a Lit. “played the harlot.”
b-b Emendation yields “and his attendant.”
c-c Lit. “in the field.”
d-d Meaning of Heb. uncertain; emendation yields “to my home”; cf. v. 29.
e I.e., the concubine.
f-f I.e., “with us.”
a This sentence is continued at v. 14 below.
b-b Emendation yields “for those who go to requite Gibeah.”
c Heb. plural.
d Meaning of parts of vv. 15 and 16 uncertain.
e Emendation yields “west of Gibeah.”
f So many Heb. mss. and Targum; most mss. and the editions read “opposite.”
g This sentence is continued by v. 45.
h-h Meaning of Heb. uncertain; emendation yields “in the town” (i.e., Gibeah).
i Meaning of verse uncertain.
a I.e., west of the Jordan, while Jabesh-gilead is east of the Jordan.
b-b Meaning of Heb. uncertain.
I Samuel
1 There was a man from a-Ramathaim of the Zuphites,-a in the hill country of Ephraim, whose name was Elkanah son of Jeroham son of Elihu son of Tohu son of Zuph, an Ephraimite. 2He had two wives, one named Hannah and the other Peninnah; Peninnah had children, but Hannah was childless. 3This man used to go up from his town every year to worship and to offer sacrifice to the LORD of Hosts at Shiloh.—Hophni and Phinehas, the two sons of Eli, were priests of the LORD there.
4One such day, Elkanah offered a sacrifice. He used to give portions to his wife Peninnah and to all her sons and daughters; 5but to Hannah he would give one portion -bonly—though-b Hannah was his favorite—for the LORD had closed her womb. 6Moreover, her rival, to make her miserable, would taunt her that the LORD had closed her womb. 7c-This happened-c year after year: Every time she went up to the House of the LORD, the other would taunt her, so that she wept and would not eat. 8Her husband Elkanah said to her, “Hannah, why are you crying and why aren’t you eating? Why are you so sad? Am I not more devoted to you than ten sons?”
9After they had eaten and drunk at Shiloh, Hannah rose.d—The priest Eli was sitting on the seat near the doorpost of the temple of the LORD.— 10In her wretchedness, she prayed to the LORD, weeping all the while. 11And she made this vow: “O LORD of Hosts, if You will look upon the suffering of Your maidservant and will remember me and not forget Your maidservant, and if You will grant Your maidservant a male child, I will dedicate him to the LORD for all the days of his life; and no razor shall ever touch his head.”
12As she kept on praying before the LORD, Eli watched her mouth. 13Now Hannah was praying in her heart; only her lips moved, but her voice could not be heard. So Eli thought she was drunk. 14Eli said to her, “How long will you make a drunken spectacle of yourself? e-Sober up!”-e 15And Hannah replied, “Oh no, my lord! I am a very unhappy woman. I have drunk no wine or other strong drink, but I have been pouring out my heart to the LORD. 16Do not take your maidservant for a worthless woman; I have only been speaking all this time out of my great anguish and distress.” 17“Then go in peace,” said Eli, “and may the God of Israel grant you what you have asked of Him.” 18She answered, “You are most kind to your handmaid.” So the woman left, and she ate, and was no longer downcast. 19Early next morning they bowed low before the LORD, and they went back home to Ramah.
Elkanah knewf his wife Hannah and the LORD remembered her. 20Hannah conceived, and at the turn of the year bore a son. She named him Samuel,g meaning, “I asked the LORD for him.” 21And when the man Elkanah and all his household were going up to offer to the LORD the annual sacrifice and his votive sacrifice, 22Hannah did not go up. She said to her husband, “When the child is weaned, I will bring him. For when he has appeared before the LORD, he must remain there for good.” 23Her husband Elkanah said to her, “Do as you think best. Stay home until you have weaned him. May the LORD fulfill h-His word.”-h So the woman stayed home and nursed her son until she weaned him.
