Holy Bible

The time was long, for it was twenty years. 1 Samuel 7:2 An absent God Helen Plumptre. Well might it be said, "The time was long." Twenty hours, without Thy presence, are long indeed, and cloud the brightest day, and veil the loveliest scenes. How should you like to be twenty years away from your beloved father or mother? Would not the time seem very long? And have you ever mourned an absent God? Have you been like Job, when he looked on every side and found Him not? ( Job 23:8, 9 ); or, like Mary Magdalene, whose tears were her meat, day and night, until she found Him whom her soul loved? See how she stands beside the empty gravel Peter may leave — John may leave — they may go to their house, or to their nets. The place where the body of Jesus had lain was sweeter and dearer to Mary than all the sweets of earth: and though her tearful eyes had too plainly told her His precious body was not there, yet again she stoops, again she looks in, as though she hoped her ardent wishes might bring Him back again. Yes, blessed woman, and they have power with thy God, and prevail. Quickly was He at her side whom she sought sorrowing: and quickly, at His presence, are tears exchanged for joy unspeakable, Happy art thou, O Israel, when thou canst mourn an absent God! We have a beautiful description given us of real, godly sorrow, in 2 Corinthians 7:10, 11 . If one of you were to ask a gentleman or lady to come and see you, would you sit with the cottage all in litter and confusion? would you not be tidying it, cleaning out every corner, dusting every piece of furniture, and getting it as nice as you could? Oh! when you truly cry to the Lord to return unto you, how diligent you will be preparing your hearts unto the Lord! ( 2 Chronicles 30:19 .) What carefulness, lest there should be anything left undone! What clearing of idols and rubbish! what indignation against the things which have usurped His place in your heart, and robbed you of all your joy! what vehement desire to see Him again filling the whole, and bringing every thought into captivity! what zeal to make up for lost time! what revenge against ungrateful, treacherous self! Would you wish to know the first step a soul takes in departing from God? You may find it in your secret chamber — beside the little bed or chair, where you once used to hold sweet communion with Him. "Thou hast restrained prayer," is the print of the first footstep in the downward road. Would you know the first step of the returning soul? Go again, and look in the secret chamber: now that distressed soul seeks Him early; and soon its youth is renewed like the eagle's — it walks, it runs, it flies (Isaiah 11:81). ( Helen Plumptre. ) And Samuel spake unto all the house of Israel, saying, If ye do return unto the Lord with all your hearts. 1 Samuel 7:3-11 Samuel the Judge T. D. Witherspoon, D. D. For more than twenty years the Philistines had held undisputed sway over the greater part of the territory of Israel. Shechem and Shiloh, the ancient sanctuaries of worship, were both in the possession of the Philistines. Even the sacred ark of the covenant had been surrendered ingloriously into the hands of the uncircumcised. Restored by miracle, it still remained in the Hivite town of Kirjath-jearim upon the border. Israel was without a sanctuary as well as without a ruler. The power of the oppressor was to be broken. Deliverance was to come in the only way in which it could come, through the interposition of Divine aid. This help of God bringing deliverance is the great theme brought to our consideration. I. The help of God which brings deliverance comes THROUGH THE AGENCY OF A PERSONAL DELIVERER. This is the first great historical lesson of those dark days in which the judges ruled. Each of the hero-judges was officially a type of the great Deliverer. In each succeeding one the personal analogies to the great Antitype become more and more apparent, until in Samuel, the last and noblest of the line, we reach one of the most illustrious types of Christ to be found in Old Testament history. II. The help which brings deliverance comes ONLY UPON CONDITION OF SINCERE REPENTANCE FOR SIN AND WHOLE-HEARTED RETURN TO THE LORD. Samson adventured all upon personal prowess. Conscious of extraordinary powers, he sought to annoy and intimidate the Philistines into submission. Wasting his strength in brilliant but vain exploits, a romantic life was crowned with a glorious death, yet he passed away, leaving the Philistines still in possession of the land. Samuel, tracing the miseries of the people to their true source in the chastisement of God for their sins, realising that the first step towards disenthrallment must be taken in repentance and reformation, sets himself quietly but steadfastly to work to rekindle in the hearts of his countrymen the smouldering fires of religion. At the basis of all true freedom from the Philistines that rule the heart, from the bondage of corruption, from the fetters of guilt, from the "lusts that war against the Soul," is this bitter work of repentance, this putting away the idols of the soul, this turning with the whole heart to the service of the Lord. III. The help which brings deliverance comes THROUGH A COVENANT SEALED WITH BLOOD. As deliverance from Philistine bondage came only through the provision of the covenant with Abraham, as that covenant was ratified and rested in by the oppressed and suffering people, so deliverance from the bondage of Satan comes only through the provisions of the covenant of grace, as that covenant is sealed with the blood of Christ and joyfully accepted and rested in by the sin-oppressed soul. IV. The help which brings deliverance comes IN ANSWER TO PRAYER. The Church of God has never yet tasted to its lull extent the power of prayer. It is Samuel's memorial that he is ( Psalm 99:6 ) "among them that call upon God's name," who "called upon the Lord, and he answered them." Luther , Knox , Whitefield , Wesley , the men who carried forth great movements and accomplished glorious works for God, have been men preeminent in prayer. V. The help which brings deliverance comes IN THE USE OF APPOINTED MEANS. Not when the first alarm was sounded, and the people, started by the unexpected assault, "were afraid of the Philistines," did the Lord appear, but when Samuel, going calmly forward with the sacrifice in the face of the advancing enemy, had shown the sincerity of his trust in God — when the hosts of Israel, drawing inspiration from the faith of their dauntless leader, had set the battle in array and were making use of all available means of defence. In all our convicts with Satan, the world and sin, help comes from God, but only as direct effort is put forth by us. It comes to give efficiency and success to our efforts. We may not sit idle and wait for some marvellous interposition of God's power. We may not first do our part in our own strength and then wait for God to do His. It is in and through our working that Divine power is put forth and Divine help given. We work out our own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God which worketh in us both to will and to do of His good pleasure, VI. The help which brings victory in the first conflict is THE PLEDGE, TO BE GRATEFULLY RECOGNISED, OF COMPLETE AND FINAL DELIVERANCE. VII. The help which brings deliverance ENGAGES TO THE LIFELONG SERVICE OF HIM WHO SO GRACIOUSLY INTERPOSES FOR OUR RELIEF. Each mercy received should be a silken cord binding more closely to the service of God. Instead of presuming upon gracious interpositions in the past as occasions for indulgence or inaction in the present, we should find in these both incentive and encouragement to steady progress and patient labour in the Christian life. ( T. D. Witherspoon, D. D. ) An ideal statesman J. S. Exell, M. A. The words "twenty years" should be connected with the following sentence, "and all the house of Israel lamented after the Lord." Thus twenty years had elapsed before they began to revive from their sad state of religious decline. "And Samuel spake." Now Samuel appears upon the scene. He has been absent since the third chapter. But now he is seen with all the energy of spiritual fortitude, consequent upon deep devotion, trying to excite in other hearts the aspiration of his own. Such an occasion is worthy of his presence, and in the sequel we have at once presented the power and praise of a devoted life. We have here before us a pattern statesman. I. HE WAS A MAN OF SPIRITUAL DISPOSITION. It generally happens that the leading spirits of a nation are those famous for philosophical thought, scientific discovery, or political revolution. The problem may be atheistic, the analysis anti-Christian, and the social change debasing, yet, because the man has by some marvellous display of genius flashed his name into the bewildered eyes of an astonished world, he is called to eminence. Thus national prominence is attained by the sheer force of mind power, irrespective of character, and while life is so commercial in its tendency and so secular in its habit we must expect such to continue, This was nee the case under the old Jewish theocracy. Samuel, the central figure of these times, was raised to authority, not by mere thought power, but by the Intense spirituality of his character. The spirituality of Samuel's disposition is manifested — 1. By his expostulation with the people (ver. 3). This expostulation contains(1) A supposition. "If ye do return unto the Lord with all your hearts," In this crisis Samuel does not suggest a series of civil enactments, or a great military stratagem, as calculated to obtain freedom, but penetrating to the deepest source of defeat, urges a return to God. The civilised statesmen of today may laugh at this primitive mode of government, and write, with sarcastic dash, "superstition" on its wish, but might they not learn a lesson from its success that political woes are often to be remedied by moral reform, not by the mock contrition of place-seeking miscreants, but by the devout penitence of guilt-stricken spirits.