1 Samuel 2

Chapter 2

Hannah’s Prayer of Praise

1 Then Hannah prayed:
“My heart rejoices in the LORD!
The LORD has made me strong.t
Now I have an answer for my enemies;
I rejoice because you rescued me.2 No 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.4 The bow of the mighty is now broken,
and those who stumbled are now strong.5 Those 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.6 The LORD gives both death and life;
he brings some down to the gravet but raises others up.7 The LORD makes some poor and others rich;
he brings some down and lifts others up.8 He 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.10 Those 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 strengtht of his anointed one.”

11 Then Elkanah returned home to Ramah without Samuel. And the boy served the LORD by assisting Eli the priest.

Eli’s Wicked Sons

12 Now the sons of Eli were scoundrels who had no respect for the LORD13 or 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,14 the 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.

15 Sometimes 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.
16 The 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.”

17 So the sin of these young men was very serious in the LORD’s sight, for they treated the LORD’s offerings with contempt.
18 But Samuel, though he was only a boy, served the LORD. He wore a linen garment like that of a priest.t19 Each year his mother made a small coat for him and brought it to him when she came with her husband for the sacrifice.20 Before 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.t”

21 And the LORD gave Hannah three sons and two daughters. Meanwhile, Samuel grew up in the presence of the LORD.
22 Now 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.t23 Eli said to them, “I have been hearing reports from all the people about the wicked things you are doing. Why do you keep sinning?24 You must stop, my sons! The reports I hear among the LORD’s people are not good.

25 If someone sins against another person, Godt 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.

26 Meanwhile, the boy Samuel grew taller and grew in favor with the LORD and with the people.

A Warning for Eli’s Family

27 One day a man of God came to Eli and gave him this message from the LORD: “I revealed myselft to your ancestors when the people of Israel were slaves in Egypt.28 I chose your ancestor Aaront 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 vestt as he served me. And I assigned the sacrificial offerings to you priests.

29 So 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!
30 “Therefore, the LORD, the God of Israel, says: I promised that your branch of the tribe of Levit would always be my priests. But I will honor those who honor me, and I will despise those who think lightly of me.31 The 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.32 You 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.33 Those who survive will live in sadness and grief, and their children will die a violent death.t

34 And 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!
35 “Then 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.

36 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.’”

1 SAMUEL 2

1  t Hannah prayed:
You make me strong
and happy, [Lord].
You rescued me.
Now I can be glad
and laugh at my enemies.

2 No other godt is like you.
And with you we are safer
than on a high mountain.t

3 I can tell those proud people,
“Stop your boasting!
Nothing is hidden from the [Lord],
and he judges what we do.”

4 Our [Lord], you break
the bows of warriors,
but you give strength
to everyone who stumbles.

5 People who once
had plenty to eat
must now hire themselves out
for only a piece of bread.
But you give the hungry more
than enough to eat.
A woman did not have a child,
and you gave her seven,
but a woman who had many
was left with none.

6  t You take away life,
and you give life.
You send people down
to the world of the dead
and bring them back again.

7 Our [Lord], you are the one
who makes us rich or poor.
You put some in high positions
and bring disgrace on others.

8 You lift the poor and homeless
out of the garbage dump
and give them places of honor
in royal palaces.
You set the world on foundations,
and they belong to you.

9 You protect your loyal people,
but everyone who is evil
will die in darkness.
We cannot win a victory
by our own strength.

10 Our [Lord], those who attack you
will be broken in pieces
when you fight back
with thunder from heaven.
You will judge the whole earth
and give power and strength
to your chosen king.

Samuel Stays with Eli

11 Elkanah and Hannah went back home to Ramah, but the boy Samuel stayed to help Eli serve the [Lord].

Eli's Sons

15 Sometimes, when people were offering sacrifices, the servant would come over, even before the fat had been cut off and sacrificed to the [Lord].t
Then the servant would tell them, “The priest doesn't want his meat boiled! Give him some raw meat that he can roast!”

16 Usually the people answered, “Take what you want. But first, let us sacrifice the fat to the [Lord].”
“No,” the servant would reply. “If you don't give it to me now, I'll take it by force.”

17 Eli's sons did not show any respect for the sacrifices that the people offered. This was a terrible sin, and it made the [Lord] very angry.

Hannah Visits Samuel

19 and the clothest his mother made for him. She brought new clothes every year, when she and her husband came to offer sacrifices at Shiloh.

20 Eli always blessed Elkanah and his wife and said, “Samuel was born in answer to your prayers. Now you have given him to the [Lord]. I pray that the [Lord] will bless you with more children to take his place.” After Eli had blessed them, Elkanah and Hannah would return home.

21 The [Lord] was kind to Hannah, and she had three more sons and two daughters. But Samuel grew up at the [Lord]'s house in Shiloh.

Eli Warns His Sons

25 If you harm another person, God can help make things right between the two of you. But if you commit a crime against the [Lord], no one can help you!”
But the [Lord] had already decided to kill them. So he kept them from listening to their father.

A Prophet Speaks //to Eli

26  t Each day, as Samuel grew older, the [Lord] was pleased with him, and so were the people.

27 One day a prophet came to Eli and gave him this message from the [Lord]:
When your ancestors were slaves of the king of Egypt, I came and showed them who I am.

28-29 t Out of all the tribes of Israel, I chose your family to be my priests. I wanted them to offer sacrifices and burn incense to me and to find out from me what I want my people to do. I commanded everyone to bring their sacrifices here where I live, and I allowed you and your family to keep those that were not offered to me on the altar.
But you honor your sons instead of me! You don't respectt the sacrifices and offerings that are brought to me, and you've all grown fat from eating the best parts.
30 I am the [Lord], the God of Israel. I promised to always let your family serve me as priests, but now I tell you that I cannot do this any longer! I honor anyone who honors me, but I put a curse on anyone who hates me.

31 The time will come when I will kill you and everyone else in your family. Not one of you will live to an old age.
32 Your familyt will have a lot of trouble. I will be kind to Israel, t but everyone in your family will die young. 33 If I let anyone from your family be a priest, hist life will be full of sadness and sorrow. But most of the men in your family will die a violent death!t

34 t To prove to you that I will do these things, your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, will die on the same day.
35 I have chosen someone else to be my priest, someone who will be faithful and obey me. I will always let his family serve as priests and help my chosen king. 36 But if anyone is left from your family, he will come to my priest and beg for money or a little bread. He may even say to my priest, “Please let me be a priest, so I will at least have something to eat.”