Bible in 90 Days

¹³ So they said to ^[a]him, “No, but we will bind you tightly and give you into their hands; but we certainly will not kill you.” Then they bound him with two new ropes, and brought him up from the rock.

¹⁴ When he came to Lehi, the Philistines shouted as they met him. And ^(A)the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon him so that the ropes that were on his arms were like flax that has burned with fire, and his restraints ^[b]dropped from his hands. ¹⁵ Then he found a fresh jawbone of a donkey, so he reached out with his hand and took it, and ^[c]killed ^(B)a thousand men with it. ¹⁶ And Samson said,

¹⁷ When he had finished speaking, he threw the jawbone from his hand; and he named that place ^[f]Ramath-lehi. ¹⁸ Then he became very thirsty, and he ^(C)called to the Lord and said, “You have ^[g]handed this great ^[h]victory over to Your servant, and now ^[i]am I to die of thirst ^[j]and fall into the hands of the uncircumcised?” ¹⁹ But God split the hollow place that is in Lehi so that water came out of it. When he drank, ^(D)his ^[k]strength returned and he revived. Therefore he named it ^[l]En-hakkore, which is in Lehi to this day. ²⁰ So ^(E)he judged Israel for twenty years in ^(F)the days of the Philistines.

Samson’s Weakness

16 Now Samson went to ^(G)Gaza and saw a prostitute there, and had relations with her. ² When it was reported to the Gazites, saying, “Samson has come here,” they ^(H)surrounded the place and lay in wait for him all night at the gate of the city. And they kept silent all night, saying, “Let’s wait until the morning light, then we will kill him.” ³ Now Samson lay asleep until midnight, and at midnight he got up and took hold of the doors of the city gate and the two doorposts, and pulled them up along with the bars; then he put them on his shoulders, and carried them up to the top of the mountain which is opposite Hebron.

⁴ After this it came about that he was in love with a woman in the Valley of Sorek, whose name was Delilah. ⁵ So the ^(I)governors of the Philistines came up to her and said to her, “^(J)Entice him, and see where his great strength lies and ^[m]how we can overpower him so that we may bind him to humble him. Then we will each give you 1,100 pieces of silver.” ⁶ So Delilah said to Samson, “Please tell me where your great strength lies, and ^[n]how you can be bound to humble you.” ⁷ And Samson said to her, “If they bind me with seven fresh ^[o]animal tendons that have not been dried, then I will become weak and be like any other man.” ⁸ Then the governors of the Philistines brought up to her seven fresh ^[p]animal tendons that had not been dried, and she bound him with them. ⁹ Now she had men prepared for an ambush in an inner room. And she said to him, “The Philistines are upon you, Samson!” But he tore the tendons to pieces just like a thread of flax is torn apart when it ^[q]comes too close to fire. So his strength was not discovered.

¹⁰ Then Delilah said to Samson, “Behold, you have toyed with me and told me lies; now please tell me ^[r]how you may be bound.” ¹¹ Then He said to her, “If they bind me tightly with new ropes ^[s]which have not been used, then I will become weak and be like any other man.” ¹² So Delilah took new ropes and bound him with them and said to him, “The Philistines are upon you, Samson!” For the men in the ambush were waiting in the inner room. But he tore ^[t]the ropes from his arms like thread.

¹³ Then Delilah said to Samson, “Up to now you have toyed with me and told me lies; tell me ^[u]how you may be bound.” And he said to her, “If you weave the seven locks of my ^[v]hair with the ^[w]web ^[x][and fasten it with the pin, then I will be weak like any other man.” ¹⁴ So while he slept, Delilah wove the seven locks of his ^[y]hair with the web]. And she fastened it with the pin and said to him, “The Philistines are upon you, Samson!” But he awoke from his sleep and pulled out the pin of the loom and the web.

Delilah Extracts His Secret

¹⁵ Then she said to him, “^(K)How can you say, ‘I love you,’ when your heart is not with me? You have toyed with me these three times and have not told me where your great strength is.” ¹⁶ And it came about, when she pressed him daily with her words and urged him, that his soul was ^[z]annoyed to death. ¹⁷ So he told her all that was in his heart and said to her, “A razor has never come on my head, for I have been a ^(L)Nazirite to God from my mother’s womb. If I am shaved, then my strength will leave me and I will become weak and be like any other man.”

¹⁸ When Delilah saw that he had told her all that was in his heart, she sent word and called the governors of the Philistines, saying, “Come up once more, for he has told me all that is in his heart.” Then the governors of the Philistines came up to her and brought up the money in their hands. ¹⁹ And she made him sleep on her knees, and called for a man and had him shave off the seven locks of his head. Then she began to humble him, and his strength left him. ²⁰ She said, “The Philistines are upon you, Samson!” And he awoke from his sleep and said, “I will go out as at other times and shake myself free.” But he did not know that ^(M)the Lord had departed from him. ²¹ Then the Philistines seized him and gouged out his eyes; and they brought him down to Gaza and restrained him with bronze chains, and he became a grinder in the prison. ²² However, the hair of his head began to grow again after it was shaved off.

²³ Now the governors of the Philistines assembled to offer a great sacrifice to ^(N)Dagon their god, and to celebrate, for they said,

²⁴ When the people saw him, ^(O)they praised their god, for they said,

²⁵ It so happened when ^[aa]they were in high spirits, that they said, “Call for Samson, that he may amuse us.” So they called for Samson from the prison, and he ^[ab]entertained them. And they made him stand between the pillars. ²⁶ Then Samson said to the boy who was holding his hand, “^[ac]Let me feel the pillars on which the house rests, so that I may lean against them.” ²⁷ Now the house was full of men and women, and all the governors of the Philistines were there. And about three thousand men and women were on the roof looking on while Samson was entertaining them.

Samson Is Avenged

^28 (P)Then Samson called to the Lord and said, “Lord ^[ad]God, please remember me and please strengthen me just this time, O God, that I may at once ^(Q)take vengeance on the Philistines for my two eyes.” ²⁹ Then Samson grasped the two middle pillars on which the house rested, and braced himself against them, the one with his right hand and the other with his left. ³⁰ And Samson said, “Let ^[ae]me die with the Philistines!” And he pushed outwards powerfully, so that the house fell on the governors and all the people who were in it. And the dead whom he killed at his death were more than those whom he killed during his lifetime. ³¹ Then his brothers and all his father’s household came down and took him, and brought him up and buried him between Zorah and Eshtaol in the tomb of his father Manoah. ^(R)So he had judged Israel for twenty years.

