1 Samuel 2:17

THE MESSAGE

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
So the servants’ sin was very severe in the presence of the Lord, because the men treated the Lord’s offering with contempt.

Hebrew Names Version
The sin of the young men was very great before the LORD; for the men despised the offering of the LORD.

King James Version
Wherefore the sin of the young men was very great before the Lord : for men abhorred the offering of the Lord .

Lexham English Bible
So the sin of the young men was very great in the sight of Yahweh, because the men treated the offering of Yahweh with contempt.

English Standard Version
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.

New Century Version
The Lord saw that the sin of the servants was very great because they did not show respect for the offerings made to the Lord .

New English Translation
The sin of these young men was very great in the Lord 's sight, for they treated the Lord 's offering with contempt.

Amplified Bible
So the sin of the [two] young men [Hophni and Phinehas] was very great before the LORD, for the men treated the offering of the LORD disrespectfully.

New American Standard Bible
And so the sin of the young men was very great before the LORD, for the men treated the offering of the LORD disrespectfully.

Geneva Bible (1587)
Therefore the sinne of the yong men was very great before the Lorde: for men abhorred the offering of the Lord.

Legacy Standard Bible
Thus the sin of the young men was very great before Yahweh, for the men spurned the offering of Yahweh.

Contemporary English Version
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.

Complete Jewish Bible
The sin of these young men was very serious in Adonai 's view, because they treated offerings made to Adonai with contempt.

Darby Translation
And the sin of the young men was very great before Jehovah, for men despised the offering of Jehovah.

Easy-to-Read Version
In this way Hophni and Phinehas showed that they did not respect the offerings made to the Lord . This was a terrible sin against the Lord .

George Lamsa Translation
Wherefore the sin of the young men was very great before the LORD; because they offended the men who offered before the LORD.

Good News Translation
This sin of the sons of Eli was extremely serious in the Lord 's sight, because they treated the offerings to the Lord with such disrespect.

Literal Translation
And the sin of the young men was very great before Jehovah, for the men had despised the offering of Jehovah.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Therfore was the synne of ye childre very greate before the LORDE, for ye people spake euell of ye meatofferynge of ye LORDE.

American Standard Version
And the sin of the young men was very great before Jehovah; for the men despised the offering of Jehovah.

Bible in Basic English
And the sin of these young men was very great before the Lord; for they gave no honour to the Lord's offerings.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
And the sinne of the young men was very great before the Lord: For men abhorred the offering of the Lord.

JPS Old Testament (1917)
And the sin of the young men was very great before the LORD; for the men dealt contemptuously with the offering of the LORD.

King James Version (1611)
Wherefore the sinne of the yong men was very great before the Lord: for men abhorred the offering of the Lord.

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
So the sin of the young men was very great before the Lord, for they set at nought the offering of the Lord.

English Revised Version
And the sin of the young men was very great before the LORD: for men abhorred the offering of the LORD.

Berean Standard Bible
Thus the sin of these young men was severe in the sight of the LORD, for they were treating the LORD's offering with contempt.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Therfor the synne of the children was ful greuouse bifor the Lord; for thei withdrowen men fro the `sacrifice of the Lord.

Young's Literal Translation
And the sin of the young men is very great [in] the presence of Jehovah, for the men have despised the offering of Jehovah.

Update Bible Version
And the sin of the young men was very great before Yahweh; for they despised the offering of Yahweh.

Webster's Bible Translation
Wherefore the sin of the young men was very great before the LORD: for men abhorred the offering of the LORD.

World English Bible
The sin of the young men was very great before Yahweh; for the men despised the offering of Yahweh.

New King James Version
Therefore the sin of the young men was very great before the LORD, for men abhorred the offering of the LORD.

New Living Translation
So the sin of these young men was very serious in the Lord 's sight, for they treated the Lord 's offerings with contempt.

New Life Bible
So the sin of the young men was very bad before the Lord. For the men hated the gift of the Lord.

New Revised Standard
Thus the sin of the young men was very great in the sight of the Lord ; for they treated the offerings of the Lord with contempt.

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
And so it was, that, the sin of the young men, was exceeding great, before Yahweh, - for men scorned the offerings of Yahweh.

Douay-Rheims Bible
Wherefore the sin of the young men was exceeding great before the Lord: because they withdrew men from the sacrifice of the Lord.

Revised Standard Version
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.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
Thus the sin of the young men was very great before the LORD, for the men despised the offering of the LORD.

