And as Samuel was offering up the burnt offering, the Philistines drew near to battle against Israel: but the Lord thundered with a great thunder on that day upon the Philistines, and discomfited them; and they were smitten before Israel. (1 Samuel 7:10)
In this case God’s answer (see Ps. 99:6) came as a thunderstorm. For other instances of God’s miraculous use of the forces of nature, see on 1 Sam. 14:15. Having renounced their idols and confessed their departure from the Lord, in humiliation of spirit, they were to witness how readily God took them back under His protection, and demonstrated a heavenly Father’s love for the returning prodigal. God neither expressed bitterness nor held aloof until His people, through years of sacrificial humility, had demonstrated their change of attitude. Immediately He spread over them His protecting arm. Well could they afford to make this place a memorial of God’s everlasting devotion and loving watchcare and of His power to protect and deliver.