Micah’s Idolatry

17 Now there was a man of the hill country of Ephraim whose name was Micah. ² And he said to his mother, “The 1,100 pieces of silver that were taken from you, about which you uttered a curse and also spoke it in my hearing, behold, the silver is with me; I took it.” And his mother said, “Blessed be my son by the Lord.” ³ He then returned the 1,100 pieces of silver to his mother, and his mother said, “I wholly consecrate the silver from my hand to the Lord for my son ^(S)to make a carved image and a cast metal image; so now I will return ^[af]them to you.” ⁴ So when he returned the silver to his mother, his mother took two hundred pieces of silver and gave them to the silversmith, who made ^[ag]them into a carved image and a cast metal image, and ^[ah]they were in the house of Micah. ⁵ And the man Micah had a ^[ai](T)shrine and he made an ^(U)ephod and ^[aj](V)household idols, and ^[ak]consecrated one of his sons, ^(W)so that he might become his priest. ⁶ In those days ^(X)there was no king in Israel; ^(Y)everyone did what was right in his own eyes.

⁷ Now there was a young man from ^(Z)Bethlehem in Judah, of the family of Judah, who was a Levite; and he was ^[al]staying there. ⁸ Then the man left the city, Bethlehem in Judah, to ^[am]stay wherever he would find a place; and as he made his journey, he came to the ^(AA)hill country of Ephraim, to the house of Micah. ⁹ Micah said to him, “Where do you come from?” And he said to him, “I am a Levite from Bethlehem in Judah, and I am going to ^[an]stay wherever I may find a place.” ¹⁰ Micah then said to him, “Stay with me and be ^(AB)a father and a priest to me, and I will give you ten pieces of silver a year, a supply of clothing, and your sustenance.” So the Levite went in. ¹¹ The Levite agreed to live with the man, and the young man became to him like one of his sons. ¹² So Micah ^[ao]consecrated the Levite, and the young man ^(AC)became his priest and ^[ap]lived in the house of Micah. ¹³ Then Micah said, “Now I know that the Lord will prosper me, because I have a Levite as a priest.”

Danites Seek Territory

18 ^(AD)In those days there was no king of Israel; and ^(AE)in those days the tribe of the Danites was seeking an inheritance for themselves to live in, for until that day ^[aq]an inheritance had not ^[ar]been allotted to them as a possession among the tribes of Israel. ² So the sons of Dan sent from their family five men out of their whole number, ^[as]valiant men from ^(AF)Zorah and Eshtaol, to spy out the land and to explore it; and they said to them, “Go, explore the land.” And they came to ^(AG)the hill country of Ephraim, to the house of Micah, and stayed overnight there. ³ When they were near the house of Micah, they recognized the voice of the young man, the Levite; and they turned aside there and said to him, “Who brought you here? And what are you doing in this place? And what do you have here?” ⁴ He said to them, “Micah has done this and that for me, and he has hired me and ^(AH)I have become his priest.” ⁵ Then they said to him, “Inquire of God, please, that we may know whether our way on which we are going will be successful.” ⁶ And the priest said to them, “Go in peace; your way in which you are going ^[at]has the Lord’s approval.”

⁷ So the five men departed and came to ^(AI)Laish, and saw the people who were in it living in security, in the way of the Sidonians, quiet and unsuspecting; for there was no ^[au]oppressive ruler humiliating them for anything in the land, and they were far from the Sidonians and had no dealings with anyone. ⁸ When they came back to their brothers at Zorah and Eshtaol, their brothers said to them, “What do you say?” ⁹ And they said, “Arise, and let’s go up against them; for we have seen the land, and behold, it is very good. And will you ^[av]sit still? Do not hesitate to go, to enter, to take possession of the land. ¹⁰ When you enter, you will come to an unsuspecting people with a spacious land; for God has handed it over to you, ^(AJ)a place where there is no lack of anything that is on the earth.”

¹¹ Then from the family of the Danites, from Zorah and from Eshtaol, six hundred men armed with weapons of war set out. ¹² They went up and camped at Kiriath-jearim in Judah. Therefore they called that place ^[aw](AK)Mahaneh-dan to this day; behold, it is ^[ax]west of Kiriath-jearim. ¹³ And they passed from there to the hill country of Ephraim and came to the house of Micah.

Danites Take Micah’s Idols

¹⁴ Then the five men who went to spy out the country of Laish ^[ay]said to their kinsmen, “Do you know that there are in these houses ^(AL)an ephod and ^[az]household idols, and a carved image and a cast metal image? Now then, consider what you should do.” ¹⁵ So they turned aside there and came to the house of the young man, the Levite, to the house of Micah, and asked ^[ba]him how he was doing. ¹⁶ Meanwhile, the six hundred men armed with their weapons of war, who were of the sons of Dan, were positioned at the entrance of the gate. ¹⁷ Now the five men who went to spy out the land went up and entered there; they took ^(AM)the carved image, the ephod, the ^[bb]household idols, and the cast metal image, while the priest was standing at the entrance of the gate with the six hundred men armed with weapons of war. ¹⁸ When these men entered Micah’s house and took the carved image, the ephod, ^[bc]household idols, and the cast metal image, the priest said to them, “What are you doing?” ¹⁹ And they said to him, “Be silent, ^(AN)put your hand over your mouth, and go with us, and be to us ^(AO)a father and a priest. Is it better for you to be a priest to the house of one man, or to be priest to a tribe and a family in Israel?” ²⁰ The priest’s heart was glad, and he took the ephod, the ^[bd]household idols, and the carved image, and went among the people.

²¹ Then they turned and left, and put the children, the livestock, and the valuables in front of them. ²² When they had distanced themselves from Micah’s house, the men who were in the houses near Micah’s house assembled by command and overtook the sons of Dan. ²³ Then they called out to the sons of Dan, who turned ^[be]around and said to Micah, “What is the matter with you, that you have assembled together?” ²⁴ And he said, “You have taken my gods which I made, and the priest, and have gone away; what more do I have? So how can you say to me, ‘What is the matter with you?’” ²⁵ Then the sons of Dan said to him, “Do not let your voice be heard among us, or else ^[bf]fierce men will attack you, and you will ^[bg]lose your life and the lives of your household.” ²⁶ So the sons of Dan went on their way; and when Micah saw that they were too strong for him, he turned and went back to his house.

