1 Samuel 3

1  NOW THE boy Samuel ministered to the Lord before Eli. The word of the Lord was rare and precious in those days; there was no frequent or widely spread vision.2  At that time Eli, whose eyesight had dimmed so that he could not see, was lying down in his own place.3  The lamp of God had not yet gone out in the temple of the Lord, where the ark of God was, and Samuel was lying down4  When the Lord called, Samuel! And he answered, Here I am.5  He ran to Eli and said, Here I am, for you called me. Eli said, I did not call you; lie down again. So he went and lay down.6  And the Lord called again, Samuel! And Samuel arose and went to Eli and said, Here am I; you did call me. Eli answered, I did not call, my son; lie down again.7  Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord, and the word of the Lord was not yet revealed to him.8  And the Lord called Samuel the third time. And he went to Eli and said, Here I am, for you did call me. Then Eli perceived that the Lord was calling the boy.9  So Eli said to Samuel, Go, lie down. And if He calls you, you shall say, Speak, Lord, for Your servant is listening. So Samuel went and lay down in his place.10  And the Lord came and stood and called as at other times, Samuel! Samuel! Then Samuel answered, Speak, Lord, for Your servant is listening.11  The Lord told Samuel, Behold, I am about to do a thing in Israel at which both ears of all who hear it shall tingle.12  On that day I will perform against Eli all that I have spoken concerning his house, from beginning to end.13  And I [now] announce to him that I will judge and punish his house forever for the iniquity of which he knew, for his sons were bringing a curse upon themselves [blaspheming God], and he did not restrain them.14  Therefore I have sworn to the house of Eli that the iniquity of Eli’s house shall not be atoned for or purged with sacrifice or offering forever.15  Samuel lay until morning; then he opened the doors of the Lord’s house. And [he] was afraid to tell the vision to Eli.16  But Eli called Samuel and said, Samuel, my son. And he answered, Here I am.17  Eli said, What is it He told you? Pray 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 said to you.18  And Samuel told him everything, hiding nothing. And Eli said, It is the Lord; let Him do what seems good to Him.19  Samuel grew; the Lord was with him and let none of his words fall to the ground. 20  And all Israel from Dan to Beersheba knew that Samuel was established to be a prophet of the Lord.21  And the Lord continued to appear in Shiloh, for the Lord revealed Himself to Samuel in Shiloh through the word of the Lord.

1 Samuel 3

The Call of Samuel

1 Now the boy Samuel continued serving the Lord under Eli’s supervision.t Word from the Lord was rare in those days; revelatory visions were infrequent.
2 Eli’s eyes had begun to fail, so that he was unable to see well. At that time he was lying down in his place,3 and the lamp of God had not yet been extinguished. Samuel was lying down in the temple of the Lord as well; the ark of God was also there.4 The Lord called to Samuel, and he replied, “Here I am!”5 Then he ran to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” But Elit said, “I didn’t call you. Go back and lie down.” So he went back and lay down.

6 The Lord again called, “Samuel!” So Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” But Elit said, “I didn’t call you, my son. Go back and lie down.”
7 Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord; the word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him.8 Then the Lord called Samuel a third time. So he got up and went to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you called me!” Eli then realized that it was the Lord who was calling the boy.

9 So Eli said to Samuel, “Go back and lie down. When he calls you, say, “Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.” So Samuel went back and lay down in his place.
10 Then the Lord came and stood nearby, calling as he had previously done, “Samuel! Samuel!” Samuel replied, “Speak, for your servant is listening!”11 The Lord said to Samuel, “Look! I am about to do something in Israel;t when anyone hears about it, both of his ears will tingle.12 On that day I will carry outt against Eli everything that I spoke about his house – from start to finish!13 Yous should tell him that I am about to judge his house forever because oft the sin that he knew about. For his sons were cursing God,s and he did not rebuke them.

14 Therefore I swore an oath to the house of Eli, ‘The sin of the house of Eli can never be forgiven by sacrifice or by grain offering.’”
15 So Samuel lay down until morning. Then he opened the doors of the Lord’s house. But Samuel was afraid to tell Eli about the vision.16 However, Eli called Samuel and said, “Samuel, my son!” He replied, “Here I am.”

17 Elit said, “What message did he speak to you? Don’t conceal it from me. God will judge you severelyt if you conceal from me anything that he said to you!”
18 So Samuel told him everything. He did not hold back anything from him. Elit said, “The Lord will do what he pleases.”t19 Samuel continued to grow, and the Lord was with him. None of his prophecies fell to the ground unfulfilled.t20 All Israel from Dan to Beer Sheba realized that Samuel was confirmed as a prophet of the Lord.21 Then the Lord again appeared in Shiloh, for it was in Shiloh that the Lord had revealed himself to Samuels through the word of the Lord.t