A Talisman?

1 Samuel 4

            Before I get underway, I just want to rave about the study Bible I use, The NIV Study Bible (New International Version), Fully Revised, 2020. (Here’s an Amazon link.) It is simply a wealth of information and connections. So, credit where credit is due, sometimes my insights in this blog come right out of things that study Bible says—not always, but sometimes. If you’re in the market for a new Bible, I highly recommend it.

            Anyway, 1 Samuel 4: Israel and the Philistines are at war—again. Israel often found herself at a technological disadvantage. With the Canaanites it had been iron-fitted chariots; with the Philistines it was all sorts of other iron weapons. The Israelites seem to have come late into the iron age. (See 1 Samuel 13:16-22.)

            After yet another defeat at the hands of their chronic enemy, the Israelites decide they need the Lord on the battlefield with them, so they haul the ark of the covenant from the tabernacle at Shiloh to Ebenezer where the army is gathered. Unfortunately, their action has no effect: the army suffers a worse defeat and the ark is captured. Now the story goes on and narrates the death of Eli, who seems much more concerned for the ark than for his sons. He seems to have know that hauling the ark to the battle was a bad idea, but, as he has consistently shown, he is too weak-willed to say, “No,” event though he is the priest.

            Why was it a bad idea? The story says that the Lord is enthroned between the cherubim (v. 4). Wouldn’t it be good, even an act of faith, to have the Lord present with them?

            Like many well-meaning actions, the Israelites turned the gracious gift of God into a talisman, a good luck charm, a superstition. So, first, they misunderstood the presence of the Lord, who had been with them in countless battles, without having his throne unceremoniously hiked around. (The only time I can think of that the ark was ever used in a battle was at Jericho, where it led the procession around the city before the Lord knocked the walls down. And that seems like an exception. At Jericho the Lord established a beachhead, a foothold, so that Israel could set up His tabernacle in their land.) So, there was a lack of faith in the Lord. Second, they treated the Lord like the could move Him at their own desire; they forgot who was God and who wasn’t! The Lord is enthroned in the heavens (for example, Psalm 103:19). He graciously condescends to dwell on earth. (Check out Solomon’s prayer of dedication in 1 Kings 8.)

            Turning the gifts of God into a superstition… What does that look like among Christians? We often treat Baptism that way. Many years ago, a grandmother told me that she had baptized her grandbaby in the sink, even though the Baptism was already scheduled at church. While well-intentioned, that smells of a weak faith that doesn’t believe the Lord will preserve the baby’s life until the official day. I’ve dealt with people who don’t understand Baptism as a gift of new life and adoption into the family of God, but saw it simply as some kind of divine life insurance policy. I’ve seen similar abuses of the Lord’s Supper. Then, there are the more run-of-the-mill occasions. I’m often bothered to see athletes cross themselves before an at-bat or some other kind of attempt, and I’m bothered when they point to heaven when they score. Where’s that piety when they lose? If the Lord grants victory, surely he also causes defeat? Few praise God in the loss.

            Let Israel’s loss of the ark, then, be a cautionary tale, and let it spur us to consider, “Am I acting in faith, or am I turning the gifts of God into so much superstition.”