The Icabod Church
In 1 Samuel 4 we read about the high priest Eli’s daughter-in-law who was about to give birth at the same time that Israel’s enemies, the Philistines had just invaded. At the time of giving birth, she had heard the news that the Ark of the Covenant had been captured and that both her father-in-law and husband had recently died. As she took her final breath whilst dying in childbirth, she named her newborn son Icabod, which means “where is the glory?” or “nothing of glory.”
“The glory has departed from Israel, for the ark of the God has been captured.” (1 Samuel 4:22 ESV)
It is interesting to note that whilst she was grieving the deaths of her husband and her father-in-law, she wasn’t naming her newborn son after either of them, instead, her son was named “Icabod” in lament of the glory of the Lord departing.
As we reflect on this in 2024 with all that is going on in the world around us right now, I believe that as Christians we need to pray and lament how far our nation and the established church has turned away from God. During the Covid pandemic, when all of the churches were closed, it was particularly noticeable that rather than lamenting the godlessness of our nation and how lukewarm the church has become, our response to God was often to pray that things would get better so that we could go back to doing exactly what we were doing before. In fact, it was very noticeable in British churches during the lockdowns that there was a distinct lack of true repentance among many Christians - there was the desire to return to normal rather than return to God.
I wonder, had it occurred to us that God’s great displeasure has led Him to remove His presence from many of our churches? Could it be that the closing of all of our churches during the pandemic was God’s way of wanting to shake us out of our spiritual stupor? Could it also be that God is allowing the nation to crawl around on its hands and knees in order to humble us that we might bow the knee and repent before Almighty God and call on the Lord Jesus Christ for forgiveness and salvation? Eli fell off his chair to his death in shock at the dreadful news that the Ark of the Covenant had been captured, and his daughter-in-law went into fatal labour, so dreadful was the news that the glory of the Lord had departed.
I believe that in our day we are seeing something like this happening in the United Kingdom. Sadly, in many cases we have not been calling out the sin in our churches and the nation, there is a disapproval towards those who take a stand against the great sin in our nation, in particular the idolatry, materialism, carnality and immorality that is now all around us.
The apostle Paul warns of “the works of the flesh” in his letter to the Galatians:
“Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.” (Gal 5:19-21 ESV)
Our nation is rejecting God and denying His existence, mocking Him, and blaspheming Him in films, TV shows, and other forms of public entertainment. God have mercy on us.
In the face of all this godlessness, many of our modern churches have been silent, mistakenly thinking that by avoiding talking about the difficult issues and bringing them into the light of the truth of the Word of God that they were being sensitive and avoiding controversy. But in not preaching the whole counsel of God, they are playing their part in being complicit in the sins of our nation. God tells the prophet Ezekiel that in the same way that a watchman who was looking out from over the walls of the city, and upon seeing the sword of the invading army and hearing the trumpet alarm being raised, didn’t warn the people of danger would have blood on their hands:
“So you, son of man, I have made a watchman for the house of Israel. Whenever you hear a word from my mouth, you shall give them warning from me. If I say to the wicked, O wicked one, you shall surely die, and you do not speak to warn the wicked to turn from his way, that wicked person shall die in his iniquity, but his blood I will require at your hand. But if you warn the wicked to turn from his way, and he does not turn from his way, that person shall die in his iniquity, but you will have delivered your soul.” (Ezekiel 33:7-9 ESV)
But there is good news, there is the offer of salvation and redemption. We have been considering how Eli’s daughter-in-law gave birth to a son and named him “Icabod”- meaning that “the glory of the Lord has departed,” but God also reverses this curse when He gives His people a great promise:
“Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.” (Isaiah 7:14 ESV)
Immanuel means “God with us”, the Good news that Christ has come and is with His people. The Old Testament commentator Edward J. Young puts it so beautifully:
“The presence of God appears, then, not in the deliverance from Syria and Israel, but in the birth of the Child Himself. When the Child is born, God is seen to be present with His people.” [1]
In the account of The Lord Jesus’ birth in Luke’s Gospel we read this deeply moving account of how the glory of God came to the lowliest of men, the shepherds:
“And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear. And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.” And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,
“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!” (Luke 2:8-14 ESV)
God puts this great choice before us: Icabod or Immanuel, the devastating loss of His presence among us, or through our repentance and humble bowing of our knee in true spiritual worship, God with us. Which one are we going to choose?
Footnotes:
[1] Edward J. Young “The Book of Isaiah, Vol.1” (Eerdmans, 1965) p290