Study Desk

You will see trouble in my dwelling place! Israel will experience blessings, but there will not be an old man in your house for all time.

Then he ran to Eli and said, "Here I am, for you called me." But Eli said, "I didn't call you. Go back and lie down." So he went back and lay down.

The Lord again called, "Samuel!" So Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, "Here I am, for you called me." But Eli said, "I didn't call you, my son. Go back and lie down."

So Samuel lay down until morning. Then he opened the doors of the Lord 's house. But Samuel was afraid to tell Eli about the vision.

His daughter-in-law, the wife of Phineas, was pregnant and close to giving birth. When she heard that the ark of God was captured and that her father-in-law and her husband were dead, she doubled over and gave birth. But her labor pains were too much for her.

As she was dying, the women who were there with her said, "Don't be afraid! You have given birth to a son!" But she did not reply or pay any attention.

But when they got up early the following day, Dagon was again lying on the ground before the ark of the Lord . The head of Dagon and his two hands were sheared off and were lying at the threshold. Only Dagon's body was left intact.

But after it had been moved the Lord attacked that city as well, causing a great deal of panic. He struck all the people of that city with sores.

So they sent the ark of God to Ekron. But when the ark of God arrived at Ekron, the residents of Ekron cried out saying, "They have brought the ark of the God of Israel here to kill our people!"

But keep an eye on it. If it should go up by the way of its own border to Beth Shemesh, then he has brought this great calamity on us. But if that is not the case, then we will know that it was not his hand that struck us; rather, it just happened to us by accident."

But the Lord struck down some of the people of Beth Shemesh because they had looked into the ark of the Lord ; he struck down 50,070 of the men. The people grieved because the Lord had struck the people with a hard blow.

As Samuel was offering burnt offerings, the Philistines approached to do battle with Israel. But on that day the Lord thundered loudly against the Philistines. He caused them to panic, and they were defeated by Israel.

But his sons did not follow his ways. Instead, they made money dishonestly, accepted bribes, and perverted justice.

But this request displeased Samuel, for they said, "Give us a king to lead us." So Samuel prayed to the Lord .

The Lord said to Samuel, "Do everything the people request of you. For it is not you that they have rejected, but it is me that they have rejected as their king.

So now do as they say. But seriously warn them and make them aware of the policies of the king who will rule over them."

In that day you will cry out because of your king whom you have chosen for yourselves, but the Lord won't answer you in that day."

But the people refused to heed Samuel's warning. Instead they said, "No! There will be a king over us!

So Saul crossed through the hill country of Ephraim, passing through the land of Shalisha, but they did not find them. So they crossed through the land of Shaalim, but they were not there. Then he crossed through the land of Benjamin, and still they did not find them.

But the servant said to him, "Look, there is a man of God in this town. He is highly respected. Everything that he says really happens. Now let's go there. Perhaps he will tell us where we should go from here."