SAMUEL 25

and took a sucking lamb, and offered it for a burnt offering unto the. Lord. And Samuel
cried unto the Lord for Israel, and the Lord heard him. For we are. told that, as Samuel
was offering up the burnt offering, and the Philistines drew near to battle, there was a
terrible thunder-storm and they could not fight, but ran away, and many of them were
killed. But Samuel the priest did-not forget to thank God. He took a large stone and
set it up in the place where the Philistines were defeated, and he called the name of the
place Ebenezer, which means “The Lord helped us.” The other time that we are told
about Samuel ministering before the Lord as a priest, was much later in his life. It was
when Saul reigned over the ‘Israelites. “The people were again in great danger, for.
they were surrounded by an army of 36,000 Philistines, while they were only 3,000 in
number. And they were waiting for Samuel, who had promised to come in seven days,
and offer a sacrifice to God, and ask Him to help them. But the king grew impatient as
the days went by one by one, until he would wait no longer. So he ordered the people
to bring the beasts for the sacrifice, and although he was a king and not a priest, he
offered them on the altar. Just as he had finished Samuel came, and when he saw what
_ the king had done he spoke fearlessly to him in plain and stern words. He told him that
he had done wickedly in taking on himself the work of a priest, instead of waiting patiently
for Samuel to come. And he warned him that his kingdom would soon come to an end.
God would not have a king who liked his own will better than God’s will to rule over His
chosen people, but had already chosen another to be king in his place who would keep
His commandments. So Samuel ministered before the Lord as a faithful priest, doing
his duty to God without fear of man.

But he was a prophet as well as a priest. Do you know what the work of a
prophet was? Sometimes he was a man who was taught by God to foretell things which
were going to happen. And more than once Samuel was a prophet of this kind.
He foretold what God said would happen to Eli’s two sons, Hophni and Phinehas,
how they would both die in one day. And his prophecy came true, for very soon
after they took the ark of God out of the Tabernacle, and carried it into a battle with
the Philistines, thinking they would win the victory. But instead of that they were both
slain and the ark of God was taken by the enemy. Do you remember how Eli, who was
ninety-eight years old, when the sad news came to him, fell backwards from the seat by the
side of the gate, where he sat waiting to hear the result of the battle, and broke his neck
and died? Again, Samuel foretold that King Saul’s reign would be a very short one, and
’ that he would be succeeded, not by his son Jonathan, but by astranger. This too came true
not long after he said it. .But a prophet did. not always foretell. Sometimes he preached
to the people and told them about God. Samuel did so when they wanted to have a king .
~ when God was their King. He warned them, as plainly as he could, that they would

displease God, and bring trouble on themselves. But.they refused to obey the voice of
Samuel, and they said, “Nay ; but we will have a king to reign over us.”

What a true prophet he was too when, after Saul had disobeyed God, and would not
put Agag, the King of Amalek, to death, and kept some of the sheep and oxen, and the
best of everything, and had only destroyed what was vile and worthless. When he

‘heard what the king had done, he was very grieved, and cried unto the Lord all night.
And as soon as it was day he went straight to Gilgal where he heard Saul was, and he told
him what God had taught him. It was a terrible message and Saul might have been very
angry and put him to death. But Samuel was not afraid of his anger, as he said,
“ Because thou hast rejected the word of the Lord, He hath also rejected thee from being
king.” ,

It was also the business of a prophet to anoint those who were made kings, and twice

we are told Samuel did this. The first time was when in obedience to God’s command he

anointed Saul to be king over Israel. Weare told that he took a vial of oil and poured it

upon his head, and kissed him, and said, “Is it not because the Lord hath anointed thee
Cc