²⁷ Then they took what Micah had made and the priest who had belonged to him, and came to ^(AP)Laish, to a people quiet and unsuspecting, and struck them with the edge of the sword; and they burned the city with fire. ²⁸ And there was no one to save them, because it was far from Sidon and they had no dealings with anyone, and it was in the valley which is near ^(AQ)Beth-rehob. So they rebuilt the city and lived in it. ²⁹ And ^(AR)they named the city Dan, after the name of Dan their father who was born to Israel; however, the name of the city was previously Laish. ³⁰ The sons of Dan set up for themselves ^(AS)the carved image; and Jonathan, the son of ^(AT)Gershom, the son of ^[bh]Manasseh, ^(AU)he and his sons were priests to the tribe of the Danites until the day of the captivity of the land. ³¹ So they set up for themselves Micah’s carved image which he had made, all the time that the ^(AV)house of God was in Shiloh.

A Levite’s Concubine Raped and Killed

19 Now it came about in those days, when ^(AW)there was no king in Israel, that there was a certain Levite ^[bi]staying in the remote part of the hill country of Ephraim, who took a concubine for himself from Bethlehem in Judah. ² But his concubine ^[bj]found him repugnant, and she left him and went to her father’s house in Bethlehem in Judah, and remained there for a period of four months. ³ Then her husband set out and went after her to ^(AX)speak ^[bk]gently to her in order to bring her back, ^[bl]taking with him his servant and a pair of donkeys. And she brought him into her father’s house, and when the girl’s father saw him, he was glad to meet him. ⁴ His father-in-law, the girl’s father, prevailed upon him, and he remained with him for three days. So they ate and drank and stayed there. ⁵ Now on the fourth day they got up early in the morning, and he ^[bm]prepared to go; but the girl’s father said to his son-in-law, “^(AY)Strengthen ^[bn]yourself with a piece of bread, and afterward you may go.” ⁶ So both of them sat down and ate and drank together; and the girl’s father said to the man, “Please ^[bo]be so kind as to spend the night, and ^(AZ)let your heart be cheerful.” ⁷ However, the man got up to go; but his father-in-law urged him, and he spent the night there again. ⁸ Now on the fifth day he got up to go early in the morning, but the girl’s father said, “Please strengthen ^[bp]yourself, and wait until ^[bq]late afternoon”; so both of them ate. ⁹ When the man got up to go, along with his concubine and servant, his father-in-law, the girl’s father, said to him, “Behold now, the day has drawn ^[br]to a close; please spend the night. Behold, the day is ^[bs]coming to an end; spend the night here so that your heart may be cheerful. Then tomorrow you may arise early for your journey and go ^[bt]home.”

¹⁰ But the man was unwilling to spend the night, so he got up and left, and came to a place opposite ^(BA)Jebus (that is, Jerusalem). And with him was a pair of saddled donkeys; his concubine also was with him. ¹¹ When they were near Jebus, the day was almost gone; and ^(BB)the servant said to his master, “Please come, and let’s turn aside into this city of the Jebusites and spend the night in it.” ¹² However, his master said to him, “We will not turn aside into a city of foreigners who are not of the sons of Israel; instead, we will go on as far as Gibeah.” ¹³ And he said to his servant, “Come, and let’s approach one of these places; and we will spend the night in Gibeah or Ramah.” ¹⁴ So they passed along and went their way, and the sun set on them near Gibeah which belongs to Benjamin. ¹⁵ They turned aside there to enter and spend the night in Gibeah. When ^[bu]they entered, ^[bv]they sat down in the public square of the city, for no one took them into his house to spend the night.

¹⁶ Then behold, an old man was coming out of the field from his work at evening. Now the man was from ^(BC)the hill country of Ephraim, and he was ^[bw]staying in Gibeah, but the men of the place ^(BD)were Benjaminites. ¹⁷ And he raised his eyes and saw the traveler in the public square of the city; and the old man said, “Where are you going, and where do you come from?” ¹⁸ And he said to him, “We are passing from Bethlehem in Judah to the remote part of the hill country of Ephraim, for I am from there, and I went to Bethlehem in Judah. But I am now going to ^[bx]my house, and no one will take me into his house. ¹⁹ Yet there is both straw and feed for our donkeys, and also bread and wine for me, and ^[by]your female slave, and ^(BE)the young man who is with your servants; there is no lack of anything.” ²⁰ Then the old man said, “^(BF)Peace to you. Only let me take care of all your needs; however, do not spend the night in the public square.” ^21 (BG)So he took him into his house and fed the donkeys, and they washed their feet and ate and drank.

²² While they were ^[bz]celebrating, behold, ^(BH)the men of the city, certain ^[ca](BI)worthless men, surrounded the house, pushing one another at the door; and they spoke to the owner of the house, the old man, saying, “Bring out the man who entered your house that we may ^[cb]have relations with him.” ²³ Then the man, the owner of the house, went out to them and said to them, “No, my brothers, please do not act so wickedly. Since this man has come into my house, ^(BJ)do not commit this vile sin. ^24 (BK)Here is my virgin daughter and ^[cc]the man’s concubine. Please let me bring them out, then rape them and do to them ^[cd]whatever you wish. But do not commit this act of vile sin against this man.” ²⁵ But the men would not listen to him. So the man seized his concubine and brought her outside to them; and they ^[ce]raped her and abused her all night until morning, then let her go at the approach of dawn. ^26 [cf]As the day began to dawn, the woman came and fell down at the doorway of the man’s house where her master was, until full daylight.

²⁷ When her master got up in the morning and opened the doors of the house and went out to go on his way, then behold, his concubine was lying at the doorway of the house with her hands on the threshold. ²⁸ And he said to her, “Get up and let’s go,” ^(BL)but there was no answer. Then he put her on the donkey; and the man set out and went to his ^[cg]home. ²⁹ When he entered his house, he took a knife and seized his concubine, and ^(BM)cut her in twelve pieces, limb by limb. Then he sent her throughout the territory of Israel. ³⁰ All who saw it said, “Nothing like this has ever happened or been seen from the day when the sons of Israel came up from the land of Egypt to this day. Consider it, ^[ch](BN)make a plan, and speak up!”

