Unexpected Deliverance

Does God keep His covenant promises? If there were any doubts, today’s passage should put them to rest. God told the Israelites that if they would put away their foreign gods and turn back to Him wholeheartedly, He would deliver them from the Philistines (7:3). But who could have known that He would act so quickly?

The Philistines learn that the Israelites have gathered at Mizpah to rededicate themselves to God’s covenant. Although the Philistines apparently are not everywhere in Israel, they do have garrisons (10:5), and it is likely that spies and informers are about. Perhaps they perceive the gathering at Mizpah as a council of war; perhaps they simply see an opportunity to strike while so many of the Israelites are together in one place, thereby consolidating their grip on Israel. Thus, they launch an attack. This development causes fear and consternation among the Israelites, but they do the right thing—they ask Samuel to intercede on their behalf for God’s aid. Samuel offers a newborn lamb as a burnt offering, symbolizing the covering of his sins and his consecration to God, then cries out to God as the people begged him to do. And then, we are told, “the Lord answered him.” It is not clear whether the “answer” is some communication from God, but God clearly responds with decisive action. The Philistines approach Mizpah as Samuel is making his offering. At that moment, God causes thunder of such magnitude that it stupefies the Philistines, just as Samuel’s mother prophesied (1 Sam. 2:10a). The Philistines are so overcome that the Israelites, unprepared though they are, drive them far back to the south. The Philistine oppression is ended, much of Israel’s territory is recovered, and even the native Canaanites (the “Amorites”) adopt a low profile. As Matthew Henry writes, “How soon did they find the benefit of their repentance.” Afterward, Samuel sets up a memorial stone called “Ebenezer” (or “stone of help”). He says, ” ‘Thus far the Lord) has helped us,’ ” by which he means that God has been with Israel to the present hour.

To consolidate Israel’s reformation, Samuel then begins to “judge” Israel in the prophetic sense, teaching them the things of God. He travels a regular circuit, preaching to the people, but he always comes back to Ramah, the home of his parents and now his abode as well.