Suffering with Hophni, Phinehas, and Eli

1 Samuel 3:1-10

(Sermon is taken from 1 Samuel chapters 1-4)

By

Reverend Litton J. Logan

Sermon:

          When I was in seminary, one of my fellow ministerial students came into our pastoral counseling class one day and told us of a tragedy that had occurred in the small community where he was a student ministry.

          There had been a train-pick-up accident involving six teenagers from the community.  All the kids had been drinking.  The driver, we later learned, had been egged on by his passengers to try to beat a train to a crossing.  The train hit the pick-up and drug several miles before it could stop.  Several of the teens were riding in the bed of the pick-up and were thrown out of the vehicle on impact.  Two of the teens died and the others were in critical condition.

          The father of one of the kids that had been killed had a heart condition, and when he heard of the accident he had a heart attack, was sent to the hospital, and was still in intensive care at the time of the telling of the tragedy.  We later understood that he survived and was doing okay.

          Several of the community’s pastors tried to comfort and console the families and the community during those long hours of waiting for news on the survivors.  They dealt with the standard questions of “Why.”  One mother was reported to have said, “I know they were drinking, but all kids have to go through that, but they don’t have to die for it.  Why my kid?”  One mother asked a pastor what she could possibly have done that was so bad that God would punish her like this.

          My fellow classmate, who was telling us the story, said that the father of the boy driving the truck apologized to the group while they were all in the hospital waiting room.  He shared that if he had not been so indulgent with his kid things might have been different.  The father said that if he had been more consistent in dealing with his son’s strong-headedness then maybe this wouldn’t have happened.  If he had taken action when he first recognized his son had a problem with alcohol then maybe none of this tragedy could have been avoided.

          All the parents agreed that they had been too lenient with their kids, given in to them, gave them more freedom than they had maturity to handle.  The consensus was that they just hated to be on their kids all the time and watching them every minute. 

          Now, we all understand that God was not the active agent in this accident.  The accident was the culmination of many choices by many people and the violation of several physical forces of nature—alcohol abuse, physics of bodies in motion, that sort of thing.  God may have known the possibilities of such an accident, but God definitely did not foresee nor foreordain the event.  God, I imagine was just as shocked and saddened as those parents and that community.  God could not have taken away the freedom of the various people involved in this tragedy to choose the courses of action they chose, nor could God have canceled out the laws of nature that were in play in the accident with out being arbitrary and unfair to billions of others.

          What we can say for sure is that a lot of choices and forces came together and resulted in a tragedy.  Over time complacency, benign neglect, and reticence on the part of the parents and the community that knew about these kids and their drinking and driving activities added up and set the stage for the possibility for such a tragedy.  Moreover, try as we may to place the ultimate blame on some one other than the kids we cannot.

          This morning’s scripture readings depict the very same scenario of human choices, neglect, complacency, and reticence, which set the stage for disaster. 

          Let me place this occasion of Samuel’s hearing and obeying the call of God in a larger context.  All too frequently, we sermonize on Samuel’s dedication to the Lord, his willingness to hear the Lord, and to respond faithfully in an unpleasant task without the greater context and the complete message of the story.

Samuel, as you may remember, is the divine prayer-child of a righteous and barren Hannah, the second wife of a wealthy man named Elkanah.  During one of the family’s periodic pilgrimages to the local sanctuary at Shiloh to offer sacrifices to God as a means of re-cementing the families ties with God, Hannah pledges that if the Lord will allow her to have a child she will not redeem this first born child as was the custom but would instead pledged the child to the Lord’s service.  Here was a mother who was actively and authoritatively involved in her son’s religious education and vocation.  After Samuel, Hannah had three sons and two daughters.

At the time of our scripture reading today, Samuel, has lived with Eli the priest and judge at Shiloh since he was three as Eli’s protégé-companion.  According to Josephus the Jewish historian (Antiquities V, 10.4), Samuel is about twelve years old in to day’s scriptures.

          At this time in Israel’s life, the duties of the priestly judge was to make sacrifices to God, maintain the physically aspects of the temple, carry the ephod, which was used to divine oracles from God, as well as judge in matters of personal disputes and religious questions.  The priest also carried the standard of the Lord into battle.  The priests were right up on the front lines bearing the symbols of God, reassuring, encouraging, and comforting the combatants.  (Talk about a career limiting option.)

          The setting of this morning’s scriptures as we heard was a time when the “Word of the Lord” was rare.  It was a time when the power and presence of God was not acutely present or appreciated.  The implication being this rarity was the results of human neglect or intentions.  Also, during this time, when the word of the Lord was rare in the land, the tribes of the Israelites where constantly being harassed by the Philistines.  One would think that it would have been a time when the power and presence of God would be most needed and most sought after.

