Re:Verse passage – Judges 2–8; 1 Samuel 3:1-11 (day six)
“…you and they have become fat from the best offerings of my people Israel.” 1 Samuel 2:29 (NLT)
Their hearts are fat and gross, but I delight in your law. Psalm 119:70 (NRSV)
Eli. What was it about Eli that was so grave? 1 Samuel 2:29 gives us two reasons. He honored his sons more than he honored God, and he got fat off the portions of meat his sons took from the people’s offerings. Furthermore, he did not take their desecration of the Lord’s offerings and the tabernacle seriously. While Eli knew the extent of his sons’ sins, he did very little to stop them. He issued them a warning, but no more.
Although Eli was nearly blind, he enabled his sons sin with his eyes wide open. His heart had become fat and gross; rather than being jealous for God’s holiness and glory, he minimized their sin.
This account gives me pause. Do I minimize my sin? Do I enjoy the promises of my sin, more than the promises of God? Have I grown fat from the glut of my own sin?
Invite the Holy Spirit to examine your own heart.
