The Pulpit Commentary — 1 Samuel — Section 60

Yers. 22-25. (Smr.oH. )-Ineftective reproof. A man may possess many amiable qnalities, and be, on the whole, a good man, and yet be marked by some defect which mars his character, prcYents his usefulness, and makes him the unintentional cause of much mischief. Such a man was Eli. Of his early life nothing· is recorded. He was a descendant of Ithamar, the youngest son of Aaron, and held tha office of hig·h priest which formerly belonged to the elder branch of the Aaronic family, that of Eleaza; (Num. x.x. 26), but which was now transferred to the younger, from soma unknow~ cause, and which continued therein until the time of Solomon. At tha aga of fifty- eight he became judge, and" judged Israel forty years" (eh. h·. 18). When fir11t mentioned he n)ust have been at least seventy years old. His sons ware children of his old ~ge; for some tim~ afterwards they were spoken o~ as young men ( eh. ii. 17), and, as 1s not uncommon m such cases, he treated them with undue indulgence. He was ~asty :in<l-' sever~ in reproving Ha~ah, but slow and mild in reproying them. The meffic1eney of lns REPROOF appeani m that- • I. IT ,YA$ NOT ADMINISTERED IN PROPER TIME. The tendency to go wrong gener- ally appears at an early age ; and it must have been seen by him in his sons long before the rumour of their flagrant transgnssions reached him, if he had not been blind to their faults. But lie had no adequate sense of his parental responsibility, was old and weak, of a gentle and easy-going temperament, and omitted to reprove them (1 Kings i. 6) until tl!ey had become too strongly devoted to their evil ways"tj> be amenable to expostulat10n. A little plant may ~e easily moted up, btit whe;n it has grown into a tree it can only be rempv.ed .by extraordinary efforts. If some children are " discouraged " (Col. iii. 21) by too much .strictness, far 1I1ore ar~ spoiled by too much indulgence. "Indulgence never produces gratitude or love in'·the heart of a child." II. IT WAS NOT GIVEN WITH SUFFICIENT EARNESTNESS (vers. 23, 24).: ·Gentle re- proof may sometimes be most effective, but here it was out of place.. 1. 1t·was not sujfidently pointed in its application; being given to them collectively rather than individually, in indefinite terms, by way of question, and concerning things which he had heard, but into the certainty of which he had not troubled hiinsel.f to inquire. 2. It exhibited no sufficient sense of the evil of sin (ver. 25). He spo),,e of the con- sequences rather than of the nature, the "exceedi.ng sinfulness " of sin, and spoke of them in a way which indicated little deep personal conviction. 3. It showed no su.ifi-eient determination to correct it. He did not say that he would judge, them for their injustice toward men ; and with reference to their sin against the Lord, which was their chief offence, he simply confessed that he could do nothing but leave them to tlie judgment of a higher tribunal. "In the case where the rebuke should have descended like a bolt from heaven we hear nothing but low and feeble murmurings, coming, as it were, out of the dust. Cruel indeed are the tenderest mercies of parental weakness and indulgence. And the fate of Eli shows that by such tender mercies the father may become the minister of vengeance unto his whole house" (Le Bas). III. IT WAS NOT FOLLOWED BY ADEQUATE CHASTISEMENT. The law of Moses in the case of disobedient children was very severe (Deut. xxi. 18-21). But Eli neither observed this law "when they hearkened not to his voice" (ver. 25), nor took any further steps to prevent the continuanc.e of the evil which he reproved. He had none of the zeal for which Phinehas the son of Eleazar was approved (Num. xxv. 11-13) ; but as a father, a high priest, and a jud?,e he was guilty o~ culpable infirmity and wilful disobedience (eh. iii. 13). "Osiers,' says an old wnter, "can never ho pillars in the State or in the Church." IV. IT DID NOT RESULT IN ANY IMPROVEMENT (ver. 25). Their contempt of rep!oof showed that they were already infatuated, hardened, and a~a~d.on~~ to destruction ; or (reading for= therefore), it filled up the measure of their 1mqmt1es, and exposed them to inevitable judgment. " He that hateth reproof shall 110" ~Prov. xv. l_0). 1. Reproof is often a solemn obligation. 2. It shculd be given m an eff~ctiva manner. 3. WJ1en nut so given it does more harm than good. 4. When Justly g·i\·en it should be humbly and obocliently received.-D. OH, II. 27-36.) THE FIRST BoOK OF SAMUEL. 55