The Path of Perseverance

Receiving the Holy Spirit

Find Balance and Wellness

But What if God Does?

Two Equals One: A Devotional for Couples (For Husbands)

Psalms: Songs of Repentance

Investing in Eternal Treasure

The Place of Prayer in a Christian School

Acts 4:32-37 | a Life Surrendered

25 Days of Christmas Promises

The Listener’s Bible®: NIV Edition

New International Version™  (Anglicised), Audio Edition

Holy Bible, New International Version™ (Anglicised), South Asian Audio Edition

<div class="version vid111 iso6393eng" data-vid="111" data-iso6393="eng">
 <div class="book bk1SA">
 <div class="chapter ch1" data-usfm="1SA.1">
 <div class="label">1</div><div class="s1">The Birth of Samuel</div><div class="p"> 1There was a certain man from Ramathaim, a Zuphite#1:1 See Septuagint and 1 Chron. 6:26-27,33-35; or from Ramathaim Zuphim. from the hill country of Ephraim, whose name was Elkanah son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the son of Zuph, an Ephraimite. 2He had two wives; one was called Hannah and the other Peninnah. Peninnah had children, but Hannah had none.</div><div class="p"> 3Year after year this man went up from his town to worship and sacrifice to the Lord Almighty at Shiloh, where Hophni and Phinehas, the two sons of Eli, were priests of the Lord. 4Whenever the day came for Elkanah to sacrifice, he would give portions of the meat to his wife Peninnah and to all her sons and daughters. 5But to Hannah he gave a double portion because he loved her, and the Lord had closed her womb. 6Because the Lord had closed Hannah&#8217;s womb, her rival kept provoking her in order to irritate her. 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. 8Her husband Elkanah would say to her, &#8220;Hannah, why are you weeping? Why don&#8217;t you eat? Why are you downhearted? Don&#8217;t I mean more to you than ten sons?&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 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&#8217;s house. 10In her deep anguish Hannah prayed to the Lord, weeping bitterly. 11And she made a vow, saying, &#8220;Lord Almighty, if you will only look on your servant&#8217;s misery and remember 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, and no razor will ever be used on his head.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 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, &#8220;How long are you going to stay drunk? Put away your wine.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 15&#8220;Not so, my lord,&#8221; Hannah replied, &#8220;I am a woman who is deeply troubled. I have not been drinking wine or beer; I was pouring 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.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 17Eli answered, &#8220;Go in peace, and may the God of Israel grant you what you have asked of him.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 18She said, &#8220;May your servant find favor in your eyes.&#8221; Then she went her way and ate something, and her face was no longer downcast.</div><div class="p"> 19Early the next morning they arose and worshiped before the Lord and then went back to their home at Ramah. Elkanah made love to his wife Hannah, and the Lord remembered her. 20So in the course of time Hannah became pregnant and gave birth to a son. She named him Samuel,#1:20 Samuel sounds like the Hebrew for heard by God. saying, &#8220;Because I asked the Lord for him.&#8221;</div><div class="s1">Hannah Dedicates Samuel</div><div class="p"> 21When her husband Elkanah went up with all his family to offer the annual sacrifice to the Lord and to fulfill his vow, 22Hannah did not go. She said to her husband, &#8220;After the boy is weaned, I will take him and present him before the Lord, and he will live there always.&#8221;#1:22 Masoretic Text; Dead Sea Scrolls always. I have dedicated him as a Nazirite&#8212;all the days of his life.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 23&#8220;Do what seems best to you,&#8221; her husband Elkanah told her. &#8220;Stay here until you have weaned him; only may the Lord make good his#1:23 Masoretic Text; Dead Sea Scrolls, Septuagint and Syriac your word.&#8221; So the woman stayed at home and nursed her son until she had weaned him.</div><div class="p"> 24After he was weaned, she took the boy with her, young as he was, along with a three-year-old bull,#1:24 Dead Sea Scrolls, Septuagint and Syriac; Masoretic Text with three bulls an ephah#1:24 That is, probably about 36 pounds or about 16 kilograms 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, &#8220;Pardon me, my lord. As surely as you live, I am the woman who stood here beside you praying to the Lord. 27I prayed 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 he will be given over to the Lord.&#8221; And he worshiped the Lord there.</div>
