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The First Book of Samuel
There was a certain man of Ramatha′im-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 Ephraimite. 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.
Now 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.
On the day when Elkanah sacrificed, †
he would give portions to Peninnah his wife
and to all her sons and daughters;
But he gave a double portion to Hannah, †
because he loved her
though the Lord had closed her womb.
And her rival used to provoke her sorely, to irritate her,
because the Lord had closed her womb.
So 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.
And 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?”
†
After 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.
She was deeply distressed †
and prayed to the Lord,
and wept bitterly.
And she vowed a vow †
and said, “O Lord of hosts,
If you will indeed look on the affliction of thy maidservant,
And remember me,
and not forget your maidservant,
But will give to your maidservant a son, †
then I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life,
and no razor shall touch his head.”
As she continued praying before the Lord,
Eli observed her mouth.
Hannah was speaking in her heart; †
only her lips moved,
and her voice was not heard;
Therefore Eli took her to be a drunken woman.
And Eli said to her,
“How long will you be drunken?
Put away your wine from you.”
But Hannah answered, “No, my lord,
I am a woman sorely troubled;
I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink,
but I have been pouring out my soul before the Lord.
Do not regard your maidservant as a base woman,
for all along I have been speaking out of my great anxiety and vexation.”
Then Eli answered, “Go in peace,
and the God of Israel grant your petition which you have made to him.”
And she said, “Let your maidservant find favor in your eyes.” †
Then the woman went her way and ate,
and her countenance was no longer sad.
†
They 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;
And in due time Hannah conceived and bore a son, †
and she called his name Samuel,
for she said, “I have asked him of the Lord.”
And the man Elkanah and all his house went up †
to offer to the Lord the yearly sacrifice,
and to pay his vow.
But Hannah did not go up,
for she said to her husband,
“As soon as the child is weaned, I will bring him, †
that he may appear in the presence of the Lord,
and abide there for ever.”
Elkanah 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.
And 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.
Then they slew the bull,
and they brought the child to Eli.
And 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.
For this child I prayed;
and the Lord has granted me my petition which I made to him.
Therefore I have lent him to the Lord; †
as long as he lives, he is lent to the Lord.”
And they worshiped the Lord there.
†
2
Hannah also prayed and said,
“My heart exults in the Lord;
my strength is exalted in the Lord.
My mouth derides my enemies,
because I rejoice in thy salvation.
There is none holy like the Lord, †
there is none besides thee;
there is no rock like our God.
Talk 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.
The bows of the mighty are broken,
but the feeble gird on strength.
Those 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.
The Lord kills and brings to life;
he brings down to Sheol and raises up.
The Lord makes poor and makes rich;
he brings low, he also exalts.
He 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.
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.
The 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 power of his anointed.”
†
Then Elkanah went home to Ramah. And the boy ministered to the Lord, in the presence of Eli the priest.
Now the sons of Eli were worthless men;
they had no regard for the Lord.
The 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,
And he would thrust it into the pan,
or kettle, or caldron, or pot;
All that the fork brought up
the priest would take for himself.
So they did at Shiloh to all the Israelites who came there. †
Moreover, 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 raw.”
And 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.”
Thus 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.
†
Samuel was ministering before the Lord, a boy girded with a linen ephod. And 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. Then Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife, and say, “The Lord give you children by this woman for the loan which she lent to the Lord”; so then they would return to their home.
And the Lord visited Hannah, and she conceived and bore three sons and two daughters. And the boy Samuel grew in the presence of the Lord.
Now Eli was very old,
and he heard all that his sons were doing to all Israel,
And how they lay with the women who served
at the entrance to the tent of meeting.
And he said to them, “Why do you do such things?
For I hear of your evil dealings from all the people.
No, my sons; †
it is no good report that I hear
the people of the Lord spreading abroad.
If a man sins against a man,
God will mediate for him;
But if a man 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 slay them.
†
Now the boy Samuel continued to grow both in stature and in favor with the Lord and with men.
