Old/New Testament
The Birth of Samuel
1 A certain man lived in Ramathaim-zophim, which is in the hill country of Ephraim. He was Jeroham’s son Elkanah, the grandson of Elihu and grandson of Tohu, who was the son of Zuph, an Ephraimite. 2 He had two wives; the name of one was Hannah and the name of the other was Peninnah. Peninnah had children, but Hannah had no children. 3 That man would go up from his town each year to worship and sacrifice to the Lord of the Heavenly Armies at Shiloh, where Eli’s two sons Hophni and Phineas served as priests of the Lord. 4 On the day when Elkanah offered sacrifices, he would give portions to his wife Peninnah and to all her sons and daughters, 5 but he would give twice as much to Hannah because he loved her.
Now the Lord had closed her womb. 6 Her rival would provoke her severely so that she complained loudly[a] because the Lord had closed her womb. 7 Elkanah[b] would do this year after year, as often as Hannah[c] went up to the house of the Lord. Likewise, Peninnah[d] would provoke her, and Hannah[e] would cry and would not eat. 8 Elkanah her husband told her, “Hannah, why are you crying and why don’t you eat? Why are you upset?[f] Am I not better to you than ten sons?”
9 Hannah got up after she had finished eating and drinking in Shiloh. Now Eli the priest was sitting on the chair by the doorpost of the tent[g] of the Lord. 10 Deeply distressed, she prayed to the Lord and wept bitterly. 11 Hannah[h] made a vow: “Lord of the Heavenly Armies, if you just look at the misery of your maid servant, remember me, and don’t forget your maid servant. If you give your maid servant a son,[i] then I’ll give him to the Lord[j] for all the days of his life,[k] and a razor is never to touch[l] his head.”
12 As she continued to pray in the Lord’s presence, Eli was watching her mouth. 13 Hannah[m] was praying inwardly.[n] Her lips were quivering, and her voice could not be heard. So Eli thought she was drunk. 14 Eli told her, “How long will you stay drunk? Put away your wine!”
15 “No, sir!”[o] Hannah replied. “I’m a deeply troubled[p] woman. I’ve drunk neither wine nor beer. I’ve been pouring out my soul in the Lord’s presence. 16 Don’t consider your maid servant a worthless woman. Rather, all this time I’ve been speaking because I’m very anxious and distressed.”
17 “Go in peace,” Eli answered. “May the God of Israel grant the request you have asked of him.”
18 She said, “Let your servant[q] find favor in your eyes.” Then she[r] went on her way and ate, and her face was no longer sad.[s]
19 They got up early the next morning and worshipped in the Lord’s presence, and then they returned and came to their house at Ramah. Elkanah had marital relations with[t] his wife Hannah, and the Lord remembered her. 20 By the time of the next year’s sacrifice,[u] Hannah had become pregnant and had borne a son. She named him Samuel[v] because she said,[w] “I asked the Lord for him.”
Hannah Dedicates Samuel to the Lord
21 Then Elkanah went up with all his family to offer the yearly sacrifice to the Lord and pay his vow. 22 Hannah did not go up because she had told her husband, “As soon as the child is weaned, I’ll take him to appear in the Lord’s presence and remain there[x] forever.”[y]
23 “Do what you want,”[z] Elkanah told her. “Stay until you have weaned him, only may the Lord bring about what you’ve said.”[aa] So Hannah[ab] stayed and nursed her son until she had weaned him. 24 Then, when she had weaned him, she brought him[ac] up with her to Shiloh,[ad] along with a three-year-old bull,[ae] an ephah[af] of flour, and a skin of wine. She brought him to the house of the Lord at Shiloh, and the boy[ag] was young.[ah] 25 They slaughtered the bull and brought the boy[ai] to Eli.
26 Hannah[aj] said, “Sir,[ak] as surely as you are alive, I’m the woman who stood before you here praying to the Lord. 27 I prayed for this boy, and the Lord granted me the request I asked of him. 28 Now[al] I’m dedicating[am] him to the Lord, and as long as he lives,[an] he will be dedicated[ao] to the Lord.” Then they worshipped[ap] the Lord there.
