1 Samuel 2:35

And I will raise up a faithful priest,.... Not Samuel, as some, for he was not of the seed of Aaron, and of the priestly race; nor had he a sure house, for his sons declined from the ways of truth

And I will raise me up a faithful priest, that shall do according to that which is in mine heart and in my mind: and I will build him a sure house; and he shall walk before mine anointed for ever.

A faithful priest, to wit, of another line, as is necessarily implied by one total removal of that office from Eli’ s line, before threatened. The person designed is Zadok, one eminent for his faithfulness to God and to the king, who, when Abiathar, the last of Eli’ s line, was deposed by Solomon, was made high priest in his stead, ,35 . That shall do according to that which is in mine heart; and shall not dishonour or disobey me to gratify his sons, as thou hast done. I will build him a sure house, i.e. give him a numerous posterity, as that phrase is used, , and confirm that sure covenant of an everlasting priesthood made to Phinehas, of Eleazar’ s line, , and interrupted for a little while by Eli, and his, of the line of Ithamar, unto him and his children for ever. And this was manifestly verified until the Babylonish captivity, ; and there is no reason to doubt of its continuance in the same line till Christ came. He shall walk, i.e. minister as high priest. Before mine anointed; either, first, Before king Solomon, who was anointed king, , and before the succeeding kings, who are commonly called anointed, or the Lord’ s anointed, as ,5 24:6,10 Psalms 89:38,51 La 4:20. Or rather, secondly, Before Jesus Christ; first, Because this title of Anointed, or Christ, or Messias, (both which words signify only the Anointed,) is most frequently and eminently ascribed to Christ, both in the Old and New Testament, and therefore it is most reasonable to understand it of him, when there is nothing in the text or context which determines it to any other. Secondly, Christ is the main scope and design, not only of the New, but of the Old Testament, which in all its types and ceremonies represented Christ; and particularly, the high priest was an eminent type of Christ, and did represent his person, and act in his name and stead, and did mediately what John Baptist did immediately, go before the face of the Lord Christ; and when Christ did come, that office and officer was to cease. Thirdly, The high priest is seldom or never said to walk or minister before the kings of Israel or Judah, but constantly before the Lord, and consequently before Christ, who as he was God blessed for ever, , was present with, and the Builder and Governor of, the ancient church of Israel, as is manifest from , and many other places; and their temple is particularly called his temple, , because all the temple worship was performed in his presence, and had a special respect unto him, and therefore the high priest is most properly said to walk before him.

1 Samuel 2:35 And I will raise me up a faithful priest, [that] shall do according to [that] which [is] in mine heart and in my mind: and I will build him a sure house; and he shall walk before mine anointed for ever.Ver. 35. And I will build him a sure house,] i.e., Bless him with children, and settle the office firm upon them.

(35) A faithful priest.—Who here is alluded to by this “faithful priest,” of whom such a noble life was predicted, and to whom such a glorious promise as that “he should walk before mine anointed for ever,” was made? Many of the conditions are fairly fulfilled by Samuel, to whom naturally our thoughts at once turn. He occupies a foremost place in the long Jewish story, and immediately succeeded Eli in most of his important functions as the acknowledged chief of the religious and political life in Israel. He was also eminently and consistently faithful to his master and God during his whole life. Samuel, though a Levite, was not of the sons of Aaron; yet he seems, even in Eli’s days, to have ministered as a priest before the Lord, the circumstances of his early connection with the sanctuary being exceptional. After Eli’s death, when the regular exercise of the Levitical ritual and priesthood was suspended by the separation of the ark from the tabernacle, Samuel evidently occupied a priestly position, and we find him for a long period standing as mediator between Jehovah and His people, in sacrifice, prayer, and intercession, in the performance of which high offices his duty, after the solemn anointing of Saul as king, was to walk before the anointed of the Lord (Saul), while (to use the words of Von Gerlach, quoted by Erdmann), the Aaronic priesthood fell for a long time into such disrepute that it had to beg for honour and support from him (1 Samuel 2:36), and became dependent on the new order of things instituted by Samuel. (See Excursus C at the end of this Book.) The prediction “I will build him a sure house” is satisfied in the strong house and numerous posterity given to Samuel by God. His grandson Heman was “the king’s seer in the words of God,” and was placed by King David over the choir in the house of God. This eminent personage, Heman, had fourteen sons and three daughters (1 Chronicles 6:33; 1 Chronicles 25:4-5). Samuel also fulfilled the prophecy “He shall walk before mine anointed for ever” in his close and intimate relation with King Saul, who we find, even after the faithful prophet’s death—although the later acts of Saul had alienated the prophet from his sovereign—summoning the spirit of Samuel as the only one who was able to counsel and strengthen him (1 Samuel 28:15). Of the other interpretations, that of Rashi and Abarbanel, and many of the moderns, which supposes the reference to be Zadok, of the house of Eleazar, who, in the reign of Solomon, superseded Abiathar, of the house of Ithamar (the ancestor of Eli), alone fairly satisfies most of the different predictions, but we are met with this insurmountable difficulty at the outset—Can we assume that the comparatively unknown Zadok, after the lapse of so many years, was pointed out by the magnificent promises contained in the words of the “man of God” to Eli?

