1Sa 2, 1Sa 4 | ESV | STEP | And Hannah prayed and said , My heart exults in the Lord ; my horn is exalted in the Lord . My mouth derides my enemies , because I rejoice in your salvation .

1 Samuel 2

Hannah’s Prayer

1 And Hannah prayed and said,

^a“My heart exults in the Lord;
^bmy horn is exalted in the Lord.
My mouth derides my enemies,
because ^cI rejoice in your salvation.
2 ^d“There is none holy like the Lord:
for there is none besides you;
there is ^eno rock like our God.
3 Talk no more so very proudly,
let not arrogance come from your mouth;
for the Lord is a God of knowledge,
and by him actions are weighed.
4 ^fThe bows of the mighty are broken,
but the feeble bind on strength.
5 Those who were full have hired themselves out for bread,
but those who were hungry have ceased to hunger.
^gThe barren has borne seven,
^hbut she who has many children is forlorn.
6 ⁱThe Lord kills and brings to life;
he brings down to Sheol and raises up.
7 ^jThe Lord makes poor and makes rich;
^khe brings low and he exalts.
8 ^lHe raises up the poor from the dust;
he lifts the needy from the ash heap
^mto make them sit with princes
and inherit a seat of honor.
ⁿFor the pillars of the earth are the Lord’s,
and on them he has set the world.
9 ^o“He will guard the feet of his faithful ones,
but the wicked shall be cut off in darkness,
for not by might shall a man prevail.
10 ^pThe adversaries of the Lord shall be broken to pieces;
^qagainst them he will thunder in heaven.
^rThe Lord will judge the ends of the earth;
he will give strength to his king
^sand exalt the horn of his anointed.”
11 Then Elkanah went home ^tto Ramah. ^uAnd the boy ^{▼▼Hebrew na‘ar can be rendered boy (2:11, 18, 21, 26; 3:1, 8), servant (2:13, 15), or young man (2:17), depending on the context} was ministering to the Lord in the presence of Eli the priest.

Eli’s Worthless Sons

12 Now the sons of Eli were ^wworthless men. ^xThey did not know the Lord. 13 The custom of the priests with the people was that when any man offered sacrifice, the priest’s servant would come, while the meat was boiling, with a three-pronged fork in his hand, 14 and he would thrust it into the pan or kettle or cauldron or pot. All that the fork brought up the priest would take for himself. This is what they did at Shiloh to all the Israelites who came there. 15 Moreover, ^ybefore the fat was burned, the priest’s servant would come and say to the man who was sacrificing, “Give meat for the priest to roast, for he will not accept boiled meat from you but only raw.” 16 And if the man said to him, “Let them burn the fat first, and then take as much as you wish,” he would say, “No, you must give it now, and if not, I will take it by force.” 17 Thus the sin of the young men was very great ^zin the sight of the Lord, ^aafor the men treated the offering of the Lord with contempt.

18 ^abSamuel was ministering before the Lord, a boy ^acclothed with a linen ephod. 19 And his mother used to make for him a little robe and take it to him each year ^adwhen she went up with her husband to offer the yearly sacrifice. 20 Then Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife, and say, “May the Lord give you children by this woman ^aefor the petition she asked of the Lord.” So then they would return to their home.

21 ^afIndeed the Lord visited Hannah, and she conceived and bore three sons and two daughters. ^agAnd the boy Samuel grew in the presence of the Lord.

Eli Rebukes His Sons

22 Now Eli was very old, and he kept hearing all that his sons were doing to all Israel, and how they lay with the women who ^ahwere serving at the entrance to the tent of meeting. 23 And he said to them, “Why do you do such things? For I hear of your evil dealings from all these people. 24 No, my sons; it is no good report that I hear the people of the Lord spreading abroad. 25 If someone sins against a man, God will mediate for him, but if someone sins against the Lord, who can intercede for him?” But they would not listen to the voice of their father, ^aifor it was the will of the Lord to put them to death.

26 Now the boy Samuel ^ajcontinued to grow both in stature and in favor with the Lord and also with man.

The Lord Rejects Eli’s Household

27 And there came ^aka man of God to Eli and said to him, “Thus says the Lord, ^al‘Did I indeed reveal myself to the house of your father when they were in Egypt subject to the house of Pharaoh? 28 ^amDid I choose him out of all the tribes of Israel to be my priest, to go up to my altar, to burn incense, ^anto wear an ephod before me? ^aoI gave to the house of your father all my offerings by fire from the people of Israel. 29 Why then do you ^apscorn ^{▼▼Hebrew kick at} my sacrifices and my offerings that I commanded for my dwelling, and honor your sons above me by fattening yourselves on the choicest parts of every offering of my people Israel?’ 30 Therefore the Lord, the God of Israel, declares: ^ar‘I promised that your house and the house of your father should go in and out before me forever,’ ^asbut now the Lord declares: ‘Far be it from me, for those who honor me I will honor, and those who despise me shall be lightly esteemed. 31 Behold, ^atthe days are coming when I will cut off your strength and the strength of your father’s house, so that there will not be an old man in your house. 32 Then ^auin distress you will look with envious eye on all the prosperity that shall be bestowed on Israel, ^avand there shall not be an old man in your house forever. 33 The only one of you whom I shall not cut off from my altar shall be spared to weep his ^{▼▼Septuagint; Hebrew your; twice in this verse} eyes out to grieve his heart, and all the descendants ^{▼▼Hebrew increase} of your house shall die by the sword of men. ^{▼▼Septuagint; Hebrew die as men} 34 ^azAnd this that shall come upon your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, shall be the sign to you: both of them shall die ^baon the same day. 35 ^bbAnd I will raise up for myself a faithful priest, who shall do according to what is in my heart and in my mind. ^bcAnd I will build him a sure house, and he shall go in and out before ^bdmy anointed forever. 36 And everyone who is left in your house shall come to implore him for a piece of silver or a loaf of bread and shall say, “Please put me in one of the priests’ places, that I may eat a morsel of bread.”’”

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 ^beEbenezer, and the Philistines encamped at ^bfAphek. 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 ^bgfrom 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, ^biwho 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 ^bjgave 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 ^bkTake courage, and be men, O Philistines, lest you become slaves to the Hebrews ^blas they have been to you; be men and fight.”

10 So the Philistines fought, ^bmand Israel was defeated, ^bnand they fled, every man to his home. And there was a very great slaughter, for thirty thousand foot soldiers of Israel fell. 11 ^boAnd the ark of God was captured, ^bpand 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, ^bqwith his clothes torn and with dirt on his head. 13 When he arrived, ^brEli 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 ^bsand 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, ^bt“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 ^bufrom 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, ^bv“Do not be afraid, for you have borne a son.” But she did not answer or pay attention. 21 And she named the child ^bwIchabod, saying, ^bx“The glory has departed ^{▼▼Or gone into exile; also verse 22} from Israel!” because ^bzthe 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, ^cafor the ark of God has been captured.”