Eli did his part by rebuking his sons, he stopped short of disciplining them. He should have taken a sterner approach to rein them in, but he didn't. To quote David Wong, author of Finishing Well, Eli’s was a glaring case of 'fatal indulgence'.

 

His one saving grace in this whole drama is, however, Samuel who makes his debut as the priestin training. Samuel’s subsequent ministry trajectory and credits would bring some cold comfort for Eli who must have done it right by Samuel while failing miserably as father and mentor to his own sons.

 

There's a real stark contrast between Samuel and Eli's two sons. While the Lord considers Samuel as his own, Eli's sons consider what is the Lord's as their own to do as they please. In addition, Samuel serves the Lord obediently whereas Eli's sons lord over those who serve. As a result, Samuel grows not only in stature, but also in favour with the Lord while Eli's sons drift farther away from the Lord, thereby incurring the Lord’s great displeasure.

 

Interestingly, as we take a look at Samuel’s ‘Here I am’ response, the same three words were uttered by a few others of the Lord’s chosen, as evidenced by the following verses:

 

But the angel of the LORD called out to him from heaven, “Abraham! Abraham!" “Here I am, he replied (Genesis 22: 11). The angel of the LORD was calling out to Abraham to stop him from slaying his son, Isaac.

 

And God spoke to Israel in a vision at night and said, “Jacob! Jacob!” “Here I am,” he replied (Genesis 46: 2). God was calling Jacob to promise him that he would be made into a great nation when he went down to Egypt.

 

When the LORD saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, “Moses! Moses!” And Moses said, “Here I am." (Exodus 3: 4). God was calling Moses from the burning bush for the purpose of sending him to Pharoah to seek the deliverance of the Israelites.

 

Unknowingly, by responding in like manner, Samuel joins the ranks of Abraham, Jacob and Moses before him. Later, Isaiah too would respond in similar fashion: Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, "Whom shall I send? And who will go for us? " And I said, "Here am I. Send me!" (Isaiah 6: 8).

 

In Hebrew, the three - word phrase is but one word: hineini. It is usually translated as “Here I am” in the Bible when it's a response to a call. Since the phrase has come up at least five times, it pays to take a closer examination. For more than a polite response that says, “I hear you", it is a declaration that I am present, totally present to the one calling.

 

It is said that “eighty percent of success is just showing up.” The challenge is not merely to showup, but to be fully present and mindful of who, where, and with whom we are. It certainly puts a new meaning and an added emphasis to the song 'Here I am to worship' upon realising that it's more than showing up for a church service. As for those of us who still elect to tune in to livestream or recorded services, nothing further need be said.

 

Finally, God summons us by name (Isaiah 43: 1). He calls us by our name. The Lord Almighty knows our name. He remembers our name. He even writes it down. 

 

As in total defence, 'Here I am' is a total body response to a call. It involves not just our heart, our mind, our lips, our hands, our feet, but our entire being.

 

For it cannot be anything less since he created our inmost being and saw our whole unformed body. And calls us by our name.

 

So, do we hear it? What then is our response?

 

Rest

 

Lord, you call each one of us by name. In this quiet moment, may we hear you and summon our entire being in response, be it in worship, in repentance and obedience, or to your call.

 

Naville Chia