Hannah’s Thanksgiving Psalm
2 Then Hannah prayed:
“My heart exults in the Lord;
my strength[aq] is increased by the Lord.
I will open my mouth to speak[ar] against my enemies,
because I rejoice in your deliverance.
2 Indeed,[as] there is no one holy like the Lord,
indeed, there is no one besides you,
there is no rock like our God.
3 Don’t continue to talk proudly,
and don’t speak arrogantly,
for the Lord is a God of knowledge,
and by him actions are weighed.
4 The bows of warriors are shattered,[at]
but those who stumble are equipped with[au] strength.
5 Those who had an abundance of bread
now hire themselves out,
and those who were hungry
hunger no more.[av]
While the barren woman gives birth to seven children,[aw]
she who had many children languishes.
6 The Lord kills and gives life,
he brings people down to where the dead are[ax]
and he raises them up.
7 The Lord makes people poor
and he makes people rich,
he brings them low,
and he also exalts them.
8 He raises the poor up from the dust,
he lifts up the needy from the trash heap
to make them sit with princes
and inherit a seat of honor.
Indeed the pillars of the earth belong to the Lord,
and he has set the world on them.
9 He guards the steps[ay] of his faithful ones,
while the wicked are made silent[az] in darkness.
He grants the request of the one who prays.[ba]
He blesses the year of the righteous.[bb]
Indeed it’s not by strength that a person prevails.
10 The Lord will shatter his enemies[bc]
—those who contend against him.
Who is holy?[bd]
The one who will thunder[be] against them in the heavens.
The Lord will judge the ends of the earth,
he will give strength to his king,
and he will increase the strength of His anointed one.”
11 Then Elkanah went to his house at Ramah, while the boy was ministering to the Lord in the presence of Eli the priest.
Eli’s Wicked Sons
12 Now the sons of Eli were worthless men who did not know the Lord. 13 The custom of the priests with the people was that whenever a person offered a sacrifice, a servant[bf] of the priest would come with a three pronged fork in his hand while the meat was boiling, and[bg] 14 he would stick it into the boiler or pot,[bh] and take everything[bi] the fork brought up—that is, the priest would take it for himself. This is what they were supposed to do with all the Israelis who came there to Shiloh. 15 But even before they burned the fat, the servant of the priest would come and say to the person offering the sacrifice, “Give me meat to roast for the priest. He won’t accept boiled meat from you, but only raw.”
16 If the man told him[bj], “They must surely[bk] burn up the fat first, and then take for yourself whatever[bl] you desire,” the servant would say, “No,[bm] give it now, and if you don’t,[bn] I’ll take it by force!”[bo] 17 By doing this, the sin of the young men was very serious in the Lord’s sight because the men[bp] despised the Lord’s offering.
Samuel at Shiloh
18 Now Samuel was ministering in the Lord’s presence, as a boy wearing a linen ephod.[bq] 19 His mother would make a small robe for him, and she would bring it each year when she went up with her husband to offer the yearly sacrifice. 20 Then Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife and say,[br] “May the Lord give[bs] you descendants[bt] from this woman in place of the one she dedicated[bu] to the Lord.” Then they would return to their[bv] home.[bw]
21 The Lord took note of Hannah,[bx] and she became pregnant and gave birth to[by] three sons and two daughters. Meanwhile, the boy Samuel continued to grow,[bz] and the Lord was constantly[ca] with him.
Judgment against Eli’s Sons
22 Now Eli was very[cb] old, and he had heard everything that[cc] his sons were doing[cd] to the Israelis,[ce] and how they lay with the women who were serving regularly[cf] at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. 23 “Why are you doing these things that I’m hearing about?” he asked his sons,[cg] “These reports about your evil deeds are coming from all these[ch] people! 24 No, my sons, I’m not hearing good news being circulated by the Lord’s people. 25 If a person sins[ci] against another, God[cj] will mediate for him,[ck] but if a person sins against the Lord, who can intercede for him?”
But they would not follow the advice of[cl] their father; for the Lord wanted to put them to death. 26 But the boy Samuel continued to grow both physically and in favor with the Lord and the people.
