1 Samuel 2

¹ And HannahAfter she had obtained a son by prayer she gave thanks.prayed, and said, My heart rejoiceth in the LORD, mineI have recovered strength and glory by the benefit of the Lord.horn is exalted in the LORD: my mouth isI can answer them that criticize my barrenness.enlarged over mine enemies; because I rejoice in thy salvation.

² There is none holy as the Lord: yea, there is none besides thee, & there is no god like our God.

³ TalkIn that you condemn my barrenness, you show your pride against God.no more so exceeding proudly; let [not] arrogancy come out of your mouth: for the LORD [is] a God of knowledge, and by him actions are weighed.

⁴ The bow and the mightie men are broken, and the weake haue girded themselues with strength.

⁵ [They that were] full have hired out themselves forThey sell their labours for necessary food.bread; and [they that were] hungry ceased: so that the barren hath born seven; and she that hath many children is waxed feeble.

⁶ The Lord killeth and maketh aliue: bringeth downe to the graue and raiseth vp.

⁷ The Lord maketh poore and maketh rich: bringeth lowe, and exalteth.

⁸ He raiseth up the poor out of the dust, [and] lifteth up the beggar from the dunghill, to set [them] amongHe prefers to honour, and does according to his own will, though man's judgment is contrary.princes, and to make them inherit the throne of glory: for the pillars of the earth [are] theTherefore he may dispose all things according to his will.LORD'S, and he hath set the world upon them.

⁹ Hee will keepe the feete of his Saintes, and the wicked shall keepe silence in darkenes: for in his owne might shall no man be strong.

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 hisShe grounded her prayer on Jesus Christ who was to come.king, and exalt the horn of his anointed.

¹¹ And Elkanah went to Ramah to his house. And the child did minister unto theIn all that Eli commanded him.LORD before Eli the priest.

¹² Now the sons of Eli [were] sons of Belial; theyThat is, they neglected his ordinance.knew not the LORD.

¹³ For the Priestes custome towarde the people was this: when any man offered sacrifice, the Priestes boy came, while the flesh was seething, and a fleshhooke with three teeth, in his hand,

¹⁴ And he struck [it] into the pan, or kettle, or caldron, or pot;Transgressing the order appointed in the Law, (Lev_7:31), for their bellies sake.all that the fleshhook brought up the priest took for himself. So they did in Shiloh unto all the Israelites that came thither.

¹⁵ Also before they burnt theWhich was commanded first to have been offered to God.fat, the priest's servant came, and said to the man that sacrificed, Give flesh to roast for the priest; for he will not have sodden flesh of thee, but raw.

¹⁶ And [if] any man said unto him, Let them not fail to burn the fat presently, and [then] take [as much] as thy soulNot passing for their own profit, so that God might be served rightly.desireth; then he would answer him, [Nay]; but thou shalt give [it me] now: and if not, I will take [it] by force.

¹⁷ Wherefore the sin of the young men was very great before the LORD: for menSeeing the horrible abuse of it.abhorred the offering of the LORD.

¹⁸ Now Samuel being a yong childe ministred before the Lord, girded with a linen Ephod.

¹⁹ And his mother made him a litle coat, and brought it to him from yeere to yeere, when she came vp with her husband, to offer the yerely sacrifice.

²⁰ And Eli blessed Elkanah and his wife, and said, The Lord giue thee seede of this woman, for the petition that she asked of the Lord: and they departed vnto their place.

²¹ And the Lorde visited Hannah, so that she conceiued, & bare three sonnes, & two daughters; the childe Samuel grewe before the Lord.

²² Now Eli was very old, and heard all that his sons did unto all Israel; and how they lay with the women thatWhich was (as the Hebrews write) after their travail, when they came to be purified, read (Exo_38:8; Lev_12:6).assembled [at] the door of the tabernacle of the congregation.

²³ And hee saide vnto them, Why doe ye such things? For of all this people I heare euill reportes of you.

²⁴ Nay, my sons; for [it is] no good report that I hear: ye make the LORD'S people toBecause they contemn their duty to God, (1Sa_2:17).transgress.

²⁵ If one man sin against another, the judge shall judge him: but if a man sin against the LORD, who shall intreat for him? Notwithstanding they hearkened not unto the voice of their father, because the LORDSo that to obey good admonition is God's mercy, and to disobey them is his just judgment for sin.would slay them.

²⁶ (Nowe the childe Samuel profited and grewe, and was in fauour both with the Lord and also with men)

²⁷ And there came a man of God unto Eli, and said unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Did I plainly appear unto the house of thyThat is, Aaron.father, when they were in Egypt in Pharaoh's house?

²⁸ And I chose him out of all the tribes of Israel to be my Priest, to offer vpon mine altar, and to burne incense, and to weare an Ephod before me, and I gaue vnto the house of thy father all the offrings made by fire of the children of Israel.

²⁹ WhereforeWhy have you contemned my sacrifices, and as it were trod them under foot?kick ye at my sacrifice and at mine offering, which I have commanded [in my] habitation; and honourest thy sons above me, to make yourselves fat with the chiefest of all the offerings of Israel my people?

³⁰ Wherefore the LORD God of Israel saith, I said indeed [that] thy house, and the house of thy father, should walk before me for ever: but now the LORD saith,God's promises are only effective to those he gives faith to fear and obey him.Be it far from me; for them that honour me I will honour, and they that despise me shall be lightly esteemed.

³¹ Behold, the days come, that I will cut off thineThy power and authority.arm, and the arm of thy father's house, that there shall not be an old man in thine house.

³² And thouYour posterity will see the glory of the chief priest given to another, whom they will envy, (1Ki_2:27).shalt see an enemy [in my] habitation, in all [the wealth] which [God] shall give Israel: and there shall not be an old man in thine house for ever.

³³ Neuerthelesse, I will not destroy euery one of thine fro mine altar, to make thine eyes to faile, and to make thine heart sorowfull: and all ye multitude of thine house shall die when they be men.

³⁴ And this shalbe a signe vnto thee, that shal come vpon thy two sonnes Hophni and Phinehas: in one day they shall die both.

³⁵ And I will raise me up aMeaning Zadok, who succeeded Abiathar, and was the figure of Christ.faithful priest, [that] shall do according to [that] which [is] in mine heart and in my mind: and I will build him a sure house; and he shall walk before mine anointed for ever.

³⁶ And it shall come to pass, [that] every one that is left in thine house shall come [and]That is, will be inferior to him.crouch to him for a piece of silver and a morsel of bread, and shall say, Put me, I pray thee, into one of the priests' offices, that I may eat a piece of bread.