Study Desk

Now the sons of Eli were ^(F1)(C1)useless men; they did not know the LORD.

^(C1)And this was the custom of the priests with the people: when anyone was offering a sacrifice, the priest's servant would come while the meat was cooking, with a three-pronged fork in his hand.

And he would thrust it into the pan, or kettle, or caldron, or pot; everything that the fork brought up, the priest would take for himself. They did so in Shiloh to all the Israelites who came there.

Also, before ^(C1)they ^(F1)burned the fat, the priest's servant would come and say to the man who was sacrificing, "Give the priest meat for roasting, as he will not take cooked meat from you, only raw."

And if the man said to him, "They must ^(F1)burn the fat ^(F2)first, then take as much as ^(F3)you desire," then he would say, "No, but you must give it to me now; and if not, I am taking it by force!"

And so the sin of the young men was very great before the LORD, for the men ^(C1)treated the offering of the LORD disrespectfully.

Now Eli was very old; and he heard about ^(C1)everything that his sons were doing to all Israel, and that they slept with ^(C2)the women who served at the doorway of the tent of meeting.