1 Samuel 3:1

SAMUEL’S CALL, 1 Samuel 3:1-21.

1. Samuel ministered See note on 1 Samuel 2:11. According to Josephus, Samuel was now about twelve years old.

The word of the Lord was precious in those days יקר , precious, costly; an epithet applied frequently to very rare and costly stones. 2 Samuel 12:30; 1Ki 10:2 ; 1 Chronicles 20:2; Ezekiel 27:22. The meaning is that direct revelations from God had become exceedingly rare, and this fact was owing to the lamentable sinfulness of the priesthood and the people. As sinfulness in the individual heart drives away the Holy Spirit, so in the Hebrew nation it drove away the spirit of prophecy. A direct communication from God at such a time would truly be a precious thing. Unless we reckon Deborah, who is called a prophetess, (Judges 4:4,) so far as we know only two prophets had appeared in Israel (see Judges 6:8, and 1 Samuel 2:27) during the period that intervened between the time of Moses and this call of Samuel.

No open vision Literally, No divine communication was spread; that is, published abroad, made known. If, perchance, God revealed himself to pious individuals here and there, he gave them private revelations; but the persons thus honoured were not thereby constituted public prophets, nor sent to publish their communications to the people. In the midst of such spiritual darkness Samuel arose as a new luminary in Israel.