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 <div class="label">2</div><div class="s1">Hannah&#8217;s Prayer</div><div class="p"> 1Then Hannah prayed and said:</div><div class="q1">&#8220;My heart rejoices in the Lord;</div><div class="q2">in the Lord my horn#2:1 Horn here symbolizes strength; also in verse 10. is lifted high.</div><div class="q1">My mouth boasts over my enemies,</div><div class="q2">for I delight in your deliverance.</div><div class="b"></div><div class="q1"> 2&#8220;There is no one holy like the Lord;</div><div class="q2">there is no one besides you;</div><div class="q2">there is no Rock like our God.</div><div class="b"></div><div class="q1"> 3&#8220;Do not keep talking so proudly</div><div class="q2">or let your mouth speak such arrogance,</div><div class="q1">for the Lord is a God who knows,</div><div class="q2">and by him deeds are weighed.</div><div class="b"></div><div class="q1"> 4&#8220;The bows of the warriors are broken,</div><div class="q2">but those who stumbled are armed with strength.</div><div class="q1"> 5Those who were full hire themselves out for food,</div><div class="q2">but those who were hungry are hungry no more.</div><div class="q1">She who was barren has borne seven children,</div><div class="q2">but she who has had many sons pines away.</div><div class="b"></div><div class="q1"> 6&#8220;The Lord brings death and makes alive;</div><div class="q2">he brings down to the grave and raises up.</div><div class="q1"> 7The Lord sends poverty and wealth;</div><div class="q2">he humbles and he exalts.</div><div class="q1"> 8He raises the poor from the dust</div><div class="q2">and lifts the needy from the ash heap;</div><div class="q1">he seats them with princes</div><div class="q2">and has them inherit a throne of honor.</div><div class="b"></div><div class="q1">&#8220;For the foundations of the earth are the Lord&#8217;s;</div><div class="q2">on them he has set the world.</div><div class="q1"> 9He will guard the feet of his faithful servants,</div><div class="q2">but the wicked will be silenced in the place of darkness.</div><div class="b"></div><div class="q1">&#8220;It is not by strength that one prevails;</div><div class="q2"> 10those who oppose the Lord will be broken.</div><div class="q1">The Most High will thunder from heaven;</div><div class="q2">the Lord will judge the ends of the earth.</div><div class="b"></div><div class="q1">&#8220;He will give strength to his king</div><div class="q2">and exalt the horn of his anointed.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 11Then Elkanah went home to Ramah, but the boy ministered before the Lord under Eli the priest.</div><div class="s1">Eli&#8217;s Wicked Sons</div><div class="p"> 12Eli&#8217;s sons were scoundrels; they had no regard for the Lord. 13Now it was the practice of the priests that, whenever any of the people offered a sacrifice, the priest&#8217;s servant would come with a three-pronged fork in his hand while the meat was being boiled 14and would plunge the fork into the pan or kettle or caldron or pot. Whatever the fork brought up the priest would take for himself. This is how they treated all the Israelites who came to Shiloh. 15But even before the fat was burned, the priest&#8217;s servant would come and say to the person who was sacrificing, &#8220;Give the priest some meat to roast; he won&#8217;t accept boiled meat from you, but only raw.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 16If the person said to him, &#8220;Let the fat be burned first, and then take whatever you want,&#8221; the servant would answer, &#8220;No, hand it over now; if you don&#8217;t, I&#8217;ll take it by force.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 17This sin of the young men was very great in the Lord&#8217;s sight, for they#2:17 Dead Sea Scrolls and Septuagint; Masoretic Text people were treating the Lord&#8217;s offering with contempt.</div><div class="p"> 18But Samuel was ministering before the Lord&#8212;a boy wearing a linen ephod. 19Each year his mother made him a little robe and took it to him when she went up with her husband to offer the annual sacrifice. 20Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife, saying, &#8220;May the Lord give you children by this woman to take the place of the one she prayed for and gave to#2:20 Dead Sea Scrolls; Masoretic Text and asked from the Lord.&#8221; Then they would go home. 21And the Lord was gracious to Hannah; she gave birth to three sons and two daughters. Meanwhile, the boy Samuel grew up in the presence of the Lord.</div><div class="p"> 22Now Eli, who was very old, heard about everything his sons were doing to all Israel and how they slept with the women who served at the entrance to the tent of meeting. 23So he said to them, &#8220;Why do you do such things? I hear from all the people about these wicked deeds of yours. 24No, my sons; the report I hear spreading among the Lord&#8217;s people is not good. 25If one person sins against another, God#2:25 Or the judges may mediate for the offender; but if anyone sins against the Lord, who will intercede for them?