1 Samuel 2:20

THE MESSAGE

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife: “May the Lord give you children by this woman in place of the one she has given to the Lord.” Then they would go home.

Hebrew Names Version
`Eli blessed Elkana and his wife, and said, the LORD give you seed of this woman for the petition which was asked of the LORD. They went to their own home.

King James Version
And Eli blessed Elkanah and his wife, and said, The Lord give thee seed of this woman for the loan which is lent to the Lord . And they went unto their own home.

Lexham English Bible
And Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife, and he said, "May Yahweh give you an offspring from this woman in place of the petitioned one that she requested from Yahweh." Then they went to their home.

English Standard Version
Then Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife, and say, "May the Lord give you children by this woman for the petition she asked of the Lord ." So then they would return to their home.

New Century Version
When Eli blessed Elkanah and his wife, he would say, "May the Lord repay you with children through Hannah to take the place of the boy Hannah prayed for and gave back to the Lord ." Then Elkanah and Hannah would go home.

New English Translation
Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife saying, "May the Lord raise up for you descendants from this woman to replace the one that she dedicated to the Lord ." Then they would go to their home.

Amplified Bible
Then Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife and say, "May the LORD give you children by this woman in place of the one she asked for which was dedicated to the LORD." Then they would return to their own home.

New American Standard Bible
Then Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife, and say, "May the LORD give you children from this woman in place of the one she requested of the LORD." And they went to their own home.

Geneva Bible (1587)
And Eli blessed Elkanah and his wife, and said, The Lord giue thee seede of this woman, for the petition that she asked of the Lord: and they departed vnto their place.

Legacy Standard Bible
Then Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife and say, "May Yahweh establish for you a seed from this woman in place of the one she dedicated to Yahweh." And they went to their own home.

Contemporary English Version
Eli would always bless Elkanah and his wife and say, "Samuel was born in answer to your prayers. Now you have given him to the Lord . I pray that the Lord will bless you with more children to take his place." After Eli had blessed them, Elkanah and Hannah would return home.

Complete Jewish Bible
‘Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife and say, "May Adonai give you children from this woman because of the boy you have loaned to Adonai "; then they would go home.

Darby Translation
And Eli blessed Elkanah and his wife, and said, Jehovah give thee seed of this woman for the loan which is lent to Jehovah. And they went to their own home.

Easy-to-Read Version
Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife. He would say, "May the Lord give you more children through Hannah who will take the place of the boy she prayed for and gave to the Lord ." Elkanah and Hannah went home.

George Lamsa Translation
And Eli blessed Hilkanah and his wife, and said, The LORD give you another offspring from this woman for the child which she has dedicated to the LORD. And they went to their own home.

Good News Translation
Then Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife, and say to Elkanah, "May the Lord give you other children by this woman to take the place of the one you dedicated to him." After that they would go back home.

Literal Translation
And Eli blessed Elkanah and his wife, and said, Jehovah shall give you seed of this woman, because of the petition she prayed to Jehovah. And they went away to their place.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
And Eli blessed Elcana & his wife, and sayde: The LORDE geue the sede of this woman, for this good that thou hast lent vnto the LORDE. And they wete vnto their place.

American Standard Version
And Eli blessed Elkanah and his wife, and said, Jehovah give thee seed of this woman for the petition which was asked of Jehovah. And they went unto their own home.

Bible in Basic English
And every year Eli gave Elkanah and his wife a blessing, saying, May the Lord give you offspring by this woman in exchange for the child you have given to the Lord. And they went back to their house.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
And Eli blessed Elkana and his wife, and said: The Lorde geue thee seede of this woman, for the petition that she asked of the Lord. And they went vnto their owne home.

JPS Old Testament (1917)
And Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife, and say: 'The LORD give thee seed of this woman for the loan which was lent to the LORD.' And they would go unto their own home.

King James Version (1611)
And Eli blessed Elkanah, and his wife, and said, The Lord giue thee seed of this woman, for the loane which is lent to the Lord. And they went vnto their owne home.

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And Heli blessed Helcana and his wife, saying The Lord recompense to thee seed of this woman, in return for the loan which thou hast lent to the Lord: and the man returned to his place.

