1 Samuel 2
1 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].
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 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].
There is no one holy like Yahweh, for there is none besides you; there is no rock like our God.
3 [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!
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 Yahweh, you break the bows/weapons of mighty soldiers, and you give strength to those who stumble [because of being weak].
The bow of the mighty men are broken, but those who stumble put on strength like a belt.
5 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].
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.
6 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)
Yahweh kills and brings to life. He brings down to Sheol and raises up. (Sheol h7585)
7 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.
Yahweh makes some people poor and some rich. He humbles, but he also lifts up.
8 [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.
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 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;
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 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].”
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 Then Elkanah [and his family] returned to Ramah, but Samuel, the little boy, stayed to help Eli the priest serve Yahweh.
Then Elkanah went to Ramah, to his house. The child served Yahweh in the presence of Eli the priest.
12 Eli’s two [, who were also priests, ] were very wicked. They did not revere (OR, respect/obey) Yahweh.
Now the sons of Eli were worthless men. They did not know Yahweh.
13 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].
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 [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].
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 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.”
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 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!”
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 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.
The sin of these young men was very great before Yahweh, for they despised Yahweh's offering.
18 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].
But Samuel served Yahweh as a child clothed with a linen ephod.
19 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.
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 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.
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 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].
Yahweh again helped Hannah, and again she became pregnant. She bore three sons and two daughters. Meanwhile, the child Samuel grew before Yahweh.
22 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].
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 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.
He said to them, “Why do you such things? For I hear of your evil actions from all these people.”
24 My sons, stop it! The reports [about you] that the people who belong to Yahweh tell others are terrible [EUP]!
No, my sons; for it is not a good report that I hear. You make Yahweh's people disobey.
25 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.
“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 The boy Samuel continued to grow up, and the things that he did pleased Yahweh and the people.
The child Samuel grew up, and increased in favor with Yahweh and also with men.
27 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.
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 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].
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 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!’
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, 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.
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 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.
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 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.
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 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.
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 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].
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 ‘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.
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 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.”’”
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.”'”