(2) Instruction. "Put away the strange gods." Samuel thus places a recognition of Jehovah at the basis of all national reform. Idolatry has proved the overthrow of many kingdoms. Are not wealth, pleasure, fame our Penates? If so, let us heed the voice of Samuel. "Put away," etc.(3) An assurance. "And He will deliver you" (ver 3).(4) It was timely. "Then all the house of Israel lamented after the Lord."(5) It was successful (ver. 4). 2. By his supplication to the Apostate nation.(1) Convention. "Gather all Israel to Mizpeh" (ver 5). A universal humiliation was requisite. It was celebrated: —(1) By prayer. "I will pray for you." How calm and dignified was this language.(2) By fasting (ver. 6).(3) By penitent joy. "And drew water and poured it out before the Lord." Some have thought this a ceremony belonging to legal purification, or an expression of deep humiliation or of expiation, but it is possible that they poured out this water in token of joy, as they were accustomed to do at the Feast of Tabernacles(4) By sacrifice (ver. 9). 3. By his strict recognition of God This is observable: —(1) In the ordinary life of the nation. He tells them to put away the strange gods.(2) In important national crises. "The Lord hath helped us." The victory led to: —(1) Retrospection. "Hitherto." And what a long string of events does that represent — what contingencies — what sorrows — what joys? The whole of their past lives was crowded into one word!(2) Perpetuation. "Took a stone."(3) Ministration. "Hath helped us." Here we behold the strength of Samuel's character. He was one against a nation. He had force of will to resist the tide of wrong, and to bid it recede. II. SUCH CHARACTER MAY HOPEFULLY ANTICIPATE THE COOPERATION OF HEAVEN. "But the Lord thundered" (ver. 10). Samuel, the holy legislator, was the connecting link between God and help. How dependent is human life upon leading powers! 1. A religious assembly mistaken for a national army (ver. 7). Now the Philistines draw near for battle. This is a typical incident; the effort of moral improvement necessarily excites opposition, either the sneer of forsaken friendship, the persecution of sects, or the enmity of Satan. 2. The surprised worshippers.(1) They were timorous. "Afraid" (ver. 7). Causes of their fear. They were without means of defence. They were conscious that past sin had enfeebled their national prowess. The discipline of extremity developed their reformed character.(2) They were victorious. We have here illustrated the inherent power which is to be found in an assembly convened for religious exercises: such an association of contrite souls possesses some mysterious influence which almost naturally draws God into its life, and such allegiance is potent for any conflict.The issues of victory. (1) Subjugation of enemies (ver. 13). (2) Restoration of territory (ver. 14). 3. In the elevation of spiritual character, we have a guarantee for the execution of justice. "And Samuel judged Israel all the days of his life" (ver. 15). 4. Home the sanctuary of public life.(1) Samuel's return (ver. 17).(2) Samuel's devotion. "He built an altar unto the Lord." If a man is to be influential abroad, he must be devotional at home. True public life catches its inspiration from the domestic altar Lessons: —(1) The practical influence of one holy life upon a nation.(2) National humiliations are acceptable to God.(3) God's mercy illustrated in the victories of life.(4) That public life should have its altar of devotion. ( J. S. Exell, M. A. ) Samuel the Judge M. G. Pearse. The interval between the time of the Judges and the time of David is filled by the history of Samuel. His influence it was that safely led the nation through two revolutions — the one in religion, the other in government. A priest, yet Samuel was the first of a new spiritual order that was henceforth to be greater than the priesthood, far more directly the mouthpiece of God, more authoritative, the true leader of the people, if steadfast and unflinching service to the people, if fearlessness and faithfulness, if unfailing goodness and wise guidance can entitle any here in Israel to stand beside Moses and Elijah, that man surely is Samuel. Yet in addition to these two offices, priest and prophet — the greatest that any man can fill — he is also Judge of Israel, that is, king in all but name, and in all but the outward trappings and personal advantages. "Samuel was one of those great men of manifold gifts and functions whom God raises up In great crises and for great services. He was not like Moses, the founder of the economy, nor like Elijah, its restorer. But he was its preserver through a revolution that had become inevitable; which be opposed as long as he could, which he reluctantly accepted when he Could oppose it no longer, and which by shear force of character he regulated and moulded so as to prevent national disorganisation. Like Luther, he built the new foundations on the old. As far as circumstances permitted he reformed his age, and by his genius, his piety, and his wisdom he powerfully controlled the turbulent elements of the national life." It is interesting to trace the analogy between John the Baptist and Samuel. There is a striking similarity in the circumstances of their birth, in their early separation to the service of God, in the rumour that spreads concerning them throughout the land, awakening the expectation of a great religious revival. Each of them marks a transition period in the history of Israel. Samuel is the last of the judges and the first of the prophets, as John the Baptist is the last of the prophets and the first of Christian preachers, standing and crying, "Behold, the Lamb of God." Each of them commences his work by summoning the people to a great national act of repentance before God, and in each case the symbol of their repentance has a singular similarity. We must remember that it was no light and easy work which was thus demanded of them. Idolatry was not a mere perverse fancy; nor was it only a selfish indulgence. It was the severance from all the association with those about them, the setting of themselves up to be the peculiar people of God — a thing that always costs as much effort and courage as most things a man has to do. The national repentance is followed by a great national assembly. Samuel bade the head men and representatives come together for a holy convocation in Mizpeh. By contact with himself and by communion with one another he would lead the people further in this work of reformation. As long afterwards the repentance of Israel found its expression in coming to John for baptism in the Jordan, so here they gathered together solemnly to confess their sins and to declare their purpose of amendment. Samuel bowed before the Lord in prayer for the people, whilst they "drew water and poured it out before the Lord, and said, We have sinned against the Lord." Like the symbol of baptism, it was the token of their death and burial unto sin, that they might rise into the new life of God. It is thus that the wise woman of Tekoa spake to the king, "For we must needs die, and are as Water spilt upon the ground, which cannot be gathered up again." Standing beside the altar high up on Mizpeh, the watchtower, Samuel stretched up his arms to Heaven pleading for the people. Swiftly the black clouds gathered, as if the great artillery of God came forth to the fight. Whatever the manifestation may have been, whether or not attended by an earthquake, as Josephus asserts, it is certain that the Philistines never lost the dread memory of that praying figure on the lonely heights, with hands uplifted to the God of Heaven. That one man was mightier than all their hosts. It seemed as if he were able to open the windows of heaven, and summon all its force against the foes of Israel. "They came no more into the coasts of Israel." ( M. G. Pearse. ) Solitary power J. Parker, D. D. As prophet of the Lord, Samuel's will was supreme — all the main features of the history derive their expression from the spirit of Samuel. There is authority in his word, there is inspiration in his encouragement, there is death in his frown. Under these circumstances you see how naturally we are led to meditate upon the profound influence of one life. I. IN THE FIRST PLACE, LOOK AT THE SUBLIME ATTITUDE WHICH SAMUEL ASSUMED IN RELATION TO THE CORRUPTION OF THE FAITH. Samuel distinctly charged the house of Israel with having gone astray from the living God. Distinctly, without reservation, without anything that indicated timidity on his part, he laid this terrible indictment against the house of Israel. In doing so he assumed a sublime attitude. He stood before Israel as a representative of the God who had been insulted, dishonoured, abandoned. We find sublimity in the attitude, imperial force in the tone. How did Samuel's influence come to be so profound upon this occasion? The instant answer is, Because his influence is moral. Moral influence goes to the heart of things. He who deals with moral questions deals with the life of the world. Any other influence addresses itself to affairs of the moment; all other influences are superficial and transitory. He who repronounces God's commandments, and tells to the heart of the world God's charges, wields a moral, and therefore a profound influence. Herein is the supreme advantage