Eli's Weight Problem

# 67 – Today's Du-votional comes from 1Sa 4:16-18 “Then the man said to Eli, "I am he who came from the battle. And I fled today from the battle line." And he said, "What happened, my son?" 17 So the messenger answered and said, "Israel has fled before the Philistines, and there has been a great slaughter among the people. Also your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, are dead; and the ark of God has been captured." 18 Then it happened, when he made mention of the ark of God, that Eli fell off the seat backward by the side of the gate; and his neck was broken and he died, for the man was old and heavy. And he had judged Israel forty years. Eli, sitting by the gate of Shiloh. The old and heavy priest anxiously waiting on word from the battle. Why did the Holy Spirit feel it was necessary to include Eli's weight problem here? Perhaps it was by way of explaining one of the physical reasons for his broken neck, or maybe it was a final reminder to us about the sin of covetousness which caused he and his sons to skim off the offering designated for God. It was covetousness that led them to profane the offering of God, and covetousness will lead us to profane (make common) the cross (the offering) of Christ. Here was a priest and judge of Israel who got fat off of his God-given office. In one sense he and his sons were like the scribes Jesus described in Lu 20:47, “who devour widows' houses, and for a pretense make long prayers. These will receive greater condemnation." This mention of the body mass of Eli at his death should cause us all to consider where the path of covetousness leads. Php 3:18,19 says, “For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ: 19 whose end is destruction, whose god is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame--who set their mind on earthly things. Beloved, let us set our minds ”on things above, not on things on the earth. 9Col 3:2)