The Lord Calls Samuel

3 The boy Samuel ministered^(A) before the Lord under Eli. In those days the word of the Lord was rare;^(B) there were not many visions.^(C)

² One night Eli, whose eyes^(D) were becoming so weak that he could barely see,^(E) was lying down in his usual place. ³ The lamp^(F) of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the house^(G) of the Lord, where the ark^(H) of God was. ⁴ Then the Lord called Samuel.

Samuel answered, “Here I am.^(I)” ⁵ And he ran to Eli and said, “Here I am; you called me.”

But Eli said, “I did not call; go back and lie down.” So he went and lay down.

⁶ Again the Lord called, “Samuel!” And Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, “Here I am; you called me.”

“My son,” Eli said, “I did not call; go back and lie down.”

⁷ Now Samuel did not yet know^(J) the Lord: The word^(K) of the Lord had not yet been revealed^(L) to him.

⁸ A third time the Lord called, “Samuel!” And Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, “Here I am; you called me.”

Then Eli realized that the Lord was calling the boy. ⁹ So Eli told Samuel, “Go and lie down, and if he calls you, say, ‘Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.’” So Samuel went and lay down in his place.

¹⁰ The Lord came and stood there, calling as at the other times, “Samuel! Samuel!^(M)”

Then Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant is listening.”

¹¹ And the Lord said to Samuel: “See, I am about to do something in Israel that will make the ears of everyone who hears about it tingle.^{(N) 12} At that time I will carry out against Eli everything^(O) I spoke against his family—from beginning to end. ¹³ For I told him that I would judge his family forever because of the sin he knew about; his sons blasphemed God,^[a] and he failed to restrain^(P) them. ¹⁴ Therefore I swore to the house of Eli, ‘The guilt of Eli’s house will never be atoned^(Q) for by sacrifice or offering.’”

¹⁵ Samuel lay down until morning and then opened the doors of the house of the Lord. He was afraid to tell Eli the vision, ¹⁶ but Eli called him and said, “Samuel, my son.”

Samuel answered, “Here I am.”

¹⁷ “What was it he said to you?” Eli asked. “Do not hide^(R) it from me. May God deal with you, be it ever so severely,^(S) if you hide from me anything he told you.” ¹⁸ So Samuel told him everything, hiding nothing from him. Then Eli said, “He is the Lord; let him do what is good in his eyes.”^(T)

¹⁹ The Lord was with^(U) Samuel as he grew^(V) up, and he let none^(W) of Samuel’s words fall to the ground. ²⁰ And all Israel from Dan to Beersheba^(X) recognized that Samuel was attested as a prophet of the Lord.^{(Y) 21} The Lord continued to appear at Shiloh, and there he revealed^(Z) himself to Samuel through his word.

41 In the seventh month Ishmael^(A) son of Nethaniah, the son of Elishama, who was of royal blood and had been one of the king’s officers, came with ten men to Gedaliah son of Ahikam at Mizpah. While they were eating together there, ² Ishmael^(B) son of Nethaniah and the ten men who were with him got up and struck down Gedaliah son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, with the sword,^(C) killing the one whom the king of Babylon had appointed^(D) as governor over the land.^{(E) 3} Ishmael also killed all the men of Judah who were with Gedaliah at Mizpah, as well as the Babylonian^[a] soldiers who were there.

⁴ The day after Gedaliah’s assassination, before anyone knew about it, ⁵ eighty men who had shaved off their beards,^(F) torn their clothes^(G) and cut^(H) themselves came from Shechem,^(I) Shiloh^(J) and Samaria,^(K) bringing grain offerings and incense^(L) with them to the house of the Lord.^{(M) 6} Ishmael son of Nethaniah went out from Mizpah to meet them, weeping^(N) as he went. When he met them, he said, “Come to Gedaliah son of Ahikam.”^{(O) 7} When they went into the city, Ishmael son of Nethaniah and the men who were with him slaughtered them and threw them into a cistern.^{(P) 8} But ten of them said to Ishmael, “Don’t kill us! We have wheat and barley, olive oil and honey, hidden in a field.”^(Q) So he let them alone and did not kill them with the others. ⁹ Now the cistern where he threw all the bodies of the men he had killed along with Gedaliah was the one King Asa^(R) had made as part of his defense^(S) against Baasha^(T) king of Israel. Ishmael son of Nethaniah filled it with the dead.

¹⁰ Ishmael made captives of all the rest of the people^(U) who were in Mizpah—the king’s daughters^(V) along with all the others who were left there, over whom Nebuzaradan commander of the imperial guard had appointed Gedaliah son of Ahikam. Ishmael son of Nethaniah took them captive and set out to cross over to the Ammonites.^(W)

¹¹ When Johanan^(X) son of Kareah and all the army officers who were with him heard about all the crimes Ishmael son of Nethaniah had committed, ¹² they took all their men and went to fight^(Y) Ishmael son of Nethaniah. They caught up with him near the great pool^(Z) in Gibeon. ¹³ When all the people^(AA) Ishmael had with him saw Johanan son of Kareah and the army officers who were with him, they were glad. ¹⁴ All the people Ishmael had taken captive at Mizpah^(AB) turned and went over to Johanan son of Kareah. ¹⁵ But Ishmael son of Nethaniah and eight of his men escaped^(AC) from Johanan and fled to the Ammonites.

Flight to Egypt

¹⁶ Then Johanan son of Kareah and all the army officers^(AD) who were with him led away all the people of Mizpah who had survived,^(AE) whom Johanan had recovered from Ishmael son of Nethaniah after Ishmael had assassinated Gedaliah son of Ahikam—the soldiers, women, children and court officials he had recovered from Gibeon. ¹⁷ And they went on, stopping at Geruth Kimham^(AF) near Bethlehem^(AG) on their way to Egypt^{(AH) 18} to escape the Babylonians.^[b] They were afraid^(AI) of them because Ishmael son of Nethaniah had killed Gedaliah^(AJ) son of Ahikam, whom the king of Babylon had appointed as governor over the land.