Perhaps someday a child would stumble upon that Ebenezer rock and wonder why it was there. How easy it is for us to forget the goodness and provision of God and to even forget specific and highly memorable events in our lives when we are sure that God has worked on our behalf! The Ebenezer stone is an Old Testament example of a symbolic event that would help Israel recall to mind the faithfulness and power of God. Hitherto the Lord had helped Israel, and it was imperative that Israel would remember God’s help going forward. In a very simple and symbolic gesture, Samuel picked up a rock, set it at a particular geographic location, and named it “Thus far God has helped us” as a remembrance of what God had done for Israel on that day. It was God who thundered and enabled the defeat of the Philistines (v. If we recognize our misplaced trust and reverse course, He is there faithful to forgive, grant us mercy, and provide his guidance and protection.In 1 Samuel 7:12, we read, “Then Samuel took a stone and set it between Mizpah and Shen, and named it Ebenezer, saying, ‘Thus far the LORD has helped us.’” Samuel rightly understood that the victory of the Israelites over the Philistines was a result of the work of God on their behalf. In defeat or failure, we must repent from misplaced trust and from leaving Christ out of the equation. We may justify and reason our actions under the pretext of “this is just the way we’ve always done things.”īut the stone of Ebenezer should signify to us that trusting in anything or anyone short of Christ is a precursor to failure. ![]() We often find ourselves guilty of the reliance on superstition, formality, or the worship of external symbols in times of spiritual stagnancy, turmoil, or discontent. 1 Samuel 7:12 tells us he “named it Ebenezer, saying, ‘Thus far the Lord has helped us.”īecause of Samuel’s faithfulness and Israel’s repentance and newfound faith in the one true Lord, “the hand of the Lord was against the Philistines all of the days of Samuel” ( 1 Samuel 7:13). Samuel memorialized the victory and set a stone between Mizpeh and Shen. This state of dismay allowed Israel to prevail. When the Philistines neared Israel, a “great thunder” scared and shook up the Philistines ( 1 Samuel 7:10). Samuel offered a lamb as a burnt offering and then cried out unto the Lord for Israel. The children of Israel pled for Samuel to continue to pray to the Lord for them that they may be spared from the Philistines. The Philistines received word that the children of Israel journeyed to Mizpeh and went there against them. Samuel then gathered all Israel to Mizeph for prayer, which included both fasting and repentance. ![]() A revival of sorts took place, and Israel returned to serve the Lord only ( 1 Samuel 7:4). Israel responded in kind and discontinued the worship of the false gods Baalim and Ashtaroth. Upon hearing of their demise, their father Eli fell backward breaking his neck, and died because he knew their deaths fulfilled the prophesy mentioned in 1 Samuel 2:34, “nd this shall be a sign unto thee, that shall come upon thy two sons, on Hophni and Phinehas in one day they shall die both of them.” Nevertheless, the Philistines fought, and Israel suffered great loss.Īfter a great defeat, the Ark of the Covenant was taken by the Philistines from Ebenezer to Ashdod.įurther, the priests Hophni and Phinehas were slain. They remembered from history and said, “these are the gods that smote the Egyptians with all the plagues in the wilderness” ( 1 Samuel 4:8). The Philistines were intimidated by the shouts and screams under the assumption God was within the camp of Israel. The exclamation was so great “that the earth rang” ( 1 Samuel 4:5). Great excitement came within the Israelite camp when the Ark of the Covenant arrived. In 1 Samuel 2:24, we are told, “ay, my sons for it is no good report that I hear: ye make the Lord’s people to transgress.” While in this sinful state, the elders of Israel felt if they fetched the Ark of the Covenant and had it within the camp, it would provide them with the protection of the Lord in battle. During this period of time, Israel was infected with the worship of idols, practiced rituals, and neglected offerings to the Lord. Israel set up camp beside Ebenezer in preparation for battle against the Philistines. The background of its meaning and significance begins in 1 Samuel 4 with Israel and the Philistines. ![]() By definition, Ebenezer means “stone of help.” He named it Ebenezer, saying, “Thus far the LORD has helped us.” ( 1 Samuel 7:12)Įbenezer is only mentioned three times in the Bible. “Then Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen.
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