Resolve to Punish the Guilty

20 Then all the sons of Israel from Dan to Beersheba, including the land of Gilead, came out, and the congregation assembled as one person to the Lord at ^(BO)Mizpah. ² And the ^[ci]leaders of all the people, all the tribes of Israel, took their stand in the assembly of the people of God, four hundred thousand foot ^[cj]soldiers ^(BP)who drew the sword. ³ (Now the sons of Benjamin heard that the sons of Israel had gone up to Mizpah.) And the sons of Israel said, “Tell us, how did this wickedness take place?” ⁴ So the Levite, the husband of the woman who was murdered, answered and said, “I came with my concubine to spend the night at Gibeah which belongs to Benjamin. ⁵ But the ^[ck](BQ)citizens of Gibeah rose up against me and surrounded the house at night, ^[cl]threatening me. They intended to kill me; instead, they ^(BR)raped my concubine so that she died. ⁶ And I ^(BS)took hold of my concubine and cut her in pieces, and sent her throughout the land of Israel’s inheritance; for ^(BT)they have committed an outrageous sin and vile act in Israel. ⁷ Behold, all you sons of Israel, ^(BU)give your ^[cm]response and advice here.”

⁸ Then all the people rose up as one person, saying, “Not one of us will go to his tent, nor will any of us go home. ⁹ But now this is the thing which we will do to Gibeah; we will go up against it by lot. ¹⁰ And we will take ten men out of a hundred throughout the tribes of Israel, and a hundred out of a thousand, and a thousand out of ten thousand to ^[cn]supply provisions for the people, so that when they come to ^[co]Gibeah of Benjamin, they may ^[cp]punish them for all the vile sin that they have committed in Israel.” ¹¹ So all the men of Israel were gathered against the city, ^[cq]united as one man.

¹² Then the tribes of Israel sent men through the entire ^[cr]tribe of Benjamin, saying, “What is this wickedness that has taken place among you? ¹³ Now then, turn over the men, the ^[cs](BV)worthless men who are in Gibeah, so that we may put them to death and ^(BW)remove this wickedness from Israel.” But the sons of Benjamin would not listen to the voice of their brothers, the sons of Israel. ¹⁴ Instead, the sons of Benjamin gathered from the cities to Gibeah, to go out to battle against the sons of Israel. ¹⁵ From the cities on that day the ^(BX)sons of Benjamin were ^[ct]counted, twenty-six thousand men who drew the sword, besides the inhabitants of Gibeah who were ^[cu]counted, seven hundred choice men. ¹⁶ Out of all these people seven hundred ^(BY)choice men were left-handed; each one could sling a stone at a hair and not miss.

¹⁷ Then the men of Israel besides Benjamin were ^[cv]counted, four hundred thousand men who drew the sword; all of these were men of war.

Civil War, Benjamin Defeated

¹⁸ Now the sons of Israel set out, went up to Bethel, and ^(BZ)inquired of God and said, “Who shall go up first for us to battle against the sons of Benjamin?” Then the Lord said, “Judah shall go up first.”

¹⁹ So the sons of Israel got up in the morning and camped against Gibeah. ²⁰ The men of Israel went to battle against Benjamin, and the men of Israel lined up for battle against them at Gibeah. ²¹ Then the sons of Benjamin came out of Gibeah and ^[cw](CA)struck to the ground on that day twenty-two thousand men of Israel. ²² But the people, the men of Israel, showed themselves courageous and lined up for battle again in the place where they had lined themselves up on the first day. ²³ And ^(CB)the sons of Israel went up and wept before the Lord until evening, and ^(CC)inquired of the Lord, saying, “Shall we again advance for battle against the sons of my brother Benjamin?” And the Lord said, “Go up against him.”

²⁴ So the sons of Israel ^[cx]came against the sons of Benjamin on the second day. ²⁵ And Benjamin went out against them from Gibeah the second day and struck to the ground again eighteen thousand men of the sons of Israel; all of these drew the sword. ²⁶ Then ^(CD)all the sons of Israel and all the people went up and came to Bethel, and they wept and remained there before the Lord, and fasted that day until evening. And they offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before the Lord. ²⁷ And the sons of Israel ^(CE)inquired of the Lord (for the ark of the covenant of God was there in those days, ²⁸ and Phinehas the son of Eleazar, Aaron’s son, stood before it to minister in those days), saying, “Shall I yet again go out to battle against the sons of my brother Benjamin, or shall I stop?” And the Lord said, “Go up, ^(CF)for tomorrow I will hand them over to you.”

^29 (CG)So Israel set men in ambush around Gibeah. ³⁰ And the sons of Israel went up against the sons of Benjamin on the third day and lined up against Gibeah as at other times. ^31 (CH)When the sons of Benjamin went out against the people, they were lured away from the city, and they began to strike and kill some of the people as at other times, on the roads (one of which goes up to Bethel, and the other to Gibeah), and in the field, about thirty men of Israel. ³² And the sons of Benjamin said, “They are defeated before us, like the first time.” But the sons of Israel said, “Let’s flee, so that we may draw them away from the city to the roads.” ³³ Then all the men of Israel rose from their place and lined up at Baal-tamar; ^(CI)and the men of Israel in ambush charged from their place, from Maareh-geba. ³⁴ When ten thousand choice men from all Israel came against Gibeah, the battle became ^[cy]fierce; ^(CJ)but ^[cz]Benjamin did not know that disaster was ^[da]close to them. ³⁵ And the Lord struck Benjamin before Israel, so that the sons of Israel destroyed 25,100 men of Benjamin that ^[db]day, all who drew the sword.

³⁶ So the sons of Benjamin saw that they were ^[dc]defeated. ^(CK)When the men of Israel gave ^[dd]ground to Benjamin because they relied on the men in ambush whom they had set against Gibeah, ^37 (CL)the men in ambush hurried and rushed against Gibeah; the men in ambush also deployed and struck all the city with the edge of the sword. ³⁸ Now the agreed sign between the men of Israel and the men in ambush was ^(CM)that they would make a great cloud of smoke rise from the city. ³⁹ Then the men of Israel turned in the battle, and Benjamin began to strike and kill about thirty men of Israel, ^(CN)for they said, “Undoubtedly they are ^[de]defeated before us, as in the first battle.” ⁴⁰ But when the cloud began to rise from the city in a column of smoke, Benjamin looked ^(CO)behind them; and behold, the entire city was going up in smoke to heaven. ⁴¹ Then the men of Israel turned, and the men of Benjamin were terrified; for they saw that ^(CP)disaster was ^[df]close to them. ⁴² Therefore, they turned their backs before the men of Israel to flee in the ^(CQ)direction of the wilderness, but the battle overtook them while those who attacked from the cities were annihilating them in the midst of them. ^43 (CR)They surrounded Benjamin, pursued them without rest, and trampled them down opposite Gibeah toward the ^[dg]east. ⁴⁴ So eighteen thousand men of Benjamin fell; all of these were valiant men. ^45 [dh]The rest turned and fled toward the wilderness to the rock of ^(CS)Rimmon, but they ^[di]caught five thousand of them on the roads and overtook them ^[dj]at Gidom, and ^[dk]killed two thousand of them. ⁴⁶ So all those of Benjamin who fell that day were twenty-five thousand men who drew the sword; all of these were valiant men. ⁴⁷ But six hundred men turned and fled toward the wilderness to the rock of Rimmon; and they remained at the rock of Rimmon for four months. ⁴⁸ The men of Israel then turned back against the sons of Benjamin and struck them with the edge of the sword, both the entire city with the cattle and all that they found; they also set on fire all the cities which they found.