&#8221; His sons, however, did not listen to their father&#8217;s rebuke, for it was the Lord&#8217;s will to put them to death.</div><div class="p"> 26And the boy Samuel continued to grow in stature and in favor with the Lord and with people.</div><div class="s1">Prophecy Against the House of Eli</div><div class="p"> 27Now a man of God came to Eli and said to him, &#8220;This is what the Lord says: &#8216;Did I not clearly reveal myself to your ancestor&#8217;s family when they were in Egypt under Pharaoh? 28I chose your ancestor out of all the tribes of Israel to be my priest, to go up to my altar, to burn incense, and to wear an ephod in my presence. I also gave your ancestor&#8217;s family all the food offerings presented by the Israelites. 29Why do you#2:29 The Hebrew is plural. scorn my sacrifice and offering that I prescribed for my dwelling? Why do you honor your sons more than me by fattening yourselves on the choice parts of every offering made by my people Israel?&#8217;</div><div class="p"> 30&#8220;Therefore the Lord, the God of Israel, declares: &#8216;I promised that members of your family would minister before me forever.&#8217; But now the Lord declares: &#8216;Far be it from me! Those who honor me I will honor, but those who despise me will be disdained. 31The time is coming when I will cut short your strength and the strength of your priestly house, so that no one in it will reach old age, 32and you will see distress in my dwelling. Although good will be done to Israel, no one in your family line will ever reach old age. 33Every one of you that I do not cut off from serving at my altar I will spare only to destroy your sight and sap your strength, and all your descendants will die in the prime of life.</div><div class="p"> 34&#8220;&#8198;&#8216;And what happens to your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, will be a sign to you&#8212;they will both die on the same day. 35I will raise up for myself a faithful priest, who will do according to what is in my heart and mind. I will firmly establish his priestly house, and they will minister before my anointed one always. 36Then everyone left in your family line will come and bow down before him for a piece of silver and a loaf of bread and plead, &#8220;Appoint me to some priestly office so I can have food to eat.&#8221;&#8198;&#8217;&#8198;&#8221;</div>
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 <div class="chapter ch3" data-usfm="1SA.3">
 <div class="label">3</div><div class="s1">The Lord Calls Samuel</div><div class="p"> 1The boy Samuel ministered before the Lord under Eli. In those days the word of the Lord was rare; there were not many visions.</div><div class="p"> 2One night Eli, whose eyes were becoming so weak that he could barely see, was lying down in his usual place. 3The lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the house of the Lord, where the ark of God was. 4Then the Lord called Samuel.</div><div class="p">Samuel answered, &#8220;Here I am.&#8221; 5And he ran to Eli and said, &#8220;Here I am; you called me.&#8221;</div><div class="p">But Eli said, &#8220;I did not call; go back and lie down.&#8221; So he went and lay down.</div><div class="p"> 6Again the Lord called, &#8220;Samuel!&#8221; And Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, &#8220;Here I am; you called me.&#8221;</div><div class="p">&#8220;My son,&#8221; Eli said, &#8220;I did not call; go back and lie down.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 7Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord: The word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him.</div><div class="p"> 8A third time the Lord called, &#8220;Samuel!&#8221; And Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, &#8220;Here I am; you called me.&#8221;</div><div class="p">Then Eli realized that the Lord was calling the boy. 9So Eli told Samuel, &#8220;Go and lie down, and if he calls you, say, &#8216;Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.&#8217;&#8198;&#8221; So Samuel went and lay down in his place.</div><div class="p"> 10The Lord came and stood there, calling as at the other times, &#8220;Samuel! Samuel!&#8221;</div><div class="p">Then Samuel said, &#8220;Speak, for your servant is listening.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 11And the Lord said to Samuel: &#8220;See, I am about to do something in Israel that will make the ears of everyone who hears about it tingle. 12At that time I will carry out against Eli everything I spoke against his family&#8212;from beginning to end. 13For I told him that I would judge his family forever because of the sin he knew about; his sons blasphemed God,#3:13 An ancient Hebrew scribal tradition (see also Septuagint); Masoretic Text sons made themselves contemptible and he failed to restrain them. 14Therefore I swore to the house of Eli, &#8216;The guilt of Eli&#8217;s house will never be atoned for by sacrifice or offering.