1 Samuel 1
New King James Version
The Family of Elkanah
1 Now there was a certain man of Ramathaim Zophim, of the (A)mountains of Ephraim, and his name was (B)Elkanah the son of Jeroham, the son of [a]Elihu, the son of [b]Tohu, the son of Zuph, (C)an Ephraimite. 2 And he had (D)two wives: the name of one was Hannah, and the name of the other Peninnah. Peninnah had children, but Hannah had no children. 3 This man went up from his city (E)yearly (F)to worship and sacrifice to the Lord of hosts in (G)Shiloh. Also the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, the priests of the Lord, were there. 4 And whenever the time came for Elkanah to make an (H)offering, he would give portions to Peninnah his wife and to all her sons and daughters. 5 But to Hannah he would give a double portion, for he loved Hannah, (I)although the Lord had closed her womb. 6 And her rival also (J)provoked her severely, to make her miserable, because the Lord had closed her womb. 7 So it was, year by year, when she went up to the house of the Lord, that she provoked her; therefore she wept and did not eat.
Hannah’s Vow
8 Then Elkanah her husband said to her, “Hannah, why do you weep? Why do you not eat? And why is your heart grieved? Am I not (K)better to you than ten sons?”
9 So Hannah arose after they had finished eating and drinking in Shiloh. Now Eli the priest was sitting on the seat by the doorpost of (L)the [c]tabernacle of the Lord. 10 (M)And she was in bitterness of soul, and prayed to the Lord and [d]wept in anguish. 11 Then she (N)made a vow and said, “O Lord of hosts, if You will indeed (O)look on the affliction of Your maidservant and (P)remember me, and not forget Your maidservant, but will give Your maidservant a male child, then I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life, and (Q)no razor shall come upon his head.”
12 And it happened, as she continued praying before the Lord, that Eli watched her mouth. 13 Now Hannah spoke in her heart; only her lips moved, but her voice was not heard. Therefore Eli thought she was drunk. 14 So Eli said to her, “How long will you be drunk? Put your wine away from you!”
15 But Hannah answered and said, “No, my lord, I am a woman of sorrowful spirit. I have drunk neither wine nor intoxicating drink, but have (R)poured out my soul before the Lord. 16 Do not consider your maidservant a (S)wicked[e] woman, for out of the abundance of my complaint and grief I have spoken until now.”
17 Then Eli answered and said, (T)“Go in peace, and (U)the God of Israel grant your petition which you have asked of Him.”
18 And she said, (V)“Let your maidservant find favor in your sight.” So the woman (W)went her way and ate, and her face was no longer sad.
Samuel Is Born and Dedicated
19 Then they rose early in the morning and worshiped before the Lord, and returned and came to their house at Ramah. And Elkanah (X)knew Hannah his wife, and the Lord (Y)remembered her. 20 So it came to pass in the process of time that Hannah conceived and bore a son, and called his name [f]Samuel, saying, “Because I have asked for him from the Lord.”
21 Now the man Elkanah and all his house (Z)went up to offer to the Lord the yearly sacrifice and his vow. 22 But Hannah did not go up, for she said to her husband, “Not until the child is weaned; then I will (AA)take him, that he may appear before the Lord and (AB)remain there (AC)forever.”
23 So (AD)Elkanah her husband said to her, “Do what seems best to you; wait until you have weaned him. Only let the Lord [g]establish [h]His word.” Then the woman stayed and nursed her son until she had weaned him.
24 Now when she had weaned him, she (AE)took him up with her, with [i]three bulls, one ephah of flour, and a skin of wine, and brought him to (AF)the house of the Lord in Shiloh. And the child was young. 25 Then they slaughtered a bull, and (AG)brought the child to Eli. 26 And she said, “O my lord! (AH)As your soul lives, my lord, I am the woman who stood by you here, praying to the Lord. 27 (AI)For this child I prayed, and the Lord has granted me my petition which I asked of Him. 28 Therefore I also have lent him to the Lord; as long as he lives he shall be [j]lent to the Lord.” So they (AJ)worshiped the Lord there.
