Isaiah Roman

Spiritual Warfare

“There came a man of God [perhaps prophet or angel] unto Eli, and said unto him, Thus says the LORD, Did I plainly appear unto the house of your father, when they were in Egypt in Pharaoh’s house? And did I choose him out of all the tribes of Israel to be my priest, to offer upon my altar, to burn incense, to wear an ephod before me? and did I give unto the house of your father all the offerings made by fire of the children of Israel?
Wherefore do you kick at my sacrifice and at my offering, which I have commanded in my habitation; and honor your sons above me, to make yourselves fat with the chiefest of all the offerings of Israel my people?
Wherefore the LORD God of Israel says, I said indeed that your house, and the house of your father, should walk before me for ever: but now the LORD says, Be it far from me; for them that honor me I will honor, and they that despise me shall be lightly esteemed.
Behold, the days come, that I will cut off your arm, and the arm of your father’s house, that there shall not be an old man in your house. And you shall see an enemy in my habitation, in all the wealth which God shall give Israel: and there shall not be an old man in your house for ever. And the man of yours, whom I shall not cut off from my altar, shall be to consume your eyes, and to grieve your heart: and all the increase of your house shall die in the flower of their age. And this shall be a sign unto you, that shall come upon your two sons, on Hophni and Phinehas; in one day they shall die both of them.
I will raise me up a faithful priest, that shall do according to that which is in my heart and in my mind: and I will build him a sure house; and he shall walk before my anointed for ever. And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left in your house shall come and crouch (beg) to him for a piece of silver and a morsel of bread, and shall say, Put me, I pray you, into one of the priests’ offices, that I may eat a piece of bread.(I Samuel 2: 27-36).

The preceding prophecy came to Eli the Priest of God as he ministered the offerings before the Lord.

The history of Israel reveals a repetition dominant in human nature. It is cyclic; the story can be started in any particular time and with regularity it will predictably come full circle. In the case of Adam there is evidence in scripture of a perfect creation (Genesis 1: 31). There was a perfect life support system called earth. The needs of the inhabitants were simple and few. There was food, water and health. Everything was in place for a pleasant, complete life filled with joy…until temptation entered Eden.

In Adam’s case the fallen angel Lucifer became the adversary of man (Satan), who deceived Adam with a challenge to his pride; the same pride which was the direct cause of Satan’s own rebellion. He promised Adam something he was unable to give; everlasting life. If he could deceive Adam to eat the forbidden fruit and know good and evil man could then eat of the tree of life in the garden and live eternally. God thwarted the latter and cast Adam out of the Garden, sealing it to, making it impossible for mankind to find it until He is ready to put mankind back in that paradise in the end time. The Messiah holds the key to the tree of life.

Adam and Eve succumbed to temptation and they were cast out of the garden. By 1656 years there was complete corruption. It had become so great the Creator “repented” himself and brought a flood upon the entire planet and destroyed every flesh and blood creature off the face of the earth. God was able to find only one man – Noah –  who had kept God’s law. He was carried over the flood in a vessel to the other side to begin to replenish the earth.
In four hundred more years Noah’s descendants had become corrupted again, but instead of letting mankind reach to it’s ultimate depths, God destroyed the things that bound men together. This time God called one man, Abram (Abraham), who was selected to begin a chosen people to keep God’s law and be a line of men and women to raise up a mediator between God and man in an extended family.

God determined a set of circumstances whereby he would develop a called out people through whom he would again prove His love for his creation and his justice for man and through whom the people would be called to remember their creator.

Throughout the history of the world this cycle would be repeated time and time again until proving beyond a shadow of a doubt that God is faithful and mankind is fickle. The nature of man can never be satisfied; it is always driven to search for power to take over God’s creation. But, when time required, when all of God’s promises had been fulfilled and when mankind had almost fully rejected Him, God sent another Noah. This time the person was both the savior, and the means of salvation for all mankind. This person accompanied another form of flood; the flood of the water of life through the Holy Spirit.

These cycles of decline and revival can be seen throughout all human history. Mankind attempts to assert itself as gods and God reveals himself through his creation. These cycles are regular and predictable. The symptoms of decline are clear and it all begins with the usurpation of the authority of God within the will of men.