&#8217;&#8198;&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 15Samuel lay down until morning and then opened the doors of the house of the Lord. He was afraid to tell Eli the vision, 16but Eli called him and said, &#8220;Samuel, my son.&#8221;</div><div class="p">Samuel answered, &#8220;Here I am.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 17&#8220;What was it he said to you?&#8221; Eli asked. &#8220;Do not hide it from me. May God deal with you, be it ever so severely, if you hide from me anything he told you.&#8221; 18So Samuel told him everything, hiding nothing from him. Then Eli said, &#8220;He is the Lord; let him do what is good in his eyes.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 19The Lord was with Samuel as he grew up, and he let none of Samuel&#8217;s words fall to the ground. 20And all Israel from Dan to Beersheba recognized that Samuel was attested as a prophet of the Lord. 21The Lord continued to appear at Shiloh, and there he revealed himself to Samuel through his word.</div>
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 <div class="label">4</div><div class="p"> 1And Samuel&#8217;s word came to all Israel.</div><div class="s1">The Philistines Capture the Ark</div><div class="p">Now the Israelites went out to fight against the Philistines. The Israelites camped at Ebenezer, and the Philistines at Aphek. 2The Philistines deployed their forces to meet Israel, and as the battle spread, Israel was defeated by the Philistines, who killed about four thousand of them on the battlefield. 3When the soldiers returned to camp, the elders of Israel asked, &#8220;Why did the Lord bring defeat on us today before the Philistines? Let us bring the ark of the Lord&#8217;s covenant from Shiloh, so that he may go with us and save us from the hand of our enemies.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 4So the people sent men to Shiloh, and they brought back the ark of the covenant of the Lord Almighty, who is enthroned between the cherubim. And Eli&#8217;s two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, were there with the ark of the covenant of God.</div><div class="p"> 5When the ark of the Lord&#8217;s covenant came into the camp, all Israel raised such a great shout that the ground shook. 6Hearing the uproar, the Philistines asked, &#8220;What&#8217;s all this shouting in the Hebrew camp?&#8221;</div><div class="p">When they learned that the ark of the Lord had come into the camp, 7the Philistines were afraid. &#8220;A god has#4:7 Or &#8220;Gods have (see Septuagint) come into the camp,&#8221; they said. &#8220;Oh no! Nothing like this has happened before. 8We&#8217;re doomed! Who will deliver us from the hand of these mighty gods? They are the gods who struck the Egyptians with all kinds of plagues in the wilderness. 9Be strong, Philistines! Be men, or you will be subject to the Hebrews, as they have been to you. Be men, and fight!&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 10So the Philistines fought, and the Israelites were defeated and every man fled to his tent. The slaughter was very great; Israel lost thirty thousand foot soldiers. 11The ark of God was captured, and Eli&#8217;s two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, died.</div><div class="s1">Death of Eli</div><div class="p"> 12That same day a Benjamite ran from the battle line and went to Shiloh with his clothes torn and dust on his head. 13When he arrived, there was Eli sitting on his chair by the side of the road, watching, because his heart feared for the ark of God. When the man entered the town and told what had happened, the whole town sent up a cry.</div><div class="p"> 14Eli heard the outcry and asked, &#8220;What is the meaning of this uproar?&#8221;</div><div class="p">The man hurried over to Eli, 15who was ninety-eight years old and whose eyes had failed so that he could not see. 16He told Eli, &#8220;I have just come from the battle line; I fled from it this very day.&#8221;</div><div class="p">Eli asked, &#8220;What happened, my son?&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 17The man who brought the news replied, &#8220;Israel fled before the Philistines, and the army has suffered heavy losses. Also your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, are dead, and the ark of God has been captured.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 18When he mentioned the ark of God, Eli fell backward off his chair by the side of the gate. His neck was broken and he died, for he was an old man, and he was heavy. He had led#4:18 Traditionally judged Israel forty years.</div><div class="p"> 19His daughter-in-law, the wife of Phinehas, was pregnant and near the time of delivery. When she heard the news that the ark of God had been captured and that her father-in-law and her husband were dead, she went into labor and gave birth, but was overcome by her labor pains. 20As she was dying, the women attending her said, &#8220;Don&#8217;t despair; you have given birth to a son.&#8221; But she did not respond or pay any attention.</div><div class="p"> 21She named the boy Ichabod,#4:21 Ichabod means no glory. saying, &#8220;The Glory has departed from Israel&#8221;&#8212;because of the capture of the ark of God and the deaths of her father-in-law and her husband. 22She said, &#8220;The Glory has departed from Israel, for the ark of God has been captured.&#8221;</div>
