Since Father’s Day is approaching, I thought we would consider three fathers who failed. God wants fathers who cultivate a spiritual home where peace and calmness abounds, where there are no conflicts and hatred and where godliness is a way of life. It would be wonderful if the Bible abounded with such examples, but it does not. We will examine three cases and observe why they failed.
Eli was a priest who had two sons, Hophni and Phinehas (1 Samuel 1:3, 9). He was a deeply pious man and dedicated to serving God, but he had no control over his two sons (1 Samuel 2:12-17). Furthermore, he did not rebuke his children (1 Samuel 3:13-14).
Samuel was the last judge of Israel (1 Samuel 4:1-2). He did not spend much time at home (1 Samuel 7:15-17). He turned leadership of Israel over to his two sons, Joel and Abijah, who did not walk in his ways (1 Samuel 8:1-3).
David was the second king of Israel (1 Samuel 16:12-13). He was considered a man after God’s own heart (1 Samuel 13:14). He lusted for and committed adultery with Bathsheba and he had Bathsheba’s husband, Uriah, killed (2 Samuel 11:4, 15).
Every one of these men were servants of righteousness yet their children were not faithful to God. In all three of these instances, it is plain to see that these situations developed because God’s word was not followed. How different would these circumstances have been if these men were only godly (Psalm 1:1-3; cf. Nehemiah 13:23-24)!
Kyle Campbell