1 Samuel 7

1 Then the men [of the city] of Kiriath-jearim [city of forests] came for the ark [a sacred chest] of the LORD [Yehovah, the covenant God] and took it into Abinadab’s house [a dwelling place, a home] on the hill [a small elevation, a high place]. And they consecrated [set apart, dedicated] his son Eleazar [God has helped, a priestly name] to guard [to keep, protect, watch over] the ark of the LORD. word study 2 And from that day [a long period of time, twenty years in all] a long time passed, twenty years in all, as the ark [a sacred chest] remained at Kiriath-jearim [the city of forests, a place of refuge]. And all [the entire nation, every individual] the house of Israel [the descendants of Jacob, God’s chosen people] mourned [wailed, lamented with sorrow] and sought after [turned to, inquired of, cried out to] the LORD [Yehovah, the self-existent, eternal God]. word study 3 Then Samuel [the prophet and judge] said to all the house of Israel, “If you are returning [turning back, coming again] to the LORD [Yehovah, The covenant Name of God] with all your hearts [the innermost part of a person, including mind, will, and emotions], then rid yourselves of the foreign [strange, heathen] gods and Ashtoreths [a Sidonian deity, associated with the star] among you, prepare [set up, establish] your hearts for the LORD, and serve [work, worship] Him only [alone, apart from all others]. And He will deliver [rescue, snatch away] you from the hand [power, strength] of the Philistines [a people from the region of Philistia].” word study 4 So the Israelites [children of Israel, descendants of Jacob] put away [turned aside, removed] the Baals [false gods, Phoenician deities] and Ashtoreths and served [worshiped, worked for] only [alone, exclusively] the LORD [Yehovah, the one true God]. word study 5 Then Samuel [Shemuel, a judge and prophet] said, “Gather [to assemble, collect] all Israel [the descendants of Jacob] to Mizpah [a place of watchfulness, a location in Palestine], and I will pray [to intercede, make petition] to the LORD [Yehovah, The covenant Name of God] on your behalf [for your sake, in your place].” word study 6 When they had gathered [assembled together, came together] at Mizpah [the watchtower, a place of vigilance], they drew [pulled up, fetched] water and poured it out [shed, spilled] before the LORD [Yehovah, the covenant God]. On that day [the same day, at that time] they fasted [abstained from food, humbled themselves], and there [in that place, at that moment] they confessed [acknowledged, admitted], “We have sinned [missed the mark, gone wrong] against the LORD [Yehovah, the God of Israel].” And Samuel [Shemuel, heard by God] judged [governed, vindicated] the Israelites [the children of Israel, God’s chosen people] at Mizpah [the place of watching, the gathering point]. word study 7 When the Philistines [inhabitants of Philistia, a non-Israelite people] heard [to hear and listen, often implying attention and obedience] that the Israelites [descendants of Jacob] had gathered [to assemble, collect] at Mizpah [a watchtower, a place of observation], their rulers [lords, leaders] marched up [to ascend, go up] toward [in the direction of] Israel. And when the Israelites [sons of Israel, Jacob’s descendants] learned [to hear, become aware] of this, they feared [to be afraid, stand in awe] the Philistines [people from the region of Philistia, a neighboring nation] word study 8 and said to Samuel [Shemuel, a judge and prophet], “Do not stop [cease not, keep on] crying out [to cry out, to plead] to the LORD [Yehovah, The covenant Name of God] our God [Elohim, the one supreme God] for us, that He may save [rescue, deliver] us from the hand [power, direction] of the Philistines [a neighboring nation, enemies of Israel].” word study 9 Then Samuel [Shemuel, a judge and prophet] took a suckling [young, still nursing] lamb and offered it as a whole [complete, entire] burnt offering [a sacrifice totally consumed by fire] to the LORD [Yehovah, The covenant Name of God]. He cried out [with a loud voice, to announce publicly] to the LORD [the supreme God] on behalf of [for the sake of, in the interest of] Israel [the symbolic name of Jacob, referring to his descendants], and the LORD [the Almighty God] answered [responded, gave an answer] him. word study 10 As the Philistines [immigrants from other places, a non-Israelite people] drew near to fight [engage in battle, wage war] against Israel, Samuel was sacrificing [offering, presenting] the burnt offering [a step or stairs, often used to describe the ascent to the altar]. But that day [a literal 24-hour period, a figurative space of time] the LORD [Yehovah, The covenant Name of God] thundered [made a loud, rumbling sound, being violently angry] loudly [with a great noise, extremely] against the Philistines and threw them into such confusion [trouble, disruption] that they fled [were smitten, struck down] before Israel [the symbolic name of Jacob, referring to his descendants]. word study 11 Then the men [anointed ones, people of faith] of Israel [descendants of Jacob, God’s chosen people] charged out [rushed forth, came out] of Mizpah [watchtower, a place of vigilance] and pursued [chased, followed after] the Philistines [enemies of God’s people, unbelievers], striking them down [smote, defeated] all the way to an area [place, location] below [underneath, in the vicinity of] Beth-car [house of the ram]. word study 12 Afterward, Samuel [Shemuel, a judge and prophet of Israel] took a stone [a rock, a memorial] and set it up between Mizpah [a watchtower, a place of observation] and Shen [a crag, a rocky outcrop]. He named it Ebenezer [a stone of help, a memorial to God’s aid], saying, “Thus far [hitherto, until now] the LORD [Yehovah, the supreme God] has helped us [given us aid, assisted us].” word study 13 So the Philistines [were humbled, subdued] were subdued, and they stopped [coming no more, invading no longer] invading the territory [border, land] of Israel [the descendants of Jacob, God’s chosen people]. And the hand [an open hand; strength, a side or share] of the LORD [Yehovah, The covenant Name of God] was against the Philistines [the inhabitants of Philistia] all the days [the entire lifetime, every moment] of Samuel [Shemuel, a judge and prophet of Israel]. word study 14 The cities [which the Philistines had taken] from Ekron [a major Philistine city] to Gath [a city of the Philistines], which the Philistines [inhabitants of Philistia] had taken, were restored [given back, returned] to Israel [the descendants of Jacob], who also delivered [rescued, freed] the surrounding territory [border, region] from the hand [power, control] of the Philistines [enemies of Israel]. And there was peace [shalom, completeness and wellness] between [in the midst of, among] the Israelites [descendants of Jacob] and the Amorites [a Canaanite tribe]. word study 15 So Samuel [the prophet and leader] judged [to govern, vindicate, or punish] Israel [the descendants of Jacob, God’s chosen people] all [the entirety of, every moment] the days [a period of time, whether literal or figurative] of his life [physical and spiritual existence]. word study 16 Every year [from year to year, annually] he would go on a circuit [in a circuit, turning] from Bethel [house of God] to Gilgal [a wheel, rolling] to Mizpah [watchtower], judging [to judge, govern, vindicate] Israel [God’s chosen people] in all [every, the whole] these places [locations, regions]. word study 17 Then he would return [to his home base] to Ramah [a city in Palestine, a place of battle] because his home was there, and there he judged [vindicated, governed] Israel [the symbolic name of Jacob, referring to his descendants] and built [established, constructed] an altar [a place of sacrifice] to the LORD [Yehovah, The covenant Name of God]. word study