What is an Ebenezer?

One Sunday, after service, we received an anonymous connection card with the question, “What does, ‘Here I raise my Ebenezer’ mean?'" You may think this is an odd request, unless you know that we had just sang the hymn, Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing, which contains that line. What does Ebenezer mean? And what does it mean for it to be raised?

The meaning of Ebenezer originates more than a thousand years before Jesus Christ, during the ministry of the prophet Samuel. In I Samuel, the Philistines had defeated the Israelites and had captured the Ark of the Lord. God dealt harshly with the Philistines and after some time, they returned it. (You ought to read I Samuel 5-7. It’s a very interesting story!) As this story unfolded, Israel returned to the Lord, and Samuel offered sacrifices and cried out on their behalf to the Lord.

In I Samuel 7, the Philistines attacked the people of Israel who were outnumbered and in fear for their lives. They pled with the prophet Samuel to pray for God’s help. Samuel offered a sacrifice and prayed for protection, and God responded in a mighty way. After this great victory against the Philistines “Samuel took a stone and set it up…and called its name Ebenezer; for he said, ‘Till now the Lord has helped us.’ So the Philistines were subdued and did not again enter the territory of Israel. And the hand of the Lord was against the Philistines all the days of Samuel.” (1 Samuel 7:12-13)

In Hebrew, Ebenezer literally means “stone of help” (eben = stone; ezer = help). The stone that Samuel raised was a reminder to the Israelites of what the Lord had done for them. This Ebenezer quite literally was a monument set up to remember the great help that God granted the one raising the stone. So, to raise your Ebenezer is literally a reminder of how God has come to your rescue and a reminder of who He is.

Samuel wanted the people to remember, not just for a few days...but for years, for decades, for generations...how God had come to the rescue of his people when they humbled themselves before him.

David would say in Psalm 62:6, “[God] only is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be shaken." The author of Hebrews also tells us, “Jesus is the same yesterday and today and forever.” (Hebrews 13:8) In other words, if God helped the Israelites, if God helped us before, why should we think He won’t help us through the next difficulty?

This is why we need to “raise our Ebenezer.” It’s the way we remember our “stone of help” and His faithfulness. This is why, over and over, we are reminded in the Psalms to “remember.” Remember, “The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble". (Psalm 9:9) Perhaps the most important thing we can do when facing a hard situation is to remember our “stone of help!”

What is your place or stone of remembrance? Do you have an Ebenezer? If you don’t, I would encourage you to find your Ebenezer. It may look different for you. It may be a creek, a tree, a boulder, a landmark, a place. Whatever it is, set something up that you will see on a regular basis that reminds you of God’s protection, provision and providence.

I have a small river stone sitting on my desk. It is my “Ebenezer.” It is a constant reminder that when difficulties come, when a problem arises, when I have to go around that mountain yet one more time, the Lord has helped me and will continue to help me once more.

Listen to the words of the hymn:
“Here I raise my Ebenezer;
hither by thy help I’m come;
and I hope, by thy good pleasure,
safely to arrive at home.
Jesus sought me when a stranger,
wandering from the fold of God;
he, to rescue me from danger,
interposed his precious blood.”