And there came a man of God to Eli, and said to him,
“Thus the Lord has said,
‘I revealed myself to the house of your father
when they were in Egypt subject to the house of Pharaoh.
And I chose 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;
And I gave to the house of your father †
all my offerings by fire
from the people of Israel.
Why then look with greedy eye at my sacrifices
and my offerings which I commanded,
And honor your sons above me †
by fattening yourselves upon the choicest parts
of every offering of my people Israel?’
Therefore 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 for ever’;
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.
Behold, 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.
Then in distress you will look
with envious eye on all the prosperity
Which shall be bestowed upon Israel;
and there shall not be an old man in your house for ever.
The man of you whom I shall not cut off from my altar †
shall be spared to weep out his eyes
and grieve his heart;
And all the increase of your house
shall die by the sword of men.
And this which shall befall your two sons,
Hophni and Phinehas,
Shall be the sign to you:
both of them shall die on the same day.
And 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 for ever.
And every one who is left in your house †
shall come to implore him for a piece of silver
or a loaf of bread,
And shall say, “Put me, I pray you, †
in one of the priest’s places,
that I may eat a morsel of bread.”’”
†
3
Now the boy Samuel was ministering to the Lord under Eli. And the word of the Lord was rare in those days; there was no frequent vision.
At that time Eli, whose eyesight had begun to grow dim, †
so that he could not see,
was lying down in his own place;
The lamp of God had not yet gone out, †
and Samuel was lying down within the temple of the Lord,
where the ark of God was.
Then the Lord called, “Samuel! Samuel!”
and he said, “Here I am!” and 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.
And 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.”
Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord,
and the word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him.
And 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.
Therefore 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.
And the Lord came and stood forth,
calling as at other times, “Samuel! Samuel!”
And Samuel said, “Speak,
for your servant hears.”
Then the Lord said to Samuel, “Behold, †
I am about to do a thing in Israel,
at which the two ears of every one that hears it will tingle.
On that day I will fulfil against Eli †
all that I have spoken concerning his house,
from beginning to end.
And I tell him that I am about to punish his house for ever,
for the iniquity which he knew,
Because his sons were blaspheming God,
and he did not restrain them.
Therefore I swear to the house of Eli †
that the iniquity of Eli’s house shall not be expiated
by sacrifice or offering for ever.”
†
Samuel lay until morning; †
then he opened the doors of the house of the Lord.
And Samuel was afraid to tell the vision to Eli.
But Eli called Samuel and said,
“Samuel, my son.”
And he said, “Here I am.”
And 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.”
So Samuel told him everything
and hid nothing from him.
And he said, “It is the Lord;
let him do what seems good to him.”
†
And Samuel grew, and the Lord was with him and let none of his words fall to the ground. And all Israel from Dan to Beersheba knew that Samuel was established as a prophet of the Lord. And the Lord appeared again at Shiloh, for the Lord revealed himself to Samuel at Shiloh by the word of the Lord. 4.1 And the word of Samuel came to all Israel.
†
4
Now Israel went out to battle against the Philistines; †
they encamped at Ebenezer,
and the Philistines encamped at Aphek.
The Philistines drew up in line against Israel,
and when the battle spread,
Israel was defeated by the Philistines,
who slew about four thousand men on the field of battle.
And when the troops came to the camp,
the elders of Israel said,
“Why has the Lord put us to rout today before the Philistines? †
Let us bring the ark of the covenant of the Lord
here from Shiloh,
That he may come among us and save us
from the power of our enemies.”
So the people sent to Shiloh, †
and brought from there the ark of the covenant of the Lord of hosts,
who is enthroned on the cherubim;
And the two sons of Eli, †
Hophni and Phinehas,
were there with the ark of the covenant of God.
†
When the ark of the covenant of the Lord came into the camp, †
all Israel gave a mighty shout,
so that the earth resounded.
And when the Philistines heard the noise of the shouting,
they said, “What does this great shouting in the camp of the Hebrews mean?
And when they learned that the ark of the Lord had come to the camp,
the Philistines were afraid;
For they said, “A god has come into the camp.” †
And they said, “Woe to us!
