1 Samuel 1-3
New American Standard Bible
Chapter 1
1Now there was a man from Ramathaim-zophim from the hill country of Ephraim, and his name was Elkanah the son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the son of Zuph, an Ephraimite. 2And he had two wives: the name of one was Hannah and the name of the other Peninnah; and Peninnah had children, but Hannah had no children.
3Now this man would go up from his city yearly to worship and to sacrifice to the Lord of armies in Shiloh. And the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were priests to the Lord there.
4When the day came that Elkanah sacrificed, he would give portions to his wife Peninnah and to all her sons and daughters;
5but to Hannah he would give a double portion, because he loved Hannah, but the Lord had closed her womb.
6Her rival, moreover, would provoke her bitterly to irritate her, because the Lord had closed her womb.
7And it happened year after year, as often as she went up to the house of the Lord, that she would provoke her; so she wept and would not eat.
8Then Elkanah her husband would say to her, 'Hannah, why do you weep, and why do you not eat, and why is your heart sad? Am I not better to you than ten sons?'
9Then Hannah got up after eating and drinking in Shiloh. Now Eli the priest was sitting on the seat by the doorpost of the temple of the Lord.
10She, greatly distressed, prayed to the Lord and wept bitterly.
11And she made a vow and said, 'Lord of armies, if You will indeed look on the affliction of Your bond-servant and remember me, and not forget Your bond-servant, but will give Your bond-servant a son, then I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life, and a razor shall never come on his head.'
12Now it came about, as she continued praying before the Lord, that Eli was watching her mouth.
13As for Hannah, she was speaking in her heart, only her lips were quivering, but her voice was not heard. So Eli thought that she was drunk.
14Then Eli said to her, 'How long will you behave like a drunk? Get rid of your wine!'
15But Hannah answered and said, 'No, my lord, I am a woman despairing in spirit; I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but I have poured out my soul before the Lord.
16Do not consider your bond-servant a useless woman, for I have spoken until now out of my great concern and provocation.'
17Then Eli answered and said, 'Go in peace; and may the God of Israel grant your request that you have asked of Him.'
18She said, 'Let your bond-servant find favor in your sight.' So the woman went on her way and ate, and her face was no longer sad.
19Then they got up early in the morning and worshiped before the Lord, and returned again to their house in Ramah. And Elkanah had relations with Hannah his wife, and the Lord remembered her.
20It came about in due time, after Hannah had conceived, that she gave birth to a son; and she named him Samuel, saying, 'Because I have asked for him of the Lord.'
21Then the man Elkanah went up with all his household to offer to the Lord the yearly sacrifice and to pay his vow.
22But Hannah did not go up, for she said to her husband, 'I will not go until the child is weaned; then I will bring him, so that he may appear before the Lord and stay there for life.'
23Elkanah her husband said to her, 'Do what seems best to you. Stay until you have weaned him; only may the Lord confirm His word.' So the woman stayed and nursed her son until she weaned him.
24Now when she had weaned him, she took him up with her, with a three-year-old bull, one ephah of flour, and a jug of wine, and brought him to the house of the Lord in Shiloh, although the child was young.
25Then they slaughtered the bull, and brought the boy to Eli.
26And she said, 'Pardon me, my lord! As your soul lives, my lord, I am the woman who stood here beside you, praying to the Lord.
27For this boy I prayed, and the Lord has granted me my request which I asked of Him.
28So I have also dedicated him to the Lord; as long as he lives he is dedicated to the Lord.' And he worshiped the Lord there.
Chapter 2
1Then Hannah prayed and said, 'My heart rejoices in the Lord; My horn is exalted in the Lord, My mouth speaks boldly against my enemies, Because I rejoice in Your salvation. 2There is no one holy like the Lord, Indeed, there is no one besides You, Nor is there any rock like our God. 3Do not go on boasting so very proudly, Do not let arrogance come out of your mouth; For the Lord is a God of knowledge, And with Him actions are weighed. 4The bows of the mighty are broken to pieces, But those who have stumbled strap on strength. 5Those who were full hire themselves out for bread, But those who were hungry cease to be hungry. Even the infertile woman gives birth to seven, But she who has many children languishes. 6The Lord puts to death and makes alive; He brings down to Sheol and brings up. 7The Lord makes poor and rich; He humbles, He also exalts. 8He raises the poor from the dust, He lifts the needy from the garbage heap To seat them with nobles, And He gives them a seat of honor as an inheritance; For the pillars of the earth are the Lord’S, And He set the world on them. 9He watches over the feet of His godly ones, But the wicked ones are silenced in darkness; For not by might shall a person prevail.
12Now the sons of Eli were useless men; they did not know the Lord.
13And this was the custom of the priests with the people: when anyone was offering a sacrifice, the priest’s servant would come while the meat was cooking, with a three-pronged fork in his hand.
14And he would thrust it into the pan, or kettle, or caldron, or pot; everything that the fork brought up, the priest would take for himself. They did so in Shiloh to all the Israelites who came there.
15Also, before they burned the fat, the priest’s servant would come and say to the man who was sacrificing, 'Give the priest meat for roasting, as he will not take cooked meat from you, only raw.'
16And if the man said to him, 'They must burn the fat first, then take as much as you desire,' then he would say, 'No, but you must give it to me now; and if not, I am taking it by force!'
17And so the sin of the young men was very great before the Lord, for the men treated the offering of the Lord disrespectfully.
18Now Samuel was ministering before the Lord, as a boy wearing a linen ephod.
19And his mother would make for him a little robe and bring it up to him from year to year when she would come up with her husband to offer the yearly sacrifice.
20Then Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife, and say, 'May the Lord give you children from this woman in place of the one she requested of the Lord.' And they went to their own home.
22Now Eli was very old; and he heard about everything that his sons were doing to all Israel, and that they slept with the women who served at the doorway of the tent of meeting.
23So he said to them, 'Why are you doing such things as these, the evil things that I hear from all these people?
24No, my sons; for the report is not good which I hear the Lord’S people circulating.
25If one person sins against another, God will mediate for him; but if a person sins against the Lord, who can intercede for him?' But they would not listen to the voice of their father, for the Lord desired to put them to death.
27Then a man of God came to Eli and said to him, 'This is what the Lord says: ‘Did I not indeed reveal Myself to the house of your father when they were in Egypt in bondage to Pharaoh’s house?
28Did I not choose them from all the tribes of Israel to be My priests, to go up to My altar, to burn incense, to carry an ephod before Me? And did I not give to the house of your father all the fire offerings of the sons of Israel?
29Why are you showing contempt for My sacrifice and My offering which I have commanded for My dwelling, and why are you honoring your sons above Me, by making yourselves fat with the choicest of every offering of My people Israel?’
