Community on Columbia

With plague ravaging their land, the Philistine soothe-sayers recommend a way to return the Ark to Israel, which will determine whether the plague was from the hand of God, or merely chance. They include a box containing a very strange trespass offering.

Notes on 1 Samuel 6:1-21

The Philistines get more than they bargained for when they captured the Ark. Their god Dagon is toppled, and a plague ravages their cities.

Notes on 1 Samuel 5:1-12

Israel and the Philistines battle again, but this time the Ark is captured, and Eli’s sons are killed. When he hears the news, Eli himself falls backwards and dies, fulfilling Samuel’s prophecy.

Notes for 1 Samuel 4:1-22

God wakes up Samuel and gives him a dire prophecy to deliver to Eli, describing the complete downfall of his house because of his negligence in restraining his sons’ corruption.

Notes on 1 Samuel 3:1-21

The sons of Eli are revealed as the poster boys for religious fraud, false piety, victimization and lust. Their self-seeking is contrasted with the young Samuel, who “ministers to the Lord.”

Notes on 1 Samuel 2:12-36

God answers Hannah’s prayer, and she responds with a prophetic offering of thanksgiving that echoes through the rest of the scriptures.

Notes on 1 Samuel 1:19 – 2:10

The Books of 1 & 2 Samuel focus on Samuel, both a priest and a prophet, and the rise of Saul and David. In the first chapter of 1 Samuel, Hannah is wracked by sorrow because she has no children and prays to God, vowing to dedicate her firstborn as a Nazarite.

Notes on 1 Samuel 1:1-18