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 <div class="label">5</div><div class="s1">The Ark in Ashdod and Ekron</div><div class="p"> 1After the Philistines had captured the ark of God, they took it from Ebenezer to Ashdod. 2Then they carried the ark into Dagon&#8217;s temple and set it beside Dagon. 3When the people of Ashdod rose early the next day, there was Dagon, fallen on his face on the ground before the ark of the Lord! They took Dagon and put him back in his place. 4But the following morning when they rose, there was Dagon, fallen on his face on the ground before the ark of the Lord! His head and hands had been broken off and were lying on the threshold; only his body remained. 5That is why to this day neither the priests of Dagon nor any others who enter Dagon&#8217;s temple at Ashdod step on the threshold.</div><div class="p"> 6The Lord&#8217;s hand was heavy on the people of Ashdod and its vicinity; he brought devastation on them and afflicted them with tumors.#5:6 Hebrew; Septuagint and Vulgate tumors. And rats appeared in their land, and there was death and destruction throughout the city 7When the people of Ashdod saw what was happening, they said, &#8220;The ark of the god of Israel must not stay here with us, because his hand is heavy on us and on Dagon our god.&#8221; 8So they called together all the rulers of the Philistines and asked them, &#8220;What shall we do with the ark of the god of Israel?&#8221;</div><div class="p">They answered, &#8220;Have the ark of the god of Israel moved to Gath.&#8221; So they moved the ark of the God of Israel.</div><div class="p"> 9But after they had moved it, the Lord&#8217;s hand was against that city, throwing it into a great panic. He afflicted the people of the city, both young and old, with an outbreak of tumors.#5:9 Or with tumors in the groin (see Septuagint) 10So they sent the ark of God to Ekron.</div><div class="p">As the ark of God was entering Ekron, the people of Ekron cried out, &#8220;They have brought the ark of the god of Israel around to us to kill us and our people.&#8221; 11So they called together all the rulers of the Philistines and said, &#8220;Send the ark of the god of Israel away; let it go back to its own place, or it#5:11 Or he will kill us and our people.&#8221; For death had filled the city with panic; God&#8217;s hand was very heavy on it. 12Those who did not die were afflicted with tumors, and the outcry of the city went up to heaven.</div>
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<div class="version vid111 iso6393eng" data-vid="111" data-iso6393="eng">
 <div class="book bk1SA">
 <div class="chapter ch6" data-usfm="1SA.6">
 <div class="label">6</div><div class="s1">The Ark Returned to Israel</div><div class="p"> 1When the ark of the Lord had been in Philistine territory seven months, 2the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners and said, &#8220;What shall we do with the ark of the Lord? Tell us how we should send it back to its place.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 3They answered, &#8220;If you return the ark of the god of Israel, do not send it back to him without a gift; by all means send a guilt offering to him. Then you will be healed, and you will know why his hand has not been lifted from you.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 4The Philistines asked, &#8220;What guilt offering should we send to him?&#8221;</div><div class="p">They replied, &#8220;Five gold tumors and five gold rats, according to the number of the Philistine rulers, because the same plague has struck both you and your rulers. 5Make models of the tumors and of the rats that are destroying the country, and give glory to Israel&#8217;s god. Perhaps he will lift his hand from you and your gods and your land. 6Why do you harden your hearts as the Egyptians and Pharaoh did? When Israel&#8217;s god dealt harshly with them, did they not send the Israelites out so they could go on their way?</div><div class="p"> 7&#8220;Now then, get a new cart ready, with two cows that have calved and have never been yoked. Hitch the cows to the cart, but take their calves away and pen them up. 8Take the ark of the Lord and put it on the cart, and in a chest beside it put the gold objects you are sending back to him as a guilt offering. Send it on its way, 9but keep watching it. If it goes up to its own territory, toward Beth Shemesh, then the Lord has brought this great disaster on us. But if it does not, then we will know that it was not his hand that struck us but that it happened to us by chance.