For nothing like this has happened before.
Woe to us!
Who can deliver us from the power of these mighty gods?
These are the gods who smote the Egyptians
with every sort of plague in the wilderness.
Take courage, and acquit yourselves like men, O Philistines, †
lest you become slaves to the Hebrews as they have been to you;
acquit yourselves like men and fight.”
So the Philistines fought, and Israel was defeated,
and they fled, every man to his home;
And there was a very great slaughter,
for there fell of Israel thirty thousand foot soldiers.
And the ark of God was captured;
and the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were slain.
†
A man of Benjamin ran from the battle line,
and came to Shiloh the same day,
With his clothes rent
and with earth upon his head.
When he arrived, Eli was sitting upon his seat
by the road watching,
For his heart trembled for the ark of God. †
And when the man came into the city and told the news,
all the city cried out.
When Eli heard the sound of the outcry,
he said, “What is this uproar?”
Then the man hastened
and came and told Eli.
Now Eli was ninety-eight years old
and his eyes were set, so that he could not see.
And the man said to Eli,
“I am he who has come from the battle;
I fled from the battle today.”
And he said, “How did it go, my son?”
He who brought the tidings answered and said, †
“Israel has fled before the Philistines,
And there has also been a great slaughter among the people;
Your two sons also, Hophni and Phinehas, are dead,
and the ark of God has been captured.”
When he mentioned the ark of God, †
Eli fell over backward from his seat
by the side of the gate;
And his neck was broken and he died, †
for he was an old man, and heavy.
He had judged Israel forty years.
Now his daughter-in-law, the wife of Phinehas,
was with child, about to give birth.
And when she heard the tidings that the ark of God was captured,
and that her father-in-law and her husband were dead,
She bowed and gave birth;
for her pains came upon her.
And about the time of her death
the women attending her said to her,
“Fear not, for you have borne a son.”
But she did not answer or give heed.
And she named the child Ichabod,
saying, “The glory has departed from Israel!”
Because the ark of God had been captured
and because of her father-in-law and her husband.
And she said, “The glory has departed from Israel,
for the ark of God has been captured.”
†
5
When the Philistines captured the ark of God,
they carried it from Ebenezer to Ashdod;
Then the Philistines took the ark of God †
and brought it into the house of Dagon
and set it up beside Dagon.
And when the people of Ashdod rose early the next day, †
behold, Dagon had fallen face downward
on the ground before the ark of the Lord.
So they took Dagon
and put him back in his place.
But when they rose early on the next morning, †
behold, Dagon had fallen face downward
on the ground before the ark of the Lord,
And the head of Dagon and both his hands †
were lying cut off upon the threshold;
only the trunk of Dagon was left to him.
This is why the priests of Dagon
and all who enter the house of Dagon
Do not tread on the threshold of Dagon
in Ashdod to this day.
†
The hand of the Lord was heavy upon the people of Ashdod, †
and he terrified and afflicted them with tumors,
both Ashdod and its territory.
And when the men of Ashdod saw how things were, they said,
“The ark of the God of Israel must not remain with us;
For his hand is heavy upon us
and upon Dagon our god.”
So they sent and gathered together all the lords of the Philistines, and said,
“What shall we do with the ark of the God of Israel?”
They answered, “Let the ark of the God of Israel
be brought around to Gath.”
So they brought the ark of the God of Israel there.
But after they had brought it around,
The hand of the Lord was against the city,
causing a very great panic,
And he afflicted the men of the city,
both young and old,
So that tumors broke out upon them.
So they sent the ark of God to Ekron.
But when the ark of God came to Ekron,
the people of Ekron cried out,
“They have brought around to us the ark of the God of Israel
to slay us and our people.”
They sent therefore and gathered together all the lords of the Philistines, and said,
“Send away the ark of the God of Israel,
And let it return to its own place,
that it may not slay us and our people.”
For there was a deathly panic throughout the whole city.
The hand of God was very heavy there;
The men who did not die were stricken with tumors,
and the cry of the city went up to heaven.