Contextual Overview

¹¹ Elkanah went home to Ramah. The boy stayed and served God in the company of Eli the priest. ¹²Eli's own sons were a bad lot. They didn't know God and could not have cared less about the customs of priests among the people. Ordinarily, when someone offered a sacrifice, the priest's servant was supposed to come up and, while the meat was boiling, stab a three-pronged fork into the cooking pot. The priest then got whatever came up on the fork. But this is how Eli's sons treated all the Israelites who came to Shiloh to offer sacrifices to God . Before they had even burned the fat to God , the priest's servant would interrupt whoever was sacrificing and say, "Hand over some of that meat for the priest to roast. He doesn't like boiled meat; he likes his rare." If the man objected, "First let the fat be burned—God's portion!—then take all you want," the servant would demand, "No, I want it now. If you won't give it, I'll take it." It was a horrible sin these young servants were committing—and right in the presence of God !—desecrating the holy offerings to God . ¹⁸In the midst of all this, Samuel, a boy dressed in a priestly linen tunic, served God . Additionally, every year his mother would make him a little robe cut to his size and bring it to him when she and her husband came for the annual sacrifice. Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife, saying, " God give you children to replace this child you have dedicated to God ." Then they would go home. ²¹ God was most especially kind to Hannah. She had three more sons and two daughters! The boy Samuel stayed at the sanctuary and grew up with God . ²²By this time Eli was very old. He kept getting reports on how his sons were ripping off the people and sleeping with the women who helped out at the sanctuary. Eli took them to task: "What's going on here? Why are you doing these things? I hear story after story of your corrupt and evil carrying on. Oh, my sons, this is not right! These are terrible reports I'm getting, stories spreading right and left among God 's people! If you sin against another person, there's help—God's help. But if you sin against God , who is around to help?" But they were far gone in disobedience and refused to listen to a thing their father said. So God , who was fed up with them, decreed their death. But the boy Samuel was very much alive, growing up, blessed by God and popular with the people. A holy man came to Eli and said: "This is God 's message: I revealed myself openly to your ancestors when they were Pharaoh's slaves in Egypt. Out of all the tribes of Israel, I chose your family to be my priests: to preside at the Altar, to burn incense, to wear the priestly robes in my presence. I put your ancestral family in charge of all the sacrificial offerings of Israel. So why do you now treat as mere loot these very sacrificial offerings that I commanded for my worship? Why do you treat your sons better than me, turning them loose to get fat on these offerings, and ignoring me? Therefore—this is God 's word, the God of Israel speaking—I once said that you and your ancestral family would be my priests indefinitely, but now— God 's word, remember!—there is no way this can continue. I honor those who honor me; those who scorn me I demean. "Be well warned: It won't be long before I wipe out both your family and your future family. No one in your family will make it to old age! You'll see good things that I'm doing in Israel, but you'll see it and weep, for no one in your family will live to enjoy it. I will leave one person to serve at my Altar, but it will be a hard life, with many tears. Everyone else in your family will die before their time. What happens to your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, will be the proof: Both will die the same day. Then I'll establish for myself a true priest. He'll do what I want him to do, be what I want him to be. I'll make his position secure and he'll do his work freely in the service of my anointed one. Survivors from your family will come to him begging for handouts, saying, ‘Please, give me some priest work, just enough to put some food on the table.'" ²⁶ Hannah prayed: I'm bursting with God -news! I'm walking on air. I'm laughing at my rivals. I'm dancing my salvation. Nothing and no one is holy like God , no rock mountain like our God. Don't dare talk pretentiously— not a word of boasting, ever! For God knows what's going on. He takes the measure of everything that happens. The weapons of the strong are smashed to pieces, while the weak are infused with fresh strength. The well-fed are out begging in the streets for crusts, while the hungry are getting second helpings. The barren woman has a houseful of children, while the mother of many is bereft. God brings death and God brings life, brings down to the grave and raises up. God brings poverty and God brings wealth; he lowers, he also lifts up. He puts poor people on their feet again; he rekindles burned-out lives with fresh hope, Restoring dignity and respect to their lives— a place in the sun! For the very structures of earth are God 's; he has laid out his operations on a firm foundation. He protectively cares for his faithful friends, step by step, but leaves the wicked to stumble in the dark. No one makes it in this life by sheer muscle! God 's enemies will be blasted out of the sky, crashed in a heap and burned. God will set things right all over the earth, he'll give strength to his king, he'll set his anointed on top of the world! Elkanah went home to Ramah. The boy stayed and served God in the company of Eli the priest. Eli's own sons were a bad lot. They didn't know God and could not have cared less about the customs of priests among the people. Ordinarily, when someone offered a sacrifice, the priest's servant was supposed to come up and, while the meat was boiling, stab a three-pronged fork into the cooking pot. The priest then got whatever came up on the fork. But this is how Eli's sons treated all the Israelites who came to Shiloh to offer sacrifices to God . Before they had even burned the fat to God , the priest's servant would interrupt whoever was sacrificing and say, "Hand over some of that meat for the priest to roast. He doesn't like boiled meat; he likes his rare." If the man objected, "First let the fat be burned—God's portion!—then take all you want," the servant would demand, "No, I want it now. If you won't give it, I'll take it." It was a horrible sin these young servants were committing—and right in the presence of God !—desecrating the holy offerings to God . In the midst of all this, Samuel, a boy dressed in a priestly linen tunic, served God . Additionally, every year his mother would make him a little robe cut to his size and bring it to him when she and her husband came for the annual sacrifice. Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife, saying, " God give you children to replace this child you have dedicated to God ." Then they would go home. God was most especially kind to Hannah. She had three more sons and two daughters! The boy Samuel stayed at the sanctuary and grew up with God . By this time Eli was very old. He kept getting reports on how his sons were ripping off the people and sleeping with the women who helped out at the sanctuary. Eli took them to task: "What's going on here? Why are you doing these things? I hear story after story of your corrupt and evil carrying on. Oh, my sons, this is not right! These are terrible reports I'm getting, stories spreading right and left among God 's people! If you sin against another person, there's help—God's help. But if you sin against God , who is around to help?" But they were far gone in disobedience and refused to listen to a thing their father said. So God , who was fed up with them, decreed their death. But the boy Samuel was very much alive, growing up, blessed by God and popular with the people.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

