What does 1 Samuel 7:5 mean?
After the people have repented of their sinful worship of foreign gods and have begun to serve the Lord (1 Samuel 7:4), Samuel calls for a nationwide gathering to be held at a place called Mizpah. Most scholars agree that this is the same as modern-day Tel en-Nasbeh, a short distance north of Jerusalem. A walled structure at Mizpah may have been used to guard the road between Judah and Ephraim. The nation was also called to assemble at Mizpah in Judges 20—21 and later in Samuel when Saul is appointed to be Israel's first king (1 Samuel 10:17–27).In his call to gather at Mizpah, Samuel promises to pray to the Lord for the people. One of Samuel's jobs as prophet and judge over Israel was to pray to God on their behalf (1 Samuel 7:8; 12:23; Jeremiah 15:1).
First Samuel 7:3–14 begins with Samuel's instructions for the people to throw away their foreign gods and serve the Lord only. The nation gathers at Mizpah to confess and repent. Seeing what looks like an amassed army, the Philistines plan an attack. Samuel offers a sacrifice and cries out to the Lord, who thunders against the Philistines and throws them into confusion. The Israelites strike them down and drive them out of Israelite territory. Israel also has peace with the local Amorites.
Twenty years after the ark of the Lord is taken to Kiriath-jearim, Samuel calls for the people to repent. They should discard foreign gods and serve the true Lord. Gathered at Mizpah, the people confess their sin. With the Philistines approaching to attack, Samuel offers a sacrifice and cries out to God. The Lord responds with loud thunder against the Philistines and throws them into confusion. The Israelites strike them down and drive them out of Israelite territory. Samuel serves as judge over Israel for the rest of his life.
