The Glory Has Departed

The death of the High Priest Eli is not the final evil repercussion of this tragic day in Israel’s history. Eli’s son Phinehas, having been killed in the battle at Aphek, leaves behind a wife who is pregnant and close to her delivery date. The shock of the awful news of the ark’s capture, Eli’s death, and her husband’s demise sends her into labor. But something goes terribly wrong during the delivery. Perhaps she experiences complications of some sort, or perhaps she simply grows exhausted with grief and her labor. When the midwife informs her that she has borne a son, she does not respond. Soon, she also dies.

By God’s grace, the child, a boy, is born safely and survives. His mother gives him the name Ichabod. In giving her child this strange name, this woman shows keen spiritual insight. She remarks that she has chosen the name Ichabod, which means “Inglorious,” because ” ‘The glory has departed from Israel, for the ark of God has been captured.’ ” The glory of which she speaks has to do with the refulgent splendor of God’s presence. In effect, therefore, she is saying that God has abandoned His people, that He has withdrawn His presence from Israel. She is right, but her words must be understood properly. She is not saying that God has left His people as a result of the capture of the ark. God did not have to go to Philistia with the ark. Rather, the capture of the ark is a sign to Israel that God already had withdrawn His presence. He did not fight for the Israelites on the battlefield, and therefore the Philistines prevailed. The withdrawal of God’s presence is a major catastrophe for the Israelites, but only this dying mother seems to see it. The rest of the nation is mourning the significant but lesser catastrophes that have occurred this day—the military defeat, the deaths of thirty thousand soldiers, the deaths of Eli and his sons, and the capture of the ark. But the covenant infidelity of the Israelites has driven their God from them, and they ought to mourn this loss above all things, just as they once did (Ex. 33:1–15).

More repercussions of Israel’s defeat are yet to come. First and foremost, it appears the tabernacle is going to be overrun by the Philistines (1 Sam. 2:32;) Jer. 7:12–14). But God will not utterly abandon His people. In time, He will restore the worship of Israel, selecting a new place to establish His name—Jerusalem.