Although everyone in Israel knew that Samuel had been chosen as the Lord’s prophet, the Israelites still didn’t listen to his prophecy. As a result, there was a new battle between the army of Israel and the army of the Philistines. The Philistines won and about four thousand men of Israel died.
The Israelites were in great distress. They sent for the Ark of the Covenant, thinking that if they brought it from Shiloh to the battlefield, it would help bring the power of Jehovah into the battle, and help them win. The two sons of Eli the High Priest, Hophni and Phinehas, came along with the Ark. When the Ark reached the Israelite camp, the Israelites shouted with joy, and the Philistines became afraid. The Philistines knew that the Israelite God was surely with them, and they remembered His power from the plagues of Egypt. (See Exodus 7 and the following chapters.)
And yet, the Philistines were tough enemies. They didn’t want to be slaves to Israel, as Israel had been to them. They gathered their courage and defeated Israel in battle again, and even captured the Ark of the Covenant.
A messenger was sent to bring the bad news to Shiloh, where Eli was. Hophni and Phinehas were dead, and the Ark was in enemy hands. When he heard the news, the elderly Eli fell backwards from his seat and died. Phinehas' wife was pregnant, and when she heard the news of her husband’s death it crushed her spirit, and she died shortly after delivering a son that she named Ichabod. So just as the Lord had told Samuel, the priestly role was taken from Eli’s family.
Why was the Ark of the Covenant important? It contained two stone tablets, on which were written the Ten Commandments. These were written by the finger of God, and given to Moses on Mount Sinai. The Commandments represented the covenant between the Lord and people. They would be joined together through love and faith: God’s love for His people, and their love for Him. Love, faith in God and obedience to His message would forever bind them. The covenant is only fulfilled when people, individually and collectively, do what is written on those two tablets. (See True Christianity 285.)
In this story, the Israelites lost the Ark of the Covenant with the Ten Commandments. This symbolizes how we can lose our covenant with the Lord, our Creator. We are free to keep our covenant with the Lord and follow His laws, or to break it. This story shows us how breaking the covenant can be really destructive.
God, however, will never give up on us, and is always ready to come into our lives if we accept Him. In True Christianity 285, Swedenborg writes that God is always ready to keep His commandment with us, but we must use our free will to keep our commandment with Him. This is illustrated in a quote from Revelation 3:20: “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with me.”
While this story is an example of a covenant with God described in the Old Testament of the Word, this relationship between God and His people (and, of course, with each one of us individually) is a theme throughout all of the Bible. The New Testament describes a new covenant that the Lord seeks to build with each of us.
In Swedenborg’s Writings we learn that the Philistines, whom the Israelites were battling, represent faith without charity. Both faith and charity are necessary to follow the Lord, and knowledge of what is right and true is not useful unless we apply it to our lives. If we don't apply it, this knowledge becomes sort of abstract, something that we remember but that isn't an ongoing part of our life. (See Arcana Coelestia 1197.)
Since Philistines represent knowledge without charity, perhaps this story is telling us that in order to keep our covenant with God, it is not enough to know what is required of us, what is written on the tables of stone. We must also act accordingly. When we both understand the commandments and practice them, then we are able to keep our covenant with God.