Mourning a Lost Tribe

21 Now the men of Israel ^(CT)had sworn in Mizpah, saying, “None of us shall give his daughter to Benjamin ^[dl]in marriage.” ^2 (CU)So the people came to Bethel and sat there before God until evening, and raised their voices and wept ^[dm]profusely. ³ And they said, “Why, Lord, God of Israel, has this happened in Israel, that one tribe is missing today from Israel?” ⁴ And it came about the next day that the people got up early and built ^(CV)an altar there, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings.

⁵ Then the sons of Israel said, “Who is there among all the tribes of Israel who did not go up to the Lord in the assembly?” For ^[dn]they had taken a solemn oath concerning anyone ^(CW)who did not go up to the Lord at Mizpah, saying, “He shall certainly be put to death.” ⁶ And the sons of Israel were sorry for their brother Benjamin, and said, “Today one tribe is cut off from Israel! ⁷ What are we to do for wives for those who are left, since we have ^(CX)sworn by the Lord not to give them any of our daughters as wives?”

Provision for Their Survival

⁸ And they said, “What one is there of the tribes of Israel that did not go up to the Lord at Mizpah?” And behold, no one had come to the camp from Jabesh-gilead to the assembly. ⁹ For when the people were ^[do]counted, behold, not one of the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead was there. ¹⁰ And the congregation sent twelve thousand ^[dp]of the valiant warriors there, and commanded them, saying, “Go and ^(CY)strike the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead with the edge of the sword, along with the women and the children. ¹¹ And this is the thing that you shall do: you ^(CZ)shall utterly destroy every male, and every woman who has ^[dq]slept with a male.” ¹² And they found among the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead four hundred young virgins who had not known a man by ^[dr]sleeping with him; and they brought them to the camp at Shiloh, which is in the land of Canaan.

¹³ Then the whole congregation sent word and spoke to the sons of Benjamin who were ^(DA)at the rock of Rimmon, and ^(DB)proclaimed peace to them. ¹⁴ And the tribe of Benjamin returned at that time, and they gave them the women whom they had allowed to live from the women of Jabesh-gilead; but they ^[ds]were not enough for them. ¹⁵ And the people were sorry for Benjamin, because the Lord had created a gap in the tribes of Israel.

¹⁶ Then the elders of the congregation said, “What are we to do for wives for those who are left, since the women have been eliminated from Benjamin?” ¹⁷ And they said, “There must be an inheritance for the survivors of Benjamin, so that a tribe will not be wiped out from Israel. ¹⁸ But we cannot give them wives from our daughters.” For the sons of Israel ^(DC)had sworn, saying, “Cursed is he who gives a wife to Benjamin!”

¹⁹ So they said, “Behold, there is a feast of the Lord from year to year in ^(DD)Shiloh, which is on the north side of Bethel, on the east side of the road that goes up from Bethel to Shechem, and on the south side of Lebonah.” ²⁰ And they commanded the sons of Benjamin, saying, “Go and lie in wait in the vineyards, ²¹ and watch; and behold, if the daughters of Shiloh come out to ^[dt](DE)take part in the dances, then you shall come out of the vineyards, and each of you shall seize his wife from the daughters of Shiloh, and go to the land of Benjamin. ²² And when their fathers or their brothers come to complain to us, we shall say to them, ‘^[du]Give them to us voluntarily, because we did not take for each man of Benjamin ^[dv]a wife in battle, ^[dw](DF)nor did you give them to them, ^[dx]otherwise you would now be guilty.’” ²³ The sons of Benjamin did so, and took wives according to their number from those who danced, whom they seized. And they went and returned to their inheritance, and ^(DG)rebuilt the cities and lived in them. ²⁴ And the sons of Israel departed from there at that time, every man to his tribe and family, and each one departed from there to his inheritance.

^25 (DH)In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes.

Naomi Widowed

1 Now it came about in the days ^(DI)when the judges ^[dy]governed, that there was ^(DJ)a famine in the land. And a man ^(DK)of Bethlehem in Judah went to reside in the land of Moab ^[dz]with his wife and his two sons. ² The name of the man was Elimelech, and the name of his wife, Naomi; and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Chilion, Ephrathites of Bethlehem in Judah. So they ^(DL)entered the land of Moab and remained there. ³ Then Elimelech, Naomi’s husband, died; and she was left with her two sons. ⁴ And they took for themselves Moabite women as wives; the name of the one was Orpah, and the name of the other, Ruth. And they lived there about ten years. ⁵ Then ^[ea]both Mahlon and Chilion also died, and the woman was left without her two sons and her husband.

⁶ Then she arose with her daughters-in-law to return from the land of Moab, because she had heard in the land of Moab that the Lord had ^(DM)visited His people by ^(DN)giving them food. ⁷ So she departed from the place where she was, and her two daughters-in-law with her; and they went on the way to return to the land of Judah. ⁸ But Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, “Go, return each of you to ^[eb]your mother’s house. ^(DO)May the Lord deal kindly with you as you have dealt with the dead and with me. ⁹ May the Lord grant that you may find a place of rest, each one in the house of her husband.” Then she kissed them, and they raised their voices and wept. ¹⁰ However, they said to her, “No, but we will return with you to your people.” ¹¹ But Naomi said, “Return, my daughters. Why should you go with me? Do I still have sons in my womb, that ^(DP)they may be your husbands? ¹² Return, my daughters! Go, for I am too old to have a husband. If I said I have hope, if I were even to have a husband tonight and also give birth to sons, ¹³ would you therefore wait until they were grown? Would you therefore refrain from marrying? No, my daughters; for it is much more bitter for me than for you, because ^(DQ)the hand of the Lord has come out against me.”

