1Sa 1, 1Sa 4 | ESV | STEP | There was a certain man of Ramathaim-zophim of the hill country of Ephraim whose name was Elkanah the son of Jeroham , son of Elihu , son of Tohu , son of Zuph , an Ephrathite .

1 Samuel 1

The Birth of Samuel

1 There was a certain man of ^aRamathaim-zophim of ^bthe hill country of Ephraim whose name was Elkanah the son of Jeroham, son of Elihu, son of Tohu, son of Zuph, ^can Ephrathite. 2 He had two wives. The name of the one was Hannah, and the name of the other, Peninnah. And Peninnah had children, but Hannah had no children.

3 Now this man used to go up ^dyear by year from his city ^eto worship and to sacrifice to the Lord of hosts ^fat Shiloh, where the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were priests of the Lord. 4 On the day when Elkanah sacrificed, ^ghe would give portions to Peninnah his wife and to all her sons and daughters. 5 But to Hannah he gave a double portion, because he loved her, though the Lord had closed her womb. ^{▼▼Syriac; the meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain. Septuagint And, although he loved Hannah, he would give Hannah only one portion, because the Lord had closed her womb} 6 And her rival used to provoke her grievously to irritate her, because the Lord had closed her womb. 7 So it went on year by year. As often as she went up to the house of the Lord, she used to provoke her. Therefore Hannah wept and would not eat. 8 And Elkanah, her husband, said to her, “Hannah, why do you weep? And why do you not eat? And why is your heart sad? ⁱAm I not more to you than ten sons?”

9 After they had eaten and drunk in Shiloh, Hannah rose. Now Eli the priest was sitting on the seat beside the doorpost of ^jthe temple of the Lord. 10 She was ^kdeeply distressed and prayed to the Lord and wept bitterly. 11 And she ^lvowed a vow and said, “O Lord of hosts, if you will indeed ^mlook on the affliction of your servant and ⁿremember me and not forget your servant, but will give to your servant a son, then I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life, ^oand no razor shall touch his head.”

12 As she continued praying before the Lord, Eli observed her mouth. 13 Hannah was speaking in her heart; only her lips moved, and her voice was not heard. Therefore Eli took her to be a drunken woman. 14 And Eli said to her, “How long will you go on being drunk? Put your wine away from you.” 15 But Hannah answered, “No, my lord, I am a woman troubled in spirit. I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but ^pI have been pouring out my soul before the Lord. 16 Do not regard your servant as ^qa worthless woman, for all along I have been speaking out of my great anxiety and vexation.” 17 Then Eli answered, ^r“Go in peace, and the God of Israel ^sgrant your petition that you have made to him.” 18 And she said, ^t“Let your servant find favor in your eyes.” Then the woman ^uwent her way and ate, and her face was no longer sad.

19 They rose early in the morning and worshiped before the Lord; then they went back to their house at ^vRamah. And Elkanah knew Hannah his wife, and the Lord ^wremembered her. 20 And in due time Hannah conceived and bore a son, and she called his name Samuel, for she said, “I have asked for him from the Lord.” ^{▼▼ Samuel sounds like the Hebrew for heard of God}

Samuel Given to the Lord

21 The man Elkanah and all his house ^ywent up to offer to the Lord the yearly sacrifice and to pay his vow. 22 But Hannah did not go up, for she said to her husband, “As soon as the child is weaned, I will bring him, so that he may appear in the presence of the Lord ^zand dwell there forever.” 23 ^aaElkanah her husband said to her, “Do what seems best to you; wait until you have weaned him; ^abonly, may the Lord establish his word.” So the woman remained and nursed her son until she weaned him. 24 And when she had weaned him, ^acshe took him up with her, along with a three-year-old bull, ^{▼▼Dead Sea Scroll, Septuagint, Syriac; Masoretic Text three bulls} an ephah ^{▼▼An ephah was about 3/5 bushel or 22 liters} of flour, and a skin of wine, and she brought him to ^afthe house of the Lord at Shiloh. And the child was young. 25 Then they slaughtered the bull, and they brought the child to Eli. 26 And she said, “Oh, my lord! ^agAs you live, my lord, I am the woman who was standing here in your presence, praying to the Lord. 27 For this child I prayed, ^ahand the Lord has granted me my petition that I made to him. 28 Therefore I have lent him to the Lord. As long as he lives, he is lent to the Lord.”

