Samuel, Eli, and Yahweh in 1 Samuel 3

In 1 Samuel 3, Yahweh calls out to the young Samuel at night, three times. Each time, Samuel thinks it is Eli calling him and, therefore, runs to him. Each time, Eli states that he didn’t summon Samuel. However, on third time, Eli realizes that it is Yahweh calling to Samuel and tells the latter to answer Yahweh, and Samuel does so on the third calling.

When I was meditating on this story last week, I was struck by the question of why Yahweh allowed Samuel to believe it was Eli that was summoning him those first three times. Yahweh could have called out to Samuel once and make his identity known.

Then the answer came to me.

The purpose of allowing Samuel to think it was Eli who was summoning him was for the benefit of Eli. As verse 8 shows, it was on the third time that Eli realized that it was Yahweh who was talking to Samuel. The message Yahweh delivers to Samuel is a prophecy concerning Eli and his family. Eli knows this is a true prophecy because he knows that it did come from Yahweh.

That’s good writing.