Samuel (Prophet-Priest-Judge)

1Now there was a man named Elkanah who was from Ramathaim-zophim in the hill country of Ephraim. He was the son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the son of Zuph, an Ephraimite. 2He had two wives, one named Hannah and the other Peninnah. And Peninnah had children, but Hannah had none. 3Year after year Elkanah would go up from his city to worship and sacrifice to the LORD of Hosts at Shiloh, where Eli’s two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, were priests to the LORD. 4And whenever the day came for Elkanah to present his sacrifice, he would give portions to his wife Peninnah and to all her sons and daughters. 5But to Hannah he would give a double portion, for he loved her even though the LORD had closed her womb. 6Because the LORD had closed Hannah's womb, her rival would provoke her and taunt her viciously. 7And this went on year after year. Whenever Hannah went up to the house of the LORD, her rival taunted her until she wept and would not eat. 8“Hannah, why are you crying?” her husband Elkanah asked. “Why won’t you eat? Why is your heart so grieved? Am I not better to you than ten sons?” 9So after they had finished eating and drinking in Shiloh, Hannah stood up. Now Eli the priest was sitting on a chair by the doorpost of the temple of the LORD. 10In her bitter distress, Hannah prayed to the LORD and wept with many tears. 11And she made a vow, pleading, "O LORD of Hosts, if only You will look upon the affliction of Your maidservant and remember me, not forgetting Your maidservant but giving her a son, then I will dedicate him to the LORD all the days of his life, and no razor shall ever come over his head." 12As Hannah kept on praying before the LORD, Eli watched her mouth. 13Hannah was praying in her heart, and though her lips were moving, her voice could not be heard. So Eli thought she was drunk 14and said to her, "How long will you be drunk? Put away your wine!" 15"No, my lord," Hannah replied. "I am a woman oppressed in spirit. I have not had any wine or strong drink, but I have poured out my soul before the LORD. 16Do not take your servant for a wicked woman; for all this time I have been praying out of the depth of my anguish and grief." 17"Go in peace," Eli replied, "and may the God of Israel grant the petition you have asked of Him." 18"May your maidservant find favor with you," said Hannah. Then she went on her way, and she began eating again, and her face was no longer downcast. 19The next morning Elkanah and Hannah got up early to bow in worship before the LORD, and then returned home to Ramah. And Elkanah had relations with his wife Hannah, and the LORD remembered her. 20So in the course of time, Hannah conceived and gave birth to a son. She named him Samuel, saying, "Because I have asked for him from the LORD." 21Then Elkanah and all his house went up to make the annual sacrifice to the LORD and to fulfill his vow, 22but Hannah did not go. "After the boy is weaned," she said to her husband, "I will take him to appear before the LORD and to stay there permanently." 23"Do what you think is best," her husband Elkanah replied, "and stay here until you have weaned him. Only may the LORD confirm His word." So Hannah stayed and nursed her son until she had weaned him. 24Once she had weaned him, Hannah took the boy with her, along with a three-year-old bull, an ephah of flour, and a skin of wine. Though the boy was still young, she brought him to the house of the LORD at Shiloh. 25And when they had slaughtered the bull, they brought the boy to Eli. 26“Please, my lord,” said Hannah, “as surely as you live, my lord, I am the woman who stood here beside you praying to the LORD. 27I prayed for this boy, and since the LORD has granted me what I asked of Him, 28I now dedicate the boy to the LORD. For as long as he lives, he is dedicated to the LORD.” So they worshiped the LORD there.

18Now Samuel was ministering before the LORD—a boy wearing a linen ephod. 19Each year his mother would make him a little robe and bring it to him when she went with her husband to offer the annual sacrifice. 20And Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife, saying, “May the LORD give you children by this woman in place of the one she dedicated to the LORD.” Then they would go home. 21So the LORD attended to Hannah, and she conceived and gave birth to three sons and two daughters. Meanwhile, the boy Samuel grew up in the presence of the LORD.

27Eliab his son, Jeroham his son, and Elkanah his son. 28The sons of Samuel: Joel his firstborn and Abijah his second son.

1At that time Hannah prayed: “My heart rejoices in the LORD in whom my horn is exalted. My mouth speaks boldly against my enemies, for I rejoice in Your salvation. 2There is no one holy like the LORD. Indeed, there is no one besides You! And there is no Rock like our God. 3Do not boast so proudly, or let arrogance come from your mouth, for the LORD is a God who knows, and by Him actions are weighed. 4The bows of the mighty are broken, but the feeble are equipped with strength. 5The well-fed hire themselves out for food, but the starving hunger no more. The barren woman gives birth to seven, but she who has many sons pines away. 6The LORD brings death and gives life; He brings down to Sheol and raises up. 7The LORD sends poverty and wealth; He humbles and He exalts. 8He raises the poor from the dust and lifts the needy from the ash heap. He seats them among princes and bestows on them a throne of honor. For the foundations of the earth are the LORD’s, and upon them He has set the world. 9He guards the steps of His faithful ones, but the wicked perish in darkness; for by his own strength shall no man prevail. 10Those who oppose the LORD will be shattered. He will thunder from heaven against them. The LORD will judge the ends of the earth and will give power to His king. He will exalt the horn of His anointed.”

