1 Samuel 2
1 Then prayed Hannah, and said, My heart hath leaped for joy in Yahweh, My horn is exalted in Yahweh, My mouth is opened wide, o’er my foes, Because I rejoice in thy salvation.
Then Hannah prayed, saying, “I rejoice in [what] you, [, have done]. I am strong [MET] because I belong to you. I (laugh at/ridicule) my enemies, because you, Yahweh have rescued me [from being taunted by them].
2 There is none holy like Yahweh, Nay! there, is none, except Thee, Nor, is, there a rock, like our God.
There is no one who is holy like you, Yahweh. There is no other god like you. There is no one like you, our God, who can protect us [as though you were putting us beneath] a huge rock [where we can hide from danger].
3 Do not multiply words, so loftily—loftily, Nor let arrogance proceed from your mouth, —For, a GOD of knowledge, is Yahweh, And, for himself, are great doings made firm.
[You people who oppose God], stop boasting! Yahweh is a God who knows [everything], and he will evaluate/judge everyone’s actions. So don’t speak so arrogantly!
4 The bow of the mighty, is dismayed, —While, the fainting, are girded with strength;
Yahweh, you break the bows/weapons of mighty soldiers, and you give strength to those who stumble [because of being weak].
5 The sated, have, for bread, taken hire, But, the famished, have left off their toil, —So that, the barren, hath given birth unto seven, While, she that hath many sons, languisheth:
Many people who previously had plenty to eat, now have to work for other people [to earn money] to buy food, but many who were always hungry are not hungry any more. The woman who did not have any children before, now has given birth to many/seven children, and the woman who had many children before, now is very lonely [because they have all died].
Yahweh, you cause some people to die, and you restore some people who are almost dead. For some people, [it seems that they will soon] go to where the dead people are, but you cause them to become healthy again. (Sheol h7585)
7 Yahweh, maketh poor, and enricheth, —Layeth low, yea exalteth;
Yahweh, you cause some people to be poor and you cause some people to be rich, you humble some people and you honor some people.
8 Raiseth, from the dust, the poor, From the dunghill, uplifteth the needy, To give them a dwelling with nobles, And, a throne of glory, to make them inherit. For, to Yahweh, belong the pillars of the earth, And he setteth thereon the habitable world.
[Sometimes] you lift poor people up so that they are no longer [despondent, sitting in the dust, ] or sitting on heaps of ashes; you cause them to sit next to princes; you cause them to sit on chairs/thrones where people who are highly honored sit. Yahweh, you are the one who laid the foundations of the earth, and you have set the whole world on those foundations.
9 The feet of his loving ones, he doth guard, But, the lawless, in darkness shall be silent, —For, by strength, shall no man prevail.
You will protect your loyal/faithful people [SYN], but you will cause the wicked to die [EUP] and descend to the dark [place where dead people are]. We do not defeat [our enemies] by our own strength;
10 As for Yahweh, —they shall be shattered who contend with him, Over him, in the heavens will he thunder, Yahweh, will judge the ends of the earth, —That he may give strength to his King, And exalt the horn of his Anointed One.
Yahweh, you will break into pieces those who oppose you. You will cause thunder in the sky to show that you (oppose/are angry with) them. Yahweh, you will judge [people everywhere, even those who live in] the most remote places on the earth. You will give strength to the king whom you will appoint, and give him great power [over his enemies].”
11 Then went Elkanah to Ramah, unto his own house, —but, the boy, remained ministering unto Yahweh, before Eli the priest.
Then Elkanah [and his family] returned to Ramah, but Samuel, the little boy, stayed to help Eli the priest serve Yahweh.
12 Now, the sons of Eli, were abandoned men, —they knew not Yahweh.
Eli’s two [, who were also priests, ] were very wicked. They did not revere (OR, respect/obey) Yahweh.
13 And, the custom of the priests with the people, was—when any man offered a sacrifice, then would come the priests young man, as the flesh was boiling, with a three-pronged fork in his hand;
While the people were boiling the meat from their sacrifices [in the huge pot at the temple], one of Eli’s sons, [would send his servant to come with a large three-pronged fork in his hand].
