Study Desk

Then Hannah prayed and said, "My heart rejoices in the LORD; My horn is exalted in the LORD, My mouth speaks boldly against my enemies, Because I rejoice in Your salvation.

And Hannah prayed, and said, My heart rejoiceth in the Lord , mine horn is exalted in the Lord : my mouth is enlarged over mine enemies; because I rejoice in thy salvation.

"There is no one holy like the LORD, Indeed, there is no one besides You, Nor is there any rock like our God.

There is none holy as the Lord : for there is none beside thee: neither is there any rock like our God.

"Do not go on boasting so very proudly, Do not let arrogance come out of your mouth; For the LORD is a God of knowledge, And with Him actions are weighed.

Talk no more so exceeding proudly; let not arrogancy come out of your mouth: for the Lord is a God of knowledge, and by him actions are weighed.

"The bows of the mighty are broken to pieces, But those who have stumbled strap on strength.

The bows of the mighty men are broken, and they that stumbled are girded with strength.

"Those who were full hire themselves out for bread, But those who were hungry cease to be hungry. Even the infertile woman gives birth to seven, But she who has many children languishes.

They that were full have hired out themselves for bread; and they that were hungry ceased: so that the barren hath born seven; and she that hath many children is waxed feeble.

"The LORD puts to death and makes alive; He brings down to Sheol and brings up.

The Lord killeth, and maketh alive: he bringeth down to the grave, and bringeth up.

"The LORD makes poor and rich; He humbles, He also exalts.

The Lord maketh poor, and maketh rich: he bringeth low, and lifteth up.

"He raises the poor from the dust, He lifts the needy from the garbage heap To seat them with nobles, And He gives them a seat of honor as an inheritance; For the pillars of the earth are the LORD'S, And He set the world on them.

He raiseth up the poor out of the dust, and lifteth up the beggar from the dunghill, to set them among princes, and to make them inherit the throne of glory: for the pillars of the earth are the Lord 's, and he hath set the world upon them.

"He watches over the feet of His godly ones, But the wicked ones are silenced in darkness; For not by might shall a person prevail.

He will keep the feet of his saints, and the wicked shall be silent in darkness; for by strength shall no man prevail.

"Those who contend with the LORD will be terrified; Against them He will thunder in the heavens, The LORD will judge the ends of the earth; And He will give strength to His king, And will exalt the horn of His anointed."

The adversaries of the Lord shall be broken to pieces; out of heaven shall he thunder upon them: the Lord shall judge the ends of the earth; and he shall give strength unto his king, and exalt the horn of his anointed.

Then Elkanah went to his home at Ramah. But the boy continued to attend to the service of the LORD before Eli the priest.

And Elkanah went to Ramah to his house. And the child did minister unto the Lord before Eli the priest.

Now the sons of Eli were useless men; they did not know the LORD.

Now the sons of Eli were sons of Belial; they knew not the Lord .

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 the priest's custom with the people was, that, when any man offered sacrifice, the priest's servant came, while the flesh was in seething, with a fleshhook of three teeth 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.

And he struck it into the pan, or kettle, or caldron, or pot; all that the fleshhook brought up the priest took for himself. So they did in Shiloh unto all the Israelites that came thither.

Also, before they 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."

Also before they burnt the fat, the priest's servant came, and said to the man that sacrificed, Give flesh to roast for the priest; for he will not have sodden flesh of thee, but raw.

And if the man said to him, "They must burn the fat first, then take as much as 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 if any man said unto him, Let them not fail to burn the fat presently, and then take as much as thy soul desireth; then he would answer him, Nay; but thou shalt give it me now: and if not, I will take it by force.

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

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

Now Samuel was ministering before the LORD, as a boy wearing a linen ephod.

But Samuel ministered before the Lord , being a child, girded with a linen ephod.

And his mother would make for him a little robe and bring it up to him from year to year when she would come up with her husband to offer the yearly sacrifice.

Moreover his mother made him a little coat, and brought it to him from year to year, when she came up with her husband to offer the yearly sacrifice.

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.

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.

The LORD indeed visited Hannah, and she conceived and gave birth to three sons and two daughters. And the boy Samuel grew up before the LORD.

