Now where does that leave us? The point I want to make is the one I have already been alluding to, namely, that we all need memorials like this in our lives. The people of Israel needed their memorials, and they needed other memorials besides this one. In 1 Samuel 7:12 we’re told of the prophet Samuel setting up a memorial which he called, “Ebenezer." It was the occasion of a great victory in which God had intervened in a supernatural way to defeat the Philistines. It says that in the remainder of Samuel’s lifetime the Philistines didn't invade the territory of Israel ever again. To mark that great victory, Samuel set up this stone, which he called, “Ebenezer," which means “the Lord helps." And he said, "We’re naming it ‘Ebenezer' because hitherto hath the Lord helped us."

 

There are three specific reasons given for the erection of this memorial. It pertains to three different groups of people. The first reason is that it was to be a memorial to the generation then living, the generation that had crossed the Jordan. We find that in verse 6: "These stones are to serve as a sign among you." Here were people who had witnessed a great miracle of God in dividing the waters of the Jordan in order that they might cross on dry ground. But these same people would quite naturally tend on occasion to become discouraged during the years of fighting in their attempts to drive out the Canaanites. Their discouragement might be for a number of reasons.