1 SAMUEL

HANNAH’S VOW

1 There was a man from Ramathaim-zophima inA the hill country of Ephraim.b His name was Elkanahc son of Jeroham, son of Elihu, son of Tohu, son of Zuph, an Ephraimite. 2 He had two wives,d the first named Hannahe and the second Peninnah. Peninnah had children, but Hannah was childless. 3 This man would go up from his town every yearf to worship and to sacrificeg to the Lord of Armies at Shiloh,h where Eli’s two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, were the Lord’s priests.

4 Whenever Elkanah offered a sacrifice, he always gave portions of the meati to his wife Peninnah and to each of her sons and daughters. 5 But he gave a doubleB portionj to Hannah, for he loved her even though the Lord had kept her from conceiving. 6 Her rival would taunt her severely just to provoke her, because the Lord had kept Hannah from conceiving. 7 Year after year, when she went up to the Lord’s house,k 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?”l

9 On one occasion, Hannah got up after they ate and drank at Shiloh.C The priest Eli was sitting on a chair by the doorpost of the Lord’s temple.m 10 Deeply hurt, Hannah prayed to the Lord and wept with many tears.n 11 Making a vow,o she pleaded, “Lord of Armies, if you will take notice of your servant’s affliction,p 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.”E,q

12 While she continued praying in the Lord’s presence, Eli watched her mouth. 13 Hannah was praying silently,r and though her lips were moving, her voice could not be heard. Eli thought she was drunk 14 and said to her, “How long are you going to be drunk?s 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.t 16 Don’t think of me as a wicked woman;u I’ve been praying from the depth of my anguish and resentment.”v

17 Eli responded, “Go in peace,w and may the God of Israel grant the request you’ve made of him.”x

18 “May your servant find favor with you,”y she replied. Then Hannah went on her way; she ate and no longer looked despondent.G,z

SAMUEL’S BIRTH AND DEDICATION

19 The next morning Elkanah and Hannah got up early to worship before the Lord. Afterward, they returned home to Ramah.aa Then Elkanah was intimate with his wife Hannah, and the Lord remembered her.ab 20 After some time,H Hannah conceived and gave birth to a son. She named him Samuel,I because she said, “I requested him from the Lord.”

21 When Elkanah and all his household went up to make the annual sacrificeac and his vow offering to the Lord, 22 Hannah did not go and explained to her husband, “After the child is weaned, I’ll take him to appear in the Lord’s presencead and to stay there permanently.”ae

23 Her husband, Elkanah, replied, “Do what you think is best,af and stay here until you’ve weaned him. May the Lord confirm yourK word.”ag So Hannah stayed there and nursed her son until she weaned him. 24 When she had weaned him, she took him with her to Shiloh, as well as a three-year-old bull,L half a bushelM of flour, and a clay jar of wine.ah Though the boy was still young,N she took him to the Lord’s house at Shiloh.ai 25 Then they slaughtered the bull and brought the boy to Eli.

26 “Please, my lord,” she said, “as surely as you live,aj my lord, I am the woman who stood here beside you praying to the Lord. 27 I prayed for this boy,ak and since the Lord gave me what I asked him for,a 28 I now give the boy to the Lord. For as long as he lives, he is given to the Lord.”b Then heA worshiped the Lord there.B

HANNAH’S TRIUMPHANT PRAYER

2 Hannah prayed:c

My heart rejoices in the Lord;d

my horn is lifted up by the Lord.

