Bad Boys
Opening Prayer
Dear Lord, how great You are. May I express my faith and gratitude to You in deeds of love today.
Read 1 SAMUEL 2:12–26
12 Eli’s sons were scoundrels; they had no regard for the Lord. 13 Now it was the practice of the priests that, whenever any of the people offered a sacrifice, the priest’s servant would come with a three-pronged fork in his hand while the meat was being boiled 14 and would plunge the fork into the pan or kettle or caldron or pot. Whatever the fork brought up the priest would take for himself. This is how they treated all the Israelites who came to Shiloh. 15 But even before the fat was burned, the priest’s servant would come and say to the person who was sacrificing, “Give the priest some meat to roast; he won’t accept boiled meat from you, but only raw.”
16 If the person said to him, “Let the fat be burned first, and then take whatever you want,” the servant would answer, “No, hand it over now; if you don’t, I’ll take it by force.”
17 This sin of the young men was very great in the Lord’s sight, for they were treating the Lord’s offering with contempt.
18 But Samuel was ministering before the Lord—a boy wearing a linen ephod. 19 Each year his mother made him a little robe and took it to him when she went up with her husband to offer the annual sacrifice. 20 Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife, saying, “May the Lord give you children by this woman to take the place of the one she prayed for and gave to the Lord.” Then they would go home. 21 And the Lord was gracious to Hannah; she gave birth to three sons and two daughters. Meanwhile, the boy Samuel grew up in the presence of the Lord.
22 Now Eli, who was very old, heard about everything his sons were doing to all Israel and how they slept with the women who served at the entrance to the tent of meeting. 23 So he said to them, “Why do you do such things? I hear from all the people about these wicked deeds of yours. 24 No, my sons; the report I hear spreading among the Lord’s people is not good. 25 If one person sins against another, God may mediate for the offender; but if anyone sins against the Lord, who will intercede for them?” His sons, however, did not listen to their father’s rebuke, for it was the Lord’s will to put them to death.
26 And the boy Samuel continued to grow in stature and in favor with the Lord and with people.
New International Version (NIV)
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Meditate
“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Rom. 3:23). Begin your time with God in silent confession.
Think Further
The prevailing educational philosophy today seems to be that all children are good and, with enough positive reinforcement, all families will be like those Garrison Keillor describes in his fictional town, Lake Wobegon, “where all the women are strong, the men are good looking, and the children… are above average.” I suspect that the writer of 1 Samuel would take exception, mostly because of Eli’s two sons: they were just plain bad. Calling them “scoundrels” (12) wouldn’t build their self-esteem, but it was true.
The spiritual rap sheet on Hophni and Phinehas was long (12–17,25). Our passage identifies the root: “they had no regard for the Lord” (12). That’s a dangerous place, and we may assume that only the bad boys of the world are guilty of it—but today the most dangerous kind of disregard is from those who are spiritual, even churchgoers, but who deny that Jesus is the “only Sovereign and Lord” (Jude 4). Is there someone you know who fits that description, for whom you could pray? It certainly didn’t help that Eli was an overly tolerant parent; he said the right words but he didn’t care enough to back them up with consequences (23–25). We hurt our children when we don’t establish boundaries in a context of love.
For me, the most difficult part of this story is that God seems to be against Hophni and Phinehas from the start (25). But was he? The Bible is full of people who have no regard for the Lord but who repent (e.g., Saul in Acts 9:1–19). Heaven rejoices over those who do so (Luke 15:7,10). We can imagine a very different ending for these brothers if they had turned back to God. What Eli’s sons demonstrate is that willfully opposing God has consequences. As Charles Spurgeon said, “There’s no safety in unforsaken sin.”
Apply
Pray for someone you know who is running from God now. What could you do to point him or her in the right direction?
Closing prayer
Forgiving Lord, when I confess my sins to You they are forgiven, forgotten forever. I love You, Lord.
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