1 Samuel 3

1 The child Samuel ministered to Jehovah before Eli. The word of Jehovah was rare in those days; there was no frequent vision.

Now the boy Samuel was ministering to the Lord before Eli, and the word of the Lord was precious in those days; there was no manifest vision.

2 It happened at that time, when Eli was lying down in his place (now his eyes had begun to grow dim, so that he could not see),

Then it happened that, on a certain day, Eli was lying in his place. And his eyes had dimmed, so that he was unable to see.

3 and the lamp of God hadn't yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in Jehovah's temple, where the ark of God was;

And so, to prevent the lamp of God from going out, Samuel was sleeping in the temple of the Lord, where the ark of God was.

4 that Jehovah called, "Samuel. Samuel." And he said, "Here I am."

And the Lord called Samuel. And responding, he said, “Here I am.”

5 He ran to Eli, and said, "Here I am; for you called me." He said, "I did not call; lie down again." He went and lay down.

And he ran to Eli, and he said, “Here I am. For you called me.” And he said: “I did not call. Return and sleep.” And he went away, and he slept.

6 Jehovah called yet again, "Samuel. Samuel." And he got up and went to Eli, and said, "Here I am; for you called me." He answered, "I did not call, my son; lie down again."

And again, the Lord continued to call to Samuel. And rising up, Samuel went to Eli, and he said: “Here I am. For you called me.” And he responded: “I did not call you, my son. Return and sleep.”

7 Now Samuel did not yet know God, neither was the word of Jehovah yet revealed to him.

Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord, and the word of the Lord had not been revealed to him.

8 Then Jehovah called Samuel again the third time, and he got up and went to Eli, and said, "Here I am, for you called me." Then Eli realized that Jehovah had called the child.

And the Lord continued, and he called to Samuel still a third time. And rising up, he went to Eli.

9 So he said, "Go, lie down, and if he calls you, reply, 'Speak, for your servant is listening.'" Then Samuel went and lay down in his place.

And he said: “Here I am. For you called me.” Then Eli understood that the Lord had called the boy. And he said to Samuel: “Go and sleep. And if he calls to you from now on, you will say, ‘Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.’” Therefore, Samuel went away, and he slept in his place.

10 And Jehovah came and stood, and called as at other times. Then Samuel said, "Speak, for your servant is listening."

And the Lord came, and stood, and he called, just as he had called the other times, “Samuel, Samuel.” And Samuel said, “Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.”

11 Jehovah said to Samuel, "Look, I will do a thing in Israel, at which both the ears of everyone who hears it shall tingle.

And the Lord said to Samuel: “Behold, I am accomplishing a word in Israel. Whoever will hear about it, both his ears will ring.

12 In that day I will perform against Eli all that I have spoken concerning his house, from the beginning even to the end.

In that day, I will raise up against Eli all the things that I have spoken over his house. I will begin, and I will finish.

13 For I have told him that I will judge his house forever, for the iniquity which he knew, because his sons were cursing God, and he did not restrain them.

For I have foretold to him that I will judge his house unto eternity, because of iniquity. For he had known that his sons acted shamefully, and he did not chastise them.

14 Therefore I have sworn to the house of Eli, that the iniquity of Eli's house shall not be removed with sacrifice nor offering forever."

For this reason, I have sworn to the house of Eli that the iniquity of his house will not be expiated, with victims or with gifts, even forever.”

15 And Samuel lay there until the morning, and in the morning he got up and opened the doors of the house of Jehovah. And Samuel was afraid to tell Eli the vision.

Then Samuel slept until morning, and he opened the doors of the house of the Lord. And Samuel was afraid to tell the vision to Eli.

16 Then Eli said to Samuel, "Samuel, my son." And he replied, "Here I am."

Then Eli called Samuel, and he said, “Samuel, my son?” And responding, he said, “I am here.”

17 He said, "What is the thing that he has spoken to you? Please do not hide it from me. May God do thus to you if you hide anything from me of all the words that he spoke to you in your ears."

And he questioned him: “What is the word that the Lord has spoken to you? I beg you that you may not conceal it from me. May God do these things to you, and may he add these other things, if you hide from me one word out of all the things that were told to you.”

18 And Samuel told him everything, and did not hide anything from him. And he said, "It is Jehovah. Let him do what seems good to him."

And so, Samuel revealed to him all the words, and he did not hide them from him. And he responded: “He is the Lord. May he do what is good in his own eyes.”

19 So Samuel continued to grow, and Jehovah was with him and let none of his words fail.

And Samuel grew up, and the Lord was with him, and not one of his words fell to the ground.

20 Thus all Israel from Dan to Beersheba knew that Samuel was established as a prophet of Jehovah.

And all of Israel, from Dan even to Beersheba, knew Samuel to be a faithful prophet of the Lord.

21 And Jehovah appeared again in Shiloh, for Jehovah revealed himself to Samuel.

And the Lord continued to appear in Shiloh. For the Lord had revealed himself to Samuel at Shiloh, according to the word of the Lord. And the word about Samuel went forth to all of Israel.