The destruction of Shiloh had laid all Israel at the feet of there Philistine enemies, and

we know that they made their supremacy felt. The restoration of the Ark in no wise

signified that they had loosed their hold on the conquered people. The long years when

the iron heel of their heathen foes pressed so heavily upon them was an important period

in Samuel's life. During those twenty years he must have laboured incessantly to wake

up the people to the old worship of Jehovah, and the purity of life ordained by Him for

the nation He had called out to be His people. The fatal battle at Aphek, the capture of

the Ark, the tragic death of the great old man Eli and of his sons, the devastation of the

beloved Sanctuary at Shiloh, the continued terrible oppression of the Philistines, had

opened his eyes. Taught by the bitter lessons of adversity, Samuel recognized that the

only hope of salvation for Israel lay in their repentance as a nation before God. It was a

change of heart that was needed before the lion standard of Judah could be unfurled, or

the people be rid of the yoke that choked them. What means he used, or what his mode

of life was, we are not told. Surely, however, he would travel the length and breadth of

the land, visiting the twelve tribes. He would have sought to stir up all Israel to a sense

of the greatness of their sins, and to the necessity of renewed trust in Jehovah and the

vital need of returning to the faith of their fathers: to acknowledge their sins and failures

and seek His forgiveness. Twenty years is a long time, but in the end the Lord rewarded

His faithful servant's endeavours, for we read that "all Israel lamented after the Lord". A

singularly happy turn of phrase, implying that the people as a whole had come to realize

the blackness of their sinful manner of life and were prepared to do something about it.

The words "lamented after" implying that they had now cast themselves down before

their God, seeking His forgiveness. They realized the need for His cleansing, and looked

to Him Whom they had so basely forsaken, and mourned as a nation.

In the prophecy of Zechariah we read that the children of Israel, in a future time, will

yet again be estranged from Him, but will be brought to acknowledge their sin of the

slaying of the Son of God, and of crucifying the One Who came as their King and

rejecting His offer of restoration. They also refused to accept the word of His disciples

when another opportunity was given to them during the Book of Acts.  When the

realization of what they have done draws upon them as a nation, they will repent, and at

last accept Him as their Messiah. The Second Coming of Christ to His earthly people

will then take place. This, of course, is still in the future; but here, buried in the past, is a

turning back that was undoubtedly the result of Samuel's unwearied efforts during those

twenty years.

`Baalim' is the plural form of Baal, referring to the numerous images dedicated to this

god. `Ashtaroth' is the plural form of the female goddess Astarte. They represented the

productive power of nature and were generally worshipped throughout the East, usually

with wild, evil, and degrading rites and ceremonies. Throughout the twelve tribes of

Israel, therefore, these graven images and idols were thrown down and smashed, and