Ruth’s Loyalty

¹⁴ And they raised their voices and wept again; and Orpah kissed her mother-in-law, but Ruth clung to her.

¹⁵ Then she said, “Behold, your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and her ^(DR)gods; return after your sister-in-law.” ¹⁶ But Ruth said, “Do not plead with me to leave you or to turn back from following you; for where you go, I will go, and where you sleep, I will sleep. Your people shall be my people, and your God, my God. ¹⁷ Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. May ^(DS)the Lord do so to me, and worse, if anything but death separates ^[ec]me from you.” ¹⁸ When ^(DT)she saw that she was determined to go with her, she stopped speaking to her about it.

¹⁹ So they both went on until they came to Bethlehem. And when they had come to Bethlehem, ^(DU)all the city was stirred because of them, and ^[ed]the women said, “Is this Naomi?” ²⁰ But she said to them, “Do not call me ^[ee]Naomi; call me ^[ef]Mara, for ^[eg](DV)the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me. ²¹ I went away full, but ^(DW)the Lord has brought me back empty. Why do you call me Naomi, since the Lord has testified against me and ^[eh]the Almighty has afflicted me?”

²² So Naomi returned, and with her Ruth the Moabitess, her daughter-in-law, who returned from the land of Moab. And they came to Bethlehem at ^(DX)the beginning of barley harvest.

Ruth Gleans in Boaz’s Field

2 Now Naomi had ^[ei]a relative of her husband, a ^[ej]man of great wealth, of the family of ^(DY)Elimelech, whose name was Boaz. ² And Ruth the Moabitess said to Naomi, “Please let me go to the field and ^(DZ)glean among the ears of grain following one in whose eyes I may find favor.” And she said to her, “Go, my daughter.” ³ So she left and went and gleaned in the field after the reapers; and ^[ek]she happened to come to the portion of the field belonging to Boaz, who was of the family of Elimelech. ⁴ Now behold, Boaz came from Bethlehem and said to the reapers, “^(EA)May the Lord be with you.” And they said to him, “May the Lord bless you.” ⁵ Then Boaz said to his servant who was ^[el]in charge of the reapers, “Whose young woman is this?” ⁶ And the servant ^[em]in charge of the reapers replied, “She is the young Moabite woman who returned with Naomi from the land of Moab. ⁷ And she said, ‘Please let me glean and gather after the reapers among the sheaves.’ So she came and has remained from the morning until now; she has been sitting in the house for a little while.”

⁸ Then Boaz said to Ruth, “^[en]Listen carefully, my daughter. Do not go to glean in another field; furthermore, do not go on from this one, but join my young women here. ⁹ Keep your eyes on the field which they reap, and go after them. Indeed, I have ordered the servants not to touch you. When you are thirsty, go to the ^[eo]water jars and drink from what the servants draw.” ¹⁰ Then she ^(EB)fell on her face, bowing to the ground, and said to him, “Why have I found favor in your sight that you should take notice of me, since I am a foreigner?” ¹¹ Boaz replied to her, “All that you have done for your mother-in-law after the death of your husband has been fully reported to me, and how you left your father and your mother and the land of your birth, and came to a people that you did not previously know. ^12 (EC)May the Lord reward your ^[ep]work, and may your wages be full from the Lord, the God of Israel, ^(ED)under whose wings you have come to take refuge.” ¹³ Then she said, “I have found favor in your sight, my lord, for you have comforted me and indeed have spoken ^[eq]kindly to your servant, though I am not like one of your female servants.”

¹⁴ And at mealtime Boaz said to her, “^[er]Come here, that you may eat of the bread and dip your piece of bread in the vinegar.” So she sat beside the reapers; and he served her roasted grain, and she ate and was satisfied ^(EE)and had some left. ¹⁵ When she got up to glean, Boaz commanded his servants, saying, “Let her glean even among the sheaves, and do not ^[es]insult her. ¹⁶ Also you are to purposely slip out for her some grain from the bundles and leave it so that she may glean, and do not rebuke her.”

¹⁷ So she gleaned in the field until evening. Then she beat out what she had gleaned, and it was about an ^[et]ephah of barley. ¹⁸ And she picked it up and went into the city, and her mother-in-law saw what she had gleaned. She also took some out and ^(EF)gave ^[eu]Naomi what she had left after ^[ev]she was satisfied. ¹⁹ Her mother-in-law then said to her, “Where did you glean today and where did you work? May he who ^(EG)took notice of you be blessed.” So she told her mother-in-law with whom she had worked, and said, “The name of the man with whom I worked today is Boaz.” ²⁰ Naomi said to her daughter-in-law, “^(EH)May he be blessed of the Lord who has not withdrawn His kindness from the living and from the dead.” Again Naomi said to her, “The man is our relative; he is one of our ^(EI)redeemers.” ²¹ Then Ruth the Moabitess said, “^[ew]Furthermore, he said to me, ‘You are to stay close to my servants until they have finished all my harvest.’” ²² And Naomi said to her daughter-in-law Ruth, “It is good, my daughter, that you go out with his young women, so that others do not assault you in another field.” ²³ So she stayed close by the young women of Boaz in order to glean until ^(EJ)the end of the barley harvest and the wheat harvest. And she lived with her mother-in-law.

Boaz Will Redeem Ruth

3 Then her mother-in-law Naomi said to her, “My daughter, shall I not seek ^[ex]security for you, that it may go well for you? ² Now then, is Boaz not ^(EK)our relative, with whose young women you were? Behold, he is winnowing barley at the threshing floor tonight. ³ Wash yourself therefore, and anoint yourself, and put on your best clothes, and go down to the threshing floor; but do not reveal yourself to the man until he has finished eating and drinking. ⁴ And it shall be when he lies down, that you shall ^[ey]take notice of the place where he lies, and you shall go and uncover his feet and lie down; then he will tell you what you should do.” ⁵ And she said to her, “^(EL)All that you say I will do.”