46Then Mary said: “My soul magnifies the Lord, 47and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior! 48For He has looked with favor on the humble state of His servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed. 49For the Mighty One has done great things for me. Holy is His name. 50His mercy extends to those who fear Him, from generation to generation. 51He has performed mighty deeds with His arm; He has scattered those who are proud in the thoughts of their hearts. 52He has brought down rulers from their thrones, but has exalted the humble. 53He has filled the hungry with good things, but has sent the rich away empty. 54He has helped His servant Israel, remembering to be merciful, 55as He promised to our fathers, to Abraham and his descendants forever.”

69He has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of His servant David,

1And the boy Samuel ministered to the LORD before Eli. Now in those days the word of the LORD was rare and visions were scarce. 2And at that time Eli, whose eyesight had grown so dim that he could not see, was lying in his room. 3Before the lamp of God had gone out, Samuel was lying down in the temple of the LORD, where the ark of God was located. 4Then the LORD called to Samuel, and he answered, “Here I am.” 5He ran to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you have called me.” “I did not call,” Eli replied. “Go back and lie down.” So he went and lay down. 6Once again the LORD called, “Samuel!” So Samuel got up, went to Eli, and said, “Here I am, for you have called me.” “My son, I did not call,” Eli replied. “Go back and lie down.” 7Now Samuel did not yet know the LORD, because the word of the LORD had not yet been revealed to him. 8Once again, for the third time, the LORD called to Samuel. He got up, went to Eli, and said, “Here I am, for you have called me.” Then Eli realized that it was the LORD who was calling the boy. 9“Go and lie down,” he said to Samuel, “and if He calls you, say, ‘Speak, LORD, for Your servant is listening.’” So Samuel went and lay down in his place. 10Then the LORD came and stood there, calling as before, “Samuel! Samuel!” And Samuel answered, “Speak, for Your servant is listening.” 11Then the LORD said to Samuel, “I am about to do something in Israel at which the ears of all who hear it will tingle. 12On that day I will carry out against Eli everything I have spoken about his family, from beginning to end. 13I told him that I would judge his house forever for the iniquity of which he knows, because his sons blasphemed God and he did not restrain them. 14Therefore I have sworn to the house of Eli, ‘The iniquity of Eli’s house shall never be atoned for by sacrifice or offering.’” 15Samuel lay down until the morning; then he opened the doors of the house of the LORD. He was afraid to tell Eli the vision, 16but Eli called to him and said, “Samuel, my son.” “Here I am,” answered Samuel. 17“What was the message He gave you?” Eli asked. “Do not hide it from me. May God punish you, and ever so severely, if you hide from me anything He said to you.” 18So Samuel told him everything and did not hide a thing from him. “He is the LORD,” replied Eli. “Let Him do what is good in His eyes.” 19And Samuel grew, and the LORD was with him, and He let none of Samuel’s words fall to the ground. 20So all Israel from Dan to Beersheba knew that Samuel was confirmed as a prophet of the LORD. 21And the LORD continued to appear at Shiloh, because there He revealed Himself to Samuel by His word.

27Then a man of God came to Eli and told him, “This is what the LORD says: ‘Did I not clearly reveal Myself to your father’s house when they were in Egypt under Pharaoh’s house? 28And out of all the tribes of Israel I selected your father to be My priest, to offer sacrifices on My altar, to burn incense, and to wear an ephod in My presence. I also gave to the house of your father all the offerings of the Israelites made by fire. 29Why then do you kick at My sacrifice and offering that I have prescribed for My dwelling place? You have honored your sons more than Me by fattening yourselves with the best of all the offerings of My people Israel.’ 30Therefore, the LORD, the God of Israel, declares: ‘I did indeed say that your house and the house of your father would walk before Me forever. But now the LORD declares: Far be it from Me! For I will honor those who honor Me, but those who despise Me will be disdained. 31Behold, the days are coming when I will cut off your strength and the strength of your father’s house, so that no older man will be left in your house. 32You will see distress in My dwelling place. Despite all that is good in Israel, no one in your house will ever again reach old age. 33And every one of you that I do not cut off from My altar, your eyes will fail and your heart will grieve. All your descendants will die by the sword of men. 34And this sign shall come to you concerning your two sons Hophni and Phinehas: They will both die on the same day. 35Then I will raise up for Myself a faithful priest. He will do whatever is in My heart and mind. And I will build for him an enduring house, and he will walk before My anointed one for all time. 36And everyone left in your house will come and bow down to him for a piece of silver or a morsel of bread, pleading, “Please appoint me to some priestly office so that I can eat a piece of bread.”’”