†
6
The ark of the Lord was in the country of the Philistines
seven months.
And the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners and said,
“What shall we do with the ark of the Lord?
Tell us with what we shall send it to its place.”
They said, “If you send away the ark of the God of Israel,
Do not send it empty,
but by all means return him a guilt offering.
Then you will be healed, †
and it will be known to you
why his hand does not turn away from you.”
And they said, “What is the guilt offering
that we shall return to him?”
They answered, “Five golden tumors †
and five golden mice,
according to the number of the lords of the Philistines;
For the same plague was upon all of you
and upon your lords.
So you must make images of your tumors †
and images of your mice that ravage the land,
and give glory to the God of Israel;
Perhaps he will lighten his hand
from off you and your gods and your land.
Why should you harden your hearts
as the Egyptians and Pharaoh hardened their hearts?
After he had made sport of them,
did not they let the people go, and they departed?
Now then, take and prepare a new cart
and two milch cows upon which there has never come a yoke,
And yoke the cows to the cart,
but take their calves home, away from them.
And take the ark of the Lord
and place it on the cart,
And put in a box at its side
the figures of gold, which you are returning to him as a guilt offering.
Then send it off,
and let it go its way. And watch;
If it goes up on the way to its own land, to Beth-shemesh,
then it is he who has done us this great harm;
But if not, then we shall know that it is not his hand that struck us,
it happened to us by chance.”
†
The men did so, †
and took two milch cows and yoked them to the cart,
and shut up their calves at home.
And they put the ark of the Lord on the cart,
and the box with the golden mice and the images of their tumors.
And the cows went straight in the direction of Beth-shemesh along one highway,
lowing as they went;
They turned neither to the right nor to the left, †
and the lords of the Philistines went after them
as far as the border of Beth-shemesh.
Now the people of Beth-shemesh
were reaping their wheat harvest in the valley;
And when they lifted up their eyes and saw the ark,
they rejoiced to see it.
The cart came into the field of Joshua of Beth-shemesh,
and stopped there.
A great stone was there; †
and they split up the wood of the cart
and offered the cows as a burnt offering to the Lord.
And the Levites took down the ark of the Lord
and the box that was beside it, in which were the golden figures,
And set them upon the great stone; †
and the men of Beth-shemesh offered burnt offerings
and sacrificed sacrifices on that day to the Lord.
And when the five lords of the Philistines saw it,
they returned that day to Ekron.
†
These are the golden tumors, which the Philistines returned as a guilt offering to the Lord: one for Ashdod, one for Gaza, one for Ashkelon, one for Gath, one for Ekron; also the golden mice, according to the number of all the cities of the Philistines belonging to the five lords, both fortified cities and unwalled villages. The great stone, beside which they set down the ark of the Lord, is a witness to this day in the field of Joshua of Beth-she′mesh.
And he slew some of the men of Beth-shemesh, because they looked into the ark of the Lord; he slew seventy men of them, and the people mourned because the Lord had made a great slaughter among the people. Then the men of Beth-shemesh said, “Who is able to stand before the Lord, this holy God? And to whom shall he go up away from us?” So they sent messengers to the inhabitants of Kiriath-jearim, saying, “The Philistines have returned the ark of the Lord. Come down and take it up to you.”
†
7
And the men of Kiriath-jearim came and took up the ark of the Lord, and brought it to the house of Abinadab on the hill; and they consecrated his son, Eleazar, to have charge of the ark of the Lord. From the day that the ark was lodged at Kiriath-jearim, a long time passed, some twenty years, and all the house of Israel lamented after the Lord.
Then Samuel said to all the house of Israel,
“If you are returning to the Lord with all your heart,
Then put away the foreign gods and the Ashtaroth from among you,
and direct your heart to the Lord,
And serve him only,
and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines.”
So Israel put away the Ba′alim and the Ashtaroth,
and they served the Lord only.
Then Samuel said, “Gather all Israel at Mizpah,
and I will pray to the Lord for you.”