of the Gospel. The Gospel of Christ lays its saving hand upon the human heart and says, "This is the sphere of my mission. I will affect all things that are superficial and local and temporary; but I shall affect them indirectly. By putting the life right, I shall put the extremities right; by making the heart as it ought to be, the whole surface of nature will become healthful and beautiful." We need men in society who stand apart frees the little fights, petty controversies, and angry contentions which seem to be part and parcel of daily life, and who shall speak great principles, breathe a heavenly influence, and bring to bear upon combatants of all kinds considerations which shall survive all their misunderstandings. Regard Samuel in this light, and you will see the sublimity of his attitude. Herein, again, is the great influence of a moral teacher, a revealer of Christian truth. Whenever we hear a preacher who speaks the right word, we hear God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Ghost; through his voice we hear the testimony of the angels unfallen; out of his words there comes the declaration of all that is bright, pure, true, wise, in the universe of God! II. NOW LET US LOOK AT THE HOLY ATTITUDE WHICH SAMUEL ASSUMED IN RELATION TO THE GUILT OF ISRAEL. In the first instance he describes the corruptness of the case, points out the right course, exhorts the people to take that course instantly, and then he speaks these healing words: "If ye will do these things, and gather yourselves together to Mizpeh, I will pray unto the Lord for you." That is all we can do for one another — the work of an instrument, the ministry of an agent. "I will pray for you unto the Lord." Then the human needs the Divine. We never find — taking great breadths of history, ages and centuries — that the human has been able to exist alone, and to grow upward and onward in its atheism, What became of the Philistines? Now that Israel is getting its old heart back again, and its eyes are being turned to the heavens, what becomes of the Philistines? The Lord thundered that day upon the Philistines, and discomfited them, and they were smitten before Israel. The Philistines came against a praying army. We must consider not what the praying army did in the first instance, but what God did. Observe when it was that Samuel said he would pray for the house of Israel. The great lesson here turns upon a point of time. When Israel returned unto the Lord with all their heart; when Israel put away the strange Gods and Ashtaroth; when Israel prepared the heart unto the Lord and was ready to serve him Duly; when Israel had done this part, then Samuel said, "I will pray for you unto the Lord." Under other circumstances prayer would have been wasted breath. We find a great law here, which applies to the natural and the spiritual. Is there a plague in the city? Purify your sanitary arrangements, cleanse your drains, disinfect your channels, use everything that is at all likely to conduce to a good end — then pray unto the Lord. After nature has exhausted herself, there may be something for the Lord to do, may there mot? Sometimes worldly people say — "Pray for us." Men have said that to us. What kind of men were they? Sometimes men who have made wrecks of them. selves, who have gone as far devilward as they could get, whose hearts were like a den of unclean beasts, men who had no longer any grip of the world — the whole thing was slipping away from them — they have said to the minister whom they had previously characterised as a canting parson, "Pray for us." But one condition must be forthcoming on their part. There must be self-renunciation, contrition, moral anguish, pain of the soul, repentance towards God. When these conditions are forthcoming, the servant of Christ may say, "I will pray for you unto the Lord." III. IN THE THIRD PLACE, LOOK AT THE EXALTED ATTITUDE WHICH SAMUEL ASSUMES IN RELATION TO HIS WHOLE LIFETIME. We read in the fifteenth verse of this chapter, "Samuel judged Israel all the days of his life." Think of being able to account for all the days of a whole human history! Think of being able to write your biography in one sentence! Think of being able to do without parentheses, footnotes, reservations, apologies, and self-vindications! When we attempt to write our lives, there is so much to say that is collateral and modifying in its effect — so much which is to explain the central line. So our biographical record becomes anomalous, contradictory, irreconcilable. Here is a man whose lifetime is gathered up in one sentence. "Samuel judged Israel all the days of his life." We have seen him in his childhood, we have had glances of him as he was passing up to his mature age. Today we see him in three impressive and remarkable attitudes. His whole history is in this sentence: He was a judge of God all his days. Think of giving a whole lifetime to God. There are those who cannot do that now. But young men may be able to give twenty, thirty, perhaps fifty years all to Christ. See then the profound influence which may be exerted by one life. We are dealing with Samuel, and with Samuel alone. Samuel's life is not confined to himself; it is a radiating life, streaming out from itself and touching thousands of points in the social and national life of others. Who can tell what may be dons by one man? Speak the truth of God, and eternity itself cannot exhaust the happy effect of that blessed influence! ( J. Parker, D. D. ) Samuel the Judge Monday Club Sermons. This scene at Mizpeh, and the results following, suggest several lessons. We learn that: I. ONE, TO HAVE POWER OVER MEN, MUST HAVE POWER WITH GOD. Why are the people, though late in their repentance, now so willing to listen to the prophet's words and obey them? Samuel influenced the people, because God influenced him. The secret of his power over men was his power with God. In a preeminent degree, this prophet and judge of Israel was a man to whom unseen realities were brought near. Thus, God fitted Samuel to do a work in Israel in the transition period between the theocracy and monarchy, making him an eminent judge, the first in the regular succession of prophets, the founder of the prophetic schools, the anointer of Israel's first and second king, and the man whom the people — even when debauched by idolatry — reverenced, and whose voice was to them like the voice of God. He was all this, because he held close intercourse with Heaven. The hand that is outstretched to save, must clasp the throne. Ministers are weak in the pulpit whenever they are weak in the closet. II. THE NECESSITY AND VALUE OF RELIGIOUS ORDINANCES, RIGHTLY USED. It was not enough that Samuel assemble Israel at Mizpeh. Gathered there, the people must be so influenced that the impressions made would be permanent, and they fixed in their new attitude of loyalty to God. Samuel must instruct them in the proper use of religious rites, and show them how God can be so approached as to win His favour. Thus, far back at Mizpeh, were taught the truths of Calvary. God is approached reverently, with confession, with sacrifice, and with supplication. These two ways of approaching God — Samuel's with sacrifice and supplication, and Israel's of bearing aloft the ark with heedless shoutings — teach us lessons respecting the methods by which, now, God is, and is not, appropriately worshipped. Not by magnifying the outward, by giving prominence to the seen and the tangible, while the unseen and spiritual are lightly esteemed. The value of religious ordinances consists not in what man's eye sees or his ear hears, but in what his heart feels, and in what the eye of God perceives within the breast. No wonder that Israel, thus addressing the Throne of Grace, were prevalent over their toes. God heard their cry, and the arm of Omnipotence was their defence. What though the Philistines, or Israel, or the prophet himself, could not answer the question how God at that moment put a voice into the arching heavens, or kindled up the clouds with electric fires? What though, then as well as now, and now as well as then, the philosophy of prayer baffles finite skill? Is it, therefore, any the less true that the prayer of penitence and faith prevails with God? One other element now is needed to make the worship complete — that is, an expression of thanksgiving. It was a fitting sequel, therefore, when Samuel "took a stone and set it between Mizpeh and Shen, and called the name of it Ebenezer," saying, "Hitherto hath the Lord helped us." We learn, therefore, that expressed gratitude to God should find a prominent place in all our worship. Israel not only felt grateful, they gave it utterance; they clothed with form the sentiments their hearts felt. ( Monday Club Sermons. ) Repentance and Victory A. Maclaren, D. D. I. PREPARATION FOR VICTORY IN REPENTANCE AND RETURN. At the time of the first fight at Ebenezer, Israel was full of idolatry and immorality. Then their preparation for battle was the mere bringing the ark into the camp, as if it were a fetish or magic charm. That was pure heathenism, and they were idolaters in such worship of Jehovah, just as much as if they had been bowing to Baal. Not the name of the deity, but the spirit of the worshipper, makes the "idolater." How different the second preparation! If we are to have His strength infused for victory, we must cast away our idols, and come back to Him with all our hearts. The hands that would clasp Him, and be upheld by the clasp, must be emptied of trifles. To yield ourselves wholly to God is the secret of strength. Confession breaks the entail of sin, and substitutes for the dreary expectation of its continuance the glad conviction of forgiveness