Tyndale Open Study Notes

Verse 1

4:1b–7:2 The crisis surrounding the Ark of the Covenant demonstrated Israel’s need for Samuel’s leadership and fulfilled prophecies about Eli and his sons (3:11-14).

4:1b the Philistines: See “The Philistines” Profile. • The exact location of Ebenezer is unknown. It was probably just east of Aphek (see also 1 Sam 7:12 and corresponding study note). • Aphek was west of Shiloh, well inland and well north of Philistine territory. By camping there, the Philistines might have been trying to seize more Israelite territory.

Verse 3

4:3 The Israelites were often defeated in war because of the sin of one individual or the entire nation (Josh 7). In this defeat, no one inquired whether sin was the cause; apparently no one had even asked the Lord whether they should engage the Philistines in the first place (cp. 1 Chr 14:13-16). Instead, the Israelites treated the Ark, the most sacred symbol of the Lord’s presence, as a charm to ward off misfortune. Carrying the Ark into battle was not necessarily wrong (cp. Josh 6:2-21), but neither would this act ensure God’s blessing and victory.

Verse 4

4:4 Lord of Heaven’s Armies: See study note on 1:3. • enthroned between the cherubim: A representation of God’s glorious presence hovered over the Ark in the Most Holy Place (God’s “throne room”). • The involvement of Eli’s sons, Hophni and Phinehas, foreshadows the disaster that ensued (see 3:11-14).

Verse 6

4:6-7 Like the Israelites, the Philistines regarded the Ark as a powerful talisman (see 4:2-3) and believed that its presence in battle would mean sure disaster for them.

Verse 8

4:8 the same gods who destroyed the Egyptians: The Philistines, who worshiped many gods, knew of the Lord’s power. Yet they knew nothing of his nature as the one true God. • destroyed . . . with plagues: The Lord later showed his power against the Philistines similarly (see 5:6–6:6).

Verse 10

4:10 30,000 was more than seven times as many as haddied previously without the Ark (4:2). The Israelites learned the hard way that the Ark was not a talisman to ward off misfortune.

Verse 11

4:11 That the Ark . . . was captured was devastating to the Israelites (4:12-22). • The deaths of Hophni and Phinehas fulfilled the Lord’s word to Eli (2:34). Although they are the only casualties named, they were not the only Israelites who had sinned (see 7:3-6).

Verse 12

4:12 had torn his clothes and put dust on his head: This description indicates grief and loss (e.g., Josh 7:6; 2 Sam 1:2; 15:32; Job 2:12).

Verse 15

4:15 blind: See 3:2 and corresponding study note.

Verse 18

4:18 Eli fell backward: Either he was startled or he had a heart attack when he heard the message. Eli’s fatal fall symbolizes his family’s fall from the priesthood and the end of the abomination that his sons began (2:12-17). • Israel’s judge: Priesthood and judgeship were not incompatible (cp. Exod 18:13-26; Deut 17:8-13). Samuel replaced Eli as Israel’s judge and provided leadership that Eli had failed to provide (see 1 Sam 7:12-17). • The phrase for forty years incorporates Eli’s career into the conceptual and temporal framework of the book of Judges (cp. Judg 3:11; 5:31; 8:28; 13:1).

Verse 20

4:20-21 The name Ichabod contains the Hebrew word kabod (glory; see Exod 24:15-17). A similar word is used to describe Eli in 1 Sam 4:18 (Hebrew kabed, “heavy”). The disappearance of the Ark parallels the demise of Eli’s house. Although the Israelites experienced a stunning loss of divine glory and protection (cp. Ezek 8–10; Luke 19:41-44; 21:20-24), God’s glorious presence would subsequently return to his people (1 Sam 6:1-21; cp. Ezek 43:1-8).