Chapter
Verse

1 Samuel 2:36

ESV And everyone who is left in your house shall come to implore him for a piece of silver or a loaf of bread and shall say, "Please put me in one of the priests ' places, that I may eat a morsel of bread."’"
NIV Then everyone left in your family line will come and bow down before him for a piece of silver and a loaf of bread and plead, "Appoint me to some priestly office so I can have food to eat." ’ "
NASB And everyone who is left in your house will come to bow down to him for a silver coin or a loaf of bread and say, 'Please assign me to one of the priest’s offices so that I may eat a piece of bread.'?’?'
CSB Anyone who is left in your family will come and bow down to him for a piece of silver or a loaf of bread. He will say: Please appoint me to some priestly office so I can have a piece of bread to eat.’"
NLT Then all of your surviving family will bow before him, begging for money and food. ‘Please,’ they will say, ‘give us jobs among the priests so we will have enough to eat.’'
KJV And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left in thine house shall come and crouch to him for a piece of silver and a morsel of bread, and shall say, Put me, I pray thee, into one of the priests' offices, that I may eat a piece of bread.
NKJV And it shall come to pass that everyone who is left in your house will come and bow down to him for a piece of silver and a morsel of bread, and say, “Please, put me in one of the priestly positions, that I may eat a piece of bread.” ’ ”

What does 1 Samuel 2:36 mean?

God has promised to raise up a faithful priest and to maintain his descendants in that role (1 Samuel 2:35). Now the prophet of the Lord reveals to Eli that his descendants will be forced to go to that faithful priest, descended from Eleazar, to beg him for money and food. They will be so poor and hungry that they will ask that priest to give them one of the priestly jobs so they can receive some of the food from the offerings that are apportioned to the priests. This is a poetic punishment for a family who abused their role to take additional food from the people of Israel (1 Samuel 2:12–17).

The reference to a future, faithful priest is likely Zadok. He will be appointed as the priest over Israel by King David (1 Kings 2:35). This officially removes that power and influence from the line of Eli, because of their wickedness and arrogance.
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