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 10So they did this. They took two such cows and hitched them to the cart and penned up their calves. 11They placed the ark of the Lord on the cart and along with it the chest containing the gold rats and the models of the tumors. 12Then the cows went straight up toward Beth Shemesh, keeping on the road and lowing all the way; they did not turn to the right or to the left. The rulers of the Philistines followed them as far as the border of Beth Shemesh.</div><div class="p"> 13Now the people of Beth Shemesh were harvesting their wheat in the valley, and when they looked up and saw the ark, they rejoiced at the sight. 14The cart came to the field of Joshua of Beth Shemesh, and there it stopped beside a large rock. The people chopped up the wood of the cart and sacrificed the cows as a burnt offering to the Lord. 15The Levites took down the ark of the Lord, together with the chest containing the gold objects, and placed them on the large rock. On that day the people of Beth Shemesh offered burnt offerings and made sacrifices to the Lord. 16The five rulers of the Philistines saw all this and then returned that same day to Ekron.</div><div class="p"> 17These are the gold tumors the Philistines sent as a guilt offering to the Lord&#8212;one each for Ashdod, Gaza, Ashkelon, Gath and Ekron. 18And the number of the gold rats was according to the number of Philistine towns belonging to the five rulers&#8212;the fortified towns with their country villages. The large rock on which the Levites set the ark of the Lord is a witness to this day in the field of Joshua of Beth Shemesh.</div><div class="p"> 19But God struck down some of the inhabitants of Beth Shemesh, putting seventy#6:19 A few Hebrew manuscripts; most Hebrew manuscripts and Septuagint 50,070 of them to death because they looked into the ark of the Lord. The people mourned because of the heavy blow the Lord had dealt them. 20And the people of Beth Shemesh asked, &#8220;Who can stand in the presence of the Lord, this holy God? To whom will the ark go up from here?&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 21Then they sent messengers to the people of Kiriath Jearim, saying, &#8220;The Philistines have returned the ark of the Lord. Come down and take it up to your town.&#8221;</div>
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 <div class="book bk1SA">
 <div class="chapter ch7" data-usfm="1SA.7">
 <div class="label">7</div><div class="nb"> 1So the men of Kiriath Jearim came and took up the ark of the Lord. They brought it to Abinadab&#8217;s house on the hill and consecrated Eleazar his son to guard the ark of the Lord. 2The ark remained at Kiriath Jearim a long time&#8212;twenty years in all.</div><div class="s1">Samuel Subdues the Philistines at Mizpah</div><div class="p">Then all the people of Israel turned back to the Lord. 3So Samuel said to all the Israelites, &#8220;If you are returning to the Lord with all your hearts, then rid yourselves of the foreign gods and the Ashtoreths and commit yourselves to the Lord and serve him only, and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines.&#8221; 4So the Israelites put away their Baals and Ashtoreths, and served the Lord only.</div><div class="p"> 5Then Samuel said, &#8220;Assemble all Israel at Mizpah, and I will intercede with the Lord for you.&#8221; 6When they had assembled at Mizpah, they drew water and poured it out before the Lord. On that day they fasted and there they confessed, &#8220;We have sinned against the Lord.&#8221; Now Samuel was serving as leader#7:6 Traditionally judge; also in verse 15 of Israel at Mizpah.</div><div class="p"> 7When the Philistines heard that Israel had assembled at Mizpah, the rulers of the Philistines came up to attack them. When the Israelites heard of it, they were afraid because of the Philistines. 8They said to Samuel, &#8220;Do not stop crying out to the Lord our God for us, that he may rescue us from the hand of the Philistines.&#8221; 9Then Samuel took a suckling lamb and sacrificed it as a whole burnt offering to the Lord. He cried out to the Lord on Israel&#8217;s behalf, and the Lord answered him.</div><div class="p"> 10While Samuel was sacrificing the burnt offering, the Philistines drew near to engage Israel in battle. But that day the Lord thundered with loud thunder against the Philistines and threw them into such a panic that they were routed before the Israelites. 11The men of Israel rushed out of Mizpah and pursued the Philistines, slaughtering them along the way to a point below Beth Kar.</div><div class="p"> 12Then Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen. He named it Ebenezer,#7:12 Ebenezer means stone of help. saying, &#8220;Thus far the Lord has helped us.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 13So the Philistines were subdued and they stopped invading Israel&#8217;s territory. Throughout Samuel&#8217;s lifetime, the hand of the Lord was against the Philistines. 14The towns from Ekron to Gath that the Philistines had captured from Israel were restored to Israel, and Israel delivered the neighboring territory from the hands of the Philistines. And there was peace between Israel and the Amorites.</div><div class="p"> 15Samuel continued as Israel&#8217;s leader all the days of his life. 16From year to year he went on a circuit from Bethel to Gilgal to Mizpah, judging Israel in all those places. 17But he always went back to Ramah, where his home was, and there he also held court for Israel. And he built an altar there to the Lord.</div>
