Samuel’s Place
The period of Israel’s judges—from the death of Joshua to the anointing of Saul—is divided into two biblical records: the Book of Judges and the opening chapters of 1 Samuel. The early editors of the Old Testament, who determined the division of this material, were doubtless guided by a sense that the ministry of Samuel provided an essential narrative hinge between the judges and kings of Israel. It seemed to those editors that Samuel’s importance lay less in his sequence with the other judges than in his preparation for the monarchy. Israel’s memory tied him closer to Saul and David than to Ehud and Jephthah.
If we look for comparisons between the ministries of Samuel and Israel’s other judges, Deborah provides the clearest resemblance. Neither she nor Samuel was remembered as a warrior, though each of them inspired others—Barak and Saul—to combat. The ministries of both Deborah and Samuel, moreover, were associated with Ramah, where the Israelites gathered to consult them (Judges 4:5; 1 Sam. 7:17).
Also, Samuel’s mother, Hannah, came—like Deborah—from “the mountains of Ephraim.” The biblical editors suggest this connection by placing the canticles of Deborah and Hannah near the beginnings of their respective books.
THIS ARTICLE ONLY AVAILABLE TO SUBSCRIBERS.
FOR QUICK ACCESS:
Patrick Henry Reardon is pastor emeritus of All Saints Antiochian Orthodox Church in Chicago, Illinois, and the author of numerous books, including, most recently, Out of Step with God: Orthodox Christian Reflections on the Book of Numbers (Ancient Faith Publishing, 2019).
• Not a subscriber or wish to renew your subscription? Subscribe to Touchstone today for full online access. Over 30 years of publishing!
personal subscriptions
Purchase Print &
Online Subscription
Get six issues (one year) of Touchstone PLUS full online access including pdf downloads for only $39.95. That's only $3.34 per month!
Get a one-year full-access subscription to the Touchstone online archives including pdf downloads for only $19.95. That's only $1.66 per month!
gift subscriptions
GIVE Print &
Online Subscription
Give six issues (one year) of Touchstone PLUS full online access including pdf downloads for the reduced rate of $29.95. That's only $2.50 per month!
Transactions will be processed on a secure server.
bulk subscriptions
Order Touchstone subscriptions in bulk and save $10 per sub! Each subscription includes 6 issues of Touchstone plus full online access to touchstonemag.com—including archives, videos, and pdf downloads of recent issues for only $29.95 each! Great for churches or study groups.
kindle subscription
OR get a subscription to Touchstone to read on your Kindle for only $1.99 per month! (This option is KINDLE ONLY and does not include either print or online.)
Your subscription goes a long way to ensure that Touchstone is able to continue its mission of publishing quality Christian articles and commentary.
more from the online archives
18.2—March 2005
On Conservatism as Vexation, Vanity & Near Impossibility by Graeme Hunter
33.3—May/June 2020
on the Wisdom of the Good Doctor Edmund Pellegrino by Allen H. Roberts II
32.6—November/December 2019
The Year of Our Lord 1943: Christian Humanism in an Age of Crisis by Alan Jacobs by Jesse Russell
calling all readers
Please Donate
"There are magazines worth reading but few worth saving . . . Touchstone is just such a magazine."
—Alice von Hildebrand
"Here we do not concede one square millimeter of territory to falsehood, folly, contemporary sentimentality, or fashion. We speak the truth, and let God be our judge. . . . Touchstone is the one committedly Christian conservative journal."
—Anthony Esolen, Touchstone senior editor
