The Death of Eli

¹² Now a man of Benjamin ran from the battle line and came to Shiloh the same day with ^(A)his robes torn and ^[a]dust on his head. ¹³ And he came, and behold, ^(B)Eli was sitting on his seat ^[b]by the road eagerly watching because his heart was trembling for the ark of God. Now the man came to tell it in the city, and all the city cried out. ¹⁴ Then Eli heard the noise of the outcry, and he said, “What does the noise of this commotion mean?” So the man came hurriedly and told Eli. ¹⁵ Now Eli was ninety-eight years old, and ^(C)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, “^(D)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, ^[c](E)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.

¹⁹ Now his daughter-in-law, Phinehas’s wife, was with child and about to give birth. And she heard the report that the ark of God was taken and that her father-in-law and her husband had died, so she kneeled down and gave birth, for her pains came upon her. ²⁰ And about the time of her death the women who stood by her said to her, “^(F)Do not be afraid, for you have given birth to a son.” But she did not answer or pay attention. ²¹ And she called the boy ^[d]Ichabod, saying, “^(G)The glory has departed from Israel,” because ^(H)the ark of God was taken and because of her father-in-law and her husband. ²² And she said, “The glory has departed from Israel, for the ark of God was taken.”