⁶ So she went down to the threshing floor and did according to all that her mother-in-law had commanded her. ⁷ When Boaz had eaten and drunk and ^(EM)his heart was cheerful, he went to lie down at the end of the heap of grain; and she came secretly, and uncovered his feet and lay down. ⁸ And it happened in the middle of the night that the man was startled and ^[ez]bent forward; and behold, a woman was lying at his feet. ⁹ So he said, “Who are you?” And she answered, “I am Ruth your slave. Now spread your garment over your slave, for you are a redeemer.” ¹⁰ Then he said, “^(EN)May you be blessed of the Lord, my daughter. You have shown your last kindness to be better than the first, by not going after young men, whether poor or rich. ¹¹ So now, my daughter, do not fear. I will do for you whatever you say, for all ^[fa]my people in the city know that you are ^(EO)a woman of excellence. ¹² But now, although it is true that I am a redeemer, yet there is also a redeemer more closely related than I. ¹³ Remain this night, and when morning comes, ^(EP)if he will ^[fb]redeem you, good; let him redeem you. But if he does not wish to ^[fc]redeem you, then I will redeem you, ^(EQ)as the Lord lives. Lie down until morning.”

¹⁴ So she lay at his feet until morning, and got up before one person could recognize another; and he said, “^(ER)Do not let it be known that the woman came to the threshing floor.” ¹⁵ Again he said, “Give me the shawl that is on you and hold it.” So she held it, and he measured six measures of barley and laid it on her. Then ^[fd]she went into the city. ¹⁶ When she came to her mother-in-law, she said, “^[fe]How did it go, my daughter?” And she told her all that the man had done for her. ¹⁷ She also said, “These six measures of barley he gave to me, for he said, ‘Do not go to your mother-in-law empty-handed.’” ¹⁸ Then she said, “Wait, my daughter, until you know how the matter ^[ff]turns out; for the man will not rest until he has ^[fg]settled it today.”

The Marriage of Ruth

4 Now Boaz went up to the gate and sat down there, and behold, ^(ES)the redeemer of whom Boaz spoke was passing by, so he said, “Come over here, ^[fh]friend, sit down here.” And he came over and sat down. ² Then he took ten men of the ^(ET)elders of the city and said, “Sit down here.” So they sat down. ³ And he said to the redeemer, “Naomi, who has returned from the land of Moab, has to sell the plot of land ^(EU)which belonged to our brother Elimelech. ⁴ So I thought that I would ^[fi]inform you, saying, ‘^(EV)Buy it before those who are sitting here, and before the elders of my people. If you will redeem it, redeem it; but if ^[fj]not, tell me so that I may know; for ^(EW)there is no one except you to redeem it, and I am after you.’” And he said, “I will redeem it.” ⁵ Then Boaz said, “On the day you buy the field from the hand of Naomi, you must also acquire Ruth the Moabitess, the widow of the deceased, in order ^(EX)to raise up the name of the deceased on his inheritance.” ⁶ Then ^(EY)the redeemer said, “I cannot redeem it for myself, otherwise I would ^[fk]jeopardize my own inheritance. Redeem it for yourself; you may have my right of redemption, since I cannot redeem it.”

⁷ Now this was ^(EZ)the custom in former times in Israel concerning the redemption and the exchange of land to confirm any matter: a man removed his sandal and gave it to another; and this was the way of confirmation in Israel. ⁸ So the redeemer said to Boaz, “Buy it for yourself.” And he removed his sandal. ⁹ Then Boaz said to the elders and all the people, “You are witnesses today that I have bought from the hand of Naomi all that belonged to Elimelech and all that belonged to Chilion and Mahlon. ¹⁰ Furthermore, I have acquired Ruth the Moabitess, the widow of Mahlon, to be my wife in order to raise up the name of the deceased on his inheritance, so ^(FA)that the name of the deceased will not be eliminated from his brothers or from the ^[fl]court of his birth place; you are witnesses today.” ¹¹ And all the people who were ^[fm]in the court, and the elders, said, “We are witnesses. May the Lord make the woman who is coming into your home ^(FB)like Rachel and Leah, both of whom built the house of Israel; and may you achieve ^[fn]wealth in Ephrathah and ^[fo]become famous in Bethlehem. ¹² Moreover, may your house be like the house of ^(FC)Perez whom Tamar bore to Judah, through the ^[fp]descendants whom the Lord will give you by this young woman.”

¹³ So Boaz took Ruth, and she became his wife, and he had relations with her. And ^(FD)the Lord ^[fq]enabled her to conceive, and she gave birth to a son. ¹⁴ Then the ^(FE)women said to Naomi, “Blessed is the Lord who has not left you without a redeemer today, and may his name ^[fr]become famous in Israel. ¹⁵ May he also be to you one who restores life and sustains your old age; for your daughter-in-law, who loves you ^[fs](FF)and is better to you than seven sons, has given birth to him.”

The Line of David

¹⁶ Then Naomi took the child and ^[ft]laid him in her lap, and became his nurse. ¹⁷ And the neighbor women gave him a name, saying, “A son has been born to Naomi!” So they named him Obed. He is the father of Jesse, the father of David.

¹⁸ Now these are the generations of Perez: ^(FG)Perez fathered Hezron, ¹⁹ Hezron fathered Ram, and Ram fathered Amminadab, ²⁰ and Amminadab fathered Nahshon, and Nahshon fathered Salmon, ²¹ and Salmon fathered Boaz, and Boaz fathered Obed, ²² and Obed fathered Jesse, and Jesse fathered David.

Elkanah and His Wives

1 Now there was a man from ^(FH)Ramathaim-zophim from the ^(FI)hill country of Ephraim, and his name was ^(FJ)Elkanah the son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the son of Zuph, an Ephraimite. ² And he had ^(FK)two wives: the name of one was ^(FL)Hannah and the name of the ^[fu]other Peninnah; and Peninnah had children, but Hannah had no children.

³ Now this man would go up from his city ^(FM)yearly ^(FN)to worship and to sacrifice to the Lord of armies in ^(FO)Shiloh. And the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were priests to the Lord there. ⁴ When the day came that Elkanah sacrificed, he ^(FP)would give portions to his wife Peninnah and to all her sons and daughters; ⁵ but to Hannah he would give a double portion, because he loved Hannah, ^(FQ)but the Lord had closed her womb. ⁶ Her rival, moreover, ^(FR)would provoke her bitterly to irritate her, because the Lord had closed her womb. ⁷ And it happened year after year, as often as she went up to the house of the Lord, that she would provoke her; so she wept and would not eat. ⁸ Then Elkanah her husband would say to her, “Hannah, why do you weep, and why do you not eat, and why is your heart sad? ^(FS)Am I not better to you than ten sons?”

