1 Samuel Chapter 2
Other Translations
lxxbrent (lxxbrent) - Septuagint (Brenton 1851) eBible USFM
1
My heart is established in the Lord, my horn is exalted in my God; my mouth is enlarged over my enemies, I have rejoiced in thy salvation.
2
For there is none holy as the Lord, and there is none righteous as our God: there is none holy beside thee.
3
Boast not, and utter not high things; let not high-sounding words come out of your mouth, for the Lord [is] a God of knowledge, and God prepares his own designs.
4
The bow of the mighty has waxed feeble, and the weak have girded themselves with strength.
5
They that were full of bread are brought low; and the hungry have forsaken the land; for the barren has born seven, and she that abounded in children has waxed feeble.
6
The Lord kills and makes alive; he brings down to the grave, and brings up.
7
The Lord makes poor, and makes rich; he brings low, and lifts up.
8
He lifts up the poor from the earth, and raises the needy from the dunghill; to seat him with the princes of the people, and causing them to inherit the throne of glory:
9
granting his petition to him that prays; and he blesses the years of the righteous, for by strength cannot man prevail.
10
The Lord will weaken his adversary; the Lord [is] holy. Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, nor let the mighty man boast in his strength, and let not the rich man boast in his wealth; but let him that boasts boast in this, to understand and know the Lord, and to execute judgment and justice in the midst of the earth. The Lord has gone up to the heavens, and has thundered: he will judge the extremities of the earth, and he gives strength to our kings, and will exalt the horn of his Christ. And she left him there before the Lord,
11
and departed to Armathaim: and the child ministered in the presence of the Lord before Heli the priest.
12
And the sons of Heli the priest [were] evil sons, not knowing the Lord.
13
And the priest's claim from every one of the people that sacrificed [was this]: the servant of the priest came when the flesh was in seething, and a flesh-hook of three teeth [was] in his hand.
14
And he struck it into the great caldron, or into the brazen vessel, or into the pot, and whatever came up with the flesh-hook, the priest took for himself: so they did to all Israel that came to sacrifice to the Lord in Selom.
15
And before the fat was burnt for a sweet savour, the servant of the priest would come, and say to the man that sacrificed, Give flesh to roast for the priest, and I will by no means take of thee sodden flesh out of the caldron.
16
And [if] the man that sacrificed said, First let the fat be burned, as it is fit, and take for thyself of all things which thy soul desires: then he would say, Nay, for thou shalt give it me now; and if not, I will take it by force.
17
So the sin of the young men was very great before the Lord, for they set at nought the offering of the Lord.
18
And Samuel ministered before the Lord, a child girt with a linen ephod.
19
And his mother made him a little doublet, and brought it to him from year to year, in her going up in company with her husband to offer the yearly sacrifice.
20
And Heli blessed Helcana and his wife, saying, The Lord recompense to thee seed of this woman, in return for the loan which thou hast lent to the Lord: and the man returned to his place.
21
And the Lord visited Anna, and she bore yet three sons, and two daughters. And the child Samuel grew before the Lord.
22
And Heli [was] very old, and he heard what his sons did to the children of Israel.
23
And he said to them, Why do ye according to this thing, which I hear from the mouth of all the people of the Lord?
24
Nay [my] sons, for the report which I hear [is] not good; do not so, for the reports which I hear [are] not good, so that the people do not serve God.
25
If a man should at all sin against another, then shall they pray for him to the Lord; but if a man sin against the Lord, who shall intreat for him? But they hearkened not to the voice of their father, because the Lord would by all means destroy them.
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And the child Samuel advanced, and was in favour with God and with men.
27
And a man of God came to Heli, and said, Thus says the Lord, I plainly revealed myself to the house of thy father, when they were servants in Egypt to the house of Pharao.
28
And I chose the house of thy father out of all the tribes of Israel to minister to me in the priest's office, to go up to my altar, and to burn incense, and to wear an ephod. And I gave to the house of thy father all the offerings by fire of the children of Israel for food.
29
And wherefore hast thou looked upon my incense-offering and my meat-offering with a shameless eye, and hast honoured thy sons above me, so that they should bless themselves with the first-fruits of every sacrifice of Israel before me?
30
Therefore thus says the Lord God of Israel, I said, Thy house and the house of thy father shall pass before me for ever: but now the Lord says, That be far from me; for I will only honour them that honour me, and he that sets me at nought shall be despised.
31
Behold, the days come when I will destroy thy seed and the seed of thy father's house.
32
And thou shalt not have an old man in my house for ever.
33
And [if] I do not destroy a man of thine from my altar, [it shall be] that his eyes may fail and his soul may perish; and every one that remains in thy house shall fall by the sword of men.
34
And this which shall come upon thy two sons Ophni and Phinees shall be a sign to thee; in one day they shall both die.
35
And I will raise up to myself a faithful priest, who shall do all that is in my heart and in my soul; and I will build him a sure house, and he shall walk before my Christ for ever.
36
And it shall come to pass that he that survives in thy house, shall come to do obeisance before him for a little piece of silver, saying, Put me into one of thy priests' offices to eat bread.
web (web) - WorldEnglish.Bible — CC0 modern update of ASV
1
Hannah prayed, and said, “My heart exults in the LORD! My horn is exalted in the LORD. My mouth is enlarged over my enemies, because I rejoice in your salvation.
2
There is no one as holy as the LORD, for there is no one besides you, nor is there any rock like our God.
3
“Don’t keep talking so exceedingly proudly. Don’t let arrogance come out of your mouth, for the LORD is a God of knowledge. By him actions are weighed.
4
“The bows of the mighty men are broken. Those who stumbled are armed with strength.
