seekeroftruth
Well-Known Member
1 Samuel 4:12 That same day a Benjamite ran from the battle line and went to Shiloh with his clothes torn and dust on his head. 13 When he arrived, there was Eli sitting on his chair by the side of the road, watching, because his heart feared for the ark of God. When the man entered the town and told what had happened, the whole town sent up a cry.
14 Eli heard the outcry and asked, “What is the meaning of this uproar?”
The man hurried over to Eli, 15 who was ninety-eight years old and whose eyes had failed so that he could not see. 16 He told Eli, “I have just come from the battle line; I fled from it this very day.”
Eli asked, “What happened, my son?”
17 The man who brought the news replied, “Israel fled before the Philistines, and the army has suffered heavy losses. Also your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, are dead, and the ark of God has been captured.”
18 When he mentioned the ark of God, Eli fell backward off his chair by the side of the gate. His neck was broken and he died, for he was an old man, and he was heavy. He had led Israel forty years.
19 His daughter-in-law, the wife of Phinehas, was pregnant and near the time of delivery. When she heard the news that the ark of God had been captured and that her father-in-law and her husband were dead, she went into labor and gave birth, but was overcome by her labor pains. 20 As she was dying, the women attending her said, “Don’t despair; you have given birth to a son.” But she did not respond or pay any attention.
21 She named the boy Ichabod, saying, “The Glory has departed from Israel”—because of the capture of the ark of God and the deaths of her father-in-law and her husband. 22 She said, “The Glory has departed from Israel, for the ark of God has been captured.”
Here's the link to the commentary for this sad story.Eli fell off the seat backward by the side of the gate; and his neck was broken and he died: Eli fell over and died at the news of the ark (when he made mention of the ark of God). It wasn’t the news of Israel’s loss in battle, or the slaughter of the army, or even the news of the death of his own sons that killed him. It was hearing the Ark of the Covenant of God was captured.
When she heard the news: Poor wife of Phinehas! Pregnant, she heard of the death of her husband, her brother-in-law, her father-in-law, a slaughter among the soldiers of Israel, a lost battle, and the capture of the Ark of the Covenant all on one day. The anguish was too great, and labor pains came upon her.
Then she named the child Ichabod: For a Jewish woman, the birth of a son was wonderful news — but not for the wife of Phinehas on this day. To reflect her anguish and the national tragedy upon Israel she named the child Ichabod, meaning, “The glory has departed from Israel.”
But she did not answer, nor did she regard it: Her grief was so great, it overcame her maternal joy at the birth of her son. To her, the loss was total, and she even lost the desire to live.
The two boys were killed in action, along with Eli's son-in-law. A baby was born that day, Ichabod, but his mom would be severely depressed... useless even lifeless. When I first read the verses, I thought she died in childbirth... But she's only severely depressed. I don't know if that's much better for her new son.Eli's sons were reported to have died in battle... bummer. Eli was more concerned about losing the Arc than the boys. God had forewarned Eli about the future of his two boys who were stealing from God and raping the women who came to the Temple. Eli knew the boys were going to die. God told Samuel who told Eli.
And now... At 99 years old, Eli learned the Arc of the Covenant had been lost in battle.
Eli fell off his chair and broke his neck.
Eli had been hefting oxen for sacrifices to God almost all his life. He dedicated his life to the upkeep of the Temple and the Arc. He fell off his chair and broke his neck.
I'm in a retirement community out here in Arizona. You have to be 55 to live here. There are lots of people in the 70's, 80's, and 90's. They don't come out much anymore. When they take the trash out or go to the mailbox, they do it on a mobility scooter, a motorized chair with wheels. Some even ride their motorized chair everywhere in the apartment too.
I can imagine Eli falling out of his scooter, but I can't imagine such a fall would cause him to break his neck. Then again... old bones get brittle and Eli was 99.
Do you think Eli was destined to die that day too... and God just didn't give Samuel that part of the prophecy?
At any rate, now the town is without the Chief Priest and the two rotten priests too.
Ichabod is stuck with a severely depressed mom and no dad.
The Arc is gone.
Eli fell off a chair and died.
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