30Therefore the Lord God of Israel declares, ‘I did indeed say that your house and the house of your father was to walk before Me forever’; but now the Lord declares, ‘Far be it from Me—for those who honor Me I will honor, and those who despise Me will be insignificant.
31Behold, the days are coming when I will eliminate your strength and the strength of your father’s house, so that there will not be an old man in your house.
32And you will look at the distress of My dwelling, in spite of all the good that I do for Israel; and there will never be an old man in your house.
33Yet I will not cut off every man of yours from My altar, so that your eyes will fail from weeping and your soul grieve, and all the increase of your house will die in the prime of life.
34And this will be the sign to you which will come in regard to your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas: on the same day both of them will die.
35But I will raise up for Myself a faithful priest who will do according to what is in My heart and My soul; and I will build him an enduring house, and he will walk before My anointed always.
36And 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.'?’?'
2But it happened at that time as Eli was lying down in his place (now his eyesight had begun to be poor and he could not see well),
3and the lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the temple of the Lord where the ark of God was,
4that the Lord called Samuel; and he said, 'Here I am.'
5Then he ran to Eli and said, 'Here I am, for you called me.' But he said, 'I did not call, go back and lie down.' So he went and lay down.
6And the Lord called yet again, 'Samuel!' So Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, 'Here I am, for you called me.' But he said, 'I did not call, my son, go back and lie down.'
7Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord, nor had the word of the Lord yet been revealed to him.
8So the Lord called Samuel again for the third time. And he got up and went to Eli and said, 'Here I am, for you called me.' Then Eli realized that the Lord was calling the boy.
9And Eli said to Samuel, 'Go lie down, and it shall be if He calls you, that you shall say, ‘Speak, Lord, for Your servant is listening.’?' So Samuel went and lay down in his place.
10Then the Lord came and stood, and called as at the other times: 'Samuel! Samuel!' And Samuel said, 'Speak, for Your servant is listening.'
11Then the Lord said to Samuel, 'Behold, I am going to do a thing in Israel, and both ears of everyone who hears about it will ring.
12On that day I will carry out against Eli everything that I have spoken in regard to his house, from beginning to end.
13For I have told him that I am going to judge his house forever for the wrongdoing that he knew, because his sons were bringing a curse on themselves and he did not rebuke them.
14Therefore I have sworn to the house of Eli that the wrongdoing of Eli’s house shall never be atoned for by sacrifice or offering.'
15So Samuel lay down until morning. Then he opened the doors of the house of the Lord. But Samuel was afraid to tell the vision to Eli.
16Then Eli called Samuel and said, 'Samuel, my son.' And he said, 'Here I am.'
17He said, 'What is the word that He spoke to you? Please do not hide it from me. May God do the same to you, and more so, if you hide a single word from me of all the words that He spoke to you!'
18So Samuel told him everything and hid nothing from him. And he said, 'He is the Lord; let Him do what seems good to Him.'
19Now Samuel grew, and the Lord was with him, and He let none of his words fail.
20And all Israel from Dan even to Beersheba knew that Samuel was confirmed as a prophet of the Lord.
21And the Lord appeared again at Shiloh, because the Lord revealed Himself to Samuel at Shiloh by the word of the Lord.
King James Version
Chapter 1
1Now there was a certain man of Ramathaimzophim, of mount Ephraim, and his name was Elkanah, the son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the son of Zuph, an Ephrathite: 2And he had two wives; the name of the one was Hannah, and the name of the other Peninnah: and Peninnah had children, but Hannah had no children. 3And this man went up out of his city yearly to worship and to sacrifice unto the LORD of hosts in Shiloh. And the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, the priests of the LORD, were there. 4And when the time was that Elkanah offered, he gave to Peninnah his wife, and to all her sons and her daughters, portions: 5But unto Hannah he gave a worthy portion; for he loved Hannah: but the LORD had shut up her womb. 6And her adversary also provoked her sore, for to make her fret, because the LORD had shut up her womb. 7And as he did so year by year, when she went up to the house of the LORD, so she provoked her; therefore she wept, and did not eat. 8Then said Elkanah her husband to her, Hannah, why weepest thou? and why eatest thou not? and why is thy heart grieved? am not I better to thee than ten sons?
9So Hannah rose up after they had eaten in Shiloh, and after they had drunk. Now Eli the priest sat upon a seat by a post of the temple of the LORD.
10And she was in bitterness of soul, and prayed unto the LORD, and wept sore.
11And she vowed a vow, and said, O LORD of hosts, if thou wilt indeed look on the affliction of thine handmaid, and remember me, and not forget thine handmaid, but wilt give unto thine handmaid a man child, then I will give him unto the LORD all the days of his life, and there shall no razor come upon his head.
12And it came to pass, as she continued praying before the LORD, that Eli marked her mouth.
13Now Hannah, she spake in her heart; only her lips moved, but her voice was not heard: therefore Eli thought she had been drunken.
14And Eli said unto her, How long wilt thou be drunken? put away thy wine from thee.
15And Hannah answered and said, No, my lord, I am a woman of a sorrowful spirit: I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but have poured out my soul before the LORD.
16Count not thine handmaid for a daughter of Belial: for out of the abundance of my complaint and grief have I spoken hitherto.
17Then Eli answered and said, Go in peace: and the God of Israel grant thee thy petition that thou hast asked of him.
18And she said, Let thine handmaid find grace in thy sight. So the woman went her way, and did eat, and her countenance was no more sad.
19And they rose up in the morning early, and worshipped before the LORD, and returned, and came to their house to Ramah: and Elkanah knew Hannah his wife; and the LORD remembered her.
20Wherefore it came to pass, when the time was come about after Hannah had conceived, that she bare a son, and called his name Samuel, saying, Because I have asked him of the LORD.
21And the man Elkanah, and all his house, went up to offer unto the LORD the yearly sacrifice, and his vow.
22But Hannah went not up; for she said unto her husband, I will not go up until the child be weaned, and then I will bring him, that he may appear before the LORD, and there abide for ever.
23And Elkanah her husband said unto her, Do what seemeth thee good; tarry until thou have weaned him; only the LORD establish his word. So the woman abode, and gave her son suck until she weaned him.
24And when she had weaned him, she took him up with her, with three bullocks, and one ephah of flour, and a bottle of wine, and brought him unto the house of the LORD in Shiloh: and the child was young.
25And they slew a bullock, and brought the child to Eli.
26And she said, Oh my lord, as thy soul liveth, my lord, I am the woman that stood by thee here, praying unto the LORD.
27For this child I prayed; and the LORD hath given me my petition which I asked of him:
28Therefore also I have lent him to the LORD; as long as he liveth he shall be lent to the LORD. And he worshipped the LORD there.
