1 Samuel 2:28
And did I choose him out of all the tribes of Israel to be my priest, to offer upon mine altar, to burn incense, to wear an ephod before me? and did I give unto the house of thy father all the offerings made by fire of the children of Israel?
God chose the house of Eli's father out of all the tribes of Israel to be His priests, to offer upon His altar, to burn incense, to wear the ephod before Him, and to receive all the offerings made by fire from Israel. That appointment was an honored privilege and sacred trust for doing His will and keeping His service holy, so that unfaithfulness was grave ingratitude and betrayal, and God's gifts made those entrusted accountable rather than excused. Eli's sons abused that office by selfishness, covetousness, and open contempt for God's authority, defrauding Israel of the offerings, polluting the sanctuary, and leading the people to despise the worship pointing to Christ's sacrifice. Eli knew their sins yet put his sons above God, reproving them without promptly restraining them or removing them from the Lord's service as judge and high priest. Therefore God rebuked and cut off his house without pardon, bringing disaster, death, and ruin to parent, sons, and thousands in Israel, which warns that fathers are accountable to God for promptly restraining and training children in the way of the Lord rather than indulgently letting rebellion become confirmed habit.
Chosen Priesthood and Betrayal
God singled out the house of Eli's father from all the tribes of Israel to be His priests, to offer upon His altar, to burn incense, to wear an ephod before Him, and to receive all the offerings made by fire from the children of Israel. Eli stood as both high priest and judge in Israel, alone permitted to enter the most holy place once a year, while his sons ministered at the door of the tabernacle in slaying the beasts and at the altar of sacrifice. That choice from among the tribes for the honored work of the priesthood, with its service at God's altar in carrying out His will, was an entrusted privilege.
That service and provision were sacred trusts given to keep the service holy and to honor God. Their very greatness made failure to honor Him an act of grave ingratitude, dishonor, and betrayal of trust. Appointment and gifts do not excuse unfaithfulness, but make those entrusted with sacred office accountable for honoring Him.
His sons abused that sacred office through selfishness, covetousness, gluttony, defrauding Israel of the offerings, bold transgression of God's law, and violent conduct that caused Israel to sin and polluted the sanctuary. Their sin was not a sin of man against man for which officiating priests could atone, but open contempt for God's own authority committed by priests themselves, leaving no one to atone for them. Their irreverence and corruption obscured the meaning of the offerings as symbols pointing to Christ's sacrifice, and led the people to despise the worship God had appointed. That evil led thousands in Israel to ruin.
Eli knew of his sons' sins and reproved them, but he did not promptly and firmly restrain them or remove them from the Lord's service. As responsible judge and high priest he should have at once removed them from the priesthood and judged them even to death for their abominable example. He put his sons above God and allowed them to misuse the sacred offerings. Permitting guilty men to remain as priests leads the people to lightly regard crime and to despise the sacrificial offerings.
Reproof, Retribution, and Parenthood
This verse stands in God's messages of warning, reproof and threatened judgment against Eli's house for the evils polluting the sanctuary and leading thousands in Israel to ruin, warnings of which Eli's sons were told and which they knew. The threatened judgments were delayed year after year to leave time to redeem past failures by true repentance that confesses guilt and renounces sin and by effective measures to correct the evils. Eli confessed guilt and made the warnings to his house known to the whole nation hoping to counteract the evil influence of his neglect, but he did not manifest true repentance or take effective action. The priests disregarded the warnings as the people did, and God's forbearance caused Hophni and Phinehas to harden their hearts and become still bolder in transgression.
God could not give His message through Eli as high priest or through his sons because their sins like a thick cloud had shut out the presence of His Holy Spirit. The child Samuel remained true to Heaven in the midst of that evil. Carrying the message of condemnation to Eli's house became Samuel's commission as a prophet of the Most High.
For that unfaithfulness God rebuked and cursed Eli's house, declaring He would not pardon the sons' transgressions or bless the house but would cut them off in their sins. Eli was cursed because he did not promptly and firmly restrain his wicked sons. God declared that his family would lose victories in battle and be given over to its enemies because of their unfaithfulness. On hearing that Israel had lost the battle Eli fell backward and died.
The account warns that God holds fathers responsible for neglecting duty at home even when experienced and engaged in His work. Parental indulgence of wrongdoing brings God's disapproval and can ruin both the children and others. Parents will be called to render an account to God for sinful neglect in failing to teach children from the cradle to submit their wills and ways and to know and keep the way of the Lord. They must promptly and firmly restrain rebellion instead of fondly and indulgently letting children grow up from babyhood without restraint until their forward, selfish, disagreeable ways become confirmed habits. That neglect leaves them self-willed, stubborn, irritable, self-sufficient, and ugly in spirit.
Eli's sin was believing himself wiser than his Creator and following human wisdom instead of God's commands in His word for training children. That self-confident course, especially dangerous in one standing in holy office, neglects earnest, anxious prayer for how to order the child and trusts learning and intelligence above what God has given. It proves God's word the only safe guide in the management of children, for human philosophy has devised no wiser plan. The curse of Eli comes likewise upon parents who fail to educate their children to know and keep the way of the Lord when fathers and mothers indulge fashionable dress, pride, and worldly display instead of training their children in simplicity, modesty, and beautiful character. Fathers who minister in word and doctrine bear special responsibility, and their children must be examples of what is taught in the pulpit, meeting the Lord's standard rather than the approval of the world. The Elis are numerous in this age, and their sin is no less aggravating to God than in the days of Eli.
The result of such indulgence is terrible: disaster and death to the parent, ruin to wicked sons, and ruin to thousands in Israel. Surrounding nations grew bolder in idolatry and crime because Israel had not preserved integrity, making a day of retribution and God's interposition necessary to maintain the honor of His name. When such undisciplined spirits come together in the church they destroy peace, unity, love, and patience, causing nine tenths of church difficulties. The warning about indulgence toward sons who do wrong should have taught Samuel to guard against indulgence with his own sons, but he was to some extent too indulgent with them. They did not copy his pure, unselfish life but turned aside after lucre and took bribes and perverted judgment.