1 Samuel 3,4

So my style will be different than previous folks' posts.  I remember better if I see images that help me understand.  So you will see lots of pics on my blogs. Basically, I read (actually listened to) the entire book of 1 Samuel, then broke it down verse by verse and when something made me inquire more about its historical background, I dug in a bit and looked up study notes on it.  If it answered a question or highlighted something I did not know or understand, I simply expounded upon that point.  May it enrich your study as well.

I may not including the actual verses.  I figure you can do that yourself on www.biblegateway.com or in your own Bible and choose the version of the Bible you like best.

3:3 The Lamp of God refers to the golden candlestick in the tabernacle that burned from evening til morning.

3:6 Likewise, the Lord has called all of us, but have we mistaken His voice for our own thoughts or the thoughts of others? Often we must quiet ourselves enough to actually hear His voice. Thankfully, God is merciful and faithful.  He keeps calling to us.

3:7 http://biblehub.com/hebrew/1540.htm (a fun little Hebrew word study of this verse)
 Hebrew word translated ‘revealed’ is yig·gā·leh (transliterated as galah).  It means to uncover or remove. In other words, God’s Word is covered until He brings revelation. When God reveals, it’s revealed to our hearts.

3:8 The Lord could have called Samuel in a way that he would have realized this wasn’t Eli calling. But because Samuel mistook the Lord’s voice for Eli, Eli then knew the Lord was speaking to Samuel. This led to Eli asking Samuel what the Lord told him which led to him learning of the Lord’s judgment upon him and his house. Notice how God choosing this way of speaking to Samuel to be twofold in meaning.  It bridged the communication between the Eli and Samuel so that Samuel did not have to introduce this judgment from the Lord as if it came from himself, rather directly from the Lord.   Eli was the high priest, yet the Lord was speaking to a young boy who served the high priest. He must have known that the Lord was raising up Samuel to become a prophet in his place.   Because Eli had not paid attention to God’s voice, which would have stopped God’s judgment on his family, He spoke to Samuel instead and God found a way to get this message to Eli, via Samuel.  This shows the compassion of the Lord to continue to be faithful to Eli, especially since he is the high priest and God needs to deal with him.

In hearing God’s voice, it can sound like our own voice in our heads and we need to understand that when we communicate with God, He can and will communicate to us by our own thoughts.  We can easily miss HIS voice because we brush it off as our own.  Don’t be misled, He can speak in the sound of our own voice in our head. His voice will never go against His written Word. Pray and listen. I personally have 2 stories of hearing (or not) God's voice very clearly.  If you want to know them, ask me and we will share in our Father's goodness.
 

3:10 This verse is notable in light of vs 3:1 where it states that at this time there were no open visions, yet this verse says that the Lord came and STOOD in front of Samuel.  Here we see that there was an actual manifestation of the Lord before Samuel, which may also have been a confirmation to Samuel that he was being called as a Prophet.Chapter 4 

Are you still hanging in there?  If not, go get a snack and come back.  Only a little more and you can continue on with your day.

4:11 On the surface, this looks like a defeat for the Lord, but that certainly wasn’t the case. The events recorded in the next chapter show that the Lord could take care of Himself and the ark of His covenant. This was the defeat of a people who had forsaken God and His covenant. God had a covenant with Israel, beginning with Abraham to increase his descendants, not to wipe them out until they no longer existed.  But since they forsook God, God’s covenant was not there to protect them any longer.  Thankfully, God promises a remnant and although tens of thousands may perish, God’s promise never fails, despite their (our) disobedience, self-righteousness, and sin. He does have a plan. The plan includes Israel. It includes Jesus. It includes you and me. God knew the plan from beginning to end.

1 Samuel 4:13

This mentions that Eli trembled for the Ark of the Lord, not his sons. That was the true love of Eli. But he thought he could have both, the favor of the Lord AND of his sons. Sadly, he compromised his authority in an attempt to pacify his sons.

******WHATEVER YOU COMPROMISE TO KEEP, YOU WILL WIND UP LOSING.****

4:22 It seems to me that the glory had long since departed from Israel. Because they hadn’t sought the Lord properly, the whole nation had been subjugated to slavery to the Philistines. The capture of the ark was only a physical manifestation of what had already taken place spiritually. Likewise, so much of what we see in the natural only mirrors what is already true in the spiritual. Once people forsake God in their hearts, it’s only a matter of time until that appears in the natural. There are consequences to our actions. They may not be immediate, but don’t be deceived; God is not mocked. “Whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap” (Galatians 6:7). For this last image, I thought of putting some beautiful field that was planted.  But my mind kept coming back to this.  It's the sowing we regret that we reap in a way that causes us to scream out to God in desperation or anger. Let's draw near and not forsake Him and His loving Truth so we don't end up feeling like this from poor choices. 
Selah.