Chapter 2
1And Hannah prayed, and said, My heart rejoiceth in the LORD, mine horn is exalted in the LORD: my mouth is enlarged over mine enemies; because I rejoice in thy salvation. 2There is none holy as the LORD: for there is none beside thee: neither is there any rock like our God. 3Talk no more so exceeding proudly; let not arrogancy come out of your mouth: for the LORD is a God of knowledge, and by him actions are weighed. 4The bows of the mighty men are broken, and they that stumbled are girded with strength. 5They that were full have hired out themselves for bread; and they that were hungry ceased: so that the barren hath born seven; and she that hath many children is waxed feeble. 6The LORD killeth, and maketh alive: he bringeth down to the grave, and bringeth up. 7The LORD maketh poor, and maketh rich: he bringeth low, and lifteth up. 8He raiseth up the poor out of the dust, and lifteth up the beggar from the dunghill, to set them among princes, and to make them inherit the throne of glory: for the pillars of the earth are the LORD'S, and he hath set the world upon them. 9He will keep the feet of his saints, and the wicked shall be silent in darkness; for by strength shall no man prevail. 10The adversaries of the LORD shall be broken to pieces; out of heaven shall he thunder upon them: the LORD shall judge the ends of the earth; and he shall give strength unto his king, and exalt the horn of his anointed.
11And Elkanah went to Ramah to his house. And the child did minister unto the LORD before Eli the priest.
12Now the sons of Eli were sons of Belial; they knew not the LORD.
13And the priests' custom with the people was, that, when any man offered sacrifice, the priest's servant came, while the flesh was in seething, with a fleshhook of three teeth in his hand;
14And he struck it into the pan, or kettle, or caldron, or pot; all that the fleshhook brought up the priest took for himself. So they did in Shiloh unto all the Israelites that came thither.
15Also before they burnt the fat, the priest's servant came, and said to the man that sacrificed, Give flesh to roast for the priest; for he will not have sodden flesh of thee, but raw.
16And if any man said unto him, Let them not fail to burn the fat presently, and then take as much as thy soul desireth; then he would answer him, Nay; but thou shalt give it me now: and if not, I will take it by force.
17Wherefore the sin of the young men was very great before the LORD: for men abhorred the offering of the LORD.
18But Samuel ministered before the LORD, being a child, girded with a linen ephod.
19Moreover his mother made him a little coat, and brought it to him from year to year, when she came up with her husband to offer the yearly sacrifice.
20And Eli blessed Elkanah and his wife, and said, The LORD give thee seed of this woman for the loan which is lent to the LORD. And they went unto their own home.
21And the LORD visited Hannah, so that she conceived, and bare three sons and two daughters. And the child Samuel grew before the LORD.
22Now Eli was very old, and heard all that his sons did unto all Israel; and how they lay with the women that assembled at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation.
23And he said unto them, Why do ye such things? for I hear of your evil dealings by all this people.
24Nay, my sons; for it is no good report that I hear: ye make the LORD'S people to transgress.
25If one man sin against another, the judge shall judge him: but if a man sin against the LORD, who shall intreat for him? Notwithstanding they hearkened not unto the voice of their father, because the LORD would slay them.
26And the child Samuel grew on, and was in favour both with the LORD, and also with men.
27And there came a man of God unto Eli, and said unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Did I plainly appear unto the house of thy father, when they were in Egypt in Pharaoh's house?
28And did I choose him out of all the tribes of Israel to be my priest, to offer upon mine altar, to burn incense, to wear an ephod before me? and did I give unto the house of thy father all the offerings made by fire of the children of Israel?
29Wherefore kick ye at my sacrifice and at mine offering, which I have commanded in my habitation; and honourest thy sons above me, to make yourselves fat with the chiefest of all the offerings of Israel my people?
30Wherefore the LORD God of Israel saith, I said indeed that thy house, and the house of thy father, should walk before me for ever: but now the LORD saith, Be it far from me; for them that honour me I will honour, and they that despise me shall be lightly esteemed.
31Behold, the days come, that I will cut off thine arm, and the arm of thy father's house, that there shall not be an old man in thine house.
32And thou shalt see an enemy in my habitation, in all the wealth which God shall give Israel: and there shall not be an old man in thine house for ever.
33And the man of thine, whom I shall not cut off from mine altar, shall be to consume thine eyes, and to grieve thine heart: and all the increase of thine house shall die in the flower of their age.
34And this shall be a sign unto thee, that shall come upon thy two sons, on Hophni and Phinehas; in one day they shall die both of them.
35And I will raise me up a faithful priest, that shall do according to that which is in mine heart and in my mind: and I will build him a sure house; and he shall walk before mine anointed for ever.
36And 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.
Chapter 3
1And the child Samuel ministered unto the LORD before Eli. And the word of the LORD was precious in those days; there was no open vision. 2And it came to pass at that time, when Eli was laid down in his place, and his eyes began to wax dim, that he could not see; 3And ere the lamp of God went out in the temple of the LORD, where the ark of God was, and Samuel was laid down to sleep; 4That the LORD called Samuel: and he answered, Here am I. 5And he ran unto Eli, and said, Here am I; for thou calledst me. And he said, I called not; lie down again. And he went and lay down. 6And the LORD called yet again, Samuel. And Samuel arose and went to Eli, and said, Here am I; for thou didst call me. And he answered, I called not, my son; lie down again. 7Now Samuel did not yet know the LORD, neither was the word of the LORD yet revealed unto him. 8And the LORD called Samuel again the third time. And he arose and went to Eli, and said, Here am I; for thou didst call me. And Eli perceived that the LORD had called the child. 9Therefore Eli said unto Samuel, Go, lie down: and it shall be, if he call thee, that thou shalt say, Speak, LORD; for thy servant heareth. So Samuel went and lay down in his place. 10And the LORD came, and stood, and called as at other times, Samuel, Samuel. Then Samuel answered, Speak; for thy servant heareth.
11And the LORD said to Samuel, Behold, I will do a thing in Israel, at which both the ears of every one that heareth it shall tingle.
12In that day I will perform against Eli all things which I have spoken concerning his house: when I begin, I will also make an end.
13For I have told him that I will judge his house for ever for the iniquity which he knoweth; because his sons made themselves vile, and he restrained them not.
14And therefore I have sworn unto the house of Eli, that the iniquity of Eli's house shall not be purged with sacrifice nor offering for ever.
15And Samuel lay until the morning, and opened the doors of the house of the LORD. And Samuel feared to shew Eli the vision.
16Then Eli called Samuel, and said, Samuel, my son. And he answered, Here am I.
17And he said, What is the thing that the LORD hath said unto thee? I pray thee hide it not from me: God do so to thee, and more also, if thou hide any thing from me of all the things that he said unto thee.