So they gathered at Mizpah,
and drew water and poured it out before the Lord,
And fasted on that day,
and said there, “We have sinned against the Lord.”
And Samuel judged the people of Israel at Mizpah. †
Now when the Philistines heard
that the people of Israel had gathered at Mizpah,
The lords of the Philistines went up against Israel. †
And when the people of Israel heard of it
they were afraid of the Philistines.
And the people of Israel said to Samuel, †
“Do not cease to cry to the Lord our God for us,
that he may save us from the hand of the Philistines.”
So Samuel took a sucking lamb
and offered it as a whole burnt offering to the Lord;
And Samuel cried to the Lord for Israel,
and the Lord answered him.
As Samuel was offering up the burnt offering,
the Philistines drew near to attack Israel;
But the Lord thundered with a mighty voice that day against the Philistines †
and threw them into confusion;
and they were routed before Israel.
And the men of Israel went out of Mizpah and pursued the Philistines,
and smote them, as far as below Beth-car.
Then Samuel took a stone
and set it up between Mizpah and Jeshanah,
And called its name Ebenezer; Stone of Help
for he said, “Hitherto the Lord has helped us.”
†
So the Philistines were subdued and did not again enter the territory of Israel. And the hand of the Lord was against the Philistines all the days of Samuel. The cities which the Philistines had taken from Israel were restored to Israel, from Ekron to Gath; and Israel rescued their territory from the hand of the Philistines.
There was peace also between Israel and the Amorites.
Samuel judged Israel all the days of his life. And he went on a circuit year by year to Bethel, Gilgal, and Mizpah; and he judged Israel in all these places. Then he would come back to Ramah, for his home was there, And there also he administered justice to Israel. And he built there an altar to the Lord.
†
8
When Samuel became old, he made his sons judges over Israel. The name of his first-born son was Joel, and the name of his second, Abijah; they were judges in Beer-sheba. Yet his sons did not walk in his ways, but turned aside after gain; they took bribes and perverted justice.
Then all the elders of Israel gathered together
and came to Samuel at Ramah,
And said to him, “Behold, you are old
and your sons do not walk in your ways;
Now appoint for us a king to govern us
like all the nations.”
But the thing displeased Samuel
when they said, “Give us a king to govern us.”
And Samuel prayed to the Lord.
And the Lord said to Samuel,
“Hearken to the voice of the people in all that they say to you; †
for they have not rejected you,
but they have rejected me from being king over them.
According to all the deeds which they have done to me,
from the day I brought them up out of Egypt even to this day,
Forsaking me and serving other gods,
so they are also doing to you.
Now then, hearken to their voice; †
only, you shall solemnly warn them,
and show them the ways of the king who shall reign over them.”
†
So Samuel told all the words of the Lord to the people
who were asking a king from him.
He said, “These will be the ways of the king
who will reign over you:
He will take your sons
and appoint them to his chariots and to be his horsemen,
and to run before his chariots;
And he will appoint for himself
commanders of thousands and commanders of fifties,
And some to plow his ground and to reap his harvest,
and to make his implements of war and the equipment of his chariots.
He will take your daughters
to be perfumers and cooks and bakers.
He will take the best of your fields and vineyards and olive orchards
and give them to his servants.
He will take the tenth of your grain and of your vineyards
and give it to his officers and to his servants.
He will take your menservants and maidservants, †
and the best of your cattle and your asses,
and put them to his work.
He will take the tenth of your flocks,
and you shall be his slaves.
And in that day you will cry out because of your king, †
whom you have chosen for yourselves;
but the Lord will not answer you in that day.”
†
But the people refused to listen to the voice of Samuel;
and they said, “No!
But we will have a king over us,
that we also may be like all the nations,
And that our king may govern us
and go out before us and fight our battles.”
And when Samuel had heard all the words of the people,
he repeated them in the ears of the Lord.
And the Lord said to Samuel, “Hearken to their voice,
and make them a king.”
Samuel then said to the men of Israel,
“Go every man to his city.”
†††
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