1 Samuel 4:18-22 – The LORD Departs
The camera lingers on Eli’s obese, mangled remains as the narrator gives a brief summary of his rule. This scene then fades out and we move to another short scene involving his daughter-in-law. This too brings home to us what is really going on.
News of the defeat of Israel, perhaps too the march of the Philistines on Shiloh and the sanctuary, the news of the death of her husband and the capture of the ark, send Phinehas’ wife into premature labour.
Complications ensue, and as she dies in childbirth she names the baby Ichabod. Ichabod means ‘no glory’ or ‘where is the glory?’. It’s a sad name for a sorry situation. What should have been her greatest honour in that culture, giving birth to a son, is eclipsed by shame.
This sums up the whole sad and sorry state of affairs in Israel. Verse 21 gets to the heart of the issue: “the glory of the Lord has departed from Israel” because the ark of God had been captured and because of her father-in-law and her husband. And it’s repeated in verse 22 just incase we haven’t paid attention. The ark is a picture of God’s presence. God has departed from his people.
This is the greatest tragedy that could befall them. God’s presence among them was what made them different from other nations. God’s presence was their great blessing. God’s presence was their chief joy. But now God has departed. It is dark, dire, desperate, and dreadful.
If God were to leave your life, where would it rank in your list of tragedies? Paul was prepared to reckon everything else as a loss, a liability, compared to knowing Christ (Philippians 3:7). Think about what Phinehas’ wife lost: her father-in-law, her husband, her son, and her own life. Yet it is the loss of God that is most lamented. When he leaves, the glory leaves. Is that true of your heart?
Questions
- Why was the ark of the Covenant the glory (honour) of Israel?
- Have you ever felt that God has departed from you?
Prayer Points
- Pray for a heart that loves God ahead of anything else, even fathers-in-law, husbands, sons, and anyone else.
- Use prayer points from your congregation.
- Pray for family matters.