15The LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your brothers. You must listen to him. 16This is what you asked of the LORD your God at Horeb on the day of the assembly, when you said, "Let us not hear the voice of the LORD our God or see this great fire anymore, so that we will not die!" 17Then the LORD said to me, "They have spoken well. 18I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their brothers. I will put My words in his mouth, and he will tell them everything I command him. 19And I will hold accountable anyone who does not listen to My words that the prophet speaks in My name.

3Then Samuel said to all the house of Israel, “If you are returning to the LORD with all your hearts, then rid yourselves of the foreign gods and Ashtoreths among you, prepare your hearts for the LORD, and serve Him only. And He will deliver you from the hand of the Philistines.” 4So the Israelites put away the Baals and Ashtoreths and served only the LORD. 5Then Samuel said, “Gather all Israel to Mizpah, and I will pray to the LORD on your behalf.” 6When they had gathered at Mizpah, they drew water and poured it out before the LORD. On that day they fasted, and there they confessed, “We have sinned against the LORD.” And Samuel judged the Israelites at Mizpah. 7When the Philistines heard that the Israelites had gathered at Mizpah, their rulers marched up toward Israel. And when the Israelites learned of this, they feared the Philistines 8and said to Samuel, “Do not stop crying out to the LORD our God for us, that He may save us from the hand of the Philistines.” 9Then Samuel took a suckling lamb and offered it as a whole burnt offering to the LORD. He cried out to the LORD on behalf of Israel, and the LORD answered him. 10As the Philistines drew near to fight against Israel, Samuel was sacrificing the burnt offering. But that day the LORD thundered loudly against the Philistines and threw them into such confusion that they fled before Israel. 11Then the men of Israel charged out of Mizpah and pursued the Philistines, striking them down all the way to an area below Beth-car. 12Afterward, Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen. He named it Ebenezer, saying, “Thus far the LORD has helped us.” 13So the Philistines were subdued, and they stopped invading the territory of Israel. And the hand of the LORD was against the Philistines all the days of Samuel. 14The cities from Ekron to Gath, which the Philistines had taken, were restored to Israel, who also delivered the surrounding territory from the hand of the Philistines. And there was peace between the Israelites and the Amorites. 15So Samuel judged Israel all the days of his life. 16Every year he would go on a circuit from Bethel to Gilgal to Mizpah, judging Israel in all these places. 17Then he would return to Ramah because his home was there, and there he judged Israel and built an altar to the LORD.

23As for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the LORD by ceasing to pray for you. And I will continue to teach you the good and right way.

1Then the LORD said to me: “Even if Moses and Samuel should stand before Me, My heart would not go out to this people. Send them from My presence, and let them go.

6Moses and Aaron were among His priests; Samuel was among those who called on His name. They called to the LORD and He answered.

4So all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah. 5"Look," they said, "you are old, and your sons do not walk in your ways. Now appoint a king to judge us like all the other nations." 6But when they said, "Give us a king to judge us," their demand was displeasing in the sight of Samuel; so he prayed to the LORD. 7And the LORD said to Samuel, "Listen to the voice of the people in all that they say to you. For it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected Me as their king. 8Just as they have done from the day I brought them up out of Egypt until this day, forsaking Me and serving other gods, so they are doing to you. 9Now listen to them, but you must solemnly warn them and show them the manner of the king who will reign over them.” 10So Samuel spoke all the words of the LORD to the people who were asking him for a king. 11He said, “This will be the manner of the king who will reign over you: He will take your sons and appoint them to his own chariots and horses, to run in front of his chariots. 12He will appoint some for himself as commanders of thousands and of fifties, and others to plow his ground, to reap his harvest, to make his weapons of war, and to equip his chariots. 13And he will take your daughters to be perfumers, cooks, and bakers. 14He will take the best of your fields and vineyards and olive groves and give them to his servants. 15He will take a tenth of your grain and grape harvest and give it to his officials and servants. 16And he will take your menservants and maidservants and your best cattle and donkeys and put them to his own use. 17He will take a tenth of your flocks, and you yourselves will become his slaves. 18When that day comes, you will beg for relief from the king you have chosen, but the LORD will not answer you on that day.” 19Nevertheless, the people refused to listen to Samuel. "No!" they said. "We must have a king over us. 20Then we will be like all the other nations, with a king to judge us, to go out before us, and to fight our battles." 21Samuel listened to all the words of the people and repeated them in the hearing of the LORD. 22“Listen to their voice,” the LORD said to Samuel. “Appoint a king for them.” Then Samuel told the men of Israel, “Everyone must go back to his city.”

