Chapter 10.
CONCERNING THE BIRTH OF SAMUEL; AND HOW HE FORETOLD THE CALAMITY
THAT BEFELL THE SONS OF ELI.FJAJ 5.103
1. AND now upon the ill state of the affairs of the Hebrews, they made
war again upon the Philistines
The occasion was this: Eli, the high priest,
had two sons, Hophni and Phineas
These sons of Eli were guilty of injustice
towards men, and of impiety towards God, and abstained from no sort of
wickedness
Some of their gifts they carried off, as belonging to the honorable
employment they had; others of them they took away by violence
They also
were guilty of impurity with the women that came to worship God at the
tabernacle, obliging some to submit to their lust by force, and enticing
others by bribes; nay, the whole course of their lives was no better than
tyranny
Their father therefore was angry at them for such their wickedness,
and expected that God would suddenly inflict his punishments upon them
for what they had done
The multitude took it heinously also
And as soon
as God had foretold what calamity would befall Eli's sons, which he did
both to Eli himself and to Samuel the prophet, who was yet but a child,
he openly showed his sorrow for his sons' destruction.FJAJ 5.104
2. I will first despatch what I have to say about the prophet Samuel,
and after that will proceed to speak of the sons of Eli, and the miseries
they brought on the whole people of the Hebrews
Elcanah, a Levite, one
of a middle condition among his fellow citizens, and one that dwelt at
Ramathaim, a city of the tribe of Ephraim, married two wives, Hannah and
Peninnah
He had children by the latter; but he loved the other best, although
she was barren
Now Elcanah came with his wives to the city Shiloh to sacrifice,
for there it was that the tabernacle of God was fixed, as we have formerly
said
Now when, after he had sacrificed, he distributed at that festival
portions of the flesh to his wives and children, and when Hannah saw the
other wife's children sitting round about their mother, she fell into tears,
and lamented herself on account of her barrenness and lonesomeness; and
suffering her grief to prevail over her husband's consolations to her,
she went to the tabernacle to beseech God to give her seed, and to make
her a mother; and to vow to consecrate the first son she should bear to
the service of God, and this in such a way, that his manner of living should
not be like that of ordinary men
And as she continued at her prayers a
long time, Eli, the high priest, for he sat there before the tabernacle,
bid her go away, thinking she had been disordered with wine; but when she
said she had drank water, but was in sorrow for want of children, and was
beseeching God for them, he bid her be of good cheer, and told her that
God would send her children.FJAJ 5.105
3. So she came to her husband full of hope, and ate her meal with gladness.
And when they had returned to their own country she found herself with
child, and they had a son born to them, to whom they gave the name of Samuel,
which may be styled one that was asked of God.They therefore came
to the tabernacle to offer sacrifice for the birth of the child, and brought
their tithes with them; but the woman remembered the vows she had made
concerning her son, and delivered him to Eli, dedicating him to God, that
he might become a prophet
Accordingly his hair was suffered to grow long,
and his drink was water
So Samuel dwelt and was brought up in the temple.
But Elcanah had other sons by Hannah, and three daughters.FJAJ 5.106
4. Now when Samuel was twelve years old, he began to prophesy: and once
when he was asleep, God called to him by his name; and he, supposing he
had been called by the high priest, came to him: but when the high priest
said he did not call him, God did so thrice
Eli was then so far illuminated,
that he said to him, "Indeed, Samuel, I was silent now as well as
before: it is God that calls thee; do thou therefore signify it to him,
and say, I am here ready." So when he heard God speak again, he desired
him to speak, and to deliver what oracles he pleased to him, for he would
not fail to perform any ministration whatsoever he should make use of him
in; - to which God replied, "Since thou art here ready, learn what
miseries are coming upon the Israelites, - such indeed as words cannot
declare, nor faith believe; for the sons of Eli shall die on one day, and
the priesthood shall be transferred into the family of Eleazar; for Eli
hath loved his sons more than he hath loved my worship, and to such a degree
as is not for their advantage." Which message Eli obliged the prophet
by oath to tell him, for otherwise he had no inclination to afflict him
by telling it
And now Eli had a far more sure expectation of the perdition
of his sons; but the glory of Samuel increased more and more, it being
found by experience that whatsoever he prophesied came to pass accordingly.
(22)
Although there had been a few occasional prophets before, yet was this
Samuel the first of a constant succession of prophets in the Jewish nation,
as is implied in St. Peter's words, Acts 3:24 "Yea, and all the prophets,
from Samuel, and those that follow after, as many as have spoken, have
likewise foretold of those days." See also Acts 13:20. The others
were rather sometime called righteous men, Matthew 10:41; 13:17.FJAJ 5.107