27 A man of God came to Eli, saying to him,[cm] “This is what the Lord says: ‘When they were in Egypt and slaves[cn] to the house of Pharaoh, did I not reveal[co] to the family of your ancestor Aaron[cp] 28 that I had chosen him[cq] out of all the tribes of Israel to be my priest, to offer up burnt offerings on my altar, burn incense, and carry[cr] the ephod in my presence? And did I not give to your ancestors’ family all the Israeli fire-offerings? 29 Why, then, do all of you show contempt for[cs] my sacrifice and offering that I’ve commanded for my[ct] dwelling? And you honor your sons more than me in order to fatten yourselves[cu] from the best of all the offerings of my people Israel.’[cv]
30 “Therefore, the Lord God of Israel has declared, ‘I did, in fact, say[cw] that your family and your ancestor’s family would walk before me forever,’ but now the Lord declares, ‘Far be it from me! The one who honors me I’ll honor, and the one who despises me is to be treated with contempt. 31 The time is coming when I’ll cut away[cx] at your family[cy] and your ancestor’s family[cz] until there are no old men left in your family. 32 Distress will settle down to live in your household, and despite all the good that I do for Israel,[da] there will never be an old man in your family forever, and you will never again have an old man in my house.[db] 33 Any of you whom I don’t eliminate from serving at my altar will grow tired from weeping,[dc] and their[dd] souls will grieve. All the increase of your family will die by violence.[de] 34 Here’s a sign for you—your two sons Hophni and Phineas will both die on the same day! 35 And I’ll raise up for myself a faithful[df] priest who will do according to what is in my heart and according to my desire. I’ll build for him an enduring[dg] house and he will walk before my anointed one forever. 36 Anyone who remains in your family will come and prostrate themselves before him for a small wage[dh] or a loaf of bread and will say,[di] “Please put me in one of the priest’s offices so I can eat a piece of bread.”’”
The Lord Calls Samuel
3 Meanwhile the boy Samuel was serving the Lord before Eli. A word from the Lord was rare in those days, and visions were infrequent. 2 At that time Eli, whose vision was growing dim,[dj] was lying down in his bedroom.[dk] 3 The lamp of God had not yet been extinguished, and Samuel was lying down in the tent[dl] of the Lord where the Ark of God was. 4 The Lord called out to Samuel, who answered, “Here I am.”
5 He ran to Eli and said, “Here I am! You called me.”
“I didn’t call you,” Eli[dm] said. “Go back and lie down.” So he went and lay down.
6 Then the Lord again called out, “Samuel!”
So Samuel got up, went to Eli, and said, “Here I am! You called me.”
He said, “I didn’t call you, my son. Go back and lie down.” 7 Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord and had not yet had the word of the Lord revealed to him.
8 Then the Lord called out to Samuel again a third time, and he got up, went to Eli, and said, “Here I am! You called me.”
Then Eli understood that the Lord was calling the boy, 9 so Eli told Samuel, “Go lie down, and then if he calls you, answer, ‘Speak, Lord, because your servant is listening.’” Then Samuel[dn] went and lay down.
10 Later, the Lord came and stood there, calling out, “Samuel! Samuel!” as he had before.
Samuel said, “Speak, because your servant is listening.”
11 “Look,” the Lord told Samuel. “I’m about to do something[do] in Israel that will make both ears of anyone who hears it tingle. 12 I’ll fulfill every promise that I’ve spoken concerning Eli’s family, from beginning to end. 13 I’ve told him that I’m about to judge his family forever because of the iniquity that he knew about. His sons committed blasphemy[dp] and he did not rebuke them. 14 Therefore I’ve sworn concerning Eli’s family that the iniquity of his family is not to be atoned for by sacrifice or offering forever.”
Samuel Delivers God’s Message
15 Samuel lay down until morning and then opened the doors of the house of the Lord, but he[dq] was afraid to report the vision to Eli. 16 Then Eli called Samuel: “Samuel, my son.”
He said, “Here I am.”
17 Eli[dr] said, “What did the Lord[ds] say to you? Please don’t conceal anything[dt] from me. May God do this to you and even more[du] if you conceal from me one word of all that he spoke to you.” 18 So Samuel told him everything—he did not conceal anything[dv] from him. Eli[dw] said, “He is the Lord. May he do what seems good to him.”
