1 Samuel 1

New International Version

The Birth of Samuel

1 There was a certain man from Ramathaim,^(A) a Zuphite^[a]^(B) from the hill country^(C) of Ephraim,^(D) whose name was Elkanah^(E) son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the son of Zuph, an Ephraimite. ²He had two wives;^(F) one was called Hannah and the other Peninnah. Peninnah had children, but Hannah had none.

³Year after year^(G) this man went up from his town to worship^(H) and sacrifice to the Lord Almighty at Shiloh,^(I) where Hophni and Phinehas, the two sons of Eli,^(J) were priests of the Lord. ⁴Whenever the day came for Elkanah to sacrifice,^(K) he would give portions of the meat to his wife Peninnah and to all her sons and daughters.^(L) ⁵But to Hannah he gave a double portion^(M) because he loved her, and the Lord had closed her womb.^(N) ⁶Because the Lord had closed Hannah’s womb, her rival kept provoking her in order to irritate her.^(O) ⁷This went on year after year. Whenever Hannah went up to the house of the Lord, her rival provoked her till she wept and would not eat.^(P) ⁸Her husband Elkanah would say to her, “Hannah, why are you weeping? Why don’t you eat? Why are you downhearted? Don’t I mean more to you than ten sons?^(Q)”

⁹Once when they had finished eating and drinking in Shiloh, Hannah stood up. Now Eli the priest was sitting on his chair by the doorpost of the Lord’s house.^(R) ¹⁰In her deep anguish^(S) Hannah prayed to the Lord, weeping bitterly. ¹¹And she made a vow,^(T) saying, “Lord Almighty^(U), if you will only look on your servant’s misery and remember^(V) me, and not forget your servant but give her a son, then I will give him to the Lord for all the days of his life,^(W) and no razor^(X) will ever be used on his head.”

¹²As she kept on praying to the Lord, Eli observed her mouth. ¹³Hannah was praying in her heart, and her lips were moving but her voice was not heard. Eli thought she was drunk ¹⁴and said to her, “How long are you going to stay drunk? Put away your wine.”

¹⁵“Not so, my lord,” Hannah replied, “I am a woman who is deeply troubled.^(Y) I have not been drinking wine or beer; I was pouring^(Z) out my soul to the Lord. ¹⁶Do not take your servant for a wicked woman; I have been praying here out of my great anguish and grief.”^(AA)

¹⁷Eli answered, “Go in peace,^(AB) and may the God of Israel grant you what you have asked of him.^(AC)”

¹⁸She said, “May your servant find favor in your eyes.^(AD)” Then she went her way and ate something, and her face was no longer downcast.^(AE)

¹⁹Early the next morning they arose and worshiped before the Lord and then went back to their home at Ramah.^(AF) Elkanah made love to his wife Hannah, and the Lord remembered^(AG) her. ²⁰So in the course of time Hannah became pregnant and gave birth to a son.^(AH) She named^(AI) him Samuel,^[b]^(AJ) saying, “Because I asked the Lord for him.”

Hannah Dedicates Samuel

²¹When her husband Elkanah went up with all his family to offer the annual^(AK) sacrifice to the Lord and to fulfill his vow,^(AL) ²²Hannah did not go. She said to her husband, “After the boy is weaned, I will take him and present^(AM) him before the Lord, and he will live there always.”^[c]

²³“Do what seems best to you,” her husband Elkanah told her. “Stay here until you have weaned him; only may the Lord make good^(AN) his^[d] word.” So the woman stayed at home and nursed her son until she had weaned^(AO) him.

²⁴After he was weaned, she took the boy with her, young as he was, along with a three-year-old bull,^[e]^(AP) an ephah^[f] of flour and a skin of wine, and brought him to the house of the Lord at Shiloh. ²⁵When the bull had been sacrificed, they brought the boy to Eli, ²⁶and she said to him, “Pardon me, my lord. As surely as you live, I am the woman who stood here beside you praying to the Lord. ²⁷I prayed^(AQ) for this child, and the Lord has granted me what I asked of him. ²⁸So now I give him to the Lord. For his whole life^(AR) he will be given over to the Lord.” And he worshiped the Lord there.

Footnotes

1 Samuel 1:1 See Septuagint and 1 Chron. 6:26-27,33-35; or from Ramathaim Zuphim.
1 Samuel 1:20 Samuel sounds like the Hebrew for heard by God.
1 Samuel 1:22 Masoretic Text; Dead Sea Scrolls always. I have dedicated him as a Nazirite—all the days of his life.”
1 Samuel 1:23 Masoretic Text; Dead Sea Scrolls, Septuagint and Syriac your
1 Samuel 1:24 Dead Sea Scrolls, Septuagint and Syriac; Masoretic Text with three bulls
1 Samuel 1:24 That is, probably about 36 pounds or about 16 kilograms