Footnotes
- 1 Samuel 1:1 Eliel, 1 Chr. 6:34
- 1 Samuel 1:1 Toah, 1 Chr. 6:34
- 1 Samuel 1:9 palace or temple, Heb. heykal
- 1 Samuel 1:10 Lit. wept greatly
- 1 Samuel 1:16 Lit. daughter of Belial
- 1 Samuel 1:20 Lit. Heard by God
- 1 Samuel 1:23 confirm
- 1 Samuel 1:23 So with MT, Tg., Vg.; DSS, LXX, Syr. your
- 1 Samuel 1:24 DSS, LXX, Syr. a three-year-old bull
- 1 Samuel 1:28 granted
1 Samuel 1
Tree of Life Version
A Barren Woman’s Petition is Granted
1 Now there was a certain man of Ramathaim-zophim, of the hill country of Ephraim—his name was Elkanah son of Jeroham son of Elihu son of Tohu son of Zuph, an Ephraimite. 2 He had two wives: the name of the one was Hannah and the name of the other Peninnah. Peninnah had children, but Hannah was childless.
3 Now this man used to go up from his town every year to worship and to sacrifice to Adonai-Tzva’ot in Shiloh.[a] (The two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were kohanim of Adonai there.) 4 Then on the designated day Elkanah would sacrifice and give portions to his wife Peninnah and to all her sons and daughters, 5 but to Hannah he would give only one portion—even though he loved Hannah—for Adonai had closed her womb. 6 Her rival would taunt her bitterly to provoke her, because Adonai had closed her womb. 7 So it was year after year, whenever she went up to the House of Adonai, that she would provoke her; so she wept and would not eat.
8 Then her husband Elkanah would say to her, “Hannah, why are you crying? Why won’t you eat? Why is your heart so sad? Am I not better to you than ten sons?”
9 After eating and drinking in Shiloh, Hannah got up. Now Eli the kohen was sitting on his seat by the doorpost of the Temple of Adonai. 10 While her soul was bitter, she prayed to Adonai and wept. 11 So she made a vow and said, “Adonai-Tzva’ot, if You will indeed look upon the affliction of Your handmaid, remember me and not forget Your handmaid, but grant Your handmaid a son, then I will give him to Adonai all the days of his life and no razor will ever touch his head.”
12 It came to pass, as she prayed long before Adonai, that Eli was watching her mouth. 13 Now Hannah was praying in her heart—only her lips were moving, but her voice could not be heard. So Eli thought she was drunk. 14 Then Eli said to her, “How long will you be drunk? Get rid of your wine!”
15 But in response Hannah said, “No, my lord, I am a woman with an oppressed spirit! I haven’t been drinking wine or beer. Instead I’ve been pouring out my soul before Adonai. 16 Don’t consider your handmaid a wicked woman. For out of my great anguish and grief I’ve been praying until now.”
17 Then Eli responded, “Go in shalom, and may the God of Israel grant your petition that you asked of Him.”[b]
18 “May your maidservant find favor in your eyes,” she said. So the woman went her way; she ate, and her countenance was no longer dejected.
19 They rose up early in the morning and worshipped before Adonai, then went back to their home to Ramah. Then Elkanah was intimate with his wife Hannah, and Adonai remembered her. 20 So it came to pass at the turn of the year that Hannah conceived and gave birth to a son. She called his name Samuel, “because I have asked Adonai for him.”
21 When the man Elkanah and all his household went up to offer the annual sacrifice to Adonai and to fulfill his vow offering, 22 Hannah did not go up, for she said to her husband, “When the child is weaned, I will bring him, so he may appear before Adonai and stay there forever.”
23 So her husband Elkanah said to her, “Do what seems best to you. Stay until you have weaned him—only may Adonai establish His word.” So the woman stayed home and nursed her son until she weaned him. 24 When she had weaned him, she took him up with her, along with three bulls, one ephah of flour and a jar of wine, and brought him to the House of Adonai in Shiloh, while the child was still young.
25 After they slaughtered the bull, they brought the boy to Eli. 26 “It’s me, my lord!” she said. “As your soul lives, my lord, I am the woman that stood by you here, praying to Adonai. 27 For this boy I prayed, and Adonai has granted me my petition that I asked of Him. 28 So I in turn dedicate him to Adonai—as long as he lives he is dedicated to Adonai.” Then he bowed in worship there before Adonai.
Footnotes
- 1 Samuel 1:3 cf. Luke 2:41.
- 1 Samuel 1:17 cf. Acts 15:33.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Tree of Life (TLV) Translation of the Bible. Copyright © 2015 by The Messianic Jewish Family Bible Society.