1 Samuel 7:3 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And Samuel said to all the house of Israel, “If you are returning to the LORD with all your heart, then put away the foreign gods and the Ashtaroth from among you and direct your heart to the LORD and serve him only, and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines.”

NIV: So Samuel said to all the Israelites, 'If you are returning to the LORD with all your hearts, then rid yourselves of the foreign gods and the Ashtoreths and commit yourselves to the LORD and serve him only, and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines."

NASB: Then Samuel spoke to all the house of Israel, saying, 'If you are returning to the Lord with all your heart, then remove the foreign gods and the Ashtaroth from among you, and direct your hearts to the Lord and serve Him alone; and He will save you from the hand of the Philistines.'

CSB: Samuel told them, "If you are returning to the Lord with all your heart, get rid of the foreign gods and the Ashtoreths that are among you, set your hearts on the Lord, and worship only him. Then he will rescue you from the Philistines."

NLT: Then Samuel said to all the people of Israel, 'If you want to return to the Lord with all your hearts, get rid of your foreign gods and your images of Ashtoreth. Turn your hearts to the Lord and obey him alone; then he will rescue you from the Philistines.'

KJV: And Samuel spake unto all the house of Israel, saying, If ye do return unto the LORD with all your hearts, then put away the strange gods and Ashtaroth from among you, and prepare your hearts unto the LORD, and serve him only: and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines.

NKJV: Then Samuel spoke to all the house of Israel, saying, “If you return to the Lord with all your hearts, then put away the foreign gods and the Ashtoreths from among you, and prepare your hearts for the Lord, and serve Him only; and He will deliver you from the hand of the Philistines.”

The people of the Lord have been suffering under the oppression of the Philistines for at least twenty years. All the while, the ark of the Lord has sat in silence in the small town of Kiriath-jearim (1 Samuel 7:1–2) after being captured and then returned by the Philistines (1 Samuel 4—6).

Samuel re-enters the narrative as the mature prophet of the Lord and judge over Israel. His words read like the continuation of a conversation between the people of Israel and the Lord (1 Samuel 7:2). They have had enough of the oppression of their enemies, and they are ready to call out to the Lord to deliver them, following the repeated pattern of the book of Judges (Judges 10:6–16).

Samuel's message to the people is simple: Repent in more than mere words. If you mean it in your hearts, then take these three actions: Put away all the foreign gods you have been worshiping. Focus yourselves on the Lord. Serve Him only.

Israel's chronic sin before the Lord was to serve the false gods and goddesses of neighboring nations. The names of these foreign gods were often shortened to "the Baals" for the male gods and "the Ashtaroth" for the female gods. In various forms, Baal was the god of fertility and Ashtaroth—or Astarte—was the goddess of love and war. The peoples of nearly every nation worshiped versions of these gods in hopes of receiving blessing and protection. The Israelites joined in. They did not wholly abandon knowledge of God, but instead added worship of false gods to their on-and-off service to the Lord.

Samuel's promise to the people was that the Lord would once again deliver them from the Philistines, but only if they would truly repent from their sin (Exodus 20:3; Deuteronomy 6:4–5).

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.

First Samuel 7 begins with the arrival of the previously captured ark of the covenant (1 Samuel 4—6) at Kiriath-jearim. There it sits for twenty years. Samuel then calls the people to repent and throw away the foreign gods they have been worshiping. At Mizpah, the nation is gathered to confess their sin and fast. With the Philistines approaching, Samuel offers a sacrifice and cries out to God. The Lord confuses the Philistines, and the Israelites strike them down and force them out of Israelite territory. Unfortunately, after this, Israel will seek to appoint a king so they can be like the other nations in the area (1 Samuel 8).

First Samuel introduces the key figures who led Israel after the era of the judges. The books of 1 and 2 Samuel were originally part of a single text, split in certain translations shortly before the birth of Christ. Some of the Bible’s most famous characters are depicted in this book. These including the prophet Samuel, Israel’s first king, Saul, her greatest king, David, and other famous names such as Goliath and Jonathan. By the end of this book, Saul has fallen; the book of 2 Samuel begins with David’s ascension to the throne.