18And Samuel told him every whit, and hid nothing from him. And he said, It is the LORD: let him do what seemeth him good.
19And Samuel grew, and the LORD was with him, and did let none of his words fall to the ground.
20And all Israel from Dan even to Beersheba knew that Samuel was established to be a prophet of the LORD.
21And the LORD appeared again in Shiloh: for the LORD revealed himself to Samuel in Shiloh by the word of the LORD.
Christian Standard Bible
Chapter 1
1There was a man from Ramathaim-zophim in the hill country of Ephraim. His name was Elkanah son of Jeroham, son of Elihu, son of Tohu, son of Zuph, an Ephraimite. 2He had two wives, the first named Hannah and the second Peninnah. Peninnah had children, but Hannah was childless. 3This man would go up from his town every year to worship and to sacrifice to the Lord of Armies at Shiloh, where Eli's two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, were the Lord's priests.
4Whenever Elkanah offered a sacrifice, he always gave portions of the meat to his wife Peninnah and to each of her sons and daughters.
5But he gave a double portion to Hannah, for he loved her even though the Lord had kept her from conceiving.
6Her rival would taunt her severely just to provoke her, because the Lord had kept Hannah from conceiving.
7Year after year, when she went up to the Lord's house, her rival taunted her in this way. Hannah would weep and would not eat.
8"Hannah, why are you crying? " her husband, Elkanah, would ask. "Why won't you eat? Why are you troubled? Am I not better to you than ten sons? "
9On one occasion, Hannah got up after they ate and drank at Shiloh. The priest Eli was sitting on a chair by the doorpost of the Lord's temple.
10Deeply hurt, Hannah prayed to the Lord and wept with many tears.
11Making a vow, she pleaded, "Lord of Armies, if you will take notice of your servant's affliction, remember and not forget me, and give your servant a son, I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life, and his hair will never be cut."
12While she continued praying in the Lord's presence, Eli watched her mouth.
13Hannah was praying silently, and though her lips were moving, her voice could not be heard. Eli thought she was drunk
14and said to her, "How long are you going to be drunk? Get rid of your wine! "
15"No, my lord," Hannah replied. "I am a woman with a broken heart. I haven't had any wine or beer; I've been pouring out my heart before the Lord.
16Don't think of me as a wicked woman; I've been praying from the depth of my anguish and resentment."
19The next morning Elkanah and Hannah got up early to worship before the Lord. Afterward, they returned home to Ramah. Then Elkanah was intimate with his wife Hannah, and the Lord remembered her.
20After some time, Hannah conceived and gave birth to a son. She named him Samuel, because she said, "I requested him from the Lord."
21When Elkanah and all his household went up to make the annual sacrifice and his vow offering to the Lord,
22Hannah did not go and explained to her husband, "After the child is weaned, I'll take him to appear in the Lord's presence and to stay there permanently."
23Her husband, Elkanah, replied, "Do what you think is best, and stay here until you've weaned him. May the Lord confirm your word." So Hannah stayed there and nursed her son until she weaned him.
24When she had weaned him, she took him with her to Shiloh, as well as a three-year-old bull, half a bushel of flour, and a clay jar of wine. Though the boy was still young, she took him to the Lord's house at Shiloh.
25Then they slaughtered the bull and brought the boy to Eli.
26"Please, my lord," she said, "as surely as you live, my lord, I am the woman who stood here beside you praying to the Lord.
27I prayed for this boy, and since the Lord gave me what I asked him for,
28I now give the boy to the Lord. For as long as he lives, he is given to the Lord." Then he worshiped the Lord there.
Chapter 2
1Hannah prayed: My heart rejoices in the Lord; my horn is lifted up by the Lord. My mouth boasts over my enemies, because I rejoice in your salvation. 2There is no one holy like the Lord. There is no one besides you! And there is no rock like our God. 3Do not boast so proudly, or let arrogant words come out of your mouth, for the Lord is a God of knowledge, and actions are weighed by him. 4The bows of the warriors are broken, but the feeble are clothed with strength. 5Those who are full hire themselves out for food, but those who are starving hunger no more. The woman who is childless gives birth to seven, but the woman with many sons pines away. 6The Lord brings death and gives life; he sends some down to Sheol, and he raises others up. 7The Lord brings poverty and gives wealth; he humbles and he exalts. 8He raises the poor from the dust and lifts the needy from the trash heap. He seats them with noblemen and gives them a throne of honor. For the foundations of the earth are the Lord's; he has set the world on them. 9He guards the steps of his faithful ones, but the wicked perish in darkness, for a person does not prevail by his own strength. 10Those who oppose the Lord will be shattered; he will thunder in the heavens against them. The Lord will judge the ends of the earth. He will give power to his king; he will lift up the horn of his anointed.
12Eli's sons were wicked men; they did not respect the Lord
13or the priests' share of the sacrifices from the people. When anyone offered a sacrifice, the priest's servant would come with a three-pronged meat fork while the meat was boiling
14and plunge it into the container, kettle, cauldron, or cooking pot. The priest would claim for himself whatever the meat fork brought up. This is the way they treated all the Israelites who came there to Shiloh.
15Even before the fat was burned, the priest's servant would come and say to the one who was sacrificing, "Give the priest some meat to roast, because he won't accept boiled meat from you--only raw."
16If that person said to him, "The fat must be burned first; then you can take whatever you want for yourself," the servant would reply, "No, I insist that you hand it over right now. If you don't, I'll take it by force! "
17So the servants' sin was very severe in the presence of the Lord, because the men treated the Lord's offering with contempt.
18Samuel served in the Lord's presence--this mere boy was dressed in the linen ephod.
19Each year his mother made him a little robe and took it to him when she went with her husband to offer the annual sacrifice.
20Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife: "May the Lord give you children by this woman in place of the one she has given to the Lord." Then they would go home.
22Now Eli was very old. He heard about everything his sons were doing to all Israel and how they were sleeping with the women who served at the entrance to the tent of meeting.
23He said to them, "Why are you doing these things? I have heard about your evil actions from all these people.
24No, my sons, the news I hear the Lord's people spreading is not good.
25If one person sins against another, God can intercede for him, but if a person sins against the Lord, who can intercede for him? " But they would not listen to their father, since the Lord intended to kill them.
26By contrast, the boy Samuel grew in stature and in favor with the Lord and with people.
27A man of God came to Eli and said to him, "This is what the Lord says: 'Didn't I reveal myself to your forefather's family when they were in Egypt and belonged to Pharaoh's palace?
28Out of all the tribes of Israel, I chose your house to be my priests, to offer sacrifices on my altar, to burn incense, and to wear an ephod in my presence. I also gave your forefather's family all the Israelite food offerings.