And the Lord visited Hannah, so that she conceived, and bare three sons and two daughters. And the child Samuel grew before the Lord .

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

Now Eli was very old, and heard all that his sons did unto all Israel; and how they lay with the women that assembled at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation.

So he said to them, "Why are you doing such things as these, the evil things that I hear from all these people?

And he said unto them, Why do ye such things? for I hear of your evil dealings by all this people.

"No, my sons; for the report is not good which I hear the LORD'S people circulating.

Nay, my sons; for it is no good report that I hear: ye make the Lord 's people to transgress.

"If one person sins against another, God will mediate for him; but if a person sins against the LORD, who can intercede for him?" But they would not listen to the voice of their father, for the LORD desired to put them to death.

If one man sin against another, the judge shall judge him: but if a man sin against the Lord , who shall intreat for him? Notwithstanding they hearkened not unto the voice of their father, because the Lord would slay them.

Now the boy Samuel was continuing to grow and to be in favor both with the LORD and with people.

And the child Samuel grew on, and was in favour both with the Lord , and also with men.

Then a man of God came to Eli and said to him, "This is what the LORD says: 'Did I not indeed reveal Myself to the house of your father when they were in Egypt in bondage to Pharaoh's house?

And there came a man of God unto Eli, and said unto him, Thus saith the Lord , Did I plainly appear unto the house of thy father, when they were in Egypt in Pharaoh's house?

'Did I not choose them from all the tribes of Israel to be My priests, to go up to My altar, to burn incense, to carry an ephod before Me? And did I not give to the house of your father all the fire offerings of the sons of Israel?

And did I choose him out of all the tribes of Israel to be my priest, to offer upon mine altar, to burn incense, to wear an ephod before me? and did I give unto the house of thy father all the offerings made by fire of the children of Israel?

'Why are you showing contempt for My sacrifice and My offering which I have commanded for My dwelling, and why are you honoring your sons above Me, by making yourselves fat with the choicest of every offering of My people Israel?'

Wherefore kick ye at my sacrifice and at mine offering, which I have commanded in my habitation; and honourest thy sons above me, to make yourselves fat with the chiefest of all the offerings of Israel my people?

"Therefore the LORD God of Israel declares, 'I did indeed say that your house and the house of your father was to walk before Me forever'; but now the LORD declares, 'Far be it from Me—for those who honor Me I will honor, and those who despise Me will be insignificant.

Wherefore the Lord God of Israel saith, I said indeed that thy house, and the house of thy father, should walk before me for ever: but now the Lord saith, Be it far from me; for them that honour me I will honour, and they that despise me shall be lightly esteemed.

'Behold, the days are coming when I will eliminate your strength and the strength of your father's house, so that there will not be an old man in your house.

Behold, the days come, that I will cut off thine arm, and the arm of thy father's house, that there shall not be an old man in thine house.

'And you will look at the distress of My dwelling, in spite of all the good that I do for Israel; and there will never be an old man in your house.

And thou shalt see an enemy in my habitation, in all the wealth which God shall give Israel: and there shall not be an old man in thine house for ever.

'Yet I will not cut off every man of yours from My altar, so that your eyes will fail from weeping and your soul grieve, and all the increase of your house will die in the prime of life.

And the man of thine, whom I shall not cut off from mine altar, shall be to consume thine eyes, and to grieve thine heart: and all the increase of thine house shall die in the flower of their age.

'And this will be the sign to you which will come in regard to your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas: on the same day both of them will die.

And this shall be a sign unto thee, that shall come upon thy two sons, on Hophni and Phinehas; in one day they shall die both of them.

'But I will raise up for Myself a faithful priest who will do according to what is in My heart and My soul; and I will build him an enduring house, and he will walk before My anointed always.

And I will raise me up a faithful priest, that shall do according to that which is in mine heart and in my mind: and I will build him a sure house; and he shall walk before mine anointed for ever.

'And everyone who is left in your house will come to bow down to him for a silver coin or a loaf of bread and say, "Please assign me to one of the priest's offices so that I may eat a piece of bread."'"

And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left in thine house shall come and crouch to him for a piece of silver and a morsel of bread, and shall say, Put me, I pray thee, into one of the priests' offices, that I may eat a piece of bread.