Samuel said, Gather all Israel to Mizpah, and I will pray for you to Yahweh.
"Ebenezer ...  Hitherto the Lord has helped us."  (1 Samuel 7:12). H. P. Smith speaks of this as, "a difficulty," "The inscription says, `hitherto the Lord has helped us,' whereas it was not only to this[14] point that Jehovah had helped them, but beyond it."  We can find no fault whatever with this, because it is impossible to set up a memorial for what God is supposed to do in the future!  The name of the stone then means, "Thank God for what he has done for us down till the present time."