Two Disrespectful Sons and Priests
Hophni and Phinehas are priests, just like their father Eli. Hophni and Phinehas, however, do not behave as proper priests should.
When the people come to offer their sacrifices, Hophni and Phinehas fail to respect the offerings or handle them as prescribed by Moses.
In doing so they show contempt for the gifts the people make to God. Furthermore, Hophni and Phinehas sleep with the women who serve at the tent of meeting.
Eli hears about what his sons are doing and confronts them, trying to get them to change their evil behavior. But his sons don’t listen to their father’s attempt to correct their actions. They continue doing what they’ve always done.
One of the Lord’s prophets comes to Eli with a harsh rebuke from God. Because of their wickedness, the prophet foretells that Hophni and Phinehas will both die on the same day. In their place, God will provide a new priest, a faithful leader.
Though we may think this new priest alludes to the young boy Samuel, Samuel never becomes a priest (though he does become a great prophet).
Samuel can’t become a priest because he’s not a descendant of Aaron. Instead, this prophecy looks forward to the priesthood of Jesus, anointed to minister forever.
As prophesied, Hophni and Phinehas both die on the same day. In doing so, God ends their wickedness.
How do we respond when God convicts us of our wrong actions?
Do we think that, because of God’s mercy, we can ignore what he tells us to do?
[Read about Hophni and Phinehas in 1 Samuel 2:12–36. Discover more in 1 Samuel 4:2–11.]
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More Old Testament Sinners and Saints is part of the Bible Character Sketches series.
Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront a status quo faith and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.
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