and cleansing. It does not make a stiff fight unnecessary; for assured freedom from sin is not the easy prize of confession, but the hard-won issue of sturdy effort in God's strength. But it is like blowing the trumpet of revolt — it gives the signal for and itself begins the conflict. The night before the battle should be spent, not in feasting, but in prayer and lowly shriving of our souls before the great Confessor. Our enemy is strong, and no fault is more fatal than an underestimate of his power. If we go into battle singing, we shall probably come out of it weeping, or never come out at all. We should think much of our foes and little of ourselves. Such a temper will lead to caution, watchfulness, wise suspicion, vigorous strain of all our little power, and, above all, it will send us to our knees to plead with our great Captain and Advocate. II. VICTORY ON THE FIELD OF FORMER DEFEAT. The battle is joined on the old field. Strategic considerations probably determined the choice of the ground, as they did the many battles on the plain of Esdraelon, for instance, or on the fields of the Netherlands. At all events, there they were, face to face once more on the old spot. On both sides might be men who had been in the former engagement. Depressing remembrances or burning eagerness to wipe out the shame would stir, in those on the one side; contemptuous remembrances of the ease with which the last victory had been won would animate the other. God himself helped them by the thunder storm, the solemn roll of which was "the voice of the Lord" answering Samuel's prayer. "They were smitten before ," not by , the victors. The true victor was God. The story gives boundless hope of victory, even on the fields of our former defeats. We can master rooted faults of character, and overcome temptations which have often conquered us. So, though the whole field may be strewed with relics, eloquent of former disgrace, we may renew the struggle with confidence that the future will not always copy the past. We are saved by hope; by hope we are made strong. It is the very helmet on our heads. The warfare with our own evils should be waged in the assurance that every field of our defeat shall one day see set up on It the trophy of, not our victory, but God's in us. III. GRATEFUL COMMEMORATION OF VICTORY. Where that gray stone stands no man knows today, but its name lives forever. This trophy bore no vaunts of leader's skill or soldier's bravery; One name only is associated with it. It is "the stone of help," and its message to succeeding generations is: "Hitherto hath the Lord helped us." That "hitherto" is the word of a mighty faith. It includes as parts of one whole the disaster no less than the victory. The Lord was helping Israel no less by sorrow and oppression than by joy and deliverance. The defeat which guided them back to Him was tender kindness and precious help. Such remembrance has in it a half-uttered prayer and hope for the future. Memory passes into hope, and the radiance in the sky behind throws light on to our forward path. God's "hitherto" carries "henceforward" wrapped up in it. The devout man's "gratitude" is, and ought to be, "a lively sense of favours to come." The best use of memory is to mark more plainly than it could be seen at the moment the Divine help which has filled our lives. ( A. Maclaren, D. D. ) Repentance and revival W. G. Blaikie, D. D. There are two great services for God and for Israel in which we find Samuel engage

Benson Commentary 1 Samuel 7:1 And the men of Kirjathjearim came, and fetched up the ark of the LORD, and brought it into the house of Abinadab in the hill, and sanctified Eleazar his son to keep the ark of the LORD. 1 Samuel 7:1 . The men of Kirjath-jearim fetched up the ark — That is, by the priests appointed to that work. Into the house of Abinadab — As the care of the ark belonged to the Levites, doubtless Abinadab was of that tribe, otherwise, indeed, he could not have consecrated, that is, set apart, or solemnly appointed his son to keep, or to attend it, and see that no rudeness was offered to it; to keep the place, where it was, clean, and to guard it that none might touch it but such as God had allowed so to do. In the hill — This place they chose, both because it was a strong place, where it would be most safe; and a high place, and therefore visible at some distance, which was convenient for them, who were at that time to direct their prayers and faces toward the ark. And for the same reason David afterward placed it on the hill of Sion. If it be inquired why they did not carry the ark to Shiloh, its ancient seat; the answer is, that the Philistines had destroyed that place; and the tabernacle, upon the death of Eli, was removed from thence unto Nob; where it remained till the death of Samuel. 1 Samuel 7:2 And it came to pass, while the ark abode in Kirjathjearim, that the time was long; for it was twenty years: and all the house of Israel lamented after the LORD. 1 Samuel 7:2 . For it was twenty years — It is not said that this space of twenty years was all the time of the ark’s abode there, for it continued there from Eli’s time till David’s reign, ( 2 Samuel 6:2 ,) which was forty-six years; but that it was so long there before the Israelites were sensible of their sin and misery. And all the house — Or rather, as Dr. Lightfoot translates the words, Then all the house of Israel lamented after the Lord — That is, followed after God with lamentations for his departure, and prayers for his return. Their idolatry had taken such deep root in them, that neither the loss of the ark, nor the slaughter of so many Israelites, wrought upon their hearts; but it was twenty years before they were brought to a proper sense of their sinfulness and guilt, and so humbled as to deplore their apostacy with genuine godly sorrow, and seek after the favour of God, and reconciliation with him. 1 Samuel 7:3 And Samuel spake unto all the house of Israel, saying, If ye do return unto the LORD with all your hearts, then put away the strange gods and Ashtaroth from among you, and prepare your hearts unto the LORD, and serve him only: and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines. 1 Samuel 7:3 . Samuel spake to all the house of Israel — To all the rulers and people too, as he had occasion in his circuit, described below, mixing exhortations to repentance with his judicial administrations. If ye return unto the Lord — If you do indeed what you profess, if you be resolved to go on in that which you seem to have begun; with all your heart — Sincerely and in good earnest; put away the strange gods — Out of your houses, where some of you keep them; and out of your hearts, where they still have an interest in many of you; and Ashtaroth — Especially Ashtaroth, whom they, together with the neighbouring nations, did more eminently worship. Prepare your hearts — By purging them from all sin, and particularly from all inclinations to other gods. 1 Samuel 7:4 Then the children of Israel did put away Baalim and Ashtaroth, and served the LORD only. 1 Samuel 7:4-5 . Then the children of Israel did put away Baalim, &c. — Samuel’s reproofs and instructions, and the representations he made of their sin and danger, touched their hearts, and induced them to break off their sins by repentance. Gather all Israel to Mizpeh, and I will pray for you — He could have prayed for them himself alone in private, but he knew it would tend to perfect the repentance and reformation begun among them, and to establish them in God’s service, to engage them to unite with him in that duty; and it was well worth while for them to come from the most distant part of the country to join with Samuel in seeking God’s favour. Doubtless Samuel prayed both that they might, by the grace of God, be separated from their idols, and then, by the providence of God, delivered from the Philistines. 1 Samuel 7:5 And Samuel said, Gather all Israel to Mizpeh, and I will pray for you unto the LORD. 1 Samuel 7:6 And they gathered together to Mizpeh, and drew water, and poured it out before the LORD, and fasted on that day, and said there, We have sinned against the LORD. And Samuel judged the children of Israel in Mizpeh. 1 Samuel 7:6 . They drew water and poured it out — As an external sign, whereby they testified both their own filthiness and need of washing by the grace and Spirit of God, and the blood of the covenant, and their sincere desire to pour out their hearts before the Lord, in true repentance, and to cleanse themselves from all filthiness of flesh and spirit. Before the Lord — That is, in the public assembly, where God is in a special manner present. Samuel judged — That is, governed them, reformed all abuses against God or man, took care that the laws of God should be observed, and wilfil transgressions punished. 1 Samuel 7:7 And when the Philistines heard that the children of Israel were gathered together to Mizpeh, the lords of the Philistines went up against Israel. And when the children of Israel heard it , they were afraid of the Philistines. 1 Samuel 7:7 . The lords of the Philistines went up — With an army, suspecting the effects of their general convention, and intending to nip them in the bud. They were afraid — Being a company of unarmed persons, and unfit for battle. When sinners begin to repent and reform, they must expect Satan will muster all his forces against them, and set his instruments at work to the uttermost, to oppose and discourage them. 1 Samuel 7:8 And the children of Israel said to Samuel, Cease not to cry unto the LORD our God for us, that he will save us out of the hand of the Philistines. 