^aiAnd he worshiped the Lord there.

1 Samuel 4

The Philistines Capture the Ark

1 And the word of Samuel came to all Israel.

Now Israel went out to battle against the Philistines. They encamped at ^ajEbenezer, and the Philistines encamped at ^akAphek. 2 The Philistines drew up in line against Israel, and when the battle spread, Israel was defeated before the Philistines, who killed about four thousand men on the field of battle. 3 And when the people came to the camp, the elders of Israel said, “Why has the Lord defeated us today before the Philistines? Let us bring the ark of the covenant of the Lord here ^alfrom Shiloh, that it ^{▼▼Or he} may come among us and save us from the power of our enemies.” 4 So the people sent to Shiloh and brought from there the ark of the covenant of the Lord of hosts, ^anwho is enthroned on the cherubim. And the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were there with the ark of the covenant of God.

5 As soon as the ark of the covenant of the Lord came into the camp, all Israel ^aogave a mighty shout, so that the earth resounded. 6 And when the Philistines heard the noise of the shouting, they said, “What does this great shouting in the camp of the Hebrews mean?” And when they learned that the ark of the Lord had come to the camp, 7 the Philistines were afraid, for they said, “A god has come into the camp.” And they said, “Woe to us! For nothing like this has happened before. 8 Woe to us! Who can deliver us from the power of these mighty gods? These are the gods who struck the Egyptians with every sort of plague in the wilderness. 9 ^apTake courage, and be men, O Philistines, lest you become slaves to the Hebrews ^aqas they have been to you; be men and fight.”

10 So the Philistines fought, ^arand Israel was defeated, ^asand they fled, every man to his home. And there was a very great slaughter, for thirty thousand foot soldiers of Israel fell. 11 ^atAnd the ark of God was captured, ^auand the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, died.

The Death of Eli

12 A man of Benjamin ran from the battle line and came to Shiloh the same day, ^avwith his clothes torn and with dirt on his head. 13 When he arrived, ^awEli was sitting on his seat by the road watching, for his heart trembled for the ark of God. And when the man came into the city and told the news, all the city cried out. 14 When Eli heard the sound of the outcry, he said, “What is this uproar?” Then the man hurried and came and told Eli. 15 Now Eli was ninety-eight years old ^axand his eyes were set so that he could not see. 16 And the man said to Eli, “I am he who has come from the battle; I fled from the battle today.” And he said, ^ay“How did it go, my son?” 17 He who brought the news answered and said, “Israel has fled before the Philistines, and there has also been a great defeat among the people. Your two sons also, Hophni and Phinehas, are dead, and the ark of God has been captured.” 18 As soon as he mentioned the ark of God, Eli fell over backward ^azfrom his seat by the side of the gate, and his neck was broken and he died, for the man was old and heavy. He had judged Israel forty years.

19 Now his daughter-in-law, the wife of Phinehas, was pregnant, about to give birth. And when she heard the news that the ark of God was captured, and that her father-in-law and her husband were dead, she bowed and gave birth, for her pains came upon her. 20 And about the time of her death the women attending her said to her, ^ba“Do not be afraid, for you have borne a son.” But she did not answer or pay attention. 21 And she named the child ^bbIchabod, saying, ^bc“The glory has departed ^{▼▼Or gone into exile; also verse 22} from Israel!” because ^bethe ark of God had been captured and because of her father-in-law and her husband. 22 And she said, “The glory has departed from Israel, ^bffor the ark of God has been captured.”