⁹ Then Hannah got up after eating and drinking in Shiloh. Now Eli the priest was sitting on the seat by the doorpost of ^(FT)the ^[fv]temple of the Lord. ¹⁰ She, ^[fw]greatly distressed, prayed to the Lord and wept bitterly. ¹¹ And she ^(FU)made a vow and said, “Lord of armies, if You will indeed ^(FV)look on the affliction of Your bond-servant and remember me, and not forget Your bond-servant, but will give Your bond-servant a ^[fx]son, then I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life, and ^(FW)a razor shall never come on his head.”

¹² Now it came about, as she ^[fy]continued praying before the Lord, that Eli was watching her mouth. ¹³ As for Hannah, ^(FX)she was speaking in her heart, only her lips were quivering, but her voice was not heard. So Eli thought that she was drunk. ¹⁴ Then Eli said to her, “^(FY)How long will you behave like a drunk? Get rid of your wine!” ¹⁵ But Hannah answered and said, “No, my lord, I am a woman ^[fz]despairing in spirit; I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but I ^(FZ)have poured out my soul before the Lord. ¹⁶ Do not ^[ga]consider your bond-servant a useless woman, for I have spoken until now out of my great concern and provocation.” ¹⁷ Then Eli answered and said, “^(GA)Go in peace; and may the God of Israel ^(GB)grant your request that you have asked of Him.” ¹⁸ She said, “^(GC)Let your bond-servant find favor in your sight.” So the woman went on her way and ate, and ^(GD)her face was no longer sad.

Samuel Is Born to Hannah

¹⁹ Then they got up early in the morning and worshiped before the Lord, and returned again to their house in ^(GE)Ramah. And Elkanah ^[gb]had relations with Hannah his wife, and ^(GF)the Lord remembered her. ²⁰ It came about ^[gc]in due time, after Hannah had conceived, that she gave birth to a son; and she named him Samuel, saying, “^(GG)Because I have asked for him of the Lord.”

²¹ Then the man Elkanah ^(GH)went up with all his household to offer to the Lord the yearly sacrifice and to pay his vow. ²² But Hannah did not go up, for she said to her husband, “I will not go until the child is weaned; then I will ^(GI)bring him, so that he may appear before the Lord and ^(GJ)stay there for life.” ^23 (GK)Elkanah her husband said to her, “Do ^[gd]what seems best to you. Stay until you have weaned him; only ^(GL)may the Lord confirm His word.” So the woman stayed and nursed her son until she weaned him. ²⁴ Now when she had weaned him, ^(GM)she took him up with her, with a three-year-old bull, one ephah of flour, and a jug of wine, and brought him to ^(GN)the house of the Lord in Shiloh, although the child was young. ²⁵ Then ^(GO)they ^[ge]slaughtered the bull, and ^(GP)brought the boy to Eli. ²⁶ And she said, “Pardon me, my lord! ^(GQ)As your soul lives, my lord, I am the woman who stood here beside you, praying to the Lord. ^27 (GR)For this boy I prayed, and the Lord has granted me my request which I asked of Him. ^28 (GS)So I have also ^[gf]dedicated him to the Lord; as long as he lives he is ^[gg]dedicated to the Lord.” And ^(GT)he worshiped the Lord there.

Hannah’s Song of Thanksgiving

2 Then Hannah ^(GU)prayed and said,

¹¹ Then Elkanah went to his home at ^(HX)Ramah. ^(HY)But the boy continued to attend to the service of the Lord before Eli the priest.

The Sin of Eli’s Sons

¹² Now the sons of Eli were ^[gn](HZ)useless men; they did not know the Lord. ^13 (IA)And this was the custom of the priests with the people: when anyone was offering a sacrifice, the priest’s servant would come while the meat was cooking, with a three-pronged fork in his hand. ¹⁴ And he would thrust it into the pan, or kettle, or caldron, or pot; everything that the fork brought up, the priest would take for himself. They did so in Shiloh to all the Israelites who came there. ¹⁵ Also, before ^(IB)they ^[go]burned the fat, the priest’s servant would come and say to the man who was sacrificing, “Give the priest meat for roasting, as he will not take cooked meat from you, only raw.” ¹⁶ And if the man said to him, “They must ^[gp]burn the fat ^[gq]first, then take as much as ^[gr]you desire,” then he would say, “No, but you must give it to me now; and if not, I am taking it by force!” ¹⁷ And so the sin of the young men was very great before the Lord, for the men ^(IC)treated the offering of the Lord disrespectfully.

Samuel before the Lord as a Boy

¹⁸ Now ^(ID)Samuel was ministering before the Lord, as a boy ^(IE)wearing a linen ephod. ¹⁹ And his mother would make for him a little ^(IF)robe and bring it up to him from year to year when she would come up with her husband to offer ^(IG)the yearly sacrifice. ²⁰ Then Eli would ^(IH)bless Elkanah and his wife, and say, “May the Lord give you ^[gs]children from this woman in place of the ^[gt]one she ^(II)requested of the Lord.” And they went to their own ^[gu]home.

^21 [gv](IJ)The Lord indeed visited Hannah, and she conceived and gave birth to three sons and two daughters. And ^(IK)the boy Samuel grew up ^[gw]before the Lord.

Eli Rebukes His Sons

²² Now Eli was very old; and he heard about ^(IL)everything that his sons were doing to all Israel, and that they slept with ^(IM)the women who served at the doorway of the tent of meeting. ²³ So he said to them, “Why are you doing such things as these, the evil things that I hear from all these people? ²⁴ No, my sons; for the report is not good ^(IN)which I hear the Lord’s people circulating. ²⁵ If one person sins against another, ^(IO)God will mediate for him; but ^(IP)if a person sins against the Lord, who can intercede for him?” But they would not listen to the voice of their father, for the ^(IQ)Lord desired to put them to death.

²⁶ Now the boy ^(IR)Samuel was continuing to grow and to be in favor both with the Lord and with people.

²⁷ Then ^(IS)a man of God came to Eli and said to him, “This is what the Lord says: ‘^(IT)Did I not indeed reveal Myself to the house of your father when they were in Egypt in bondage to Pharaoh’s house? ^28 (IU)Did I not choose them from all the tribes of Israel to be My priests, to go up to My altar, to burn incense, to carry an ephod before Me? And did I not ^(IV)give to the house of your father all the fire offerings of the sons of Israel? ²⁹ Why are you ^[gx](IW)showing contempt for My sacrifice and My offering ^(IX)which I have commanded for My ^(IY)dwelling, and why are you ^(IZ)honoring your sons above Me, by making yourselves fat with the ^[gy]choicest of every offering of My people Israel?’