My mouth boasts over my enemies,

because I rejoice in your salvation.e

2 There is no one holy like the Lord.f

There is no one besides you!g

And there is no rock like our God.h

3 Do 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.i

4 The bows of the warriors are broken,j

but the feeble are clothed with strength.k

5 Those 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,l

but the woman with many sons pines away.m

6 The Lord brings death and gives life;n

he sends some down to Sheol, and he raises others up.o

7 The Lord brings poverty and gives wealth;p

he humbles and he exalts.q

8 He raises the poor from the dustr and lifts the needy from the trash heap.s

He seats them with noblement

and gives them a throne of honor.C

For the foundations of the earth are the Lord’s;u

he has set the world on them.v

9 He guards the stepsD of his faithful ones,w

but the wicked perish in darkness,x

for a person does not prevail by his own strength.y

10 Those who oppose the Lord will be shattered;E,z

he will thunder in the heavens against them.aa

The Lord will judge the ends of the earth.ab

He will give power to his king;

he will lift up the horn of his anointed.F,ac

11 Elkanah went home to Ramah,ad but the boy served the Lord in the presence of the priest Eli.ae

ELI’S FAMILY JUDGED

12 Eli’s sons were wicked men;af they did not respect the Lordag 13 or 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 14 and plunge it into the container, kettle, cauldron, or cooking pot.ah 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. 15 Even before the fat was burned,ai 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.” 16 If that person said to him, “The fat must be burned first; then you can take whatever you want for yourself,”aj the servant would reply, “No, I insist that you hand it over right now. If you don’t, I’ll take it by force!” 17 So the servants’ sin was very severe in the presence of the Lord, because the men treated the Lord’s offering with contempt.ak

18 Samuel served in the Lord’s presenceal—this mere boy was dressed in the linen ephod.am 19 Each year his mother made him a little robean and took it to him when she went with her husband to offer the annual sacrifice.ao 20 Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife:ap “May the Lord give you children by this woman in place of the one sheG has given to the Lord.”aq Then they would go home.

21 The Lord paid attention to Hannah’s need,ar and she conceived and gave birth to three sons and two daughters. Meanwhile, the boy Samuel grew up in the presence of the Lord.as

22 Now Eli was very old. He heard about everything his sons were doing to all Israelat and how they were sleeping with the women who served at the entrance to the tent of meeting.au 23 He said to them, “Why are you doing these things? I have heard about your evil actions from all these people. 24 No, my sons, the news I hear the Lord’s people spreading is not good. 25 If one person sins against another, God can intercede for him, but if a person sins against the Lord, who can intercede for him?”a But they would not listen to their father, since the Lord intended to kill them.b 26 By contrast, the boy Samuel grew in stature and in favor with the Lord and with people.c

27 A man of God came to Eli and said to him,d “This is what the Lord says: ‘Didn’t I reveal myself to your forefather’s familyA when they were in Egypt and belonged to Pharaoh’s palace?e 28 Out of all the tribes of Israel, I chose your houseB to be my priests, to offer sacrifices on my altar, to burn incense, and to wear an ephod in my presence.f I also gave your forefather’s family all the Israelite food offerings. 29 Why, then, do all of you despise my sacrifices and offerings that I require at the place of worship?g You have honored your sons more than me,h 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.i But now,’ this is the Lord’s declaration, ‘no longer! For those who honor me I will honor,j but those who despise me will be disgraced.k 31 Look, 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.l 32 You will see distress in the place of worship,m in spite of all that is good in Israel, and no one in your family will ever again reach old age.n 33 Any man from your family I do not cut off from my altar will bring griefC and sadness to you. All your descendants will die violently.D,E 34 This will be the sign that will come to you concerning your two sons Hophni and Phinehas:o both of them will die on the same day.p

35 “ ‘Then I will raise up a faithful priestq for myself. He will do whatever is in my heart and mind. I will establish a lasting dynasty for him,r and he will walk before my anointed one for all time.s 36 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.’ ”

SAMUEL’S CALL

3 The boy Samuel served the Lord in Eli’s presence.t In those days the word of the Lord was rare and prophetic visions were not widespread.u

2 One day Eli, whose eyesight was failing,v was lying in his usual place. 3 Before the lamp of God had gone out,w Samuel was lying down in the temple of the Lord, where the ark of God was located.

4 Then the Lord called Samuel,F and he answered, “Here I am.” 5 He …