Author Archives: Joseph Malekani

1 Samuel 12 Commentary. God has been Israel’s king all this time. He has been a very good king. He has rescued the nation from many troubles. But why has Israel asked for a king? The great prophet cannot understand. He looks into the history books. He finds nothing but generosity and care. Yes, deliverancesContinueContinue reading “1 Samuel 12 Commentary”

1 Samuel 11 Commentary. You would wish Nahash the Ammonite was joking. He wasn’t. These times were marked by extreme brutality. From the N.I.V. Bible notes, we learn that Nahash had inflicted similar brutality on the Trans-Jordan tribes of Reuben and Gad. His presence in the West seems to be a continuation of the same.ContinueContinue reading “1 Samuel 11 Commentary”

1 Samuel 10 Commentary. Saul is a lucky boy! Look at all the many signs that the great prophet Samuel gives him! Which saint hasn’t prayed for signs? But Saul is given several time-specific and event-specific signs – all in one day. What a start to ministry! In addition to authenticating the calling, the signsContinueContinue reading “1 Samuel 10 Commentary”

1 Samuel 9 Commentary. Chapter 8 closed with one action item on Samuel’s agenda. He needed to find a king for the nation of Israel.Chapter 9 introduces us to Kish’s son, Saul. He is looking for his father’s lost donkeys. How the mission to find the missing donkeys becomes the mission to find Israel’s firstContinueContinue reading “1 Samuel 9 Commentary”

1 Samuel 8 Commentary Now there have been many of those priests, since death prevented them from continuing in office; but because Jesus lives forever, he has a permanent priesthood. Hebrews 7:23-24 NIV. Old age and eventually death prevented the good Judge Samuel from continuing in office. The replacements, his sons, were not very differentContinueContinue reading “1 Samuel 8 Commentary”

1 Samuel 7 Commentary What may easily escape our attention is the fact that Samuel served as Israel’s Judge for a very long time. He had also served as a priest during his formative years under Chief Priest Eli. However, it’s his pastoral work that has been so extensively covered that many only know himContinueContinue reading “1 Samuel 7 Commentary”

1 Samuel 6 Commentary You wonder why the Philistines kept the Ark for such a long time. The guess is that they reckoned keeping Israel’s god in captivity amounted to disarming Israel. Without this god, Israel was impotent, so they must have thought. The Philistines shared the same primitive and sinful mentality with Israel thatContinueContinue reading “1 Samuel 6 Commentary”

1 Samuel 5 Commentary The battle between Israel and the Philistines is ended. The Philistines emerge victoriously. Israel is left licking her wounds while burying her dead. The Philistines take with them what they think is Israel’s defeated god – the revered Ark of the Covenant.Events in this chapter are important for those engaged inContinueContinue reading “1 Samuel 5 Commentary”

1 Samuel 4 Commentary Eli dies. His two sons, the wicked priests, Hophni and Phinehas, also die. The Ark of the LORD is captured. 34,000 soldiers die in battle. A son is born to Phinehas’ wife. He is named Ichabod, meaning, ‘the Glory has departed from Israel.’ Then Phinehas’ wife dies. Eli’s death is causedContinueContinue reading “1 Samuel 4 Commentary”

1 Samuel 3 Commentary In those days, the word of the LORD was rare. Probably because there was no one to listen. Israel’s spirituality was at its lowest, typical of the time of the Judges. Yes, the word of the LORD is rare even at the House of the LORD at Shiloh! But the LORDContinueContinue reading “1 Samuel 3 Commentary”