Kings I 2
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 your salvation.
Hannah prayed and said, “My heart exults in Yahweh. My horn is exalted in Yahweh. My mouth boasts over my enemies, because I rejoice in your salvation.
2 For there is none holy as the Lord, and there is none righteous as our God; there is none holy besides you.
There is no one holy like Yahweh, for there is none besides you; there is no rock like our God.
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.
Boast no more so very proudly; let no arrogance come out of your mouth. For Yahweh is a God of knowledge; by him actions are weighed.
4 The bow of the mighty has waxed feeble, and the weak have girded themselves with strength.
The bow of the mighty men are broken, but those who stumble put on strength like a belt.
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.
Those who were full have hired themselves out for bread; those who were hungry have stopped being hungry. Even the barren one gives birth to seven, but the woman who has many children languishes.
Yahweh kills and brings to life. He brings down to Sheol and raises up. (Sheol h7585)
7 The Lord makes poor, and makes rich; he brings low, and lifts up.
Yahweh makes some people poor and some rich. He humbles, but he also 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:
He raises up the poor out of the dust. He lifts the needy from the ash heap to make them sit with princes and inherit the seat of honor. For the pillars of the earth are Yahweh's and he has set the world upon them.
9 granting his petition to him that prays; and he blesses the years of the righteous, for by strength can’t man prevail.
He will guard the feet of his faithful people, but the wicked will be put to silence in darkness, for no one will prevail by strength.
10 The adversaries of the LORD shall be broken to pieces; out of heaven shall he thunder upon them: the LORD shall judge the ends of the earth; and he shall give strength unto his king, and exalt the horn of his anointed.
Those who oppose Yahweh will be broken to pieces; he will thunder against them from heaven. Yahweh will judge the ends of the earth; he will give strength to his king and exalt the horn of his anointed.”
11 and departed to Armathaim: and the child ministered in the presence of the Lord before Heli the priest.
Then Elkanah went to Ramah, to his house. The child served Yahweh in the presence of Eli the priest.
12 And the sons of Heli the priest [were] evil sons, not knowing the Lord.
Now the sons of Eli were worthless men. They did not know Yahweh.
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.
The custom of the priests with the people was that when any man offered a sacrifice, the priest's servant would come with a three-pronged fork in his hand, while the meat was boiling.
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.
He would stick it into the pan, or kettle, or cauldron, or pot. All that the fork brought up the priest would take for himself. They did this in Shiloh with all the Israelites that came there.
15 And before the fat was burnt for a sweet savor, 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 you sodden flesh out of the caldron.
Worse, before they burned the fat, the priest's servant came, and said to the man who was sacrificing, “Give meat to roast for the priest; for he will not accept boiled meat from you, but only raw.”
16 And [if] the man that sacrificed said, First let the fat be burned, as it is fit, and take for yourself of all things which your soul desires: then he would say, Nay, for you shall give it me now; and if not I will take it by force.
If the man said to him, “They must burn the fat first, and then take as much as you want.” Then he would say, “No, you will give it me now; 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 nothing the offering of the Lord.
The sin of these young men was very great before Yahweh, for they despised Yahweh's offering.
18 And Samuel ministered before the Lord, a child girded with a linen ephod.
But Samuel served Yahweh as a child clothed 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.
His mother would make him a little robe and bring it to him from year to year, when she came up with her husband to offer the yearly sacrifice.
20 And Heli blessed Helcana and his wife, saying The Lord recompense to you seed of this woman, in return for the loan which you have lent to the Lord: and the man returned to his place.
Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife and say, “May Yahweh give you more children by this woman because of the request she made of Yahweh.” Then they would return to their own home.
21 And the Lord visited Anna, and she bore yet three sons, and two daughters. And the child Samuel grew before the Lord.
Yahweh again helped Hannah, and again she became pregnant. She bore three sons and two daughters. Meanwhile, the child Samuel grew before Yahweh.
22 And Heli [was] very old, and he heard what his sons did to the children of Israel.
Now Eli was very old; he heard all that 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 And he said to them, Why do you according to this thing, which I hear from the mouth of all the people of the Lord?
He said to them, “Why do you such things? For I hear of your evil actions from all these people.”
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.
No, my sons; for it is not a good report that I hear. You make Yahweh's people disobey.
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 entreat for him? But they listened not to the voice of their father, because the Lord would by all means destroy them.
“If one man sins against another, God will judge him; but if a man sins against Yahweh, who will speak for him?” But they would not listen to the voice of their father, because Yahweh intended to kill them.
26 And the child Samuel advanced, and was in favor with God and with men.
The child Samuel grew up, and increased in favor with Yahweh and also 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 your father, when they were servants in Egypt to the house of Pharao.
Now a man of God came to Eli and said to him, “Yahweh says, 'Did I not reveal myself to the house of your ancestor, when they were in Egypt in bondage to Pharaoh's house?
28 And I chose the house of your 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 your father all the offerings by fire of the children of Israel for food.
I chose him out of all the tribes of Israel to be my priest, to go up to my altar, and to burn incense, to wear an ephod before me. I gave to the house of your ancestor all the offerings of the people of Israel made with fire.
29 And therefore have you looked upon my incense-offering and my meat-offering with a shameless eye, and have honored your sons above me, so that they should bless themselves with the first fruits of every sacrifice of Israel before me?
Why, then, do you scorn my sacrifices and offerings that I required in the place where I live? Why do you honor your sons above me by making yourselves fat with the best of every offering of my people Israel?'
30 Therefore thus says the Lord God of Israel, I said, Your house and the house of your father shall pass before me for ever: but now the Lord says, That be far from me; for I will only honor them that honor me, and he that sets me at nothing shall be despised.
For Yahweh, the God of Israel, says, 'I promised that your house, and the house of your ancestor, should walk before me forever.' But now Yahweh says, 'Far be it from me to do this, for I will honor those who honor me, but those who despise me will be lightly esteemed.
31 Behold, the days come when I will destroy your seed and the seed of your father's house.
See, the days are coming when I will cut off your strength and the strength of your father's house, so that there will no longer be any old man in your house.
32 And you shall not have an old man in my house for ever.
You will see distress in the place where I live. Although good will be given to Israel, there will no longer be any old man in your house.
33 And [if] I do not destroy a man of your from my altar, [it shall be] that his eyes may fail and his soul may perish; and every one that remains in your house shall fall by the sword of men.
Any one of you that I do not cut off from my altar, I will cause your eyes to fail, and I will cause grief for your life. All the men born in your family will die.
34 And this which shall come upon your two sons Ophni and Phinees shall be a sign to you; in one day they shall both die.
This will be the sign for you that will come on your two sons, on Hophni and Phinehas: They will both die on the same day.
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.
I will raise up for myself a faithful priest who will do what is in my heart and in my soul. I will build him a sure house; and he will walk before my anointed king forever.
36 And it shall come to pass that he that survives in your house, shall come to do obeisance before him for a little piece of silver, saying, Put me into one of your priest's offices to eat bread.
Everyone who is left in your house will come and bow down to him, asking for a piece of silver and a loaf of bread, and will say, “Please assign me to one of the priests' positions so I can eat a piece of bread.”'”
