His Consistency
"And Samuel judged Israel all the days of his life" (1 Sam 7.15). This was the man who stood in the breach during the time when the rule of Israel passed from the priests to a king. Theocracy, administered through the priesthood, was going to be replaced by monarchy and the rule of Saul.
Samuel was God's man to steer His people through days of great change as, in their disdain for the priesthood, they demanded a king to rule over them. The people of Israel had looked at the nations around them, and wanted to be like them. Through it all, Samuel faithfully judged Israel all the days of his life. When everything apparently is adverse, it is very easy to give up and walk away. However, Samuel was a man who was steadfast in his dependence on God, and it was obvious to all that his character and integrity were beyond reproach. When he was old, and his service nearly ended, Samuel could say to the people:
I am old and grayheaded … and I have walked before you from my childhood unto this day. Behold, here I am: witness against me before the Lord, and before his anointed: whose ox have I taken? or whose ass have I taken? or whom have I defrauded? whom have I oppressed? or of whose hand have I received any bribe to blind mine eyes therewith? and I will restore it you. And they said, Thou hast not defrauded us, nor oppressed us, neither hast thou taken aught of any man's hand. And he said unto them, The Lord is witness against you, and his anointed is witness this day, that ye have not found aught in my hand. And they answered, He is witness (1 Sam 12.2-5)
Evidently Samuel's testimony was respected by all the people and, as Saul and his servant sought for asses that were lost, the servant said to the future king "Behold now, there is in this city a man of God, and he is an honourable man" (9.6). Samuel was consistent in his stance, and would not change his views to meet popular opinion. He stood fast upon divine principles, and thus was known as "a man of God".
Moses is the first man mentioned in Scripture to bear this honoured title: "And this is the blessing, wherewith Moses the man of God blessed the children of Israel before his death" (Deut 33.1). When we study the life of Moses, we find that the whole course of his life was one of devotedness to God and His people. He surrendered the honours and privileges of Pharaoh's palace in order to be identified with God's people. He carried the burden of their grumbling and complaining for 40 years in the wilderness, and was always interceding for them before the throne of God. He was a man jealous for God's glory and holy name. The character of Moses was also seen in Samuel in the critical days of departure that led up to the enthronement of Saul. In the New Testament, Timothy is the only man to have the special designation "man of God" (1 Tim 6.11). In his days there was rebellion amongst God's people, and he had to stand against false teachers, disobedient believers, and the introduction of practical error. Sadly, those features still mark some companies of believers, and there is a great need for men of God who are prepared to stand and be identified with Scriptural principles.
His Circuit
And he went from year to year in circuit to Bethel, and Gilgal, and Mizpeh, and judged Israel in all those places. And his return was to Ramah; for there was his house; and there he judged Israel; and there he built an altar unto the Lord (1 Sam 7.16-17).
The first of the cities on Samuel's circuit was Bethel, meaning 'house of God', and that was a good place to start. We are reminded of the experience of Jacob when he fled from his parents' home in fear of his life. Weary, he lay down to sleep, and had that tremendous dream of a ladder that gave access to Heaven (Gen 28.10-12). When he awoke, the words spoken by God in the dream rang in his ears: "And, behold, I am with thee", and Jacob said "Surely the Lord is in this place; and I knew it not" (vv 15-16). Bethel was the place of Divine Presence. God had also said "and will keep thee", so Jacob was assured of Divine Protection, and the promise "and will bring thee again into this land" gave Jacob confidence as to Divine Guidance. As the house of God, Bethel was marked by God's presence and His power, but Jacob said "I knew it not" (v 16). Sadly, it could be said of many believers today, privileged to have been brought into God's house, "I knew it not". Bethel would one day become a polluted place, and Jeroboam would place an idol there in the shape of a calf, and tell the divided Kingdom it was their god and they must go there to worship. Spiritual principles would be overturned in order to satisfy man's desires, and God's grace and glory would be displaced by a degraded religious system. We must remember Paul's words to Timothy: "that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth" (1 Tim 3.15).
After visiting Bethel, Samuel would go to Gilgal. It was the first place in which the Israelites camped after crossing the Jordan after their wilderness journey. Once again, they had experienced God's power as the waters were divided; a further demonstration of God's might. There, they took 12 stones from the river bed, and built an altar so that, when future generations asked the question "What mean ye by these stones?" (Josh 4.6), they could be told of God's grace and mercy. It was at Gilgal that Israel kept the first Passover in the Promised Land, and they called to remembrance God's power and grace in delivering them out of Egypt. Circumcision was practised again at Gilgal, and a new generation was reminded of a covenant-keeping God. Finally, it was at Gilgal that they ate the old corn of the land; their first taste of God's bountiful provision for them. But, unfortunately, the children of Israel did not conquer the whole land as God had commanded them. Gradually, they drifted away from obedience to their God. Slowly, but surely, the nations once again encroached onto Israel's inheritance, and robbed them of the promised blessings. Once more, God's people became like the nations around them and, consequently, became empty and powerless. They had lost their hold on the reality of the living God. Obedience to God is paramount if we are to enjoy the fulness of His blessings. Gilgal would teach us about the principle of separation unto God from all those things which can be a hindrance to our Christian walk.
From Gilgal, Samuel travelled to Mizpeh, the watchtower of Genesis 31.44-53: "The Lord watch between me and thee, when we are absent one from another" (v 49). Memories of God's goodness to them at Mizpeh would have been very fresh for the people of Israel. When they obeyed Samuel and put away Baalim and Ashtaroth, they gathered together in Mizpeh for repentance and mourning. There they had victory over the Philistines, and acknowledged their dependence upon their God. Mizpeh teaches us that, in God's service, it must be all of Him and nothing of us.
Finally, Samuel returned to Ramah, his home place. It was the place where he lived, worked, died and was buried. He did not come from a leading family, or from a prominent city. He had not graduated from an eminent university but, in Ramah, he would be well known for who he was, what he was, and what he stood for. It was all that Samuel was in his home that fitted him to judge Israel all the days of his life. We sing with the children "Dare to be a Daniel" but, in these days, we also need to embrace the character of Samuel.
(Concluded)