1 Samuel 7:8 . Cease not to cry unto the Lord, &c. — We are afraid to look God in the face, because of our great wickedness: do thou therefore intercede for us, as Moses did for his generation. They had reason to expect this, because he had promised to pray for them, had promised them deliverance from the Philistines, and they had been observant of him, in all that he had spoken to them from the Lord. Thus they who receive Christ as their lawgiver and judge, need not doubt of their interest in his intercession. O what a comfort it is to all believers, that he never ceaseth, is never silent, but always appears in the presence of God for us. 1 Samuel 7:9 And Samuel took a sucking lamb, and offered it for a burnt offering wholly unto the LORD: and Samuel cried unto the LORD for Israel; and the LORD heard him. 1 Samuel 7:9 . Samuel took a sucking lamb — For after a lamb was eight days old, it was fit to be sacrificed to God, Exodus 22:30 ; Leviticus 17:27. And offered it for a burnt-offering — For though he was not a priest, nor this place appointed for sacrifice, yet as a prophet he had authority from God to build an altar anywhere and offer sacrifices. Thus other holy men, Gideon and Manoah, were warranted to offer extraordinary sacrifices, in places which God had not before appointed. And thus we read of an altar he built in another place, 1 Samuel 7:17 , as Elijah did in following times. And Samuel cried unto the Lord — He made intercession with the sacrifice. So Christ intercedes in virtue of his satisfaction. And in all our prayers we must have an eye to his great oblation, depending on him for audience and acceptance. And the Lord heard him — Probably God answered Samuel as he did Manoah, by sending fire from heaven to consume the sacrifice, in testimony of his acceptance of it. 1 Samuel 7:10 And as Samuel was offering up the burnt offering, the Philistines drew near to battle against Israel: but the LORD thundered with a great thunder on that day upon the Philistines, and discomfited them; and they were smitten before Israel. 1 Samuel 7:11 And the men of Israel went out of Mizpeh, and pursued the Philistines, and smote them, until they came under Bethcar. 1 Samuel 7:11 . The men of Israel pursued the Philistines, &c. — This victory was the more wonderful, since it does not appear that the Israelites came provided with any weapons to Mizpeh, but probably smote the Philistines with their own weapons, which they threw away when they fled, affrighted by this uncommon tempest, or which were found among those that were slain by the lightning. 1 Samuel 7:12 Then Samuel took a stone, and set it between Mizpeh and Shen, and called the name of it Ebenezer, saying, Hitherto hath the LORD helped us. 1 Samuel 7:12 . Then Samuel took a stone — A rude, unpolished stone, which was not prohibited by that law, Leviticus 26:1 , there being no danger of worshipping such a stone, and this being set up only as a monument of the victory. Eben-ezer — That is, the stone of help. And this victory was gained in the very same place where the Israelites received their former fatal loss. Helped us — He hath begun to help us, though not completely to deliver us. By which wary expression, he excited both their thankfulness for the mercy received, and their holy fear and care to please and serve the Lord, that he might help and deliver them effectually. 1 Samuel 7:13 So the Philistines were subdued, and they came no more into the coast of Israel: and the hand of the LORD was against the Philistines all the days of Samuel. 1 Samuel 7:13 . Came no more — That is, with a great host, but only molested them with straggling parties, or garrisons. All the days of Samuel — That is, while Samuel was their sole judge, or ruler; for in Saul’s time they did come. 1 Samuel 7:14 And the cities which the Philistines had taken from Israel were restored to Israel, from Ekron even unto Gath; and the coasts thereof did Israel deliver out of the hands of the Philistines. And there was peace between Israel and the Amorites. 1 Samuel 7:14 . There was peace — An agreement for the cessation of all acts of hostility. Between Israel and the Amorites — That is, the Canaanites, often called Amorites, because these were formerly the most valiant of all those nations, and the first enemies which the Israelites met with, when they went to take possession of their land. They made this peace with the Canaanites, that they might be more at leisure to oppose the Philistines, now their most potent enemies. 1 Samuel 7:15 And Samuel judged Israel all the days of his life. 1 Samuel 7:15 . Samuel judged Israel, &c. — For though Saul was king in Samuel’s last days, yet Samuel did not cease to be a judge, being so made by God’s extraordinary call, which Saul could not destroy; and therefore Samuel did sometimes, upon great occasions, though not ordinarily, exercise the office of judge after the beginning of Saul’s reign; and the years of the rule of Saul and Samuel are joined together, Acts 13:20-21 . 1 Samuel 7:16 And he went from year to year in circuit to Bethel, and Gilgal, and Mizpeh, and judged Israel in all those places. 1 Samuel 7:16 . Judged Israel in all those places — He went to those several places, in compliance with the people’s desire, whose convenience he was willing to purchase with his own trouble, as an itinerant judge and preacher; and by his presence in several parts, he could the better observe and rectify all sorts of miscarriages and abuses. 1 Samuel 7:17 And his return was to Ramah; for there was his house; and there he judged Israel; and there he built an altar unto the LORD. 1 Samuel 7:17 . Built an altar — That, by joining sacrifices with his prayers, he might the better obtain direction and assistance from God upon all emergencies. And this was done by prophetical inspiration, as appears by God’s acceptance of the sacrifices offered upon it. Indeed, Shiloh being now laid waste, and no other place yet appointed for them to bring their offerings to, the law which obliged them to one place was for the present suspended. Therefore, as the patriarchs did, he built an altar where he lived; and that not only for the use of his own family, but for the good of the country, who resorted to it. Benson Commentary on the Old and New Testaments Text Courtesy of BibleSupport.com . Used by Permission.

Expositor's Bible Commentary 1 Samuel 7:1 And the men of Kirjathjearim came, and fetched up the ark of the LORD, and brought it into the house of Abinadab in the hill, and sanctified Eleazar his son to keep the ark of the LORD. CHAPTER VIII. REPENTANCE AND REVIVAL. 1 Samuel 7:1-9 . WITH the men of Bethshemesh the presence of the ark had become the same terror as it had been successively at Ashdod, Gath, and Ekron. Instead of the savour of life to life, it had proved a savour of death to death. Instead of a chief cornerstone, elect, precious, it had become a stone of stumbling and a rock of offence. They sent therefore to their neighbours at Kirjath-jearim, and begged them to come down and remove the ark. This they readily did. More timid men might have said, The ark has brought nothing but disaster in its train; we will have nothing to do with it. There was faith and loyalty to God shown in their readiness to give accommodation to it within their bounds. Deeming a high place to be the kind of situation where it should rest, they selected the house of Abinadab in the hill, he being probably a Levite. To keep the ark they set apart his son Eleazar, whose name seems to indicate that he was of the house of Aaron. They seem to have done all they could, and with due regard to the requirements of the law, for the custody of the sacred symbol. But Kirjath-jearim was not turned into the seat of the national worship. There is no word of sacrificial or other services being performed there. There is nothing to indicate that the annual feasts were held at this place. The ark had a resting-place there - nothing more. And this lasted for twenty years. It was a long and dreary time. A rude shock had been given to the sacred customs of the people, and the comely order of the Divine service among them. The ark and the other sacred vessels were separated from each other. If, as seems likely ( 1 Samuel 21:1-15 ), the daily offerings and other sacred services ordained by Moses were offered at this time at Nob, a sense of imperfection could not but belong to them, for the ark of the covenant was not there. Incompleteness would attach to any public rites that might now be celebrated. The service of Baal and Ashtaroth would have a less powerful rival than when the service of Jehovah was conducted in all due form and regularity at Shiloh. During these years the nation seems to have been somewhat listless on the subject, and to have made no effort to remove the ark to a men suitable place. Kirjath-jearim was not in the centre, but on the very edge of the country, looking down into the territory of the Philistines, not far from the very cities where the ark had been in captivity, a constant reminder to the Israelites of its degradation. That Samuel was profoundly concerned about all this we cannot doubt. But he seems to have made no effort to remedy it, most probably because he knew it to be God's order first to make the people sensible of their wickedness, and only thereafter to restore to them free access to Himself. What then was Samuel doing during the twenty years that the ark was at Kirjath-jearim? We can answer that question only conjecturally, only from what we know of his general character. It cannot be doubted that in some way or other he was trying to make the nation sensible of their sins against God; to show them that it was to these sins that their subjection to the Philistines was due; and to urge them to abandon their idolatrous practices if they desired a return to independence and peace. Perhaps he began at this period to move about from place to place, urging those views, as he moved about afterwards when he held the office of Judge ( 1 Samuel 7:16 ). And perhaps he was laying the foundations of those schools of the prophets that afterwards were associated with his name. Whenever he found young men disposed to his views he would doubtless cultivate their acquaintance, and urge them to steadfastness and progress in the way of the Lord. There is nothing said to indicate that Samuel was connected with the priestly establishment at Nob. There are two great services for God and for Israel in which we find Samuel engaged in the first nine verses of this chapter 1. In exhorting and directing them with a view to bring them into a right state before God. 2. This being accomplished, in praying for them in their time of trouble, and obtaining Divine help when the Philistines drew near in battle. 