Monday Devo
Scripture:
1 Samuel 4:12-22
12 A man from the tribe of Benjamin ran from the battlefield and arrived at Shiloh later that same day. He had torn his clothes and put dust on his head to show his grief. 13 Eli was waiting beside the road to hear the news of the battle, for his heart trembled for the safety of the Ark of God. When the messenger arrived and told what had happened, an outcry resounded throughout the town.
14 “What is all the noise about?” Eli asked.
The messenger rushed over to Eli, 15 who was ninety-eight years old and blind. 16 He said to Eli, “I have just come from the battlefield—I was there this very day.”
“What happened, my son?” Eli demanded.
17 “Israel has been defeated by the Philistines,” the messenger replied. “The people have been slaughtered, and your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, were also killed. And the Ark of God has been captured.”
18 When the messenger mentioned what had happened to the Ark of God, Eli fell backward from his seat beside the gate. He broke his neck and died, for he was old and overweight. He had been Israel’s judge for forty years.
19 Eli’s daughter-in-law, the wife of Phinehas, was pregnant and near her time of delivery. When she heard that the Ark of God had been captured and that her father-in-law and husband were dead, she went into labor and gave birth. 20 She died in childbirth, but before she passed away the midwives tried to encourage her. “Don’t be afraid,” they said. “You have a baby boy!” But she did not answer or pay attention to them.
21 She named the child Ichabod (which means “Where is the glory?”), for she said, “Israel’s glory is gone.” She named him this because the Ark of God had been captured and because her father-in-law and husband were dead. 22 Then she said, “The glory has departed from Israel, for the Ark of God has been captured.”
12 A man from the tribe of Benjamin ran from the battlefield and arrived at Shiloh later that same day. He had torn his clothes and put dust on his head to show his grief. 13 Eli was waiting beside the road to hear the news of the battle, for his heart trembled for the safety of the Ark of God. When the messenger arrived and told what had happened, an outcry resounded throughout the town.
14 “What is all the noise about?” Eli asked.
The messenger rushed over to Eli, 15 who was ninety-eight years old and blind. 16 He said to Eli, “I have just come from the battlefield—I was there this very day.”
“What happened, my son?” Eli demanded.
17 “Israel has been defeated by the Philistines,” the messenger replied. “The people have been slaughtered, and your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, were also killed. And the Ark of God has been captured.”
18 When the messenger mentioned what had happened to the Ark of God, Eli fell backward from his seat beside the gate. He broke his neck and died, for he was old and overweight. He had been Israel’s judge for forty years.
19 Eli’s daughter-in-law, the wife of Phinehas, was pregnant and near her time of delivery. When she heard that the Ark of God had been captured and that her father-in-law and husband were dead, she went into labor and gave birth. 20 She died in childbirth, but before she passed away the midwives tried to encourage her. “Don’t be afraid,” they said. “You have a baby boy!” But she did not answer or pay attention to them.
21 She named the child Ichabod (which means “Where is the glory?”), for she said, “Israel’s glory is gone.” She named him this because the Ark of God had been captured and because her father-in-law and husband were dead. 22 Then she said, “The glory has departed from Israel, for the Ark of God has been captured.”
Commentary:
4:21–22 Like Eli, Phinehas’s wife seems more concerned with the ark than with her husband. Ichabod means “where is the glory?” She mourns for Israel without the presence of God. Departed (Hb. galah) does not mean just to “go away,” but to be “exiled” (see ESV footnote). She doesn’t know that the Lord is going to demonstrate his glory in the land of Philistia, as seen in ch. 5.
Crossway Bibles, The ESV Study Bible (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2008), 499–500.
Crossway Bibles, The ESV Study Bible (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2008), 499–500.
Questions:
There is a difference between knowing something about God and being in awe of God. We can know the stories. We can recognize the verses. We can sing the songs without thinking about the words. We can talk about God every week and still lose our sense of wonder at who He actually is.
Isaiah experienced something different. When he encountered the glory of God, he was overwhelmed. When he saw God’s holiness and greatness, he was overwhelmed. The God before him was not ordinary. He was weighty. His presence demanded attention. His holiness demanded reverence.
So why do we lose our awe for God? Life can fill our attention with responsibilities, relationships, problems, and plans. Even good things can become so overwhelming that God begins to feel small in comparison. We may still believe He is glorious, but our lives can begin to function as though everything else carries more weight.
Awe begins when we stop and remember who we are standing before. God is not just someone who helps us through our lives. He is the holy God who created us, sustains us, and holds all things in His hands. He is infinitely greater than anything that occupies our attention. We have to look beyond what we need from God and consider God Himself. His holiness. His greatness. His goodness. His authority.
Isaiah experienced something different. When he encountered the glory of God, he was overwhelmed. When he saw God’s holiness and greatness, he was overwhelmed. The God before him was not ordinary. He was weighty. His presence demanded attention. His holiness demanded reverence.
So why do we lose our awe for God? Life can fill our attention with responsibilities, relationships, problems, and plans. Even good things can become so overwhelming that God begins to feel small in comparison. We may still believe He is glorious, but our lives can begin to function as though everything else carries more weight.
Awe begins when we stop and remember who we are standing before. God is not just someone who helps us through our lives. He is the holy God who created us, sustains us, and holds all things in His hands. He is infinitely greater than anything that occupies our attention. We have to look beyond what we need from God and consider God Himself. His holiness. His greatness. His goodness. His authority.
- When was the last time you genuinely felt awe toward God? What was happening, and what about God captured your attention? What does that moment reveal about what tends to awaken your sense of wonder toward Him?
- What tends to compete with your attention and make God feel smaller or less significant in the rhythms of your day? When those things begin to take priority, what changes in the way you think, respond, or relate to God?
- What might need to change (not just in your schedule, but in your heart) for you to devote time to sit in awe of God?
Prayer Topics:
- Ask God to give you a deeper sense of awe at His holiness, greatness, and glory.
- Confess the ways other things have begun to carry more weight in your heart than God.
- Ask God to help you see Him as He truly is, rather than allowing familiarity to make Him ordinary.
- Pray for a heart that responds to God with wonder, reverence, and worship.
This Week's City 7:
Try to commit to memory!
7. How can I trust that the Bible is still God’s Word today? I trust the Bible is still God’s Word today because Jesus rose from the dead, proving He was God and said His words would never pass away. Through the Holy Spirit, God inspired the writing of the Scripture, determined the canon of Scripture and protected the copying of Scripture so that we might know Him and worship Him to this day.
(Matthew 24:35; 2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:16-21; Revelation 22:18-19)
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