29Why, then, do all of you despise my sacrifices and offerings that I require at the place of worship? You have honored your sons more than me, by making yourselves fat with the best part of all of the offerings of my people Israel.'
30"Therefore, this is the declaration of the Lord, the God of Israel: 'I did say that your family and your forefather's family would walk before me forever. But now,' this is the Lord's declaration, 'no longer! For those who honor me I will honor, but those who despise me will be disgraced.
31Look, the days are coming when I will cut off your strength and the strength of your forefather's family, so that none in your family will reach old age.
32You will see distress in the place of worship, in spite of all that is good in Israel, and no one in your family will ever again reach old age.
33Any man from your family I do not cut off from my altar will bring grief and sadness to you. All your descendants will die violently.
34This will be the sign that will come to you concerning your two sons Hophni and Phinehas: both of them will die on the same day.
35" 'Then I will raise up a faithful priest for myself. He will do whatever is in my heart and mind. I will establish a lasting dynasty for him, and he will walk before my anointed one for all time.
36Anyone 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.' "
2One day Eli, whose eyesight was failing, was lying in his usual place.
3Before the lamp of God had gone out, Samuel was lying down in the temple of the Lord, where the ark of God was located.
8Once again, for the third time, the Lord called Samuel. He got up, went to Eli, and said, "Here I am; you called me."Then Eli understood that the Lord was calling the boy.
9He told Samuel, "Go and lie down. If he calls you, say, 'Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.' " So Samuel went and lay down in his place.
11The Lord said to Samuel, "I am about to do something in Israel that will cause everyone who hears about it to shudder.
12On that day I will carry out against Eli everything I said about his family, from beginning to end.
13I told him that I am going to judge his family forever because of the iniquity he knows about: his sons are cursing God, and he has not stopped them.
14Therefore, I have sworn to Eli's family: The iniquity of Eli's family will never be wiped out by either sacrifice or offering."
New Living Translation
Chapter 1
1There was a man named Elkanah who lived in Ramah in the region of Zuph in the hill country of Ephraim. He was the son of Jeroham, son of Elihu, son of Tohu, son of Zuph, of Ephraim. 2Elkanah had two wives, Hannah and Peninnah. Peninnah had children, but Hannah did not.
3Each year Elkanah would travel to Shiloh to worship and sacrifice to the Lord of Heaven’s Armies at the Tabernacle. The priests of the Lord at that time were the two sons of Eli — Hophni and Phinehas.
4On the days Elkanah presented his sacrifice, he would give portions of the meat to Peninnah and each of her children.
5And though he loved Hannah, he would give her only one choice portion because the Lord had given her no children.
6So Peninnah would taunt Hannah and make fun of her because the Lord had kept her from having children.
7Year after year it was the same — Peninnah would taunt Hannah as they went to the Tabernacle. Each time, Hannah would be reduced to tears and would not even eat.
9Once after a sacrificial meal at Shiloh, Hannah got up and went to pray. Eli the priest was sitting at his customary place beside the entrance of the Tabernacle.
10Hannah was in deep anguish, crying bitterly as she prayed to the Lord.
11And she made this vow: 'O Lord of Heaven’s Armies, if you will look upon my sorrow and answer my prayer and give me a son, then I will give him back to you. He will be yours for his entire lifetime, and as a sign that he has been dedicated to the Lord, his hair will never be cut. '
12As she was praying to the Lord, Eli watched her.
13Seeing her lips moving but hearing no sound, he thought she had been drinking.
14Must you come here drunk?' he demanded. 'Throw away your wine!'
15Oh no, sir!' she replied. 'I haven’t been drinking wine or anything stronger. But I am very discouraged, and I was pouring out my heart to the Lord.
16Don’t think I am a wicked woman! For I have been praying out of great anguish and sorrow.'
19The entire family got up early the next morning and went to worship the Lord once more. Then they returned home to Ramah. When Elkanah slept with Hannah, the Lord remembered her plea,
20and in due time she gave birth to a son. She named him Samuel, for she said, 'I asked the Lord for him.'
21The next year Elkanah and his family went on their annual trip to offer a sacrifice to the Lord and to keep his vow.
22But Hannah did not go. She told her husband, 'Wait until the boy is weaned. Then I will take him to the Tabernacle and leave him there with the Lord permanently. '
24When the child was weaned, Hannah took him to the Tabernacle in Shiloh. They brought along a three-year-old bull for the sacrifice and a basket of flour and some wine.
25After sacrificing the bull, they brought the boy to Eli.
26Sir, do you remember me?' Hannah asked. 'I am the very woman who stood here several years ago praying to the Lord.
27I asked the Lord to give me this boy, and he has granted my request.
28Now I am giving him to the Lord, and he will belong to the Lord his whole life.' And they worshiped the Lord there.
Chapter 2
1Then Hannah prayed: 'My heart rejoices in the Lord! The Lord has made me strong. Now I have an answer for my enemies; I rejoice because you rescued me. 2No one is holy like the Lord! There is no one besides you; there is no Rock like our God.
3'Stop acting so proud and haughty! Don’t speak with such arrogance! For the Lord is a God who knows what you have done; he will judge your actions.
4The bow of the mighty is now broken, and those who stumbled are now strong.
5Those who were well fed are now starving, and those who were starving are now full. The childless woman now has seven children, and the woman with many children wastes away.
6The Lord gives both death and life; he brings some down to the grave but raises others up.
7The Lord makes some poor and others rich; he brings some down and lifts others up.
8He lifts the poor from the dust and the needy from the garbage dump. He sets them among princes, placing them in seats of honor. For all the earth is the Lord’s, and he has set the world in order.
9'He will protect his faithful ones, but the wicked will disappear in darkness. No one will succeed by strength alone.
10Those who fight against the Lord will be shattered. He thunders against them from heaven; the Lord judges throughout the earth. He gives power to his king; he increases the strength of his anointed one.'
12Now the sons of Eli were scoundrels who had no respect for the Lord
13or for their duties as priests. Whenever anyone offered a sacrifice, Eli’s sons would send over a servant with a three-pronged fork. While the meat of the sacrificed animal was still boiling,
14the servant would stick the fork into the pot and demand that whatever it brought up be given to Eli’s sons. All the Israelites who came to worship at Shiloh were treated this way.
15Sometimes the servant would come even before the animal’s fat had been burned on the altar. He would demand raw meat before it had been boiled so that it could be used for roasting.
16The man offering the sacrifice might reply, 'Take as much as you want, but the fat must be burned first.' Then the servant would demand, 'No, give it to me now, or I’ll take it by force.'
17So the sin of these young men was very serious in the Lord’s sight, for they treated the Lord’s offerings with contempt.
18But Samuel, though he was only a boy, served the Lord. He wore a linen garment like that of a priest.
