Day 118 – God’s Judgement

• Have you ever played Capture the Flag, perhaps on an online game? Today’s rather sad story in Israel’s history feels a little bit like that, with the Philistine army capturing an important symbol of Israel’s special connection with God, the Ark. Have a flick through your notes to help remind yourself of what the Ark of the Covenant was.
• Today we find out more about the sin of the two sons of Eli. What were they doing? How did God feel about their disobedience? What about Eli?
• Do you think Eli was a good father? When you see someone doing wrong things, what’s the most loving thing you can do – let them do it, or challenge them on it?
• Look carefully at 1 Samuel 2:25. Eli asks his sons a question. How can we as Christians answer his question with confidence?
• Looking towards the end of 1 Samuel 2, What kind of person did God find to replace Eli’s sons? Do you have Samuel-like attributes, based on what you have read about him so far?
• What were the elders of Israel doing with the Ark when they were being attacked by the Philistines, in 1 Samuel 4:3-4? Why do you think they used the Ark in this way, and do you using the Ark as some sort of good luck charm was the right thing to do? Do you remember what was stored inside the Ark?
• Did moving the Ark work? Why not? Picture the scene and the battle. How must you have felt being an Israelite warrior and seeing the devastation around you, compounded by the fact that the Ark’s presence didn’t save them?
• What happened to Eli’s sons during the battle?
• How did Eli react to the news about his sons and the Ark?
• Look at the passage in 1 Kings. It makes reference to the passage in 1 Samuel 2:30 onward. Who did God use to fulfil His prophecy about Eli’s family no longer being priests? Are there any other promises in the Bible that you have read about that show people having to have patience to work in God’s timing?

You might like to dig a little deeper today with the following thoughts:

• Think a little more about the life of Eli. A period of time started by Joshua and continued through the Judges is now coming to the end with Eli’s death, starting the transition from a time of judges to a time of kings which is coming. What did Eli, his role and his mistakes represent in the larger picture of Israel?
• Was God’s glory found in the Ark alone? Did loosing the Ark mean that God was no longer with the Israelites? If God was still with them, did the loss of the Ark still have important consequences? What do you think this shows about the relationship between God and His chosen people?

Well now. Things are a little bleak, aren’t they? From the high point of the conquest of the land, the people’s sin has now brought them misery time and time again during the time of the judges, and today we see Eli and his sons dying amidst the capture of the precious Ark. Things are looking pretty miserable.

Tomorrow we’ll find out what happens to the Ark, but the bigger story at the moment is what the people of Israel will choose to do. Will they return to putting God as their king, trusting in Him for goodness and protection, or will they demand more human-devised plans for their safety and salvation?

We’ll find out as we keep reading this week!