24When she had weaned him, she took him up with her, along with i- three bulls,-i one ephah of flour, and a jar of wine. And b-though the boy was still very young,-b she brought him to the House of the LORD at Shiloh. 25After slaughtering the bull, they brought the boy to Eli. 26She said, “Please, my lord! As you live, my lord, I am the woman who stood here beside you and prayed to the LORD. 27It was this boy I prayed for; and the LORD has granted me what I asked of Him. 28I, in turn, hereby lendj him to the LORD. For as long as he lives he is lent to the LORD.” And theyk bowed low there before the LORD.
2 And Hannah prayed:
My heart exults in the LORD;
a-I have triumphed-a through the LORD.
b-I gloat-b over my enemies;
I rejoice in Your deliverance.
2There is no holy one like the LORD,
Truly, there is none beside You;
There is no rock like our God.
3Talk no more with lofty pride,
Let no arrogance cross your lips!
For the LORD is an all-knowing God;
By Him actions are measured.
4The bows of the mighty are broken,
And the faltering are girded with strength.
5Men once sated must hire out for bread;
Men once hungry hunger no more.
While the barren woman bears seven,
The mother of many is forlorn.
6The LORD deals death and gives life,
Casts down into Sheol and raises up.
7The LORD makes poor and makes rich;
He casts down, He also lifts high.
8He raises the poor from the dust,
Lifts up the needy from the dunghill,
Setting them with nobles,
Granting them seats of honor.
For the pillars of the earth are the LORD’s;
He has set the world upon them.
9He guards the steps of His faithful,
But the wicked perish in darkness—
For not by strength shall man prevail.
10The foes of the LORD shall be shattered;
He will thunder against them in the heavens.
The LORD will judge the ends of the earth.
He will give power to His king,
c-And triumph to-c His anointed one.
11Then Elkanahd [and Hannah] went home to Ramah; and the boy entered the service of the LORD under the priest Eli.
12Now Eli’s sons were scoundrels; they paid no heed to the LORD. 13This is how the priests used to deal with the people: When anyone brought a sacrifice, the priest’s boy would come along with a three-pronged fork while the meat was boiling, 14and he would thrust it into e- the cauldron, or the kettle, or the great pot, or the small cooking-pot;-e and whatever the fork brought up, the priest would take away f-on it.-f This was the practice at Shiloh with all the Israelites who came there. 15[But now] even before the suet was turned into smoke, the priest’s boy would come and say to the man who was sacrificing, “Hand over some meat to roast for the priest; for he won’t accept boiled meat from you, only raw.” 16And if the man said to him, “Let them first turn the suet into smoke, and then take as much as you want,” he would reply, “No, hand it over at once or I’ll take it by force.” 17The sin of the young men against the LORD was very great, for the men treated the LORD’s offerings impiously.
18Samuel was engaged in the service of the LORD as an attendant, girded with a linen ephod. 19His mother would also make a little robe for him and bring it up to him every year, when she made the pilgrimage with her husband to offer the annual sacrifice. 20Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife, and say, “May the LORD grantg you offspring by this woman in place of the loan she made to the LORD.” Then they would return home. 21 Forh the LORD took note of Hannah; she conceived and bore three sons and two daughters. Young Samuel meanwhile grew up in the service of the LORD.
22Now Eli was very old. When he heard all that his sons were doing to all Israel, and how they lay with the women who i-performed tasks-i at the entrance of the Tent of Meeting, 23he said to them, “Why do you do such things? I get evil reports about you from the people on all hands. 24Don’t, my sons! It is no favorable report I hear the people of the LORD spreading about. 25If a man sins against a man, the LORD may pardoni him; but if a man offends against God, who can i-obtain pardon-i for him?” But they ignored their father’s plea; for the LORD was resolved that they should die. 26Young Samuel, meanwhile, grew in esteem and favor both with God and with men.
27A man of God came to Eli and said to him, “Thus said the LORD: Lo, I revealed Myself to your father’s house in Egypt when they were subject to the House of Pharaoh, 28and I chose them from among all the tribes of Israel to be My priests—to ascend My altar, to burn incense, [and] to carry an ephodj before Me—and I assigned to your father’s house all offerings by fire of the Israelites. 29Why, then, do you k-maliciously trample upon the sacrifices and offerings that I have commanded?-k You have honored your sons more than Me, feeding on the first portions of every offering of My people Israel.l 30Assuredly—declares the LORD,