14 and would strike it into the boiler, or into the trough, or into the kettle, or into the pot, all that the fork would bring up, the priest took for himself. Thus and thus, used they to do unto all Israel, who came thither, in Shiloh.
[He] would stick the fork into [the meat in] the pot, and whatever meat fastened onto the fork, he would take [and give it] to the priest who sent him. Eli’s sons did this to all the Israeli people who came to Shiloh [to offer sacrifices].
15 Also, before any could make perfume with the fat, the priests young man would come in and say to the person who was sacrificing, Come! give flesh for the priest’s roastings, —for he will not take of thee boiled flesh—only raw.
Furthermore, before the fat [on the meat] was [cut off and] and burned [as a sacrifice to Yahweh], the servant of the priest would [sometimes] come to the man who was making the sacrifice and say to him, “Give me some meat [now to take] to the priest for him to roast! He wants raw meat; he does not want boiled meat.”
16 And, if the man said to him, Let them at least, make incense, at once with the fat, then take thou as much as thy soul craveth, Then said he to him, But, at once, shalt thou give it; or else, I will take it by force.
If the man said to the servant, “Let the priests [cut off and] burn the fat first; then you can take what you want,” the servant would reply, “No, give it to me now; if you do not give it to me, I will take it forcefully!”
17 And so it was, that, the sin of the young men, was exceeding great, before Yahweh, —for men scorned the offerings of Yahweh.
Yahweh considered that the young [sons of Eli] were committing a very great sin, because they were treating very disrespectfully the offerings that were being given to Yahweh.
18 But, as for Samuel, he was ministering before Yahweh, —a boy girded with an ephod of linen.
As for Samuel, who was still a very young boy, he continued to do work for Yahweh, wearing a little sacred linen vest [like the Supreme Priest wore].
19 Also, a little robe, used his mother to make for him, and bring it up to him, from year to year, —when she came up with her husband, to offer the sacrifice of the year.
Each year his mother made a [new] little robe for him and took it to him when she went up [to Shiloh] with her husband to offer a sacrifice.
20 And Eli used to bless Elkanah and his wife, and to say—Yahweh give thee seed of this woman, instead of the loan that hath been lent unto Yahweh. So they went their way to his own place.
Then Eli would [ask God to] bless Elkanah and his wife, and he would say to Elkanah, “I hope/desire that Yahweh will enable your wife to give birth to other children, to take the place of the one whom she dedicated to Yahweh.” Then Elkanah and his family would return home.
21 And Yahweh visited Hannah, and she conceived, and bare three sons, and two daughters. Thus did the boy Samuel grow up with Yahweh.
And Yahweh was very kind to Hannah, and enabled her to give birth to three [other] sons and two daughters. Their son Samuel grew up while he was doing work for Yahweh [in the Sacred Tent].
22 Now, Eli, was very old, —but he used to hear all that his sons did unto all Israel, and how they even lay with the women who did service, at the opening of the tent of meeting.
Eli became very old. He often heard about all the [evil] things that his sons were doing to the Israeli people. He heard that they [sometimes] (slept with/had sex with) the women who worked at the entrance to the tent where [God] spoke to [his people].
23 So he said to them, Wherefore should ye do such things as these? for I keep hearing of your wicked doings, from all these people.
He said to them, “(It is terrible that you do such things!/Why do you do such things?) [RHQ] Many people keep telling me about the evil things that you do.
24 Nay, my sons! for it is no good report that I do hear: leading into transgression the people of Yahweh.
My sons, stop it! The reports [about you] that the people who belong to Yahweh tell others are terrible [EUP]!
25 If one man sin against another, God will interpose, but, if, against Yahweh, a man sin, who will intercede, for him? But they hearkened not unto the voice of their father, for Yahweh was pleased to put them to death.
If one person sins against another person, God can (intercede/act as a referee) between them. But if someone sins against Yahweh, no one can [RHQ] (intercede/act as a referee) between them!” But Eli’s sons would not listen to what their father said. This was because Yahweh had decided [that someone should] them.
