Commentary on 1 Samuel 2, part 3

But Samuel ministered before the Lord,
being a child, girded with a linen ephod. 1 Sam 2:18

Samuel is still a child while Eli’s sons are grown. He was brought to the temple to be raised by Eli, when he was weaned. It may be that he was 2 or 2 years old, or maybe 6 or 7, old enough to be separated from his mother. Surely his mother Hannah taught him well, but still he was a child when he left her. Her trust in the Lord is again shown; how else could she have left her son with Eli, knowing the sins of his sons?

So Eli raises the child Samuel in his old age, long after he would normally have a child. Did the example of his own sons motivate Eli to teach Samuel God’s ways? Perhaps, but Eli still did not restrain his own sons, because while Samuel was growing, the news of the sins of Phineas and Hophni came to Eli, and was common knowledge country. Even as a child we have the choice to be obedient or willful. Samuel chose obedience to God.

Obedience is rewarded by God, no matter how small the matter may seem. The child Samuel “ministered before the Lord, and as a result, grew in favor with the Lord. Phineas and Hophni continued in their greed and lusts, and as a result, the family of Eli was removed from the service of God.