19Each year his mother made a small coat for him and brought it to him when she came with her husband for the sacrifice.
20Before they returned home, Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife and say, 'May the Lord give you other children to take the place of this one she gave to the Lord. '
21And the Lord blessed Hannah, and she conceived and gave birth to three sons and two daughters. Meanwhile, Samuel grew up in the presence of the Lord.
22Now Eli was very old, but he was aware of what his sons were doing to the people of Israel. He knew, for instance, that his sons were seducing the young women who assisted at the entrance of the Tabernacle.
23Eli said to them, 'I have been hearing reports from all the people about the wicked things you are doing. Why do you keep sinning?
24You must stop, my sons! The reports I hear among the Lord’s people are not good.
25If someone sins against another person, God can mediate for the guilty party. But if someone sins against the Lord, who can intercede?' But Eli’s sons wouldn’t listen to their father, for the Lord was already planning to put them to death.
27One day a man of God came to Eli and gave him this message from the Lord: 'I revealed myself to your ancestors when they were Pharaoh’s slaves in Egypt.
28I chose your ancestor Aaron from among all the tribes of Israel to be my priest, to offer sacrifices on my altar, to burn incense, and to wear the priestly vest as he served me. And I assigned the sacrificial offerings to you priests.
29So why do you scorn my sacrifices and offerings? Why do you give your sons more honor than you give me — for you and they have become fat from the best offerings of my people Israel!
30Therefore, the Lord, the God of Israel, says: I promised that your branch of the tribe of Levi would always be my priests. But I will honor those who honor me, and I will despise those who think lightly of me.
31The time is coming when I will put an end to your family, so it will no longer serve as my priests. All the members of your family will die before their time. None will reach old age.
32You will watch with envy as I pour out prosperity on the people of Israel. But no members of your family will ever live out their days.
33The few not cut off from serving at my altar will survive, but only so their eyes can go blind and their hearts break, and their children will die a violent death.
34And to prove that what I have said will come true, I will cause your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, to die on the same day!
35Then I will raise up a faithful priest who will serve me and do what I desire. I will establish his family, and they will be priests to my anointed kings forever.
36Then 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.’'
2One night Eli, who was almost blind by now, had gone to bed.
3The lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was sleeping in the Tabernacle near the Ark of God.
8So the Lord called a third time, and once more Samuel got up and went to Eli. 'Here I am. Did you call me?' Then Eli realized it was the Lord who was calling the boy.
9So he said to Samuel, 'Go and lie down again, and if someone calls again, say, ‘Speak, Lord, your servant is listening.’' So Samuel went back to bed.
11Then the Lord said to Samuel, 'I am about to do a shocking thing in Israel.
12I am going to carry out all my threats against Eli and his family, from beginning to end.
13I have warned him that judgment is coming upon his family forever, because his sons are blaspheming God and he hasn’t disciplined them.
14So I have vowed that the sins of Eli and his sons will never be forgiven by sacrifices or offerings.'
17What did the Lord say to you? Tell me everything. And may God strike you and even kill you if you hide anything from me!'
18So Samuel told Eli everything; he didn’t hold anything back. 'It is the Lord’s will,' Eli replied. 'Let him do what he thinks best.'
19As Samuel grew up, the Lord was with him, and everything Samuel said proved to be reliable.
20And all Israel, from Dan in the north to Beersheba in the south, knew that Samuel was confirmed as a prophet of the Lord.
21The Lord continued to appear at Shiloh and gave messages to Samuel there at the Tabernacle.
English Standard Version
Chapter 1
1There was a certain man of Ramathaim-zophim of the hill country of Ephraim whose name was Elkanah the son of Jeroham, son of Elihu, son of Tohu, son of Zuph, an Ephrathite. 2He had two wives. The name of the one was Hannah, and the name of the other, Peninnah. And Peninnah had children, but Hannah had no children.
3Now this man used to go up year by year from his city to worship and to sacrifice to the LORD of hosts at Shiloh, where the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were priests of the LORD.
4On the day when Elkanah sacrificed, he would give portions to Peninnah his wife and to all her sons and daughters.
5But to Hannah he gave a double portion, because he loved her, though the LORD had closed her womb.
6And her rival used to provoke her grievously to irritate her, because the LORD had closed her womb.
7So it went on year by year. As often as she went up to the house of the LORD, she used to provoke her. Therefore Hannah wept and would not eat.
8And Elkanah, her husband, said to her, “Hannah, why do you weep? And why do you not eat? And why is your heart sad? Am I not more to you than ten sons?”
9After they had eaten and drunk in Shiloh, Hannah rose. Now Eli the priest was sitting on the seat beside the doorpost of the temple of the LORD.
10She was deeply distressed and prayed to the LORD and wept bitterly.
11And she vowed a vow and said, “O LORD of hosts, if you will indeed look on the affliction of your servant and remember me and not forget your servant, but will give to your servant a son, then I will give him to the LORD all the days of his life, and no razor shall touch his head.”
12As she continued praying before the LORD, Eli observed her mouth.
13Hannah was speaking in her heart; only her lips moved, and her voice was not heard. Therefore Eli took her to be a drunken woman.
14And Eli said to her, “How long will you go on being drunk? Put your wine away from you.”
15But Hannah answered, “No, my lord, I am a woman troubled in spirit. I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but I have been pouring out my soul before the LORD.
16Do not regard your servant as a worthless woman, for all along I have been speaking out of my great anxiety and vexation.”
17Then Eli answered, “Go in peace, and the God of Israel grant your petition that you have made to him.”
18And she said, “Let your servant find favor in your eyes.” Then the woman went her way and ate, and her face was no longer sad.
19They rose early in the morning and worshiped before the LORD; then they went back to their house at Ramah. And Elkanah knew Hannah his wife, and the LORD remembered her.
20And in due time Hannah conceived and bore a son, and she called his name Samuel, for she said, “I have asked for him from the LORD.”
21The man Elkanah and all his house went up to offer to the LORD the yearly sacrifice and to pay his vow.
22But Hannah did not go up, for she said to her husband, “As soon as the child is weaned, I will bring him, so that he may appear in the presence of the LORD and dwell there forever.”
23Elkanah her husband said to her, “Do what seems best to you; wait until you have weaned him; only, may the LORD establish his word.” So the woman remained and nursed her son until she weaned him.
24And when she had weaned him, she took him up with her, along with a three-year-old bull, an ephah of flour, and a skin of wine, and she brought him to the house of the LORD at Shiloh. And the child was young.
25Then they slaughtered the bull, and they brought the child to Eli.
26And she said, “Oh, my lord! As you live, my lord, I am the woman who was standing here in your presence, praying to the LORD.
27For this child I prayed, and the LORD has granted me my petition that I made to him.
