1 Samuel 2:1-36
Hannah's Prayer
1 Then Hannah prayed and said:
“My heart rejoices in the Lord;
in the Lord my horn is lifted high.
My mouth boasts over my enemies,
for I delight in your deliverance.
2 “There is no one holy like the Lord;
there is no one besides you;
there is no Rock like our God.
3 “Do not keep talking so proudly
or let your mouth speak such arrogance,
for the Lord is a God who knows,
and by him deeds are weighed.
4 “The bows of the warriors are broken,
but those who stumbled are armed with strength.
5 Those who were full hire themselves out for food,
but those who were hungry are hungry no more.
She who was barren has borne seven children,
but she who has had many sons pines away.
6 “The Lord brings death and makes alive;
he brings down to the grave and raises up.
7 The Lord sends poverty and wealth;
he humbles and he exalts.
8 He raises the poor from the dust
and lifts the needy from the ash heap;
he seats them with princes
and has them inherit a throne of honor.
“For the foundations of the earth are the Lord’s;
on them he has set the world.
9 He will guard the feet of his faithful servants,
but the wicked will be silenced in the place of darkness.
“It is not by strength that one prevails;
10 those who oppose the Lord will be broken.
The Most High will thunder from heaven;
the Lord will judge the ends of the earth.
“He will give strength to his king
and exalt the horn of his anointed.”
11 Then Elkanah went home to Ramah, but the boy ministered before the Lord under Eli the priest.
12 Eli’s sons were scoundrels; they had no regard for the Lord. 13 Now it was the practice of the priests that, whenever any of the people offered a sacrifice, the priest’s servant would come with a three-pronged fork in his hand while the meat was being boiled 14 and would plunge the fork into the pan or kettle or caldron or pot. Whatever the fork brought up the priest would take for himself. This is how they treated all the Israelites who came to Shiloh. 15 But even before the fat was burned, the priest’s servant would come and say to the person who was sacrificing, “Give the priest some meat to roast; he won’t accept boiled meat from you, but only raw.”
16 If the person said to him, “Let the fat be burned first, and then take whatever you want,” the servant would answer, “No, hand it over now; if you don’t, I’ll take it by force.”
17 This sin of the young men was very great in the Lord’s sight, for they were treating the Lord’s offering with contempt.
18 But Samuel was ministering before the Lord—a boy wearing a linen ephod. 19 Each year his mother made him a little robe and took it to him when she went up with her husband to offer the annual sacrifice. 20 Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife, saying, “May the Lord give you children by this woman to take the place of the one she prayed for and gave to the Lord.” Then they would go home. 21 And the Lord was gracious to Hannah; she gave birth to three sons and two daughters. Meanwhile, the boy Samuel grew up in the presence of the Lord.
22 Now Eli, who was very old, heard about everything his sons were doing to all Israel and how they slept with the women who served at the entrance to the tent of meeting. 23 So he said to them, “Why do you do such things? I hear from all the people about these wicked deeds of yours. 24 No, my sons; the report I hear spreading among the Lord’s people is not good. 25 If one person sins against another, God may mediate for the offender; but if anyone sins against the Lord, who will intercede for them?” His sons, however, did not listen to their father’s rebuke, for it was the Lord’s will to put them to death.
26 And the boy Samuel continued to grow in stature and in favor with the Lord and with people.
27 Now a man of God came to Eli and said to him, “This is what the Lord says: ‘Did I not clearly reveal myself to your ancestor’s family when they were in Egypt under Pharaoh? 28 I chose your ancestor out of all the tribes of Israel to be my priest, to go up to my altar, to burn incense, and to wear an ephod in my presence. I also gave your ancestor’s family all the food offerings presented by the Israelites. 29 Why do you scorn my sacrifice and offering that I prescribed for my dwelling? Why do you honor your sons more than me by fattening yourselves on the choice parts of every offering made by my people Israel?’
30 “Therefore the Lord, the God of Israel, declares: ‘I promised that members of your family would minister before me forever.’ But now the Lord declares: ‘Far be it from me! Those who honor me I will honor, but those who despise me will be disdained. 31 The time is coming when I will cut short your strength and the strength of your priestly house, so that no one in it will reach old age, 32 and you will see distress in my dwelling. Although good will be done to Israel, no one in your family line will ever reach old age. 33 Every one of you that I do not cut off from serving at my altar I will spare only to destroy your sight and sap your strength, and all your descendants will die in the prime of life.
34 “‘And what happens to your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, will be a sign to you—they will both die on the same day. 35 I will raise up for myself a faithful priest, who will do according to what is in my heart and mind. I will firmly establish his priestly house, and they will minister before my anointed one always. 36 Then everyone left in your family line will come and bow down before him for a piece of silver and a loaf of bread and plead, “Appoint me to some priestly office so I can have food to eat.”’”
Hannah prayed to the LORD: “My heart is happy in the LORD: I feel very strong in my God...I laugh at my enemies...I am very happy in my victory...There is no holy God like the LORD...There is no God but You...There is no Rock like our God...Don’t continue bragging...Don’t speak proud words, because the LORD God knows everything...He leads and judges people...The bows of strong soldiers break, and weak people become strong...People who had plenty of food in the past must now work to get food...But those who were hungry in the past now grow fat on food...The woman who was not able to have children now has seven children...But the woman who had many children is sad because her children are gone...The LORD causes people to die, and He causes them to live...He sends people down to the grave, and He can raise them up to live again...The LORD makes some poor, and He makes others rich...He humbles some people, and He honors others...He raises the poor from the dust, and He takes away their sadness...He makes them important and seats them with princes and at the places for honored guests...The LORD made the whole world, and the whole world belongs to Him...He protects His holy people...He keeps them from stumbling...But evil people will be destroyed...They will fall in the darkness...Their power won’t help them win...The LORD destroys His enemies...God Most High will thunder in heaven against people...The LORD will judge even the lands that are far away...He will give power to His king...He will make His chosen king strong.”...
Eli’s sons were evil men who did not care about the LORD...They did not care about how priests were supposed to treat people...Whenever someone brings a sacrifice, priests are supposed to put the meat in a pot of boiling water...Then their servant is supposed to get the three-pronged fork and use it to get some meat out of the pot or kettle...The priest is supposed to take whatever his helper removes from the pot with the special fork...This is what the priests should have done for the Israelites who came to offer sacrifices at Shiloh...But that is not what the sons of Eli did...Even before the fat was burned on the altar, their servant would go to the people offering sacrifices and say, “Give the priest some meat to roast...The priest won’t accept boiled meat from you.”...
Eli was very old...He heard about the bad things his sons were doing to the Israelites at Shiloh and how his sons were having sexual relations with the women who served at the door of the Meeting Tent...Eli said to his sons, “The people here told me about the evil things you have done...Why are you doing such things?...Sons, stop that!...The LORD’s people are saying bad things about you...If you sin against other people, God might protect you...But who can help you if you sin against the LORD?”...Eli’s sons refused to listen to him, so the LORD decided to kill them...The boy Samuel kept growing. He was pleasing to the LORD and to the people...