          Eli, the old priest in today’s scriptures, had two sons by his second wife.  These sons were named Hophni and Phinehas.  Since the priesthood was a family profession and Eli was old, his two sons, “worthless men” as 1 Sam. 2:12 tells us, served as priests offering sacrifices, carrying the ephod of oracle, and carrying the standard into battle in old Eli’s stead.  These two men committed grievous sins against the people and against God.  They took portions of the animal sacrifices that were designated to be offered to God for themselves.  They also took advantage of their positions as priest to sexually harass and abuse the female attendants in the temple.  (Sexually harassment in the work place has been around a long time and these two guys paid a big price for theirs.)

          Samuel tries to admonish his boys but evidently not strong enough.  He told his sons that they may sin against people, they could be forgiven, and things could be made right because God could intercede for them.  However, if a person sinned against God there was no one to intercede for them in that case.  The boys didn’t listen.  Moreover, the general populace seemed indifferent to these men’s actions or chose not to address their conduct.  Most likely people didn’t want to be involved, or put up with the hassles of confronting the situation.  These men’s actions, Eli’s indifference, and the people’s avoidance of the situation are the context for why the word of the Lord was rare in the land.

          In 1 Samuel 2:27, we are told a person from God (we are not told who this person is) confronts Eli about his son’s sins and crimes against God and the people.  The judgment on Eli for abdicating his responsibilities as parent and priest was that none of Eli’s descendents would serve as priest before the Lord.  Those heirs of Eli’s that did survive would have hard time in life.  If a male heir did mange to survive, they would beg to be allowed to serve the Lord just for food.  As a sign of the truth of this prophet’s words both of Eli’s sons would die on the same day.

          In addition, the prophet says that God has chosen someone to be a priest before God.  This priest and his house will always honor God.  God is about to begin a new era of faithful administration over the affairs of God among the people.

As the story goes, young Samuel hears the Word of the Lord,—the dry spell of God’s silence is over, the word of the Lord is back in the land.  When Samuel, under old Eli’s direction, finally answers the voice in the night, “Speak, Lord, for thy servant hears,” God speaks and Samuel has a vision.  In the vision, Samuel sees that the words of the prophet from the Lord are about to come true.  Visions from God frequently bring judgments on those who will not listen and new insights to those who listen and obey.

God is now going to remove permanently Hophni and Phinehas for their blasphemous actions.  Moreover, Eli will suffer the consequences of his lack of parental and professional supervision of his two sons.  Eli and most of his male lineage are about to be destroyed and their names are to become associated with an ignominious defeat of the people of Israel in battle and with the loss of the Ark of the Covenant.  Eli and his sons will go down to their graves in disgrace.  Their immortality in their people’s memory will be one of shame and disgrace.

          Reluctantly, young Samuel relayed his horrible vision to Eli, his mentor and guardian.  Eli, in profound resignation said, “He is the Lord, and he will do the right thing.”  (Holy Bible, Contemporary English Version, ABS).  Eli, didn’t plead, bargain, or try to reform his two eldest sons, nor did he try to warn them.  He just accepted God’s judgment as a fait accompli.  He knew what was to happen would be the result of his actions or inactions and the actions of his sons.

          Later on, the Israelites find themselves in a battle with the Philistines.  During the first skirmish, the Israelites are routed.  The Israelites like so many of us, throw up their hands and ask, “Why is God doing this to us?”  Couldn’t be that they were reaping the consequences of their own actions.  Maybe they had neglected the word of the Lord, had become morally soft and indifferent, and had neglected their military training or physical fitness, etc.  Maybe they had become complacent and weren’t ready.  God had helped them out in the past and protected them, why should they be conscientious and disciplined.  The people must have thought that God had more invested in them than God would want to loose. 

          Therefore, the Israelites attribute their defeat to the absence of the Ark of the Covenant, which they believed was an extension or pervasion of the presence of God.  So, taking matters further into their own hands the Israelite leaders get this bright idea to go and get the Ark of the Covenant from the Temple at Shiloh and bring it to the battle site.  Does this sound familiar?  When our efforts fail and we make a mess of things we seek God’s will and presence after we have set into play irreversible effects.

If the Ark was there, God would surely see the battle and jump into the fray to champion the Israelite army as God had done in the past.  So Hophni and Phinehas were dispatched to fetch the Ark of the Covenant.  This troubled old Eli.  He didn’t like putting the Ark in jeopardy, especially given what he knew about his two “worthless” sons.  When Hophni and Phinehas arrived back at the army camp, the camp erupts in shots of joy and hope.  The Ark rallied the troops’ courage.

          This noise of jubilation caused the Philistines to question what was going on.  When they learned that a god had come into the Israelite camp, the same god that had delivered the Israelites from the Egyptians, they were frighten.  I just imagine the Philistine officers, especially the First Sergeants, telling their troops something like this: Buck up fellows, take courage.  It would be better to die in battle than become slaves of the Hebrews.  To battle they went.  According to scriptures, the Philistines won the day, killing four thousands of Hebrews including Eli’s two sons.  The Ark of the Covenant was also captured by the Philistines.