12But when you saw that Nahash king of the Ammonites was moving against you, you said to me, ‘No, we must have a king to rule over us’—even though the LORD your God was your king. 13Now here is the king you have chosen, the one you requested. Behold, the LORD has placed a king over you. 14If you fear the LORD and serve Him and obey His voice, and if you do not rebel against the command of the LORD, and if both you and the king who reigns over you follow the LORD your God, then all will be well. 15But if you disobey the LORD and rebel against His command, then the hand of the LORD will be against you as it was against your fathers. 16Now, therefore, stand and see this great thing that the LORD will do before your eyes. 17Is it not the wheat harvest today? I will call on the LORD to send thunder and rain, so that you will know and see what a great evil you have committed in the sight of the LORD by asking for a king.” 18So Samuel called to the LORD, and on that day the LORD sent thunder and rain. As a result, all the people greatly feared the LORD and Samuel. 19They pleaded with Samuel, “Pray to the LORD your God for your servants so that we will not die! For we have added to all our sins the evil of asking for a king.” 20“Do not be afraid,” Samuel replied. “Even though you have committed all this evil, do not turn aside from following the LORD, but serve the LORD with all your heart. 21Do not turn aside after worthless things that cannot profit you or deliver you, for they are empty. 22Indeed, for the sake of His great name, the LORD will not abandon His people, because He was pleased to make you His own. 23As for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the LORD by ceasing to pray for you. And I will continue to teach you the good and right way. 24Above all, fear the LORD and serve Him faithfully with all your heart; consider what great things He has done for you. 25But if you persist in doing evil, both you and your king will be swept away.”

11So in My anger I gave you a king, and in My wrath I took him away.

21Then the people asked for a king, and God gave them forty years under Saul son of Kish, from the tribe of Benjamin.

1Now the LORD said to Samuel, "How long are you going to mourn for Saul, since I have rejected him as king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and go. I am sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem, for I have selected from his sons a king for Myself." 2“How can I go?” Samuel asked. “Saul will hear of it and kill me!” The LORD answered, “Take a heifer with you and say, ‘I have come to sacrifice to the LORD.’ 3Then invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show you what you are to do. You are to anoint for Me the one I indicate.” 4So Samuel did what the LORD had said and went to Bethlehem. When the elders of the town met him, they trembled and asked, “Do you come in peace?” 5“In peace,” he replied. “I have come to sacrifice to the LORD. Consecrate yourselves and come with me to the sacrifice.” Then he consecrated Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice. 6When they arrived, Samuel saw Eliab and said, “Surely here before the LORD is His anointed.” 7But the LORD said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or height, for I have rejected him; the LORD does not see as man does. For man sees the outward appearance, but the LORD sees the heart.” 8Then Jesse called Abinadab and presented him to Samuel, who said, “The LORD has not chosen this one either.” 9Next Jesse presented Shammah, but Samuel said, “The LORD has not chosen this one either.” 10Thus Jesse made seven of his sons pass before Samuel, but Samuel told him, “The LORD has not chosen any of these.” 11And Samuel asked him, "Are these all the sons you have?" "There is still the youngest," Jesse replied, "but he is tending the sheep." "Send for him," Samuel replied. "For we will not sit down to eat until he arrives." 12So Jesse sent for his youngest son and brought him in. He was ruddy, with beautiful eyes and a handsome appearance. And the LORD said, “Rise and anoint him, for he is the one.” 13So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and the Spirit of the LORD rushed upon David from that day forward. Then Samuel set out and went to Ramah.

1Then Samuel took a flask of oil, poured it on Saul’s head, kissed him, and said, “Has not the LORD anointed you ruler over His inheritance?

2But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come forth for Me One to be ruler over Israel—One whose origins are of old, from the days of eternity.

1On many past occasions and in many different ways, God spoke to our fathers through the prophets. 2But in these last days He has spoken to us by His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, and through whom He made the universe. 3The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of His nature, upholding all things by His powerful word. After He had provided purification for sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high.

24But because Jesus lives forever, He has a permanent priesthood. 25Therefore He is able to save completely those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to intercede for them.

16And He has a name written on His robe and on His thigh: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.

5For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus,

9But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God's own possession, to proclaim the virtues of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.

6who has made us to be a kingdom, priests to His God and Father—to Him be the glory and power forever and ever! Amen.

9And they sang a new song: "Worthy are You to take the scroll and open its seals, because You were slain, and by Your blood You purchased for God those from every tribe and tongue and people and nation. 10You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God, and they will reign upon the earth."

3No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be within the city, and His servants will worship Him. 4They will see His face, and His name will be on their foreheads. 5There will be no more night in the city, and they will have no need for the light of a lamp or of the sun. For the Lord God will shine on them, and they will reign forever and ever.