Ep. 72. 1 Samuel 1-2 | Birth of Samuel
EPISODE 72
THE BIRTH OF SAMUEL: 1 SAMUEL 1-2
Let's start with the priesthood of Samuel. It bothered me that Samuel was allowed to work in and around the tent of meeting, seeing that he was "of Ephraim." But being "of Ephraim" and being of the tribe of Ephraim are two different things. In the genealogy of 1 Chronicles, yes, those nine boring chapters, we find that the genealogy of Samuel is traced back to the tribe of Levi and specifically to the line of Levi known as the Kohathites. The people of Kohath's line were in charge of carrying the holy things of God on their shoulders when they moved from place to place. Aside from the priests themselves, the Kohathites were arguably the second most important Levitical position. You may remember Korah and his famous rebellion in Numbers chapter 16. Korah was of Kohath.
So why, then, does it say that Samuel and his family were in the Ramah of Ephraim? Remember that the Levites were not given any land of their own and were instead given various cities to dwell in among the rest of the tribes of Israel. We see in Joshuah 21 that Ephraim gave some of their cities and pasture land to the people of Kohath. So then, Samuel is a descendant of the Kohathites of Levi and allowed to minister in the presence of the Lord, though he should have waited until he was significantly older than a weaned child.
Though I did not catch it when we were talking about Nazarites back in Numbers chapter 6, we can see that Samuel, as well as being a priest, is also likely a Nazarite since "no razor shall touch his head." (1:11)
Chapter two gives us a few things for us to consider, starting with a line from Hannah's prayer of thanks to God. "The barren has borne seven, but she who has many children is forlorn." Obviously, this is a comparison between Hannah, the barren one, and Peninnah, who had many children. After Hannah had borne Samuel and before she would have more children (five more), she declares, "The barren has borne seven." She sees herself as blessed and sees Peninnah as forlorn. Hannah is able to foresee the work that God will do through her son. There are similar thoughts in play in Isaiah 54 and Galatians 4, but I'll leave that commentary for those particular chapters rather than endeavor to teach them here.
It is of great significance that Eli says, "If someone sins against the LORD, who can intercede for him?" It should give us pause that the Priest of God does not know the answer to this question, but the answer is provided in Christ, for "There is one mediator between man and God, Jesus Christ."
God pronounces judgment on the line of Eli, and it would appear that the judgment is completed in the following chapters, but this is not the case. At least not yet, but why don't I save that for tomorrow? God promises he will raise up a faithful priest "who shall do according to what is in my heart and my mind. And I will build him a sure house, and he shall go in and out before my anointed forever." The obvious immediate application of this text has to be Samuel, but we are left to wonder if there is not in this a prophetic indication of what Christ will do and be as THE High Priest of God.
ADDITIONAL READING: Isaiah 54:1; Galatians 4:27; Joshua 21:5; Genesis 21:8-10; Galatians 4:29; 1 Chronicles 6:31-38; Leviticus 3:16; 1 Timothy 2:5