1. In the course of time the people appear to have come to feel how sad and desolate their national life was without any tokens of God's presence and grace. "All the house of Israel lamented after the Lord." The expression is a peculiar one, and some critics, not understanding its spiritual import, have proposed to give it a different meaning. But for this there is no cause. It seems to denote that the people, missing God, under the severe oppression of the Philistines, had begun to grieve over the sins that had driven Him away, and to long after Him, to long for His return. These symptoms of repentance, however, had not shown themselves in a very definite or practical form. Samuel was not satisfied with the amount of earnestness evinced as yet. He must have more decided evidence of sincerity and repentance. He insisted on it that they must "put away the strange gods and Ashtaroth from among them, and prepare their hearts unto the Lord and serve Him only." Now the putting away of the strange gods and Ashtaroth was a harder condition than we at first should suppose. Some are inclined to fancy that it was a mere senseless and ridiculous obstinacy that drew the Israelites so much to the worship of the idolatrous gods of their neighbours. In reality the temptation was of a much more subtle kind. Their religious worship as prescribed by Moses had little to attract the natural feelings of the human heart. It was simple, it was severe, it was self-denying. The worship of the pagan nations was more lively and attractive. Fashionable entertainments and free-and-easy revelries were superadded to please the carnal mind. Between Hebrew and heathen worship, there was something of the contrast that you find between the severe simplicity of a Puritan meeting and the gorgeous and fashionable splendour of a great Romish ceremonial. To put away Baalim and Ashtaroth was to abjure what was fashion- able and agreeable, and fall back on what was unattractive and sombre. Was it not, too, an illiberal demand? Was it not a sign of narrowness to be so exclusively devoted to their own religion that they could view that of their neighbours with no sort of pleasure? Why not acknowledge that in other religions there was an element of good, that the services in them were the expression of a profound religious sentiment, and were therefore entitled to a measure of praise and approval? It is very certain that with this favourite view of modern liberalism neither Samuel nor any of the prophets had the slightest sympathy. No, If the people were in earnest now, they must show it by putting away every image and every object and ornament that was connected with the worship of other gods. Jehovah would have their homage on no other terms. If they chose to divide it between Him and other gods, they might call on them for help and blessing; for it was most certain that the God of Israel would receive no worship that was not rendered to Him alone. But the people were in earnest; and this first demand of Samuel was complied with. We are to remember that the people of Israel, in their typical significance, stand for those who are by grace in covenant with God, and that their times of degeneracy represent, in the case of Christians, seasons of spiritual backsliding, when the things of this world are too keenly sought, when the fellowship of the world is habitually resorted to, when the soul loses its spiritual appetite, and religious services become formal and cold. Does there begin to dawn on such a soul a sense of spiritual poverty and loneliness? Does the spirit of the hymn begin to breathe from it -- "Return, O holy Dove, return, Sweet Messenger of rest! I hate the sins that made Thee mourn And drove Thee from my breast" Then the first steps towards revival and communion must be the forsaking of these sins, and of ways of life that prepare the way for them. The sorrow for sin that is working in the conscience is the work of the Holy Ghost; and if the Holy Ghost be resisted in this His first operation - if the sins, or ways toward sin, against which He has given His warning be persisted in, the Spirit is grieved and His work is stopped. The Spirit calls us to set our hearts against these sins, and "prepare them unto the Lord." Let us mark carefully this last expression. It is not enough that in church, or at some meeting, or in our closet, we experience a painful conviction how much we have offended God, and a desire not to offend Him in like manner any more. We must "prepare our hearts" for this end. We must remember that in the world with which we mingle we are exposed to many influences that remove God from our thoughts, that stimulate our infirmities, that give force to temptation, that lessen our power of resistance, that tend to draw us back into our old sins. One who has a tendency to intemperance may have a sincere conviction that his acts of drunkenness have displeased God, and a sincere wish never to be drunk again. But besides this he must "prepare his heart" against his sin. He must resolve to turn away from everything that leads to drinking, that gives strength to the temptation, that weakens his power of resistance, that draws him, as it were, within the vortex. He must fortify himself, by joining a society or otherwise, against the insidious approaches of the vice. And in regard to all that displeases God he must order his fife so that it shall be abandoned, it shall be parted with forever. You may say this is asking him to do more than he can do. No doubt it is. But is not the Holy Spirit working in him? Is it not the Holy Spirit that is urging him to do these things? Whoever is urged by the Holy Spirit may surely rely on the power of the Spirit when he endeavours to comply with His suggestions. When God works in us to will and to do of His good pleasure, we may surely work out our own salvation with fear and trembling. Having found the people so far obedient to his requirements, Samuel's next step was to call an assembly of all Israel to Mizpeh. He desired to unite all who were like-minded in a purpose of repentance and reformation, and to rouse them to a higher pitch of intensity by contact with a great multitude animated by the same spirit. When the assembly met, it was in a most proper spirit. They began the proceedings by drawing water and pouring it out before the Lord, and by fasting. These two acts being joined in the narrative, it is probable they were acts of the same character. Now as fasting was evidently an expression of contrition, so the pouring out of the water must have been so too. It is necessary to remark this, because an expression not unlike to our text, in Isaiah 12:1-6 , denotes an act of a joyful character, "With joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation." But what was done on this occasion was to draw water and pour it out before the Lord. And this seems to have been done as a symbol of pouring out before God confessions of sin drawn from the depths of the heart. What they said in connection with these acts was, "We have sinned against the Lord." They were no longer in the mood in which the Psalmist was when he kept silence, and his bones waxed old through his roaring all the day. They were in the mood into which he came when he said, "I will confess my transgressions to the Lord." They humbled themselves before God in deep convictions of their unworthiness, and being thus emptied of self they were in a better state to receive the gracious visitation of love and mercy. It is important to mark the stress which is laid here on the public assembly of the people. Some might say would it not have answered the same end if the people had humbled themselves apart - the family of the house of Levi apart, and their wives apart, every family apart, and their wives apart, as in the great mourning of Zechariah ( Zechariah 12:12-14 )? We answer, the one way did not exclude the other; we do not need to ask which is best, for both are best. But when Samuel convened the people to a public assembly, he evidently did it on the principle on which in the New Testament we are required not to forsake the assembling of ourselves together. It is in order that the presence of people like-minded, and with the same earnest feelings and purposes, may have a rousing and warming influence upon us. No doubt there are other purposes connected with public worship. We need constant instruction and constant reminding of the will of God. But the public assembly and the social prayer-meeting are intended to have another effect. They are intended to increase our spiritual earnestness by the sight and presence of so many persons in earnest. Alas! what a difference there often is between the ideal and the real. Those cold and passionless