Eli Led Israel for Forty Years, and the Day Eli Died, He Forsook His

Eli led Israel for forty years, and the day Eli died, he forsook his tabernacle, as it is said, “He rejected the tent of Joseph” (Psalm 78:67), and “He gave His strength into captivity” (Psalm 78:61). And the Ark of the Lord was in the field of the Philistines for seven months. The Philistines called and said (1 Samuel 6:1-2). The men of Kiriath-Jearim came and took it, and it was from the day the Ark rested (1 Samuel 7:2). Subtract from these seven years the time David reigned in Hebron over Judah, which remained there for thirteen years, and subtract eleven years for Samuel himself and two years for Samuel and Saul. It was from the day the Ark rested (1 Samuel 7:2). At the beginning of these twenty years, the Tabernacle was brought to Nob. Although the Ark of the Lord was in Kiriath-Jearim, in Nob they offered sacrifices for thirteen years and for seven years in Gibeon. At the end of twenty years, David moved the Ark of the Lord from Kiriath-Jearim to the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite, and the Ark of the Lord stayed in the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite for three months (2 Samuel 6:11). From this, we learn that Obed-Edom was blessed only because of the Ark of God. Saul was one year into his reign (1 Samuel 13:1). Samuel said to Saul at the time of his anointing, “You will go down before me to Gilgal” (1 Samuel 10:8). Saul went down in the first year and struck the Ammonite king, and the Israelites anointed him. In the second year, he went down and did not keep his promise. Samuel said to Saul, “You have acted foolishly; you have not kept the commandment of the Lord” (1 Samuel 13:13). In that chapter, David was anointed, as it is said, “And the Lord said to Samuel, ‘How long will you mourn for Saul?’” (1 Samuel 16:1). Then Samuel took the horn of oil (1 Samuel 16:13), and he was twenty-nine years old. And Saul was hostile towards David (1 Samuel 18:9), and it is said, “The Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul” (1 Samuel 16:14). In that chapter, Nob was destroyed, and they came to Gibeon. All the days of Samuel the Seer were only fifty-two years. It is also said, “Eli the priest sat on the seat” (1 Samuel 1:9), and she was bitter in soul (1 Samuel 1:10). In that chapter, he was appointed as a judge, and it is said, “And he judged Israel forty years” (1 Samuel 4:18). Thirteen years remained. Subtract one year for the intercalation, eleven years for Samuel, and one year for Saul. Thus, fifty-two years. Samuel died about four months before Saul's death, as it is said, “And the number of days that David stayed in the field of the Philistines was days and four months” (1 Samuel 27:7). And afterward, David inquired of the Lord, saying (1 Samuel 30:8). Ish-bosheth, the son of Saul, was forty years old when he began to reign (2 Samuel 2:10), and he reigned for two years in Jerusalem. The kingdom of Israel was therefore nullified for five and a half years. All the elders of Israel came to King Hebron (2 Samuel 5:3). In that chapter, David was anointed again, being thirty years old at his anointing (2 Samuel 5:4), and he reigned for forty years.