1 Samuel 8

And I was right (see previous post if you don't know what I'm referring to). Just like Eli before him, Samuel grows old and his sons don't follow in his footsteps.

A side note here, if I may - you'll note that priests in this time had children. That means that even though in Samuel's case he was dedicated to the Lord from childhood, he still married and had a family. I really think the modern Catholic church needs to rethink their policy of celibate priests: there is no basis for it in Scripture, aside from an opinion statement from the apostle Paul, and I really think it has done them more harm than good.

Back to this chapter, though, we see that Israel as a nation is aware of the wickedness of Samuel's sons. They demand to be given a king instead, and in so doing reject God's rule over them and His appointed judge. Even when God (through Samuel) warns them of what burden a king will bring they insist on it.

I've spent a lot of time pondering various forms of government, and given the belief in God a theocracy really would be the best option. I look forward to that someday, but the Israelites actually had it at one point! Granted, there were still humans in positions of authority - but rather than having to revolt against them if they turned evil God would simply remove them as He did Eli's sons earlier in this book. Don't get me wrong, I think our democratic setup here in the US is better than most anything else available today... but I look forward with anticipation to a day when the Lord will once again rule over His kingdom here on Earth.

1 Samuel 7

This is a short and straight-forward chapter. Over the decades following the Ark's return, Israel turns back to worshiping the true God, Samuel serves as their judge, and God delivers the Israelites from the Philistines and gives them peace for a goodly span of time. I have the feeling that the good times won't last, though...

1 Samuel 6

As a reaction to the destruction visited upon the Philistines in the previous chapter, they decide to return the Ark of the Covenant to Israel. Along with it they send golden rats and tumors, as a guilt offering to represent the things that had been terrorizing their people. Rats and tumors, rats and tumors... why does that sound familiar? Could it have been an instance of the Bubonic Plague?

They also devise an interesting way of testing to see if these troubles had indeed been sent by the Israelite God - and of course they are proven right (verses 7-12). When the Ark arrives at a nearby Israelite town, the inhabitants celebrate and offer sacrifices to God. Unfortunately it seems that some of them get a bit too close and personal with the Ark. Note to self: if the Ark is ever found again here on Earth, by all means *do not look inside*!