English Revised Version
And Eli blessed Elkanah and his wife, and said, The LORD give thee seed of this woman for the loan which was lent to the LORD. And they went unto their own home.

Berean Standard Bible
And Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife, saying, "May the LORD give you children by this woman in place of the one she dedicated to the LORD." Then they would go home.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And Heli blesside Helcana and his wijf; and Heli seide `to hym, The Lord yelde to thee seed of this womman, for the yifte which thou hast youe to the Lord. And thei yeden in to her place.

Young's Literal Translation
And Eli blessed Elkanah, and his wife, and said, `Jehovah doth appoint for thee seed of this woman, for the petition which she asked for Jehovah;' and they have gone to their place.

Update Bible Version
And Eli blessed Elkanah and his wife, and said, Yahweh give you [Elkanah] seed of this woman in place of the petition which he asked of Yahweh. And they went to their own home.

Webster's Bible Translation
And Eli blessed Elkanah and his wife, and said, The LORD give thee issue of this woman for the loan which is lent to the LORD. And they went to their own home.

World English Bible
Eli blessed Elkanah and his wife, and said, Yahweh give you seed of this woman for the petition which was asked of Yahweh. They went to their own home.

New King James Version
And Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife, and say, "The LORD give you descendants from this woman for the loan that was given to the LORD." Then they would go to their own home.

New Living Translation
Before they returned home, Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife and say, "May the Lord give you other children to take the place of this one she gave to the Lord ."

New Life Bible
Then Eli would pray that good would come to Elkanah and his wife, saying, "May the Lord give you children from this woman in place of the one she gave to the Lord." Then they would return to their home.

New Revised Standard
Then Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife, and say, "May the Lord repay you with children by this woman for the gift that she made to the Lord "; and then they would return to their home.

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
And Eli used to bless Elkanah and his wife, and to say - Yahweh give thee seed of this woman, instead of the loan that hath been lent unto Yahweh. So they went their way to his own place.

Douay-Rheims Bible
And Heli blessed Elcana and his wife: and he said to him: The Lord give thee seed of this woman, for the loan thou hast lent to the Lord. And they went to their own home.

Revised Standard Version
Then Eli would bless Elka'nah 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.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
Then Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife and say, "May the LORD give you children from this woman in place of the one she dedicated to the LORD." And they went to their own home.

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

The natural place for this verse seems to be before the 1 Samuel 2:11, after which the 1 Samuel 2:21, should probably come in; and after the 21st, perhaps the 1 Samuel 2:26, should follow.

blessed: Genesis 14:19, Genesis 27:27-29, Numbers 6:23-27, Ruth 2:12, Ruth 4:11

loan: or, petition which she asked, etc. 1 Samuel 1:27, 1 Samuel 1:28

Reciprocal: Genesis 47:7 - And Jacob Genesis 48:9 - my sons Joshua 22:6 - General Ruth 4:12 - of the seed 1 Kings 14:17 - when she came Psalms 127:3 - children Ecclesiastes 6:3 - a man

Cross-References

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.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And Eli blessed Elkanah and his wife,.... Not only the first time they brought Samuel to him, and left him with him; but every year they came to worship, as the Jewish commentators mostly interpret it:

and said, the Lord give thee seed of this woman; children by her, year after year:

for the loan which is lent to the Lord; instead of Samuel, who was asked of the Lord and given to him again; and as they were thereby in some measure deprived of him, and could not always enjoy him, and be delighted with him, Eli prayed for them, and gave them his benediction as a priest, that they might be favoured with other children, who might be of delight and service to them when in old age:

and they went unto their own home; at Ramah, as in 1 Samuel 2:11 or to his place r, Elkanah's; hence Kimchi concludes that Hannah was of another city originally; but the Targum is,

"to their place;''

and indeed, what was now the place or home of the one, was of the other.

r למקומו "in locum suum", V. L. Pagninus, Montanus, Drusius, &c.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse 1 Samuel 2:20. Eli blessed Elkanah — The natural place of this verse seems to be before the 11th; after which the 21st should come in; after the 21st, perhaps the 26th should come in. 1 Samuel 2:11; 1 Samuel 2:21; 1 Samuel 2:26. The subjects in this chapter seem very much entangled and confused by the wrong position of the verses.