Unusable
Notes
Transcript
The focus of 1 Samuel 4—the chapter we’re looking at this morning—is the ark of the covenant, mentioned 12 times in this chapter.
The Ark of the Covenant was the visible sign of the presence and power of God. The ark of the covenant was that sacred, gold-covered, portable box, 3.75 feet long by 2.25 feet wide and high. The ark sat behind the thick veil in Israel’s worship center in the area called the Most Holy Place, unless it was on the the move in the wilderness.
The ark of the covenant was a symbol of the Lord’s rule. The Lord’s presence was enthroned above the cherubim.
The ark was a symbol of God’s revelation; it held copies of the 10 Commandments. The ark also communicated reconciliation; the lid of the ark was called the mercy seat, sprinkled yearly with the blood of sacrifice.
The ark of the covenant was a beautiful, holy symbol of the Lord Yahweh—the God who rules, who speaks, who forgives. It was also the sign of the Lord’s leading His people.
As the people were wandering in the desert, whenever the ark was on the move, Moses would announce:
Numbers 10:35 “35 Whenever the ark set out, Moses said, “Rise up, Lord! May your enemies be scattered; may your foes flee before you.””
When the Jordan river stopped in Joshua 3-4 and when Jericho was destroyed, the ark of the covenant was there and played a central role.
This might have been what the elders of Israel were thinking when they decided to do what they do here in 1 Samuel. What they decide to do, however, is ill-advised.
Let’s set the scene:
1 And Samuel’s word came to all Israel. Now the Israelites went out to fight against the Philistines. The Israelites camped at Ebenezer, and the Philistines at Aphek.
2 The Philistines deployed their forces to meet Israel, and as the battle spread, Israel was defeated by the Philistines, who killed about four thousand of them on the battlefield.
3 When the soldiers returned to camp, the elders of Israel asked, “Why did the Lord bring defeat on us today before the Philistines? Let us bring the ark of the Lord’s covenant from Shiloh, so that he may go with us and save us from the hand of our enemies.”
The people of the Lord were unwilling to accept the Lord’s discipline.
The people of the Lord were unwilling to accept the Lord’s discipline.
The people of Israel have, in large part, forgotten the Lord or have flat-out rejected Him. The priests of God have been stealing from Him, treating Him with contempt, living immorally with the women at the temple.
The Lord certainly won’t honor that kind of behavior. There’s never reward for disobedience, never. There are always consequences, always.
It was actually Israel elders who question the Lord’s discipline, why they lost the battle to the Philistines. They, shockingly, had forgotten what God’s Word had to say to His people if they were to disobey Him or violate His covenant:
17 I will set my face against you so that you will be defeated by your enemies; those who hate you will rule over you, and you will flee even when no one is pursuing you.
25 The Lord will cause you to be defeated before your enemies. You will come at them from one direction but flee from them in seven, and you will become a thing of horror to all the kingdoms on earth.
The elders who should have led the people, giving them a proper, Biblical understanding of what the Lord was doing were the ones asking the question, “Why would the Lord do this?”
No one like discipline. It’s not enjoyable. But it necessary. And, from the Lord, discipline always serves a purpose.
Hebrews 12:6 “the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and he chastens everyone he accepts as his son.””
Hebrews 12:11 “No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.”
Sadly, here in 1 Samuel 4, the people of God couldn’t see what the Lord was doing. They were unwilling to accept His discipline, to see His discipline for what it was.
Even the elders of the people seemed to be unwilling to accept the idea that the Lord would do as He had promised and let the enemies of His people defeat them.
AND it was the elders’ idea to use the ark for their own benefit.
1 Samuel 4:3 “Let us bring the ark of the Lord’s covenant from Shiloh, so that he may go with us and save us from the hand of our enemies.””
They thought if Israel has the ark of the covenant with them, that means the Lord of the covenant will have to go with them and save them.
What a great idea! The Lord Yahweh will be forced to deliver His people! It’s fool-proof!
4 So the people sent men to Shiloh, and they brought back the ark of the covenant of the Lord Almighty, who is enthroned between the cherubim. And Eli’s two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, were there with the ark of the covenant of God.
5 When the ark of the Lord’s covenant came into the camp, all Israel raised such a great shout that the ground shook.
The people of the Lord are unbothered by using the Lord.
The people of the Lord are unbothered by using the Lord.
This is a real problem. I think the author gives some extra detail to show how crazy it is that God’s people would try to use Him.
He doesn’t simply say, “They went and got the ark of the covenant.”
He says: They brought back the ark of the covenant of the Lord Almighty, who is enthroned between the cherubim.
It’s not just “The Ark”. It’s the ark of the covenant of the covenant Lord of Hosts, whose presence rests between the cherubim.
The people treat it like nothing. “It’s no big deal; go grab it. It’s for our use, however we want or need. Hophni and Phinehas will let us borrow it, no problem.”
