“So the people sent men to Shiloh, and they brought back the ark of the covenant of the Lord Almighty, who is enthroned between the cherubim. And Eli’s two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, were there with the ark of the covenant of God. 5 When the ark of the Lord’s covenant came into the camp, all Israel raised such a great shout that the ground shook. 6 Hearing the uproar, the Philistines asked, “What’s all this shouting in the Hebrew camp?” When they learned that the ark of the Lord had come into the camp, 7 the Philistines were afraid. “A god has[a]come into the camp,” they said. “Oh no! Nothing like this has happened before. 8 We’re doomed! Who will deliver us from the hand of these mighty gods? They are the gods who struck the Egyptians with all kinds of plagues in the wilderness. 9 Be strong, Philistines! Be men, or you will be subject to the Hebrews, as they have been to you. Be men, and fight!” 10 So the Philistines fought, and the Israelites were defeated and every man fled to his tent. The slaughter was very great; Israel lost thirty thousand foot soldiers.11 The ark of God was captured, and Eli’s two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, died.” 1 Samuel 4.4-11
On one hand, this makes little sense. Previously, the Israelites were defeated, 4,000 soldiers died, and now they brought with them the Ark of the Lord so they would win the next battle. But this time, they not only lose the battle, but 30,000 Israelites are killed, they lose the Ark of God, and the two sons of Eli are put to death. This defeat was many times worse than the one before.
Wouldn’t God honor His people as they realized their need for Him? Or perhaps, reading between the lines here—they were using God only for His power and might, not for His guidance. Perhaps in this second battle, even though they had God’s Ark, i.e., His presence, they thought they could manipulate the Lord and use Him for His power.
It happens all the time with humanity. We must have learned it from the Jews! We call on God on our terms, when we are ready, or when we are only in dire need. Rather than turning to God every moment of every day, we shout out only in crisis, thinking we can use Him like a slot machine that comes up all cherries! But this is not how God works. Sure, He loves His people, and He loves us, but to think that we can manipulate the Lord by bringing in His presence in the Ark and thinking that now He will save us—that’s not how this works.
God loves His people—all people—but He wants to be in a relationship with them/us. He wants us to call out to Him not only in the bad times but also in the good. He desires for us to know Him, love Him, worship, and adore Him. We should certainly call out in times of distress but also in times of peace and calm. When temptation will not relent, we call upon the Lord. When things are going our way, we call upon the Lord. The love of the Lord is not a one-way street—He gives love but desires love in return.
My guess is that the Israelites were taking advantage of God, and He had to teach them a lesson about their Covenant in these defeats to the Philistines. As painful as it sounds and must have been, sometimes God allows us to fall so that we might love Him more.
On this Sabbath day, let us love the Lord deeply. Let us worship Him, repent of our sins, and call out to the One who first loved us.
“O Lord God, you are a faithful and loving Lord. Even when the lessons of the past continue to be repeated, your loving kindness draws us back to you. Come now, Holy Spirit, fill us with your power and love. Help me turn from sin and to the Savior, every moment, ever second of the day. For you are good and your love endures forever.” Amen