1 Samuel 4:12

¹² Then a man of Benjamin ran from the battle line the same day, and came to Shiloh with his clothes torn and dirt on his head.

< 1 Samuel 3

1 Samuel 4

1 Samuel 5 >

Matthew Henry's Commentary on 1 Samuel 4:12

Commentary on 1 Samuel 4:12-18

(Read 1 Samuel 4:12-18)

The defeat of the army was very grievous to Eli as a judge; the tidings of the death of his two sons, to whom he had been so indulgent, and who, as he had reason to fear, died impenitent, touched him as a father; yet there was a greater concern on his spirit. And when the messenger concluded his story with, "The ark of God is taken," he is struck to the heart, and died immediately. A man may die miserably, yet not die eternally; may come to an untimely end, yet the end be peace.