26 But, the boy Samuel, went on growing in stature, and in favour, —both with Yahweh, and also with men.
The boy Samuel continued to grow up, and the things that he did pleased Yahweh and the people.
27 And there came a man of God, unto Eli, —and said unto him—Thus, saith Yahweh, I, did indeed reveal myself, unto the house of thy father, when they were in Egypt, as servants unto the house of Pharaoh;
One day, a prophet came to Eli and told him, “This is what Yahweh has told me: ‘When your ancestors were slaves of the king of Egypt, I appeared to Aaron.
28 choosing him out of all the tribes of Israel unto myself, to minister as priest, to offer upon mine altar, to perfume with incense to bear an ephod before me, —Therefore gave I unto the house of thy father all the altar-flames of the sons of Israel.
From all the tribes of the Israeli people, I chose him [and his male descendants] to be priests for me. I appointed them to go up to my altar, to burn incense, to wear a sacred apron [as they worked] for me. And I declared that they could take [and eat some of the meat] that the Israeli people burned [on the altar].
29 Wherefore have ye been kicking at my sacrifices, and my presents, which I commanded, to serve for a home, —and shouldest have honoured thy sons more than me: fattening yourselves, with the first of every present of Israel, before me?
So why do you show disrespect for the sacrifices and offerings that I commanded [the people to bring] to me [RHQ]? You are honoring your sons more than you are honoring me, by allowing them to get fat from eating the best parts of all the sacrifices that the Israeli people bring to me!’
30 Hence, the oracle of Yahweh God of Israel, I, said, that, thy house, and the house of thy father, should go to and fro in my presence, unto times age-abiding: But, now, (is the oracle of Yahweh)—Be it far from me! For, them who honour me, will I honour, but, they who despise me, shall be lightly esteemed.
“Therefore, this is what Yahweh, the God whom we Israelis [worship], declares: ‘I definitely promised that Aaron and his descendants would continue to serve [IDM] me forever.’ But now I declare this: ‘It will not continue like that! I will honor those who honor me, but I will despise those who despise me.
31 Lo! days are coming, when I will hew off thine arm, and the arm of the house of thy father, —that there shall be no elder in thy house;
Listen carefully! There will soon be a time when I will cause all the strong [young men] in your family to die. The result will be that no men in your family will [live long enough to] become old men.
32 But thou shalt descry distress at home, in all that shall gladden Israel, —and there shall not be an elder in thine own house, all the days.
You will be distressed and envious as you see the blessings that I will give to [the other people in] Israel. And [I repeat that] no men in your family will ever live long enough to become old men.
33 But, any man of thine whom I may not cut off from mine altar, it shall be—to consume his eyes, and grieve his soul; Howbeit, all the multitude of thy house, shall die, by the sword of men.
There is one of your descendants whom I will spare, and not prevent him from serving me as a priest. But he will become blind, and then he will always be sad and grieving. But all your other descendants will die violently.
34 And, this, for thee is the sign, which shall come upon thy two sons, upon Hophni and Phinehas, —In one day, shall they, both of them, die;
And your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, will both die on the same day. And that will prove to you [that all that I have said will come true/happen].
35 And I will raise me up a faithful priest, According to that which is in my heart and in my soul, will he do; Therefore will I build for him an assured house, and he shall go to and fro in presence of mine Anointed, all the days.
‘have chosen another man to be my priest. He is one who will serve me faithfully: He will do everything I want [DOU] him to do. And I will enable him to have many descendants [IDM] who will be priests and will always serve me by helping the king whom I will choose.
36 And it shall be, that, any that is left in thy house, shall come bowing down to him for a small coin of silver, and for a cake of bread, and shall say: Appoint me, I pray thee, to one of the priestly offices, that I may eat a morsel of bread.
All of your descendants who remain alive will have to go to that priest and ask him to give them money and food, and they will each have to say, “Please allow me to help the other priests, in order that I may [earn some money to] buy some food.”’”