meetings that our churches and halls often present - how little are they fitted, by the earnestness and warmth of their tone, to give those who attend them a great impulse heavenward! Never let us be satisfied with our public religious services until they are manifestly adapted to this great end. Thus did Samuel seek to promote repentance and revival among his people, and to prepare the way for a return of God's favour. And it is in this very way that if we would have a revival of earnest religion, we must set about obtaining it. 2. The next scene in the panorama of the text is - the Philistines invading Israel. Here Samuel's service is that of an intercessor, praying for his people, and obtaining God's blessing. It is to be observed that the alleged occasion for this event is said to have been the meeting held at Mizpeh. "When the Philistines heard that the children of Israel were gathered together to Mizpeh, the lords of the Philistines went up against Israel." Was not this most strange and distressing? The blessed assembly which Samuel had convened only gives occasion for a new Philistine invasion! Trying to do his people good, Samuel would appear only to have done them harm. With the assembly at Mizpeh, called as it was for spiritual ends, the Philistines could have no real cause for complaint. Either they mistook its purpose and thought it a meeting to devise measures to throw off their yoke, or they had an instinctive apprehension that the spirit which the people of Israel were now showing would be accompanied by some remarkable interposition on their behalf. It is not rare for steps taken with the best of intentions to become for a time the occasion of a great increase of evil, - just as the remonstrances of Moses with Pharaoh led at first to the increase of the people's burdens; or just as the coming of Christ into the world caused the massacre of the babes of Bethlehem. So here, the first public step taken by Samuel for the people's welfare was the occasion of an alarming invasion by their cruel enemies. But God's word on such occasions is, "Be still and know that I am God." Such events are suffered only to stimulate faith and patience. They are not so very overwhelming events to those who know that God is with them, and that "none of them that trust in Him shall be desolate." Though the Israelites at this time were not far advanced in spiritual life, they betrayed no consternation when they heard of the invasion of the Philistines. They knew where their help was to be found, and recognizing Samuel as their mediator, they said to him, "Cease not to cry unto the Lord our God for us, that He will save us out of the hand of the Philistines." With this request Samuel most readily complies. But first he offers a sucking lamb as a whole burnt-offering to the Lord, and only after this are we told that "Samuel cried unto the Lord, and the Lord heard him." The lesson is supremely important. When sinners approach God to entreat His favour, it must be by the new and living way, sprinkled with atoning blood. All other ways of access will fail. How often has this been exemplified in the history of the Church I How many anxious sinners have sought unto God by other ways, but have been driven back, sometimes farther from Him than before. Luther humbles himself in the dust and implores God's favour, and struggles with might and main to reform his heart; but Luther cannot find peace until he sees how it is in the righteousness of another he is to draw nigh and find the blessing, - in the righteousness of the Lamb of God, that taketh away the sin of the world. Dr. Chalmers, profoundly impressed with the sinfulness of his past life, strives, with the energy of a giant, to attain conformity to the will of God; but he too is only tossed about in weary disappointment until he finds rest in the atoning mercy of God in Christ. We may be well assured that no sense of peace can come into the guilty soul till it accepts Jesus Christ as its Saviour in all the fullness of His saving power. Another lesson comes to us from Samuel's intercession. It is well to try to get God's servants to pray for us. But little real progress can be made till we can pray for ourselves. Whoever really desires to enjoy God's favour, be it for the first time after he has come to the sense of his sins; or be it at other times, after God's face has been hid from him for a time through his backsliding, can never come as he ought to come without earnest prayer. For prayer is the great medium that God has appointed to us for communion with Himself. "Ask and ye shall receive, seek and ye shall find, knock and it shall be opened to you." If there be any lesson written with a sunbeam alike in the Old Testament and in the New, it is that God is the Hearer of prayer. Only let us take heed to the quality and tone of our prayer. Before God can listen to it, it must be from the heart. To gabble over a form of prayer is not to pray. Saul of Tarsus had said many a prayer before his conversion; but after that for the first time it was said of him, "Behold, he prayeth." To pray is to ask an interview with God, and when we are alone with Him, to unburden our souls to Him. Those only who have learned to pray thus in secret can pray to any purpose in the public assembly. It is in this spirit, surely, that the highest gifts of Divine grace are to be sought. Emphatically it is in this way that we are to pray for our nation or for our Church. Let us come with large and glowing hearts when we come to pray for a whole community. Let us plead with God for Church and for nation in the very spirit of the prophet: "For Zion's sake I will not hold my peace, and for Jerusalem's sake I will not rest, until the righteousness thereof go forth as brightness, and the salvation thereof as a lamp that bumeth." 1 Samuel 7:10 And as Samuel was offering up the burnt offering, the Philistines drew near to battle against Israel: but the LORD thundered with a great thunder on that day upon the Philistines, and discomfited them; and they were smitten before Israel. CHAPTER IX. NATIONAL DELIVERANCE--THE PHILISTINES SUBDUED. 1 Samuel 7:10-17 . IT must have been with feelings very different from those of their last encounter, when the ark of God was carried into the battle, that the host of Israel now faced the Philistine army near Mizpeh. Then they had only the symbol of God's gracious presence, now they had the reality. Then their spiritual guides were the wicked Hophni and Phinehas; now their guide was holy Samuel. Then they had rushed into the fight in thoughtless unconcern about their sins; now they had confessed them, and through the blood of sprinkling they had obtained a sense of forgiveness. Then they were puffed up by a vain presumption; now they were animated by a calm but confident hope. Then their advance was hallowed by no prayer; now the cry of needy children had gone up from God's faithful servant. In fact, the battle with the Philistines had already been fought by Samuel on his knees. There can be no more sure token of success than this. Are we engaged in conflict with our own besetting sins? Or are we contending against scandalous transgression in the world around us? Let us first fight the battle on our knees. If we are victorious there we need have little fear of victory in the other battle. It was as Samuel was offering up the burnt-offering that the Philistines drew near to battle against Israel. There was an unseen ladder that day between earth and heaven, on which the angels of God ascended and descended as in Jacob's vision at Bethel. The smoke of the burnt-offering carried up to God the confession and contrition of the people, their reliance on God's method of atonement, and their prayer for His pardon and His blessing. The great thunder with which God thundered on the Philistines carried down from God the answer and the needed help. There is no need for supposing that the thunder was supernatural. It was an instance of what is so common, a natural force adapted to the purpose of an answer to prayer. What seems to have occurred is this: a vehement thunder-storm had gathered a little to the east, and now broke, probably with violent wind, in the faces of the Philistines, who were advancing up the heights against Mizpeh. Unable to face such a terrific war of the elements, the Philistines would turn round, placing their backs to the storm. The men of Israel, but little embarrassed by it, since it came from behind them, and gave the greater momentum to their force, rushed on the embarrassed enemy, and drove them before them like smoke before the wind. It was just as in former days - God arose, and His enemies were scattered, and they also that hated Him fled before Him. The storm before which the Philistines cowered was like the pillar of fire which had guided Israel through the desert. Jehovah was still the God of Israel; the God of Jacob was once more his refuge. We have said that this thunderstorm may have been quite a natural phenomenon. Natural, but not casual. Though natural, it was God's answer to Samuel's prayer. But how could this have been? If it was a natural storm, if it was the result of natural law, of atmospheric conditions the operation of which was fixed and certain, it must have taken place whether Samuel prayed or not. Undoubtedly. But the very fact that the laws of nature are fixed and certain, that their operation is definite and regular, enables the great Lord of Providence to make use of them in the natural course of things, for the purpose of answering prayer. For this fact, the uniformity of natural law, enables the Almighty, who sees and plans the end from the beginning, to frame a comprehensive scheme of Providence, that