1Sa 2 | NASB1995 | STEP | Then Hannah prayed and said , “ My heart exults in the Lord ; My horn is exalted in the Lord , My mouth speaks boldly against my enemies , Because I rejoice in Your salvation .

1 Samuel 2

Hannah’s Song of Thanksgiving

1 Then Hannah ^aprayed and said, “My heart exults in the Lord;
^bMy ^{▼▼ I.e. strength}horn is exalted in the Lord,
My mouth ^{▼▼ Lit is enlarged}speaks boldly against my enemies,
Because ^eI rejoice in Your salvation.
2 ^f“There is no one holy like the Lord,
Indeed, ^gthere is no one besides You,
^hNor is there any rock like our God.
3 ^{▼▼ Lit Talk much}“Boast no more so very proudly,
^jDo not let arrogance come out of your mouth;
^kFor the Lord is a God of knowledge,
^lAnd with Him actions are weighed.
4 ^m“The bows of the mighty are shattered,
ⁿBut the feeble gird on strength.
5 “Those who were full hire themselves out for bread,
But those who were hungry cease to hunger.
^oEven the barren gives birth to seven,
But ^pshe who has many children languishes.
6 ^q“The Lord kills and makes alive;
^rHe brings down to ^{▼▼ I.e. the nether world}Sheol and raises up.
7 ^t“The Lord makes poor and rich;
^uHe brings low, He also exalts.
8 ^v“He raises the poor from the dust,
^wHe lifts the needy from the ash heap
^xTo make them sit with nobles,
And inherit a seat of honor;
^yFor the pillars of the earth are the Lord’s,
And He set the world on them.
9 ^z“He keeps the feet of His godly ones,
^aaBut the wicked ones are silenced in darkness;
^abFor not by might shall a man prevail.
10 ^ac“Those who contend with the Lord will be shattered;
^adAgainst them He will thunder in the heavens,
^aeThe Lord will judge the ends of the earth;
^afAnd He will give strength to His king,
^agAnd will exalt the ^{▼▼ I.e. strength}horn of His anointed.”

11 Then Elkanah went to his home at ^aiRamah. ^ajBut the boy ministered to the Lord before Eli the priest.

The Sin of Eli’s Sons

12 Now the sons of Eli were ^{▼▼ Lit sons of Belial
,} ^alworthless men; they did not know the Lord 13 ^amand the custom of the priests with the people. When any man was offering a sacrifice, the priest’s servant would come while the meat was boiling, with a three-pronged fork in his hand. 14 Then he would thrust it into the pan, or kettle, or caldron, or pot; all that the fork brought up the priest would take for himself. Thus they did in Shiloh to all the Israelites who came there. 15 Also, before ^anthey 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 boiled meat from you, only raw.” 16 If the man said to him, “They must surely ^{▼▼ Lit offer up in smoke}burn the fat ^{▼▼ Lit like the day}first, and then take as much as ^{▼▼ Lit your soul}you desire,” then he would say, “No, but you shall give it to me now; and if not, I will take it by force.” 17 Thus the sin of the young men was very great before the Lord, for the men ^ardespised the offering of the Lord.

Samuel before the Lord as a Boy

18 Now ^asSamuel was ministering before the Lord, as a boy ^{▼▼ Lit girded with
,} ^auwearing a linen ephod. 19 And his mother would make him a little ^avrobe and bring it to him from year to year when she would come up with her husband to offer ^awthe yearly sacrifice. 20 Then Eli would ^axbless Elkanah and his wife and say, “May the Lord give you ^{▼▼ Lit seed}children from this woman in place of ^{▼▼ Lit the one asked for which was lent}the one she ^badedicated to the Lord.” And they went to their own ^{▼▼ Lit place}home.

21 ^bcThe Lord visited Hannah; and she conceived and gave birth to three sons and two daughters. And ^bdthe boy Samuel grew before the Lord.

Eli Rebukes His Sons

22 Now Eli was very old; and he heard ^beall that his sons were doing to all Israel, and how they lay with ^bfthe women who served at the doorway of the tent of meeting. 23 He said to them, “Why do you do such things, the evil things that I hear from all these people? 24 “No, my sons; for the report is not good ^bgwhich I hear ^{▼▼ Or making the Lord’s people transgress}the Lord’s people circulating. 25 “If one man sins against another, ^biGod will mediate for him; but ^bjif a man sins against the Lord, who can intercede for him?” But they would not listen to the voice of their father, for the ^bkLord desired to put them to death.

26 Now the boy ^blSamuel ^{▼▼ Lit was going on both great and good}was growing in stature and in favor both with the Lord and with men.

27 Then ^bna man of God came to Eli and said to him, “Thus says the Lord, ‘ ^boDid I not indeed reveal Myself to the house of your father when they were in Egypt in bondage to Pharaoh’s house? 28 ‘ ^bpDid 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 ^bqgive to the house of your father all the fire offerings of the sons of Israel? 29 ‘Why do you ^brkick at My sacrifice and at My offering ^bswhich I have commanded in My ^btdwelling, and ^buhonor your sons above Me, by making yourselves fat with the ^{▼▼ Or first}choicest of every offering of My people Israel?’ 30 “Therefore the Lord God of Israel declares, ‘ ^bwI did indeed say that your house and the house of your father should walk before Me forever’; but now the Lord declares, ‘Far be it from Me— for ^bxthose who honor Me I will honor, and those ^bywho despise Me will be lightly esteemed. 31 ‘Behold, ^bzthe days are coming when I will break your ^{▼▼ Or arm}strength and the ^{▼▼ Or arm}strength of your father’s house so that there will not be an old man in your house. 32 ‘You will see ^ccthe distress of My dwelling, in spite of all the good that ^{▼▼ Lit He does}I do for Israel; and an ^ceold man will not be in your house forever. 33 ‘Yet I will not cut off every man of yours from My altar ^{▼▼ Lit to waste away your eyes and to grieve your soul}so that your eyes will fail from weeping and your soul grieve, and all the increase of your house will die ^{▼▼ Lit as men}in the prime of life. 34 ‘This will be ^chthe sign to you which will come concerning your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas: ^cion the same day both of them will die. 35 ‘But ^cjI will raise up for Myself a faithful priest who will do according to what is in My heart and in My soul; and ^ckI will build him an enduring house, and he will walk before ^clMy anointed always. 36 ‘Everyone who is left in your house will come and bow down to him for a ^{▼▼ Or payment}piece of silver or a loaf of bread and say, “Please ^{▼▼ Lit attach}assign me to one of the priest’s offices so that I may eat a piece of bread.”’”