Let’s begin with the first mention of Eli and his sons.  We read in 1 Samuel 1:3, “And this man (Elkanah, husband of Hannah) went up out of his city yearly to worship and to sacrifice unto the LORD of hosts in Shiloh. And the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, the priests of the LORD, were there.”

1 Samuel 1:9-18 tells the familiar story of how Hannah came to the Tabernacle to pray.  She prayed earnestly and vowed a vow to the Lord in verse 11, “And she vowed a vow, and said, O LORD of hosts, if thou wilt indeed look on the affliction of thine handmaid, and remember me, and not forget thine handmaid, but wilt give unto thine handmaid a man child, then I will give him unto the LORD all the days of his life, and there shall no rasor come upon his head.”  Eli saw Hannah’s lips move as she prayed and assumed she was drunk.  Learning that she was not drunk, but was praying, Eli said to her, “Go in peace: and the God of Israel grant thee thy petition that thou hast asked of him.” (Verse 17).  We then read in verse 20 of the birth of Samuel, “Wherefore it came to pass, when the time was come about after Hannah had conceived, that she bare a son, and called his name Samuel, saying, Because I have asked him of the LORD.” 

Eli was an honorable man and served faithfully as a priest of the Lord, however, we read of his sons in 1 Samuel 2:12, “Now the sons of Eli were sons of Belial; THEY KNEW NOT THE LORD.”  Although they functioned as priests, they were not the Lord’s.  They were the sons of Belial.  The Hebrew word for Belial is ‘bel-e-yah’-al’ and is defined as without profit, worthlessness, evil, naughty, ungodly, wicked.

We read of the dishonoring actions of Hophni and Phinehas in 1 Samuel 2:13-17, “And the priests’ custom with the people was, that, when any man offered sacrifice, the priest’s servant came, while the flesh was in seething, with a fleshhook of three teeth in his hand; And he struck it into the pan, or kettle, or caldron, or pot; all that the fleshhook brought up the priest took for himself. So they did in Shiloh unto all the Israelites that came thither. Also before they burnt the fat, the priest’s servant came, and said to the man that sacrificed, Give flesh to roast for the priest; for he will not have sodden flesh of thee, but raw. And if any man said unto him, Let them not fail to burn the fat presently, and then take as much as thy soul desireth; then he would answer him, Nay; but thou shalt give it me now: and if not, I will take it by force. Wherefore the sin of the young men was very great before the LORD: for men abhorred the offering of the LORD.”  How terrible!  These unsaved priests, because they had no respect for the Lord or the sacrifices offered, caused the people to hate the offering of the LORD. 

We read in 1 Samuel 2:22-25 that Eli rebuked his sons for their evil deeds, but it was such a weak rebuke that it was useless for “they hearkened not unto the voice of their father.” (Verse 25).  In verses 27-36, we read of a “man of God” who was sent of the Lord with a stern warning to Eli if he did not cause his sons to stop their sins.  Afterwards, the Lord sent Samuel with a message to Eli.  1 Samuel 3:11-14 says, “And the LORD said to Samuel, Behold, I will do a thing in Israel, at which both the ears of every one that heareth it shall tingle. In that day I will perform against Eli all things which I have spoken concerning his house: when I begin, I will also make an end. For I have told him that I will judge his house for ever for the iniquity which he knoweth; because his sons made themselves vile, and he restrained them not. And therefore I have sworn unto the house of Eli, that the iniquity of Eli’s house shall not be purged with sacrifice nor offering for ever.”

Eli’s response was submissive, but weak.  He said to Samuel, “It is the LORD: let him do what seemeth him good.” (1 Samuel 3:18).  In his submission to the Lord’s will, Eli still did nothing to discipline his sons or to remove them from their duties as priests.  He simply let it continue and waited for the Lord to correct the problem that was his responsibility to correct.  Eli failed miserably as a father.  He put his children above the Lord, he did not teach them to honor and follow the Lord, and he did not discipline them when they sinned. 

I encourage you to read 1 Samuel, chapter four.  There we learn that the Israelites went to war against the Philistines, where they were defeated by their enemy.  We read in verses 10-11, “And the Philistines fought, and Israel was smitten, and they fled every man into his tent: and there was a very great slaughter; for there fell of Israel thirty thousand footmen. And the ark of God was taken; and the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were slain.”  That day, the ark was captured, and Eli’s sons were killed.  Upon hearing this news, we read in verse 18 that, “…he fell from off the seat backward by the side of the gate, and his neck brake, and he died: for he was an old man, and heavy. And he had judged Israel forty years.”  What a tragic end to one who had begun so well.  It is a lesson for us all to consider.  I believe Eli truly loved the Lord, but he loved his children more.  He failed to teach them and to show them that they must put God first in all things.  (CC)  (608.6)