¹⁵ Now Eli was ninety-eight years old, and ^(A)his eyes had set so that he could not see. ¹⁶ And the man said to Eli, “I am the one who came from the battle line. Indeed, I fled from the battle line today.” And he said, “^(B)How did things go, my son?” ¹⁷ Then the one who brought the news answered and said, “Israel has fled before the Philistines, and there has also been a great slaughter among the people, and your two sons also, Hophni and Phinehas, are dead, and the ark of God has been taken.” ¹⁸ And it happened that when he mentioned the ark of God, ^[a](C)Eli fell off the seat backward beside the gate, and his neck was broken, and he died, for the man was old and heavy. Thus he judged Israel forty years.