1 Chronicles 6:27–28: “Eliab his son, Jeroham his son, and Elkanah his son. The sons of Samuel were Joel the firstborn, and Abijah the second.”

August 25th, 2023 by Pastor Ed in devotional

This records the genealogy of the prophet Samuel, who anointed both Saul and David as kings of Israel. When some read of his life in 1 Samuel 1:1, they mistakenly get the idea that Samuel was from Ephraim and therefore an Ephraimite. But his father was a Levite, living in the area of Ephraim, and so he was an Ephraimite in name only. Here we see that Samuel was actually a Levite, descended from the family of Kohath. That is why he was able to offer sacrifices and serve in the tabernacle, meaning that Samuel was both prophet and priest. According to Psalm 21, King David was both a king and prophet. But only Jesus Christ is all three: priest, prophet, and king.

These fine details are a good example of the kinds of small, hidden truths the Holy Spirit has embedded in Scripture for us to study and discover. Proverbs tells us, “It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, / But the glory of kings is to search out a matter” (Prov. 25:2). Our Creator has called us to spend time in His word so that we might search out these truths and grow. For the careful, diligent seeker, there is much gold to be mined in the Bible. When we mine these truths in His word, it ignites a desire to search out more and more hidden truths, which strengthen and increase our faith. How clever and caring is our Father’s love for us that He has promised that when we seek Him, we will find Him.

“Thank you, LORD, for Your word given to us so that we can meet with You each day. Increase our desire for Your word and You this day as we read and walk with You.”