Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1920-05-08
SUNDAY SCHOOL LESSON
ELI AND HIS SONS.
Samuel, 2.12-14. Ais.
Golden Text.-The wages OF
sin is death: but the free gift
of God is eternal life in Christ.
Jesus. our Lord.-Romans. 6.2S.
BY REV. HUGH T. STEVENSON.

Jesus. our Lord.-RomanS, 6.2S.
BY REV. HUGH T. STEVENSON.
Mothers day recalls to many a wan
dering son the lessons that he was
taught by his first and greatest teach
er. We are to study this week the re-
suits of the failure Of Els sons to
remember the lessons that they had
learned from their parents concerning
their duty to God and His service. Our
lesson opens with the statement that
the sons Of Eli. Hophni and Phineas.
were 1.-The sons Of Belial,' or, in
modern speech, servants OF satan,
They are charged with covetousness.
irreverence and gross immortality.
charges against them. which result
ed in Samuel being charged in last
weeks lesson to pronounce their
doom.
Many a man will look back upon his
career upon Mothers day and recog-
because he disregarded the instruc-
tions of his mother. 1t may be that
he will be guided by the Holy Spirit
to repent of the mistakes and errors
and return to his mothers God. seek
ing through faith in the Lord. Jesus,
seek the new life in Christ, or does
not possess it. then as a result OF
his iniquity he. too. will reap the
condemnation Of the Lord. Els sons
had been instructed i'll the rules and
requirements of the faith of their
father, but they lacked faith. Ihey
were sons of satan instead OF Je-
hovah, as they ought to have been II
they were to be priests of God.
The covetousness of Ellis sons is
seen in their method of collecting
their salaries. The custom OF their
day allowed them to use nesh
hook with three teeth. which drew
from the pot their portion. and they
obtained whatever was attached to
the hook for their personal use. They
did not complain against the use OF
the pot hook or claim that the POT
luck was not sufficient for their
needs. They sent their servants gu.
among the worshipers and obtained
by force what they wished. taking
more than was their due. They took
the flesh raw, SO that they couio
probably sell it. They yielded to the
desire to amass money by roDDins
both the worshipers and Coo.
priated the funds. that belonged to
Jehovah, but they acted without rev.
erence for the temple OF the LORD
They were also charged with gross
immortality with the women VINO
were given a place IN the Tempe IN
rupted these women. who. IKE mem
selves. ought to have lived lives or
purity for the glory of God. so tnaI oy
graft and shameful practices they
brought disgrace upon the MOST sa-
cred things Of their religion. II IS no
wonder that we learn that WneI .ae
moral standards were broken doWn
"eyery man did that which was rignt
in his own eyes" Their habits OF de-
bauchery caused men to abhor the
offerings OF God.
Another sin laid at their door was
save the nation when they were de-
feated, as jeremiah tells us. as q con-
sequence of their sin. The forces OF
Israel had rallied and met the Pnli-
istines. who had commenced accord
ing to the Vulgate and Septuagint
versions. an aggressive ssa,e ;. w anhsr
When they lost 1000 men the lead
ers Of the army Of Israel sought to
And a reason for their defeat and
recognized that they had neglected to
consult Jehovah, so they sent for the
Ark to be brought to rally their
forces. Ellis sons responded; without without
ing the most significant, and original
piece Of religious furniture that
israel possessed. The presence OF the
visible symbol of Gods presence with
His people would not bring them d.
vine power unless they sought
their iniQuity and pardon for their
sin.
The welcome that the ark received
showed hoy Israel. contaminated by
the people around them, and the i'm
morality of the two sons Of Ell. had
become idolaters. for. they made their
faith In the symbol of his presence
to be faith in Him and His power.
Their superstitious and irreverent use
of the ark proves that their religion
had become formal without any spir-
itual vitality. They did not worship
Jehovah as a spiritual people ought
to worship a loving and living God.
that they thought that they had
forced God upon their side by bring
ing the ark into battle. They believed
that victory would certainly be theirs.
Their war cry filled the Philistines
with fear. They counted that Israel
ence and power Of Jehovah.
While the issue seemed certain, they
fought with the heroism of men
whose lives and liberties were at
stake. They knew that a victory for
Israel at that hour would result in
ton. They expected to be beaten and
forfeit the rich lands along the sea
coasts Of Palestine that was not only
productive from an agricultural
standpoint, but their possessions also
were in the path of commerce. which
added greatly to their wealth, re-
sources and power as nation. They
were powerful and constant irritant
to Israel throughout her history as
a nation.
The fears Of the Philistines were as
groundless as the confidence of Israel,
g. On ne hn
tines to destroy the army Of Israel.
who had lost their claim to the pro-
lection Of Jehovah by their sin. The
heroism of the Philistines was
crowned with an overwhelming vic
tory that utterly crushed Israel. who
of the, Lord that they had dared to
carry into battle captured by their en-
emies.
The defeat of Israel confirmed the
prophecies of Samuel and opened the
way for the work of Samuel as re-
years old when the tidings of the
death of his two sons was brought to
him. He had ruled the nation for
forty years. His age may have i'm
paired his powers SO that he was not
able to control the actions of his sons.
Possibly Robertson is correct when
he suggests that his "feebleness arose
out of original temperament. ELS
feelings were all good: his acts all
wrong. In sentiment Eli could always
be trusted: in action he was forever
false because he was a weak, vasci-
latfng man. Therefore his virtues
were all Of a negative character" He
reaped IN bitter pain the rewards of
his weakness.
His patriotism and religious devo-
ton is seen in the manner in which he
received the message that his sons
had met death and Israel had suf-
was their due. and no word Of iamen-
tation escaped his lips. When he