shall not only work out the final result in His time and way, but that shall also work out every intermediate result precisely as He designs and desires. "Known unto God are all His works from the beginning of the world." Now if God has so adjusted the scheme of Providence that the final result of the whole shall wonderfully accomplish His grand design, may He not, must He not, have so adjusted it that every intermediate part shall work out some intermediate design? It is only those who have an unworthy conception of omniscience and omnipotence that can doubt this. Surely if there is a general Providence, there must be a special Providence. If God guides the whole. He must also guide the parts. Every part of the scheme must fall out according to His plan, and may thus be the means of fulfilling some of His promises. Let us apply this view to the matter of prayer. All true prayer is the fruit of the Holy Spirit working in the human soul. All the prayer that God answers is prayer that God has inspired. The prayer of Samuel was prayer which God had inspired. What more reasonable than that in the great plan of providence there should have been included a provision for the fulfillment of Samuel's prayer at the appropriate moment? The thunderstorm, we may be sure, was a natural phenomenon. But its occurrence at the time was part of that great scheme of Providence which God planned at the beginning, and it was planned to fall out then in order that it might serve as an answer to Samuel's prayer. It was thus an answer to prayer brought about by natural causes. The only thing miraculous about it was its forming a part of that most marvelous scheme - the scheme of Divine providence - a part of the scheme that was to be carried into effect after Samuel had prayed. If the term supernatural may be fitly applied to that scheme which is the sum and substance of all the laws of nature, of all the providence of God, and of all the works and thoughts of man, then it was a miracle; but if not, it was a natural effect. It is important to bear these truths in mind, because many have the impression that prayer for outward results cannot be answered without a miracle, and that it is unreasonable to suppose that such a multitude of miracles as prayer involves would be wrought every day. If a sick man prays for health, is the answer necessarily a miracle? No; for the answer may come about by purely natural causes. He has been directed to a skilful physician; he has used the right medicine; he has been treated in the way to give full scope to the recuperative power of nature. God, who led him to pray, foresaw the prayer, and in the original scheme of Providence planned that by natural causes the answer should come. We do not deny that prayer may be answered in a supernatural way. We would not affirm that such a thing as supernatural healing is unknown. But it is most useful that the idea should be entertained that such prayer is usually answered by natural means. By not attending to this men often fail to perceive that prayer has been answered. You pray, before you set out on a journey, for protection and safe arrival at the end. You get what you asked - you perform the journey in safety. But perhaps you say, "It would have been all the same whether I had prayed for it or not. I have gone on journeys that I forgot to pray about, and no evil befell me. Some of my fellow-passengers, I am sure, did not pray for safety, yet they were taken care of as much as I was." But these are sophistical arguments. You should feel that your safety in the journey about which you prayed was as much due to God, though only through the operation of natural causes, as if you had had a hairbreadth escape. You should be thankful that in cases where you did not pray for safety God had regard to the habitual set of your mind, your habitual trust in Him, though you did not specially exercise it at these times. Let the means be as natural as they may - to those who have eyes to see the finger of God is in them all the same. But to return to the Israelites and the Philistines. The defeat of the Philistines was a very thorough one. Not only did they make no attempt to rally after the storm had passed and Israel had fallen on them, but they came no more into the coast of Israel, and the hand of the Lord was against them all the days of Samuel. And besides this, all the cities and tracts of land belonging to Israel which the Philistines had taken were now restored. Another mercy that came to Israel was that "there was peace between Israel and the Amorites"- the Amorites being put here, most likely, for the remains of all the original inhabitants living among or around Israel. Those promises were now fulfilled in which God had said to Moses, "This day will I begin to put the dread of thee and the fear of thee upon the nations that are under the whole heaven, who shall hear report of thee, and shall tremble and be in anguish because of thee" ( Deuteronomy 2:25 ). "There shall no man be able to stand before you; for the Lord your God shall lay the fear of you and the dread of you upon all the land ye shall tread upon, as He hath said to thee." It was so apparent that God was among them, and that the power of God was irresistible and overwhelming, that their enemies were frightened to assail them. The impression thus made on the enemies of Israel corresponds in some degree to the moral influence which God-fearing men sometimes have on an otherwise godless community. The picture in the Song of Solomon - "Who is she that looketh forth as the morning, fair as the moon, clear as the sun, and terrible as an army with banners ?" - ascribes even to the fair young bride a terrifying power, a power not appropriate to such a picture in the literal sense, but quite suitable in the figurative. Wherever the life and character of a godly man is such as to recall God, wherever God's image is plainly visible, wherever the results of God's presence are plainly seen, there the idea of a supernatural Power is conveyed, and a certain overawing influence is felt. In the great awakening at Northampton in Jonathan Edwards' days, there was a complete arrest laid on open forms of vice. And whensoever in a community God's presence has been powerfully realized, the taverns have been emptied, the gambling-table deserted, under the sense of His august majesty. Would only that the character and life of all God's servants were so truly godlike that their very presence in a community would have a subduing and restraining influence on the wicked! Two points yet remain to be noticed: the step taken by Samuel to commemorate this wonderful Divine interposition; and the account given of the prophet and his occupations in his capacity of Judge of Israel. "Samuel took a stone, and set it between Mizpeh and Shen, and called the name of it Ebenezer, saying, Hitherto hath the Lord helped us." The position of Shen is not known. But it must have been very near the scene of the defeat of the Philistines - perhaps it was the very spot where that defeat occurred. In that case, Samuel's stone would stand midway between the two scenes of battle: the battle gained by him on his knees at Mizpeh, and the battle gained by the Israelites when they fell on the Philistines demoralized by the thunderstorm. "Hitherto hath the Lord helped us." The characteristic feature of the inscription lies in the word "hitherto." It was no doubt a testimony to special help obtained in that time of trouble; it was a grateful recognition of that help; and it was an enduring monument to perpetuate the memory of it. But it was more, much more. The word "hitherto "denotes a series, a chain of similar mercies, an unbroken succession of Divine interpositions and Divine deliverances. The special purpose of this inscription was to link on the present deliverance to all the past, and to form a testimony to the enduring faithfulness and mercy of a covenant-keeping God. But was there not something strange in this inscription, considering the circumstances? Could Samuel have forgot that tragic day at Shiloh - the bewildered, terrified look of the messenger that came from the army to bring the news, the consternation caused by his message, the ghastly horror of Eli and his tragic death, the touching death of the wife of Phinehas, and the sad name which she had with such seeming propriety given to her babe? Was that like God remembering them? or had Samuel forgot how the victorious Philistines soon after dashed upon Shiloh like beasts of prey, plundering, destroying, massacring, till nothing more remained to be done to justify the name of "Ichabod"? How can Samuel blot that chapter out of the history? or how can he say, with that chapter fresh in his recollection, " Hitherto hath the Lord helped us"? All that Samuel has considered well. Even amid the desolations of Shiloh the Lord was helping them. He was helping them to know themselves, helping them to know their sins, and helping them to know the bitter fruit and woeful punishment of sin. He was helping them to achieve the great end for which he had called them - to keep alive the knowledge of the true God and the practice of His worship, onward to the time when the great promise should be realized, - when He should come in whom all the families of the earth were to be blessed. Samuel's idea of what constituted the nation's glory was large and spiritual. The true glory of the nation was to fulfill the function for which God had taken it into covenant with Himself. Whatever helped them to do this was a blessing, was a token of the Lord's remembrance of them. The links of the long chain denoted by Samuel's "hitherto" were not all of one kind. Some were in the form of merci