Found a couple of interesting items…
Samuel build an altar in Ramah (1Sam. 7:17)! That was contrary to the law, no? That is quite startling really. Maybe I forgot something from class that day.
Also, I noticed “three men going up to God to Bethel” in 1Samuel 10:3. It is interesting that they were going to Bethel, not Jerusalem, and they were carrying 3 kids, 3 loaves and wine. Also, it says they were going “up”, not “down”. Maybe they were angels headed for the ladder?
john david
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Yes, that is correct about the altar at Ramah. To do such a thing was, ordinarily, against the Law. Much later in Israel’s history, you will remember, the prophet Elijah also built an altar, contrary to the Law, on top of Mt. Carmel when he had a contest with the prophets of Baal. And there were some other religious acts which holy men of God performed along the way that were contrary to the law of Moses, in special circumstances. At times when the nation of Israel was a spiritual wreck, God ordained deeds to be done contrary to what He would have allowed if His people had been obedient to Him, such as commanding the prophet Hosea to take a man’s wife from him, and commanding Isaiah to walk around Jerusalem naked for three years, and commanding Ezekiel to eat dung. All those things had a holy prophetic purpose.
As for the three men going “up” to Bethel in 1Samuel 10, it may have been that they were planing to worship God there because God’s presence makes any place “up”. But we are not told enough about those men to know who they were or what their expectations were, concerning Bethel. It’s an interesting thought, but I don’t know about them being angels on the way to Bethel to climb the ladder. But then, who can say for sure?
Love,
Dad