before: Genesis 6:11, Genesis 10:9, Genesis 13:13, 2 Kings 21:6, Psalms 51:4, Isaiah 3:8

abhorred: Malachi 2:8, Malachi 2:13, Matthew 18:7

Reciprocal: Exodus 32:30 - Ye have Leviticus 21:9 - the daughter 1 Samuel 2:24 - ye make 1 Samuel 3:13 - his sons 2 Kings 17:21 - a great sin Nehemiah 13:11 - Why is the house Ezekiel 13:19 - for handfuls

Cross-References

Genesis 2:1
Heaven and Earth were finished, down to the last detail.

Genesis 2:10
A river flows out of Eden to water the garden and from there divides into four rivers. The first is named Pishon; it flows through Havilah where there is gold. The gold of this land is good. The land is also known for a sweet-scented resin and the onyx stone. The second river is named Gihon; it flows through the land of Cush. The third river is named Hiddekel and flows east of Assyria. The fourth river is the Euphrates.

Genesis 2:18
God said, "It's not good for the Man to be alone; I'll make him a helper, a companion." So God formed from the dirt of the ground all the animals of the field and all the birds of the air. He brought them to the Man to see what he would name them. Whatever the Man called each living creature, that was its name. The Man named the cattle, named the birds of the air, named the wild animals; but he didn't find a suitable companion.

Genesis 2:21
God put the Man into a deep sleep. As he slept he removed one of his ribs and replaced it with flesh. God then used the rib that he had taken from the Man to make Woman and presented her to the Man.

Genesis 3:11
God said, "Who told you you were naked? Did you eat from that tree I told you not to eat from?"

Genesis 3:17
He told the Man: "Because you listened to your wife and ate from the tree That I commanded you not to eat from, ‘Don't eat from this tree,' The very ground is cursed because of you; getting food from the ground Will be as painful as having babies is for your wife; you'll be working in pain all your life long. The ground will sprout thorns and weeds, you'll get your food the hard way, Planting and tilling and harvesting, sweating in the fields from dawn to dusk, Until you return to that ground yourself, dead and buried; you started out as dirt, you'll end up dirt."

Deuteronomy 30:15
Look at what I've done for you today: I've placed in front of you Life and Good Death and Evil.

Deuteronomy 30:19
I call Heaven and Earth to witness against you today: I place before you Life and Death, Blessing and Curse. Choose life so that you and your children will live. And love God , your God, listening obediently to him, firmly embracing him. Oh yes, he is life itself, a long life settled on the soil that God , your God, promised to give your ancestors, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

1 Samuel 14:44
Saul said, "Yes. Jonathan most certainly will die. It's out of my hands—I can't go against God, can I?"

1 Samuel 22:16
The king said, "Death, Ahimelech! You're going to die—you and everyone in your family!"

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Wherefore the sin of the young men was very great before the Lord,.... That is, the sons of Eli; for they were the ringleaders who set these bad examples, which other priests followed, and therefore the sin is ascribed to them; and which was sadly aggravated by taking what was not their own, and by taking it in a forcible manner, and before the Lord had his part in the offering, and all this done in the tabernacle, in the presence of God; which plainly showed that they had not the fear of God before their eyes, nor any sense of his omniscience and omnipresence, any more than of his holiness and justice:

for men abhorred the offering of the Lord; it was irksome and disagreeable to them to bring their sacrifices, when they saw the law of God was not attended to, and the rules of sacrificing were not observed; such contempt of God, such abuse of sacrifices, such injury done to the sacrificers, and such covetousness and sensuality in the priests, that it even set the people against sacrifices, and made them loath them, and neglect to bring them. And this aggravated the sin of the young men, though the sacrificers were not excused hereby, 1 Samuel 2:24.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

The offering of the Lord - Minchah, here in the general sense of “gift or offering” to God (compare Malachi 1:10-11; Malachi 3:3). In its restricted sense, it is used of the meat offerings, the unbloody sacrifices, and is then coupled with bloody sacrifices, sacrifices of slain beasts. (See 1 Samuel 2:29.)

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse 1 Samuel 2:17. Wherefore the sin of the young men was very great — That is, Hophni and Phinehas, the sons of Eli.

Men abhorred the offering — As the people saw that the priests had no piety, and that they acted as if there was no God; they despised God's service, and became infidels.

A national priesthood, when the foundation is right, may be a great blessing; but if the priesthood becomes corrupt, though the foundation itself stand sure, the corruption of the national manners will be the unavoidable consequence.