1 Samuel 3

1 And the youth Samuel is serving YHWH before Eli, and the word of YHWH has been precious in those days—there is no vision breaking forth.

The child Samuel served Yahweh under Eli. Yahweh's word was rare in those days; there was no frequent prophetic vision.

2 And it comes to pass, at that time, that Eli is lying down in his place, and his eyes have begun [to be] faded—he is not able to see.

At that time, when Eli, whose eyesight had begun to grow dim so that he could not see well, was lying down in his own bed.

3 And the lamp of God is not yet extinguished, and Samuel is lying down in the temple of YHWH, where the Ark of God [is],

The lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down to sleep in the temple of Yahweh, where the ark of God was.

4 and YHWH calls to Samuel, and he says, “Here I [am].”

Yahweh called to Samuel, who said, “Here I am.”

5 And he runs to Eli and says, “Here I [am], for you have called for me”; and he says, “I did not call; turn back, lie down”; and he goes and lies down.

Samuel ran to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” Eli said, “I did not call you; lie down again.” So Samuel went and lay down.

6 And YHWH adds to call Samuel again, and Samuel rises and goes to Eli, and says, “Here I [am], for you have called for me”; and he says, “I have not called, my son, turn back, lie down.”

Yahweh called again, “Samuel.” Again Samuel rose and went to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” Eli answered, “I did not call you, my son; lie down again.”

7 And Samuel has not yet known YHWH, and the word of YHWH is not yet revealed to him.

Now Samuel did not yet have any experience of Yahweh, nor had any message from Yahweh ever been revealed to him.

8 And YHWH adds to call Samuel the third time, and he rises and goes to Eli, and says, “Here I [am], for you have called for me”; and Eli understands that YHWH is calling to the youth.

Yahweh called Samuel again the third time. Again Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” Then Eli realized that Yahweh had called the boy.

9 And Eli says to Samuel, “Go, lie down, and it has been, if He calls to you, that you have said, Speak, YHWH, for Your servant is hearing”; and Samuel goes and lies down in his place.

Then Eli said to Samuel, “Go and lie down again; if he calls you again, you must say, 'Speak, Yahweh, for your servant is listening.'” So Samuel went and lay down in his own place once more.

10 And YHWH comes, and stations Himself, and calls as time by time, “Samuel, Samuel”; and Samuel says, “Speak, for Your servant is hearing.”

Yahweh came and stood; he called as at the other times, “Samuel, Samuel.” Then Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant is listening.”

11 And YHWH says to Samuel, “Behold, I am doing a thing in Israel, at which the two ears of everyone hearing it tingle.

Yahweh said to Samuel, “See, I am about to do something in Israel at which the ears of everyone who hears it will tingle.

12 In that day I establish to Eli all that I have spoken to his house, beginning and completing;

On that day I will carry out against Eli everything I have said about his house, from beginning to end.

13 and I have declared to him that I am judging his house for all time, for the iniquity which he has known, for his sons are making themselves vile, and he has not restrained them,

I have told him that I am about to judge his house once for all for the sin that he knew about, because his sons brought a curse upon themselves and he did not stop them.

14 and therefore I have sworn to the house of Eli: the iniquity of the house of Eli is not atoned for, by sacrifice, and by offering—for all time.”

Because of this I have sworn to the house of Eli that the sins of his house will never be atoned for by sacrifice or offering.”

15 And Samuel lies until the morning, and opens the doors of the house of YHWH, and Samuel is afraid of declaring the vision to Eli.

Samuel lay down until morning; then he opened the doors of the house of Yahweh. But Samuel was afraid to tell Eli about the vision.

16 And Eli calls Samuel and says, “Samuel, my son”; and he says, “Here I [am].”

Then Eli called Samuel and said, “Samuel, my son.” Samuel said, “Here I am.”

17 And he says, “What [is] the word which He has spoken to you? Please do not hide it from me; so God does to you, and so does He add, if you hide from me a word of all the words that He has spoken to you.”

He said, “What was the word he spoke to you? Please do not hide it from me. May God do so to you, and even more, if you hide anything from me of all the words that he spoke to you.”

18 And Samuel declares to him the whole of the words, and has not hid from him; and he says, “It [is] YHWH; that which is good in His eyes He does.”

Samuel told him everything; he hid nothing from him. Eli said, “It is Yahweh. Let him do what seems good to him.”

19 And Samuel grows up, and YHWH has been with him, and has not let any of his words fall to the earth;

Samuel grew up, and Yahweh was with him, and he let none of his prophetic words fall to the ground.

20 and all Israel knows, from Dan even to Beer-Sheba, that Samuel is established for a prophet to YHWH.

All Israel from Dan to Beersheba knew that Samuel was appointed to be a prophet of Yahweh.

21 And YHWH adds to appear in Shiloh, for YHWH has been revealed to Samuel, in Shiloh, by the word of YHWH.

Yahweh appeared again in Shiloh, for he revealed himself to Samuel in Shiloh by his word.