19 As Samuel grew, the Lord was with him and did not let any of Samuel’s[dx] predictions fail.[dy] 20 All Israel from Dan to Beer-sheba knew that Samuel was confirmed as the Lord’s prophet. 21 The Lord continued to appear at Shiloh, because he[dz] revealed himself to Samuel at Shiloh by means of messages from[ea] the Lord.
Jesus Heals a Demon-Possessed Man(A)
26 They landed in the region of the Gerasenes,[a] which is just across the lake from Galilee. 27 When Jesus[b] stepped out on the shore, a man from the city met him. This man was controlled by[c] demons and had not worn clothes for a long time. He did not live in a house but in the tombs. 28 When he saw Jesus, he screamed, fell down in front of him, and cried out in a loud voice, “What do you want from me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg you not to torture me!” 29 because Jesus[d] was in the process of ordering the unclean spirit to come out of the man. On many occasions the unclean spirit[e] had seized the man,[f] and though he was kept under guard and bound with chains and shackles, he would break the chains and be driven by the demon into deserted places.
30 Jesus asked the man,[g] “What’s your name?”
He answered, “Legion,”[h] because many demons had gone into him. 31 Then the demons[i] began begging Jesus[j] not to order them to go into the bottomless pit.[k]
32 Now a large herd of pigs was grazing there on the hillside. So the demons[l] begged Jesus[m] to let them go into those pigs, and he consented to that. 33 Then the demons came out of the man and went into the pigs, and the herd rushed down a steep slope into the lake and drowned.
34 Now when those who had been taking care of the pigs saw what had happened, they ran away and reported it in the city and in the countryside. 35 So the people[n] went out to see what had happened. When they came to Jesus and found the man from whom the demons had gone out sitting at Jesus’ feet, dressed and in his right mind, they were frightened. 36 The people who had seen it told them how the demon-possessed man had been healed. 37 Then all the people from the region surrounding the Gerasenes[o] asked Jesus[p] to leave them, because they were terrified. So he got into a boat and started back.
38 Now the man from whom the demons had gone out kept begging Jesus[q] to let him go with him. But Jesus[r] sent him away, saying, 39 “Go home and tell what God has done for you.” So the man[s] left and kept proclaiming throughout the whole city how much Jesus had done for him.
Jesus Heals a Woman and Resurrects a Girl(B)
40 When Jesus came back, the crowd welcomed him, because everyone was expecting him. 41 Just then a synagogue leader by the name of Jairus arrived. He fell at Jesus’ feet and kept begging him to come to his home, 42 because his only living[t] daughter, who was about twelve years old, was dying. While Jesus[u] was on his way, the crowds continued to press in on him.
43 A woman was there[v] who had been suffering from chronic bleeding for twelve years. Although she had spent all she had on doctors,[w] no one could heal her. 44 She came up behind Jesus[x] and touched the tassel of his garment, and her bleeding stopped at once.
45 Jesus asked, “Who touched me?”
While everyone was denying it, Peter and those who were with him[y] said, “Master, the crowds are surrounding you and pressing in on you.”
46 Still Jesus said, “Somebody touched me, because I know that power has gone out of me.”
47 When the woman saw that she couldn’t hide, she came forward trembling. Bowing down in front of him, she explained in the presence of all the people why she had touched Jesus[z] and how she had been instantly healed. 48 Then he told her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace.”
49 While he was still speaking, someone came from the synagogue leader’s home[aa] and told him,[ab] “Your daughter is dead. Stop bothering the teacher anymore.”
50 But when Jesus heard this, he told the synagogue leader,[ac] “Stop being afraid! Just believe, and she will get well.”
51 When he arrived at the man’s[ad] house, he allowed no one to go in with him except Peter, John, James, and the young girl’s father and mother. 52 Now everyone was crying and wailing for her. But Jesus[ae] said, “Stop crying! She’s not dead. She’s sleeping.” 53 They laughed and laughed at him, because they knew she was dead. 54 But he took her hand and called out, “Young lady, get up!” 55 So her spirit returned, and she got up at once. Then Jesus[af] directed that she be given something to eat. 56 Her parents were amazed, but he ordered them not to tell anyone what had happened.
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