Why Didn’t Samuel Know the Lord Earlier? 1 Samuel 1-5

 Why Didn’t Samuel Know the Lord Earlier? 

1 Samuel 3:2-7 (ESV)

2 At that time Eli, whose eyesight had begun to grow dim so that he could not see, was lying down in his own place. 3 The lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the temple of the LORD, where the ark of God was.

4 Then the LORD called Samuel, and he said, “Here I am!” 5 and ran to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” But he said, “I did not call; lie down again.” So he went and lay down.

6 And the LORD called again, “Samuel!” and Samuel arose and went to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” But he said, “I did not call, my son; lie down again.” 7 Now Samuel did not yet know the LORD, and the word of the LORD had not yet been revealed to him.

Samuel is a key figure in the story of God’s plan with Israel.  He is a prophet that God uses to introduce God’s bringing a king into the lives of Israel (Saul and David).   To read verse seven, above, just seems odd.  Samuel, at this point in the story, is serving God in the Tabernacle.   He is an apprentice to Eli and Eli’s two sons.   Yet, it is stated that he didn’t “yet” know the Lord.  But, remember, his mother had dedicated him to the Lord at an early age.  He as constantly around the daily sacrifices.  He saw all the remnants of the sacrificial system and how it pointed to God.  Eli would have (should have) talked to him about spiritual things.   As the above passages states, Samuel was apparently old enough to be alone.  He was old enough to be called.  Yet, he still didn't know The Lord.  What does this say about salvation, election and child baptism?  His mother "committed" him to The Lord, yet, he didn't know The Lord. What does this say about Eli and his ability as a priest to teach others the knowledge of God?   What does this say about, “knowing the Lord?”   Jeremiah would later write (and quoted by the writer of Hebrews):

Jeremiah 31:33-34 (ESV)

33 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the LORD: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 34 And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.”

This is the moment God is writing His laws on Samuel’s heart.   From this point forward he would “know the Lord.”   In our above passages it states that at this point in Samuel’s life the word of the lord “had not been revealed to him.”  Now Samuel was hearing the word of the Lord, audibly.  God would write it on his heart and he would become the famous Samuel we all know.   God is the one who initiates His grace on those whom He will.  Samuel being dedicated as a baby did not cause him to know the Lord ... it did put him in a place to hear the call.  Samuel being in the Tabernacle everyday and assisting in serving the sacrifices everyday did not cause him to know the Lord ... but it put him in a place to hear the call.   Knowing the high priest did not cause him to know the Lord ... but it did put him in a place to hear the call.   Only God can write His laws on their hearts.