28Therefore I have lent him to the LORD. As long as he lives, he is lent to the LORD.” And he worshiped the LORD there.
2“There is none holy like the LORD: for there is none besides you; there is no rock like our God.
3Talk no more so very proudly, let not arrogance come from your mouth; for the LORD is a God of knowledge, and by him actions are weighed.
4The bows of the mighty are broken, but the feeble bind on strength.
5Those who were full have hired themselves out for bread, but those who were hungry have ceased to hunger. The barren has borne seven, but she who has many children is forlorn.
6The LORD kills and brings to life; he brings down to Sheol and raises up.
7The LORD makes poor and makes rich; he brings low and he exalts.
8He raises up the poor from the dust; he lifts the needy from the ash heap to make them sit with princes and inherit a seat of honor. For the pillars of the earth are the LORD’s, and on them he has set the world.
9“He will guard the feet of his faithful ones, but the wicked shall be cut off in darkness, for not by might shall a man prevail.
10The adversaries of the LORD shall be broken to pieces; against them he will thunder in heaven. The LORD will judge the ends of the earth; he will give strength to his king and exalt the horn of his anointed.”
11Then Elkanah went home to Ramah. And the boy was ministering to the LORD in the presence of Eli the priest.
12Now the sons of Eli were worthless men. They did not know the LORD.
13The custom of the priests with the people was that when any man offered sacrifice, the priest’s servant would come, while the meat was boiling, with a three-pronged fork in his hand,
14and he would thrust it into the pan or kettle or cauldron or pot. All that the fork brought up the priest would take for himself. This is what they did at Shiloh to all the Israelites who came there.
15Moreover, before the fat was burned, the priest’s servant would come and say to the man who was sacrificing, “Give meat for the priest to roast, for he will not accept boiled meat from you but only raw.”
16And if the man said to him, “Let them burn the fat first, and then take as much as you wish,” he would say, “No, you must give it now, and if not, I will take it by force.”
17Thus the sin of the young men was very great in the sight of the LORD, for the men treated the offering of the LORD with contempt.
18Samuel was ministering before the LORD, a boy clothed with a linen ephod.
19And his mother used to make for him a little robe and take it to him each year when she went up with her husband to offer the yearly sacrifice.
20Then Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife, and say, “May the LORD give you children by this woman for the petition she asked of the LORD.” So then they would return to their home.
22Now Eli was very old, and he kept hearing all that his sons were doing to all Israel, and how they lay with the women who were serving at the entrance to the tent of meeting.
23And he said to them, “Why do you do such things? For I hear of your evil dealings from all these people.
24No, my sons; it is no good report that I hear the people of the LORD spreading abroad.
25If someone sins against a man, God will mediate for him, but if someone sins against the LORD, who can intercede for him?” But they would not listen to the voice of their father, for it was the will of the LORD to put them to death.
26Now the boy Samuel continued to grow both in stature and in favor with the LORD and also with man.
27And there came a man of God to Eli and said to him, “Thus says the LORD, ‘Did I indeed reveal myself to the house of your father when they were in Egypt subject to the house of Pharaoh?
28Did I choose him out of all the tribes of Israel to be my priest, to go up to my altar, to burn incense, to wear an ephod before me? I gave to the house of your father all my offerings by fire from the people of Israel.
29Why then do you scorn my sacrifices and my offerings that I commanded for my dwelling, and honor your sons above me by fattening yourselves on the choicest parts of every offering of my people Israel?’
30Therefore the LORD, the God of Israel, declares: ‘I promised that your house and the house of your father should go in and out before me forever,’ but now the LORD declares: ‘Far be it from me, for those who honor me I will honor, and those who despise me shall be lightly esteemed.
31Behold, the days are coming when I will cut off your strength and the strength of your father’s house, so that there will not be an old man in your house.
32Then in distress you will look with envious eye on all the prosperity that shall be bestowed on Israel, and there shall not be an old man in your house forever.
33The only one of you whom I shall not cut off from my altar shall be spared to weep his eyes out to grieve his heart, and all the descendants of your house shall die by the sword of men.
34And this that shall come upon your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, shall be the sign to you: both of them shall die on the same day.
35And I will raise up for myself a faithful priest, who shall do according to what is in my heart and in my mind. And I will build him a sure house, and he shall go in and out before my anointed forever.
36And 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.”’”
2At that time Eli, whose eyesight had begun to grow dim so that he could not see, was lying down in his own place.
3The lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the temple of the LORD, where the ark of God was.
4Then the LORD called Samuel, and he said, “Here I am!”
5and ran to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” But he said, “I did not call; lie down again.” So he went and lay down.
6And the LORD called again, “Samuel!” and Samuel arose and went to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” But he said, “I did not call, my son; lie down again.”
7Now Samuel did not yet know the LORD, and the word of the LORD had not yet been revealed to him.
8And the LORD called Samuel again the third time. And he arose and went to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” Then Eli perceived that the LORD was calling the boy.
9Therefore Eli said to Samuel, “Go, lie down, and if he calls you, you shall say, ‘Speak, LORD, for your servant hears.’” So Samuel went and lay down in his place.
10And the LORD came and stood, calling as at other times, “Samuel! Samuel!” And Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant hears.”
11Then the LORD said to Samuel, “Behold, I am about to do a thing in Israel at which the two ears of everyone who hears it will tingle.
12On that day I will fulfill against Eli all that I have spoken concerning his house, from beginning to end.
13And I declare to him that I am about to punish his house forever, for the iniquity that he knew, because his sons were blaspheming God, and he did not restrain them.
14Therefore I swear to the house of Eli that the iniquity of Eli’s house shall not be atoned for by sacrifice or offering forever.”
15Samuel lay until morning; then he opened the doors of the house of the LORD. And Samuel was afraid to tell the vision to Eli.
16But Eli called Samuel and said, “Samuel, my son.” And he said, “Here I am.”
17And Eli said, “What was it that he told you? Do not hide it from me. May God do so to you and more also if you hide anything from me of all that he told you.”
18So Samuel told him everything and hid nothing from him. And he said, “It is the LORD. Let him do what seems good to him.”
19And Samuel grew, and the LORD was with him and let none of his words fall to the ground.
20And all Israel from Dan to Beersheba knew that Samuel was established as a prophet of the LORD.
21And the LORD appeared again at Shiloh, for the LORD revealed himself to Samuel at Shiloh by the word of the LORD.
New International Version
Chapter 1
1There was a certain man from Ramathaim, a Zuphite from the hill country of Ephraim, whose name was Elkanah son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the son of Zuph, an Ephraimite. 2He had two wives; one was called Hannah and the other Peninnah. Peninnah had children, but Hannah had none.