Job 18

New International Version

Bildad

18 Then Bildad the Shuhite^(A) replied:

²“When will you end these speeches?^(B)
    Be sensible, and then we can talk.
³Why are we regarded as cattle^(C)
    and considered stupid in your sight?^(D)
⁴You who tear yourself^(E) to pieces in your anger,^(F)
    is the earth to be abandoned for your sake?
    Or must the rocks be moved from their place?^(G)

⁵“The lamp of a wicked man is snuffed out;^(H)
    the flame of his fire stops burning.^(I)
⁶The light in his tent^(J) becomes dark;^(K)
    the lamp beside him goes out.^(L)
⁷The vigor^(M) of his step is weakened;^(N)
    his own schemes^(O) throw him down.^(P)
⁸His feet thrust him into a net;^(Q)
    he wanders into its mesh.
⁹A trap seizes him by the heel;
    a snare^(R) holds him fast.^(S)
¹⁰A noose^(T) is hidden for him on the ground;
    a trap^(U) lies in his path.^(V)
¹¹Terrors^(W) startle him on every side^(X)
    and dog^(Y) his every step.
¹²Calamity^(Z) is hungry^(AA) for him;
    disaster^(AB) is ready for him when he falls.^(AC)
¹³It eats away parts of his skin;^(AD)
    death’s firstborn devours his limbs.^(AE)
¹⁴He is torn from the security of his tent^(AF)
    and marched off to the king^(AG) of terrors.^(AH)
¹⁵Fire resides^[a] in his tent;^(AI)
    burning sulfur^(AJ) is scattered over his dwelling.
¹⁶His roots dry up below^(AK)
    and his branches wither above.^(AL)
¹⁷The memory of him perishes from the earth;^(AM)
    he has no name^(AN) in the land.^(AO)
¹⁸He is driven from light into the realm of darkness^(AP)
    and is banished^(AQ) from the world.^(AR)
¹⁹He has no offspring^(AS) or descendants^(AT) among his people,
    no survivor^(AU) where once he lived.^(AV)
²⁰People of the west are appalled^(AW) at his fate;^(AX)
    those of the east are seized with horror.
²¹Surely such is the dwelling^(AY) of an evil man;^(AZ)
    such is the place^(BA) of one who does not know God.”^(BB)

Footnotes

Job 18:15 Or Nothing he had remains

1 John 3

New International Version

3 See what great love^(A) the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God!^(B) And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him.^(C) ²Dear friends,^(D) now we are children of God,^(E) and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears,^[a]^(F) we shall be like him,^(G) for we shall see him as he is.^(H) ³All who have this hope in him purify themselves,^(I) just as he is pure.^(J)

⁴Everyone who sins breaks the law; in fact, sin is lawlessness.^(K) ⁵But you know that he appeared so that he might take away our sins.^(L) And in him is no sin.^(M) ⁶No one who lives in him keeps on sinning.^(N) No one who continues to sin has either seen him^(O) or known him.^(P)

⁷Dear children,^(Q) do not let anyone lead you astray.^(R) The one who does what is right is righteous, just as he is righteous.^(S) ⁸The one who does what is sinful is of the devil,^(T) because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God^(U) appeared was to destroy the devil’s work.^(V) ⁹No one who is born of God^(W) will continue to sin,^(X) because God’s seed^(Y) remains in them; they cannot go on sinning, because they have been born of God. ¹⁰This is how we know who the children of God^(Z) are and who the children of the devil^(AA) are: Anyone who does not do what is right is not God’s child, nor is anyone who does not love^(AB) their brother and sister.^(AC)

More on Love and Hatred

¹¹For this is the message you heard^(AD) from the beginning:^(AE) We should love one another.^(AF) ¹²Do not be like Cain, who belonged to the evil one^(AG) and murdered his brother.^(AH) And why did he murder him? Because his own actions were evil and his brother’s were righteous.^(AI) ¹³Do not be surprised, my brothers and sisters,^[b] if the world hates you.^(AJ) ¹⁴We know that we have passed from death to life,^(AK) because we love each other. Anyone who does not love remains in death.^(AL) ¹⁵Anyone who hates a brother or sister^(AM) is a murderer,^(AN) and you know that no murderer has eternal life residing in him.^(AO)

¹⁶This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us.^(AP) And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters.^(AQ) ¹⁷If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them,^(AR) how can the love of God be in that person?^(AS) ¹⁸Dear children,^(AT) let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.^(AU)

¹⁹This is how we know that we belong to the truth and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence: ²⁰If our hearts condemn us, we know that God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything. ²¹Dear friends,^(AV) if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God^(AW) ²²and receive from him anything we ask,^(AX) because we keep his commands^(AY) and do what pleases him.^(AZ) ²³And this is his command: to believe^(BA) in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ,^(BB) and to love one another as he commanded us.^(BC) ²⁴The one who keeps God’s commands^(BD) lives in him,^(BE) and he in them. And this is how we know that he lives in us: We know it by the Spirit he gave us.^(BF)

Footnotes

1 John 3:2 Or when it is made known
1 John 3:13 The Greek word for brothers and sisters (adelphoi) refers here to believers, both men and women, as part of God’s family; also in verse 16.