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Conference yukon::christian_v7

Title:The CHRISTIAN Notesfile
Notice:Jesus reigns! - Intros: note 4; Praise: note 165
Moderator:ICTHUS::YUILLEON
Created:Tue Feb 16 1993
Last Modified:Fri May 02 1997
Last Successful Update:Fri Jun 06 1997
Number of topics:962
Total number of notes:42902

822.0. "samuel" by POWDML::FLANAGAN (let your light shine) Fri Nov 10 1995 12:10

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    1 Samuel 2:22
    
    "Now Eli was very old.  He heard all that his sons were doing to all
    Israel, and how they lay with the women who served at the entrance to
    the tent of meeting."
    
    How do you guys interpret this quote?
T.RTitleUserPersonal
Name		DateLines
822.1PAULKM::WEISSFor I am determined to know nothing, except...Fri Nov 10 1995 12:2114
>    How do you guys interpret this quote?

That Eli's sons used their positions as sons of the high priest to obtain
sexual favors from the women they worked with.

Sexual harassment is nothing new, here's a record of it happening over 3000
years ago.  God wasn't at all pleased about this either.  Eli spoke to his
sons about is, but when they wouldn't listen to him he didn't do anything.
(vs 23-25) So God sent someone to prophecy to Eli the condemnation he would
receive by 'honor[ing his] sons more then [God].' (vs 29).  The prophecy was
fulfulled soon after that when the Philistines captured the ark.  Hophni and
Phineas were killed, and Eli died when he heard the news.

Paul
822.2JULIET::MORALES_NASweet Spirit's Gentle BreezeFri Nov 10 1995 12:226
    Word for word... but I'm not really sure what you are asking?  You want
    our moral reaction?  You want our spiritual reaction?  You want the
    literal story to be interpreted for you?   There is more than just this
    verse.
    
    Nancy
822.3ICTHUS::YUILLEHe must increase - I must decreaseFri Nov 10 1995 12:3126
Welcome back Patricia!

�    How do you guys interpret this quote?

Literally.  

If you read on you will see that this is mentioned explicitly to show what
a terrible thing was happening, and how the LORD was bringing an immediate
family judgement (as opposed to the normal delay of grace for repentance).
Eli - their father the priest - was horror-struck at this gross betrayal of
the office of priest, degrading God's people, and constituting an insult to
the LORD.  He pointed out that when you dishonour the privileged
responsibility you have received from God, there is no-one to plead for you
before Him. 

If you read on in verse 34, you will see that because of this lack of
restraint, even on the part of their father in controlling them, their
death is foretold as it occurs in 1 Samuel 4:17, and Eli falls to his
death at the accompanying news that the ark is captured by the Philistines.

Can you tell us what focused your attention on this unsavory incident?  If 
you have a particular interest, there are some references connected with 
this, which show the filfillment of the prophecy against Eli's house further 
down the line - essentially 1 Kings 2:26, and Jeremiah 1:1

								Andrew