(a) Explain how Eli failed as a parent (b) In what six ways did Israel suffer as a result of Eli's parental irresponsibility? (c) State three lessons that c...

Answer Details

(a) How Eli failed as a parent (1 Samuel 2:12-36; 3:11-14):

• His sons Hophni and Phinehas were worthless men who did not know the Lord, yet Eli allowed them to continue as priests.
• He failed to discipline or restrain them when they sinned grievously against the Lord's offerings and lay with the women serving at the tent of meeting.
• His rebuke was weak and too late. He merely asked, "Why do you do such things?" but did not remove them from office.
• He honoured his sons above God, allowing them to fatten themselves on the choicest parts of the offerings, as the Lord charged through the man of God.
• He tolerated persistent evil and did not act with the firmness his priestly duty and fatherhood demanded.

(b) Six ways Israel suffered as a result of Eli's parental irresponsibility:

• Worship at Shiloh was corrupted, and the people came to despise the offerings of the Lord.
• Israel was defeated by the Philistines at Ebenezer, losing about four thousand men.
• The Ark of God was captured by the Philistines.
• Thirty thousand foot soldiers of Israel fell in the second battle.
• Hophni and Phinehas were killed on the same day, and Eli himself fell and died.
• The glory departed from Israel, commemorated in the naming of Ichabod; the nation was plunged into mourning and shame.

(c) Three lessons from the attitude of Eli:

• Parents must discipline and correct their children early and firmly, not indulge them.
• God must be honoured above family ties; partiality toward children over duty to God brings disaster.
• Negligence in responsibility carries grave consequences, both for the individual and for the wider community.