Word of Encouragement (09/05/2023)

Is it not wheat harvest today? I will call upon the LORD, that he may send thunder and rain. And you shall know and see that your wickedness is great, which you have done in the sight of the LORD, in asking for yourselves a king." ¹⁸ So Samuel called upon the LORD, and the LORD sent thunder and rain that day, and all the people greatly feared the LORD and Samuel. (1 Sam. 12:17-18)

Saul had settled in as king nicely after successfully defeating the Ammonites. So, Samuel summoned Israel to Gilgal for a covenant renewal. Now that Israel entered a new phase as a monarchy, it was appropriate that they renewed their covenant with God. There, Samuel reviewed the history of Israel’s rebellion, including the recent incident of asking for a king, and God’s faithfulness to them despite their wickedness. As he concluded his talk, he spoke the words in today’s passage. He would ask the LORD to send thunder and rain as a sign of His great displeasure. Why this sign?

Israel had two harvest seasons: the first one in the spring for the grains (barley and wheat); the second one in the summer (grapes) and fall (olives). Because there was no irrigation in Israel, bountiful harvests depended on the timely rains—the early rain in the fall for the planting of seed and the latter rain in the spring for the ripening of the grains. You can imagine how rain at the wrong time can damage the crops, especially if heavy rains come at harvest time. This covenant renewal took place during the time of wheat harvest (v. 17). Samuel prayed for thunder and rain, and God answered his prayer right away. So then, they were a sign of God’s displeasure with Israel for asking for a king. The deafening sound of thunder that accompanied the rain made this even clearer.

This caused the Israelites to see their true condition and stirred up a response that was more appropriate for this covenant renewal: “…all the people greatly feared the LORD and Samuel. And all the people said to Samuel, ‘Pray for your servants to the LORD your God, that we may not die, for we have added to all our sins this evil, to ask for ourselves a king’” (12:18-19). They recognized the gravity of their sins and what they deserved—nothing less than death. In fear and trembling, they asked Samuel to pray for them to the LORD.

Just as the Israelites at Mount Sinai had asked Moses to intermediate between them and God at the sight of God’s fiery glory and the sound of His thundering voice, the Israelites at Gilgal asked Samuel to intercede for them at Gilgal at the terrifying sound of thunder and the sight of untimely rain. When the Israelites faced the awesome appearance of God, they knew that they could not deal with God on their own; they desperately needed a mediator. Moses, Samuel, and some others served as mediators between God and His people.

But what qualified them to serve in this role? Was it because they were better than those sinful, rebellious Israelites? How much “better” should they be? Did it matter when “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Rom. 3:23)? Surely, even Moses and Samuel were not without sin and blemish? Was Moses not banned from entering the promised land? When the glory descended on the tabernacle and filled it, even Moses could not enter it. How about Samuel? Was he not guilty of something similar to Eli’s sin regarding his sons? God in His justice should not have allowed sinners, even Moses and Samuel, to mediate between Him and His people. “For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time” (1 Tim. 2:5-6).

Do you see? Moses and Samuel were allowed to mediate because, through their faith in the coming Messiah, they had received Jesus’ forgiveness. Because they were declared righteous through faith in (the coming) Jesus, they were allowed to intercede for Israel (as types of Jesus Christ). And because Jesus is our perfect Mediator, we can bring our petitions to God in His name and know that He will hear us. Let us not waste this privilege. Let’s get busy praying, not only for ourselves but also for others as intercessors in the likeness of Christ: “Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us” (Rom. 8:34).