5
Those who were full have hired themselves out for bread. Those who were hungry are satisfied. Yes, the barren has borne seven. She who has many children languishes.
6
“The LORD kills and makes alive. He brings down to Sheol and brings up.
7
The LORD makes poor and makes rich. He brings low, he also lifts up.
8
He raises up the poor out of the dust. He lifts up the needy from the dunghill to make them sit with princes and inherit the throne of glory. For the pillars of the earth are the LORD’s. He has set the world on them.
9
He will keep the feet of his holy ones, but the wicked will be put to silence in darkness; for no man will prevail by strength.
10
Those who strive with the LORD shall be broken to pieces. He will thunder against them in the sky. “The LORD will judge the ends of the earth. He will give strength to his king, and exalt the horn of his anointed.”
11
Elkanah went to Ramah to his house. The child served the LORD before Eli the priest.
12
Now the sons of Eli were wicked men. They didn’t know the LORD.
13
The custom of the priests with the people was that when anyone offered a sacrifice, the priest’s servant came while the meat was boiling, with a fork of three teeth in his hand;
14
and he stabbed it into the pan, or kettle, or cauldron, or pot. The priest took all that the fork brought up for himself. They did this to all the Israelites who came there to Shiloh.
15
Yes, before they burned the fat, the priest’s servant came, and said to the man who sacrificed, “Give meat to roast for the priest; for he will not accept boiled meat from you, but raw.”
16
If the man said to him, “Let the fat be burned first, and then take as much as your soul desires;” then he would say, “No, but you shall give it to me now; and if not, I will take it by force.”
17
The sin of the young men was very great before the LORD; for the men despised the LORD’s offering.
18
But Samuel ministered before the LORD, being a child, clothed with a linen ephod.
19
Moreover his mother made him a little robe, and brought it to him from year to year when she came up with her husband to offer the yearly sacrifice.
20
Eli blessed Elkanah and his wife, and said, “May the LORD give you offspring from this woman for the petition which was asked of the LORD.” Then they went to their own home.
21
The LORD visited Hannah, and she conceived and bore three sons and two daughters. The child Samuel grew before the LORD.
22
Now Eli was very old; and he heard all that his sons did to all Israel, and how that they slept with the women who served at the door of the Tent of Meeting.
23
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; for it is not a good report that I hear! You make the LORD’s people disobey.
25
If one man sins against another, God will judge him; but if a man sins against the LORD, who will intercede for him?” Notwithstanding, they didn’t listen to the voice of their father, because the LORD intended to kill them.
26
The child Samuel grew on, and increased in favor both with the LORD and also with men.
27
A man of God came to Eli and said to him, “The LORD says, ‘Did I reveal myself to the house of your father when they were in Egypt in bondage to Pharaoh’s house?
28
Didn’t I choose him out of all the tribes of Israel to be my priest, to go up to my altar, to burn incense, to wear an ephod before me? Didn’t I give to the house of your father all the offerings of the children of Israel made by fire?
29
Why do you kick at my sacrifice and at my offering, which I have commanded in my habitation, and honor your sons above me, to make yourselves fat with the best of all the offerings of Israel my people?’
30
“Therefore the LORD, the God of Israel, says, ‘I said indeed that your house and the house of your father should walk before me forever.’ But now the LORD says, ‘Far be it from me; for those who honor me I will honor, and those who despise me will be cursed.
31
Behold, the days come that I will cut off your arm and the arm of your father’s house, that there will not be an old man in your house.
32
You will see the affliction of my habitation, in all the wealth which I will give Israel. There shall not be an old man in your house forever.
33
The man of yours whom I don’t cut off from my altar will consume your eyes and grieve your heart. All the increase of your house will die in the flower of their age.
34
This will be the sign to you that will come on your two sons, on Hophni and Phinehas: in one day they will both die.
35
I will raise up a faithful priest for myself who will do according to that which is in my heart and in my mind. I will build him a sure house. He will walk before my anointed forever.
36
It will happen that everyone who is left in your house will come and bow down to him for a piece of silver and a loaf of bread, and will say, “Please put me into one of the priests’ offices, that I may eat a morsel of bread.”’”
Explanations by Age Level
Explain Like I'm 5
A long, long time ago, there was nothing at all - no earth, no sky, no animals, no people. It was all dark and empty. But God was there! God is so powerful that He can make anything just by speaking. So God said "Let there be light!" and BOOM! There was light everywhere! God saw that the light was beautiful and good. He called the light "day" and the darkness "night." This was the very first day when God started making our wonderful world!
Explain Like I'm 10
Before anything existed - no planets, stars, or life - God decided to create the universe. The earth started out as a dark, empty place covered with water. But God's Spirit was there, ready to bring order and beauty to everything. When God spoke and said "Let there be light," light immediately appeared because God's words have incredible power. God looked at the light and was pleased with what He had made. He organized time by separating light (day) from darkness (night), creating the first 24-hour period. This shows us that God is organized and purposeful in everything He does.
Explain Like I'm 15
Genesis 1:1-5 establishes fundamental theological truths about God and creation. The Hebrew word "bara" (created) indicates creation from nothing (ex nihilo), demonstrating God's absolute sovereignty and power. The phrase "without form and void" (tohu wa-bohu) describes a state of chaos that God transforms into order. The Spirit of God "hovering" or "brooding" over the waters suggests active, caring involvement in creation. The creation of light before the sun (created on day 4) indicates that God Himself is the ultimate source of light and energy. The establishment of day and night creates the framework of time, showing that God operates within orderly patterns while transcending them. This passage refutes both atheistic materialism and pantheism, establishing that God is both transcendent (separate from creation) and immanent (actively involved in it).