Verse 35. A faithful priest] This seems to have been spoken of Zadok, who was anointed high priest in the room of Abiathar, the last descendant of the house of Eli; see 1Kg 2:26; 1Kg 2:27. Abiathar was removed because he had joined with Adonijah, who had got himself proclaimed king; see 1Kg 1:7. I will build him a sure house] I will continue the priesthood in his family. He shall walk before mine Anointed] He shall minister before Solomon, and the kings which shall reign in the land. The Targum says, "He shall walk קדם משיחי kodam Meshichi, before my MESSIAH," and the Septuagint expresses it, ενωπιονΧριστουμον, "before my CHRIST; " for, in their proper and more extended sense, these things are supposed to belong to our great High Priest and the Christian system: but the word may refer to the Israelitish people. See Clarke on Hebrews 9:26.

35. This verse forms no part of the sign, but is to be connected with 1 Samuel 2:33. a faithful priest] The prophecy is commonly supposed to have been fulfilled in Zadok, whose descendants retained the High-priesthood till the end of the monarchy (1 Chronicles 6:8-15). But that Samuel is meant seems clear on the following grounds. (a) The faithful priest is obviously contrasted with the unfaithful sons of Eli. This points to Samuel not Zadok. The account of his call is given immediately in ch. 3 and it concludes by saying (1 Samuel 2:20), “all Israel knew that Samuel was established to be a prophet of the Lord,” a connecting link with the present passage, for it is the same Heb. word which is rendered “faithful,” “sure,” and “established.” This is followed by the death of Hophni and Phinehas (ch. 4). (b) The “sure house” which is promised does not necessarily imply succession to the priesthood. But if it had originally done so, might not the privilege have been forfeited by the sin of Samuel’s sons (ch. 1 Samuel 8:3), as in the case of the exactly similar promise to Jeroboam (1 Kings 11:38)? That Samuel’s descendants flourished is clear, for his grandson Heman (1 Chronicles 6:33) was David’s chief musician, and father of fourteen sons and three daughters (1 Chronicles 25:1; 1 Chronicles 25:4-5). (c) “He shall walk before mine anointed (not, for ever, but) all the days of his life” (cp. 1 Samuel 1:22). This is most naturally referred to Samuel, who was God’s instrument for establishing the kingdom, and occupied a unique position as the authorised adviser of Saul. (d) But it will be said, Samuel was no priest, only a prophet-judge. True he was not a priest by descent, and is nowhere expressly so called. But the expression I will raise up’ (used so commonly of the judges) implies an extraordinary office. And during his lifetime Samuel filled the place of High-priest. The prerogative of the line of Aaron was in abeyance for a time, as a punishment for the corruption of Eli’s sons. Ahitub the son of Phinehas never appears in the history. Ahiah is not mentioned till after Saul’s first rejection in Samuel’s extreme old age (1 Samuel 14:3). Samuel exercised priestly functions by intercession (1 Samuel 7:9), by offering sacrifice (1 Samuel 7:9-10), by benediction (1 Samuel 9:12-13), by anointing Saul and David (1 Samuel 10:1, 1 Samuel 16:13, cp. 1 Kings 1:34). He may be compared with Moses who though not strictly a priest was sometimes regarded as such (Psalms 99:6). mine anointed] See notes on 1 Samuel 2:10, 1 Samuel 10:1, 1 Samuel 12:3.

Zadok is meant rather than Samuel. The High Priesthood continued in the direct descendants of Zadok as long as the monarchy lasted (see 1 Chronicles 6:8-15).

35. I will raise me up a faithful priest — By this “faithful priest” some have understood Samuel, and others Zadok, while a few argue that both of them may be intended.