Of course, the detail about Hophni and Phinehas highlights the condition of Israel’s heart. They are priests who don’t know the Lord and have no regard for Him. What’s it matter to them if someone wants to use the Lord as a prop? They don’t care. They’ll even accompany the ark on the ill-fated trip.
“Look guys! We got the ark AND Hoph and Phin came, too! No way this ends badly!”
Their intention is clear. If they retrieve the ark of the covenant, God comes with it. And God won’t possibly lose. His honor is at stake. God is under pressure to deliver a win. Clever move.
It’s like a scene from a movie. When the ark of the Lord’s covenant came into the camp, all Israel started singing,
“You got blood on your face, you big disgrace, Waving your banner all over the place. We will, we will rock you!”
All Israel is stomping their feet to the rhythm of the beat (ala Queen and Hit House). They’re so pumped because they are now assured victory. They have figured out the secret…so they think.
Here’s the truth: God is not our mascot.
We can’t roll Him out to rile-up the crowd. He’s not Slugger. He’s not the well-liked walk-on who functions as a kind of mascot.
But Israel has no qualms about bringing God out to excite the crowd during the 7th inning stretch. Here’s the ark with the priests. All Israel raised such a great shout the ground shook.
They are, simply and sadly, unbothered by using God. He’s become a prop to them. A mascot. A rabbit’s foot.
What they pull here is almost a pressure tactic. It’s like they’re trying to twist God’s arm. This isn’t faith; it’s superstition.
“When we, whether Israelites or Christians, operate this way, our concern is not to seek God but to control Him, not to submit to God, but to use Him. We prefer religious magic to spiritual holiness; we are interested in success, not repentance.” -Dale Ralph Davis
I’m afraid, whereas we might not be superstitious, we are “a little stitious.” We look at what the Israelites are doing and think, “Man, that’s crazy. God can’t be used. You can’t just roll Him out, flip a switch, and expect Him to do your bidding.”
And then, we turn around and think: “Well, come on. I went to church. I gave my tithe. I prayed the prayers. I got baptized. I sang the songs. I served my time. Now it’s God’s turn to keep up His end of the bargain.” We might not verbalize those thoughts, but we think them some of the time, don’t we?
The Israelites treat God as if He is forced to save, forced to act, forced to do. This kind of thinking should bother us. They are, unfortunately unbothered by using God. For them, He’s Santa Clause or a Magie Genie. God, they believe, exists for them.
The Philistines know the Lord better than the Israelites.
6 Hearing the uproar, the Philistines asked, “What’s all this shouting in the Hebrew camp?”
When they learned that the ark of the Lord had come into the camp, 7 the Philistines were afraid. “A god has come into the camp,” they said. “Oh no! Nothing like this has happened before. 8 We’re doomed! Who will deliver us from the hand of these mighty gods? They are the gods who struck the Egyptians with all kinds of plagues in the wilderness. 9 Be strong, Philistines! Be men, or you will be subject to the Hebrews, as they have been to you. Be men, and fight!”
The Israelites’ use of the Lord Yahweh doesn’t end well for them. It doesn’t go according to their selfish, sinful little plan. Imagine that.
Oddly, the enemies of God’s people knew better who God was than the people of God.
The Philistines remembered what they heard about God. Admittedly, they got it a little bit wrong. They didn’t have the concept of monotheism; they believed in many gods not one God. So they’re wrong, but they’re also right. They realize His power. They remember what He had done.
This isn’t exactly the case for the Israelites. They recognize His power, but for them it’s like He’s a cosmic slot machine. Pull the lever, push the button…bing, bang, boom.
The Israelites seemed to have forgotten what their God had said. And they forget what He does for His people when they walk in humble obedience to Him. Instead of trusting God to care for them, they think they can use Him.
The Lord Yahweh will not be played; His glory and name are paramount. The Lord keeps His Word. The Lord said Hophni and Phinehas would die on the same day. Here they are, with the ark of the Lord, in battle against the Philistines:
10 So the Philistines fought, and the Israelites were defeated and every man fled to his tent. The slaughter was very great; Israel lost thirty thousand foot soldiers. 11 The ark of God was captured, and Eli’s two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, died.
“The Lord Yahweh will suffer shame rather than allow you to carry on a false relationship with Him; and the Lord will allow you to be disappointed with Him if it will wake you up to the sort of God He really is.” - DRD
He is UNUSABLE. He will not be played. He’s not a cheat-code for your life (up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, A, B, start). HE IS THE UNUSABLE LORD ALMIGHTY, the One who sits enthroned on high.
God DOES NOT exist for us.
God’s chief concern is His glory and His name.
We aren’t to use Him, we are to worship and serve Him and let Him use us however He pleases.