When word reached Eli, who had been waiting in great anxiety and anticipation, that his sons were dead and the Ark of the Covenant was captured, he was so shocked at the loss of the Ark, that he fell over backwards, broke his neck, and died.  Thus, ended Eli and his sons and their hold over the priesthood at Shiloh.  This happened all because Eli wouldn’t step up to the plate and be a responsible parent and supervisor.  All because the people of the land where the word of the Lord was rare would not step up to the plate and be responsible citizens.

With the death of Eli and his sons, we see the beginning of a new era, where a righteous and conscientious priestly judge, Samuel, assumes leadership.  Samuel became the last of the great judges of Israel.  Samuel never shied away from confronting what was wrong in the life of the people of Israel nor of Israel’s leaders. 

          Now, many would say that it is terrible that God let so many soldiers for the sins of Hophni, Phinehas, and Eli.  Careful examination would not support this idea.  Some would say, how awful that God with drew divine support in the battle because of Hophni’s, Phinehas’, and Eli’s sin.  Yet, we must remember that Hophni, Phinehas, and Eli were just the tip of the iceberg for why the word of the Lord was rare in the land.  We must also understand that through out history the not guilty as well as the innocent have suffered because of the sins of others.  Because we are social creatures, what affects one often affects all; what one person chooses to do or not to often have repercussions for others.  It is the nature of human society.  This is doubly so when corrupt, selfish, greedy, or inept leaders make bad or self-serving choices.

          We have seen such things in our own time.  Moreover, such immoral and unethical conditions can only exist in our leadership as it did in Eli and his sons, when the citizenry tolerates it.  Moreover, regardless of whether we participate in the immoral or unethical conduct or not, if we tolerate it; don’t speak up and confront it, we give tacit permission for it to continue.  Eventually, the conduct and its effects compound to such a proportion that it violates physical, social, moral, and spiritual laws and the consequences roll down and every one suffers.

          As people of God, we are called to be people of moral responsibility.  We are to raise our children in such ways that they internalize the highest of moral and ethical values.  We are to supervise our children twenty-four-seven, three sixty-five, and to assume responsibility for their actions when they offend or harm others or damage property. 

          This same thing goes for our leaders—locally, regionally, and nationally.  If we allow them to behave in ways that are not in the best interest of society; then we have to shoulder some of the blame when things go bad because of rotten people.  Moreover, know this; we will suffer the consequences of the decisions of corrupt and inept leadership if we are indifferent or apathetic to the world we live in.

          Our misplaced notions of Christian passivity and tolerant grace are often nothing more than cowardice in the face of the enemy and are a major contributor to our society’s current state of decadence and self-destructiveness.  We are to be as wise as serpents and gentle as lambs as we confront evil and immorality and call it to account according to the word of God.  Just as Jesus stood calmly and intentionally platting a rope and then in righteous indignation drove from the Temple those who were profaning God’s house so must we act.  Yes, it may cost us, but I will guarantee you it will not cost us, our children, our grandchildren, or future generations half as much as it will if we don’t confront it.

          Read and study the word of God, buy yourself a book of stamps, read your news papers, listen to the news and then write your elected officials and speak your soul about the immorality, injustice, and corruption you see and know.

          If we don’t act, we will suffer along with Hophni, Phinehas, and old Eli, when the consequences of our leader’s sins and our apathy and indifference come home to roost.  And, by God come home to roost they will.

The Good News:  When we have righteous leaders, the word of the Lord is in the land and the people and the land will prosper.  We have available the presence of God to guide us in discerning God’s will in prayer and scripture.  We have the Holy Spirit to strengthen, aid, and comfort us in doing what we know and believe to be right.  The innocent, the not guilty will suffer if we don’t take the courage of the Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit to insure that the word of the Lord is in our land.

          Here the words of Christ:

“Don’t think I’ve come to make life cozy.  I’ve come to cut—make a sharp knife-cut between son and father, daughter and mother, bride and mother-in-law—cut through these cozy domestic arrangements and free you for God.  Well-meaning family members can be your worst enemies.  If you prefer father or mother over me, you don’t deserve me.  If you prefer son or daughter over me, you don’t deserve me.

“If you don’t go all the way with me, through thick and thin, you don’t deserve me.  If your first concern is to look after yourself, you’ll never find yourself.  But if you forget about yourself and look to me, you’ll find both yourself and me.

“We are intimately linked in this harvest work. Anyone who accepts what you do, accepts me, the One who sent you. Anyone who accepts what I do accepts my Father, who sent me. Accepting a messenger of God is as good as being God’s messenger.  Accepting someone’s help is as good as giving someone help.  This is a large work I’ve called you into, but don’t be overwhelmed by it.  It’s best to start small.  Give a cool cup of water to someone who is thirsty, for instance.  The smallest act of giving or receiving makes you a true apprentice.  You won’t lose out on a thing.”  Matthew 10:34-40 (TMNT)

The Message: New Testament

First

NavPress Publishing Group

Colorado Springs, Colorado

          At first glance, these words of Jesus seem harsh until we realized what Hophni, Phinehas, Eli and all those troops learned the hard way. 

          There is a way that seems right to a [us] person,

but its end is the way to death.

Proverbs 14:12 (NRSV)