3Year after year this man went up from his town to worship and sacrifice to the LORD Almighty at Shiloh, where Hophni and Phinehas, the two sons of Eli, were priests of the LORD.
4Whenever the day came for Elkanah to sacrifice, he would give portions of the meat to his wife Peninnah and to all her sons and daughters.
5But to Hannah he gave a double portion because he loved her, and the LORD had closed her womb.
6Because the LORD had closed Hannah's womb, her rival kept provoking her in order to irritate her.
7This went on year after year. Whenever Hannah went up to the house of the LORD, her rival provoked her till she wept and would not eat.
8Her husband Elkanah would say to her, 'Hannah, why are you weeping? Why don't you eat? Why are you downhearted? Don't I mean more to you than ten sons?'
9Once when they had finished eating and drinking in Shiloh, Hannah stood up. Now Eli the priest was sitting on his chair by the doorpost of the LORD's house.
10In her deep anguish Hannah prayed to the LORD, weeping bitterly.
11And she made a vow, saying, 'LORD Almighty, if you will only look on your servant's misery and remember me, and not forget your servant but give her a son, then I will give him to the LORD for all the days of his life, and no razor will ever be used on his head."
12As she kept on praying to the LORD, Eli observed her mouth.
13Hannah was praying in her heart, and her lips were moving but her voice was not heard. Eli thought she was drunk
14and said to her, 'How long are you going to stay drunk? Put away your wine.'
15Not so, my lord,' Hannah replied, 'I am a woman who is deeply troubled. I have not been drinking wine or beer; I was pouring out my soul to the LORD.
16Do not take your servant for a wicked woman; I have been praying here out of my great anguish and grief.'
19Early the next morning they arose and worshiped before the LORD and then went back to their home at Ramah. Elkanah made love to his wife Hannah, and the LORD remembered her.
20So in the course of time Hannah became pregnant and gave birth to a son. She named him Samuel, saying, 'Because I asked the LORD for him.'
21When her husband Elkanah went up with all his family to offer the annual sacrifice to the LORD and to fulfill his vow,
22Hannah did not go. She said to her husband, 'After the boy is weaned, I will take him and present him before the LORD, and he will live there always.'
24After he was weaned, she took the boy with her, young as he was, along with a three-year-old bull, an ephah of flour and a skin of wine, and brought him to the house of the LORD at Shiloh.
25When the bull had been sacrificed, they brought the boy to Eli,
26and she said to him, 'Pardon me, my lord. As surely as you live, I am the woman who stood here beside you praying to the LORD.
27I prayed for this child, and the LORD has granted me what I asked of him.
28So now I give him to the LORD. For his whole life he will be given over to the LORD.' And he worshiped the LORD there.
3Do not keep talking so proudly or let your mouth speak such arrogance, for the LORD is a God who knows, and by him deeds are weighed.
4The bows of the warriors are broken, but those who stumbled are armed with strength.
5Those who were full hire themselves out for food, but those who were hungry are hungry no more. She who was barren has borne seven children, but she who has had many sons pines away.
6The LORD brings death and makes alive; he brings down to the grave and raises up.
7The LORD sends poverty and wealth; he humbles and he exalts.
12Eli's sons were scoundrels; they had no regard for the LORD.
13Now it was the practice of the priests that, whenever any of the people offered a sacrifice, the priest's servant would come with a three-pronged fork in his hand while the meat was being boiled
14and would plunge the fork into the pan or kettle or caldron or pot. Whatever the fork brought up the priest would take for himself. This is how they treated all the Israelites who came to Shiloh.
15But even before the fat was burned, the priest's servant would come and say to the person who was sacrificing, 'Give the priest some meat to roast; he won't accept boiled meat from you, but only raw.'
18But Samuel was ministering before the LORD--a boy wearing a linen ephod.
19Each year his mother made him a little robe and took it to him when she went up with her husband to offer the annual sacrifice.
20Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife, saying, 'May the LORD give you children by this woman to take the place of the one she prayed for and gave to the LORD.' Then they would go home.
21And the LORD was gracious to Hannah; she gave birth to three sons and two daughters. Meanwhile, the boy Samuel grew up in the presence of the LORD.
22Now Eli, who was very old, heard about everything his sons were doing to all Israel and how they slept with the women who served at the entrance to the tent of meeting.
23So he said to them, 'Why do you do such things? I hear from all the people about these wicked deeds of yours.
24No, my sons; the report I hear spreading among the LORD's people is not good.
25If one person sins against another, God may mediate for the offender; but if anyone sins against the LORD, who will intercede for them?' His sons, however, did not listen to their father's rebuke, for it was the LORD's will to put them to death.
27Now a man of God came to Eli and said to him, 'This is what the LORD says: 'Did I not clearly reveal myself to your ancestor's family when they were in Egypt under Pharaoh?
28I chose your ancestor out of all the tribes of Israel to be my priest, to go up to my altar, to burn incense, and to wear an ephod in my presence. I also gave your ancestor's family all the food offerings presented by the Israelites.
29Why do you scorn my sacrifice and offering that I prescribed for my dwelling? Why do you honor your sons more than me by fattening yourselves on the choice parts of every offering made by my people Israel?'
30Therefore the LORD, the God of Israel, declares: 'I promised that members of your family would minister before me forever.' But now the LORD declares: 'Far be it from me! Those who honor me I will honor, but those who despise me will be disdained.
31The time is coming when I will cut short your strength and the strength of your priestly house, so that no one in it will reach old age,
32and you will see distress in my dwelling. Although good will be done to Israel, no one in your family line will ever reach old age.
33Every one of you that I do not cut off from serving at my altar I will spare only to destroy your sight and sap your strength, and all your descendants will die in the prime of life.
34'And what happens to your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, will be a sign to you--they will both die on the same day.
35I will raise up for myself a faithful priest, who will do according to what is in my heart and mind. I will firmly establish his priestly house, and they will minister before my anointed one always.
36Then 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.'''
2One night Eli, whose eyes were becoming so weak that he could barely see, was lying down in his usual place.
3The lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the house of the LORD, where the ark of God was.
8A third time the LORD called, 'Samuel!' And Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, 'Here I am; you called me.' Then Eli realized that the LORD was calling the boy.
9So Eli told Samuel, 'Go and lie down, and if he calls you, say, 'Speak, LORD, for your servant is listening.'' So Samuel went and lay down in his place.
11And the LORD said to Samuel: 'See, I am about to do something in Israel that will make the ears of everyone who hears about it tingle.
12At that time I will carry out against Eli everything I spoke against his family--from beginning to end.
13For I told him that I would judge his family forever because of the sin he knew about; his sons blasphemed God, and he failed to restrain them.
14Therefore I swore to the house of Eli, 'The guilt of Eli's house will never be atoned for by sacrifice or offering.''