Whenever the church stops confessing, “Thou art worthy” and begins chanting “Thou art useful”—well, then you know the glory of God has left the building.
Here’s the second half of the story:
12 That same day a Benjamite ran from the battle line and went to Shiloh with his clothes torn and dust on his head. 13 When he arrived, there was Eli sitting on his chair by the side of the road, watching, because his heart feared for the ark of God. When the man entered the town and told what had happened, the whole town sent up a cry.
14 Eli heard the outcry and asked, “What is the meaning of this uproar?”
The man hurried over to Eli, 15 who was ninety-eight years old and whose eyes had failed so that he could not see. 16 He told Eli, “I have just come from the battle line; I fled from it this very day.”
Eli asked, “What happened, my son?”
17 The man who brought the news replied, “Israel fled before the Philistines, and the army has suffered heavy losses. Also your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, are dead, and the ark of God has been captured.”
18 When he mentioned the ark of God, Eli fell backward off his chair by the side of the gate. His neck was broken and he died, for he was an old man, and he was heavy. He had led Israel forty years.
19 His daughter-in-law, the wife of Phinehas, was pregnant and near the time of delivery. When she heard the news that the ark of God had been captured and that her father-in-law and her husband were dead, she went into labor and gave birth, but was overcome by her labor pains. 20 As she was dying, the women attending her said, “Don’t despair; you have given birth to a son.” But she did not respond or pay any attention.
21 She named the boy Ichabod, saying, “The Glory has departed from Israel”—because of the capture of the ark of God and the deaths of her father-in-law and her husband. 22 She said, “The Glory has departed from Israel, for the ark of God has been captured.”
The news of the ark of the covenant being captured is too much for old Eli.
Eli is at least “moderately” concerned about the “ark of God”. He grieved the loss of the ark even more than the loss of his sons, which is as it should be.
But where was this concern earlier? Do you remember the Lord asking Eli why he allowed his sons to do what they were doing:
29 Why do you scorn my sacrifice and offering that I prescribed for my dwelling? Why do you honor your sons more than me by fattening yourselves on the choice parts of every offering made by my people Israel?’
For Eli, here, the fatal blow was that the ark of God had been captured. His sons died, sure, but the biggest issue, the major concern, the worst news was the capture of the ark. He fell out of his chair, broke his neck, and died.
The news was also too much for Phinehas’ wife. It was the report of the capture of the ark, not the death of her husband, that caused her to go into early labor. And then she died in childbirth. Her last act and words summed up that horrible day in Israel.
1 Samuel 4:21-22 “21 She named the boy Ichabod, saying, “The Glory has departed from Israel”—because of the capture of the ark of God and the deaths of her father-in-law and her husband. 22 She said, “The Glory has departed from Israel, for the ark of God has been captured.””
The glory of God had gone into exile from Israel, because the ark of God had been taken. Eli and Phinehas’ wife show the real tragedy is the loss of the ark, the departing of God’s glory.
“For the ark had been captured”
The Lord is unapologetic about His glory.
The Lord is unapologetic about His glory.
The Lord will not be used. He will be glorified, not used for the glory of His people. He has very little concern about His people making their name great. He doesn’t care if that happens at all.
As the Westminster Catechism says, “The chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.”
The American Catechism says, “The chief end of man is to glorify himself and enjoy life, being happy forever.”
We must re-calibrate ourselves to be most concerned with God’s glory. And we need to repent for wanting glory for ourselves.
Eli sadly teaches us a lesson too late for Eli’s sake. Eli is rightly concerned about the ark and the glory of God. Phinehas’ wife is broken over the fact that the glory of God had departed Israel.
Little does she know that the Lord is going to demonstrate His glory in the land of Philistia.
God will see to His glory, you can be sure of that.
We know that one day, every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus is Lord to the glory of God our Father.
We don’t trot Jesus out as some mascot or good luck charm. Jesus isn’t usable, Jesus is the Ruler of all. He is God’s direct revelation to us. Jesus brought about reconciliation, making us friends again with God.
Jesus is who we need, not what we use to satisfy our selfish desires.
If we miss this, we will become frustrated with Him when He doesn’t do what we want Him to do. And we’ll start to think He’s unworthy of praise.
If we believe God exists for us, then when He doesn’t do what He’s “supposed to do”, it’ll be easy for us to toss Him aside. He’ll no longer to useful to us, so what’s the point?
What if God doesn’t do or stops doing what you want Him to do?
Is He still worthy? Or has He exceeded His usefulness?
Do we long for the presence of God? Or are we content with the god of our own making, a god we can use, a god who exists only to make our life better?
The glory of God is more important than our wants and desires. If we lose sight of the glory of God, it’s to our peril. God’s glory is far more important than our selfish concerns. He is Holy, Holy, Holy and deserves our worship.
He will not be used.
He is unusable. And that’s a really good thing.