Eli was the chief priest of Abraham’s descendants at the beginning of the period of time in which is the setting or background of this piece. Eli had neglected the teaching and enforcement of God’s law1 given at Sinai to Moses for Jacob’s children. His two sons Hophni and Phinehas had become arrogant and were making a mockery of the worship of God in the Tabernacle which was located at that time at Shiloh in the inheritance of Judah the son of Jacob.

Instead of being the servants of God they had usurped the priesthood; they were no longer “the image of God” they had usurped the province of being God toward Israel. This was the height of blasphemy and God was about to punish Eli and his two sons with the ultimate; the wages of sin is death. God – in this – was demonstrating his properties of love and justice as well as his overweening care over his chosen people Israel. But this usurpation effected more than just Eli and his sons. Sin has grave and great repercussions and extends itself outward in ways only God can perceive.

God’s appearance to create the earth was the first time He came as reported in the oldest book of the Bible. The “sons of God” (the angelic chorus) gave forth a shout of praise2. This may well have been the “big bang” scientists speak of.

Atheist evolutionists have given credence to this cycle of events without knowing it. These men and women rob God of His rightful glory and assert themselves as the meaning of creation. Is it any surprise that they must destroy all recognition of the true meaning of this event? It is an attempt to replace God!3

“When the ark of the covenant of the LORD came into the camp, all Israel shouted with a great shout, so that the earth rang again.
“The Philistines were afraid, for they said, God is come into the camp. And they said, Woe unto us! for there hath not been such a thing heretofore. Woe unto us! who shall deliver us out of the hand of these mighty Gods? these are the Gods that smote the Egyptians with all the plagues in the wilderness. Be strong, and quit yourselves like men, O ye Philistines, that you be not servants unto the Hebrews, as they have been to you: quit yourselves like men, and fight.”
“The Philistines fought, and Israel was smitten, and they fled every man into his tent: and there was a very great slaughter; for there fell of Israel thirty thousand footmen. And the ark of God was taken; and the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were slain.” (I Samuel 4:5,7-10)

This is the fulfillment of the prophecy given in the 2nd chapter quoted at the beginning of this article. Through it’s fulfillment God establishes His authority as the “only” God and Creator of the universe. Eli sinned in not restraining his sons. Hophni and Phinehas, corrupted the worship of the One True Almighty for lack of fatherly discipline. The failures of one generation to teach the next of God spread outward rapidly. Beacuse of this God brought disaster upon Israel and the destruction of Eli’s “house” or family.

The cycle of decline and revival has gone on throughout all human history. Some have begun to wonder if it will not simply continue as it is throughout all time. There is, however, and end to God’s patience. Just as those men before the flood became thoroughly corrupt and were destroyed, we – if we become as corrupt – will surely be destroyed. This too was promised by God.

Yet, God is merciful! He “made a way to escape” as it were when His people go astray. The Messiah is the ark, the measure and the means of the salvation of mankind:

“If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land” (II Chronicles 7:14).

This promise was made to the children of Israel under Moses. God promised through Moses there would be another “way to escape” for those that were to follow.

“The Lord thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto him ye shall hearken.” (Deuteronomy 18:154)

God’s Messiah or Mediator5 is the prophet in Deuteronomy 18:15, who is Jesus the Christ the one who was promised to Abraham that would come in “the latter day” to reconcile all things. There is only one way to escape the cycle of destruction brought about by men; Look to God and live.

1. And Moses came and told the people all the words of the Lord, and all the judgments: and all the people answered with one voice, and said, All the words which the Lord hath said will we do. (Exodus 24:3)
2. Job 38:73
3. Isaiah 14:4-5; Satan was stripped of all authority when he rebelled against God and was cast out of heaven (Revelations 12: 9) down to the earth (See Job 1: 7 and I Peter 5: 8). Lucifer who became the Adversary, Satan, had no power when he lost that authority. With the greater knowledge he had Satan is able to deceive men and through deception, as he did with Adam (Genesis chapter 3), use men to do his work and set the plan in motion mentioned in Isaiah. Either willingly or unwittingly men serve Satan. Many times through that deception they are completely unaware that they are serving Satan and think they do God’s work (Matthew 12: 30).
4. See also Psalm 2: 7-8; Matthew 17: 15; Mark 9: 7; Luke 20: 13; messianic prophecies.
5. days man; Job 9: 33; Job 19: 25-27