Reading for February 15th

Read 1 Samuel 2.11-26
In 2.11-26: the wicked sons of Eli.
Samuel's faithful service contrasts with the evil deeds of Eli's sons and hints that he will replace Eli.
In verses 12-17: Priests make their living by receiving a portion of the sacrifice.
The custom in Shiloh (vv. 13-14), which is different from that prescribed elsewhere (Lev 7.28--36; Deut 18.3), was for the priest to get whatever the fork brought up while the meat was boiling.
By demanding the fat portion, which properly belonged to God, and taking it first, before the sacrifice was made, Eli's sons were sinning directly against the Lord (v. 25) by treating him with contempt    (vv. 12, 17).
Moreover they threatened violence against worshipers who tried to do right (v. 16).
In verse 18: The linen ephod was kind of apron worn by priests.
In verse 22: The tent of meeting is another name for the tabernacle, a movable shrine.
Apparently the temple of the Lord at Shiloh (1.3) was actually a tent shrine.
In verse 25: It was the will of the Lord to kill them: This explanation of the obstinacy of Eli's sons is like God's hardening of Pharaoh's heart in Ex 4-12.
Comments or Questions..

Reading for February 14th

Read 1 Samuel 2.1-10
In 2.1-10: The song of Hannah.
This is a psalm of thanksgiving for a national victory that has been placed in Hannah's mouth.
In verse 1; Strength, literally, "horn," seems to make use of the image of a proud animal.
In verse 5: The barren has borne seven: This line probably led to the psalm's insertion.
Hannah had only six children (2.21).
In verse 6: Sheol was the place of the dead, the underworld.
In verse 10: The reference to his king shows that the psalm was written later than Hannah since there was no king of Israel yet in her time.
Anointed, (He., "mashiah") was a title for the king and the source of the term "messiah."
Comments or Questions..

Reading for February 13th

Read 1 Samuel 1.19-28
In 1.19-28: Samuel's birth.
The gift of a son to Hannah shows God's favor toward the disadvantaged and indicates that Samuel is chosen for a special purpose.
In verse 19: Elkanah knew his wife: An idiom for sexual relations.
In verse 20: Samuel's name ostensibly means "God has heard," so the reader expects Hannah to say that she named her son Samuel because "God heard" her prayer her statement that she asked him of the Lord is a pun on the name of Saul instead.
In verse 28: Given is another pun on Saul's name.
This is exactly the same as Saul's name in Hebrew ("sha'ul").
It might even be translated, "He is Saul to the Lord."
These puns indicate that this story was originally about Saul's birth rather than Samuel's, or they may simply be the author's way of alluding to Saul as Israel's first king.
Comments or Questions..

Reading for February 12th

Read 1 Samuel 1.1-18
In 1.1-18: Hannah's request.
In verse 3; Elkanah's annual pilgrimage to the temple of Yahweh or house of the Lord (v. 7) in Shiloh shows him to be a righteous man.
Lord of hosts or "armies" (Hebew "sebaoth") describes the Lord's leadership in wars both divine and on behalf of Israel.
In verses 5-8: The value of a woman's ability to bear children in ancient Israel lies behind Hannah's depression.
Her bareness is comparable to that of Sarah, Rebekah, and Rachel in Genesis and of Samson's mother in Judg 13.
In verse 11: Nazirites were "devoted" to the Lord for some special purpose and were prohibited from drinking alcohol or eating grapes, cutting their hair or beards, and approaching a dead body (Num 6.1-21).
Intoxicants refer to a form of beer.
In verse 13: Eli thought she was drunk either because his eyesight was poor (3.2) or because he had lost the capacity to discern the sacred from the secular, and therefore could not tell that Hannah was praying.
Comments or Questions..

Reading for February 11th

Read Ephesians 6.21-24
In 6.21-24: The Epistolary closing.
In verse 21: Tychicus, 4.7; 2 Tim 4.12; Titus 3.12; Acts 2-.4-6.
In verse 22: Col. 4.8.
Comments or Questions..

Reading for February 10th

Read Ephesians 6.10-20
In 6.10-20: A call to arms and prayer for strength to proclaim truth.
In verse 14: Ephesians 4.25.
In verse 17: Helmet of salvation, Isa 59.17.
The sword of the Spirit, the word of God, the only offensive weapon.
In verses 18-20: On the importance of prayer throughout Ephesians, see 1.15-23; 3.14-21.
In verse 20: The ambassador is an envoy sent on behalf of another.
Chains suggest dishonor.
yet the writer accepts the title and only asks for boldness.
Comments or Questions..

Reading for Febraury 9th

Read Ephesians 3.15-6.9
In 5.15-.6.9: Strengthening believers.
Contrasts 5.15-18) clarify the believer's walk; they are strengthened through worship with others (5.18-20) and mutual submission (5.21-6.9).
In verse 20: On continuous thanks, see 1 Thess 5.18; Col 3.17.
In 5.21-6.9: Household codes governed social relations within an extended family.
See Col 3.18-4.1.
Ephesians expands on relations between husbands and wife.
In verses 22-23: Col 3.18-19.
For the writer, the unity of the husband and wife, unlike the unity of Jews and gentiles, does not result in equality.
In 6.1-4: Col 3.20-21.
In verse 3: Deut 5.16.
In verses 5-9: Col 3.22-4.1.
Comments or Questions..