“And they gathered together to Mizpeh, and drew water, and poured it out before the Lord, and fasted on that day, and said there, We have sinned against the Lord. And Samuel judged the children of Israel in Mizpeh.”
So they gathered at Mizpah, and drew water, and poured it out before the LORD, and fasted on that day, and said there: We have sinned against the LORD. And Samuel judged the children of Israel at Mizpah—the *mayo-mayim* (pouring out of water) is a *qinah* (lamentation) and an act of symbolic self-emptying; the liquid offering parallels Hannah's prayer and becomes a *sartir* (covering) of sin. The *tsom* (fasting) and *viduy* (confession) express repentance; Samuel's judging role (*shafat*) encompasses both legal and spiritual authority.
COMMUNITY REFLECTIONS
Publish a note on this verse
0/2000