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<div class="version vid111 iso6393eng" data-vid="111" data-iso6393="eng">
 <div class="book bk1SA">
 <div class="chapter ch8" data-usfm="1SA.8">
 <div class="label">8</div><div class="s1">Israel Asks for a King</div><div class="p"> 1When Samuel grew old, he appointed his sons as Israel&#8217;s leaders.#8:1 Traditionally judges 2The name of his firstborn was Joel and the name of his second was Abijah, and they served at Beersheba. 3But his sons did not follow his ways. They turned aside after dishonest gain and accepted bribes and perverted justice.</div><div class="p"> 4So all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah. 5They said to him, &#8220;You are old, and your sons do not follow your ways; now appoint a king to lead#8:5 Traditionally judge; also in verses 6 and 20 us, such as all the other nations have.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 6But when they said, &#8220;Give us a king to lead us,&#8221; this displeased Samuel; so he prayed to the Lord. 7And the Lord told him: &#8220;Listen to all that the people are saying to you; it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected me as their king. 8As they have done from the day I brought them up out of Egypt until this day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so they are doing to you. 9Now listen to them; but warn them solemnly and let them know what the king who will reign over them will claim as his rights.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 10Samuel told all the words of the Lord to the people who were asking him for a king. 11He said, &#8220;This is what the king who will reign over you will claim as his rights: He will take your sons and make them serve with his chariots and horses, and they will run in front of his chariots. 12Some he will assign to be commanders of thousands and commanders of fifties, and others to plow his ground and reap his harvest, and still others to make weapons of war and equipment for his chariots. 13He will take your daughters to be perfumers and cooks and bakers. 14He will take the best of your fields and vineyards and olive groves and give them to his attendants. 15He will take a tenth of your grain and of your vintage and give it to his officials and attendants. 16Your male and female servants and the best of your cattle#8:16 Septuagint; Hebrew young men and donkeys he will take for his own use. 17He will take a tenth of your flocks, and you yourselves will become his slaves. 18When that day comes, you will cry out for relief from the king you have chosen, but the Lord will not answer you in that day.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 19But the people refused to listen to Samuel. &#8220;No!&#8221; they said. &#8220;We want a king over us. 20Then we will be like all the other nations, with a king to lead us and to go out before us and fight our battles.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 21When Samuel heard all that the people said, he repeated it before the Lord. 22The Lord answered, &#8220;Listen to them and give them a king.&#8221;</div><div class="p">Then Samuel said to the Israelites, &#8220;Everyone go back to your own town.&#8221;</div>
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<div class="version vid111 iso6393eng" data-vid="111" data-iso6393="eng">
 <div class="book bk1SA">
 <div class="chapter ch9" data-usfm="1SA.9">
 <div class="label">9</div><div class="s1">Samuel Anoints Saul</div><div class="p"> 1There was a Benjamite, a man of standing, whose name was Kish son of Abiel, the son of Zeror, the son of Bekorath, the son of Aphiah of Benjamin. 2Kish had a son named Saul, as handsome a young man as could be found anywhere in Israel, and he was a head taller than anyone else.</div><div class="p"> 3Now the donkeys belonging to Saul&#8217;s father Kish were lost, and Kish said to his son Saul, &#8220;Take one of the servants with you and go and look for the donkeys.&#8221; 4So he passed through the hill country of Ephraim and through the area around Shalisha, but they did not find them. They went on into the district of Shaalim, but the donkeys were not there. Then he passed through the territory of Benjamin, but they did not find them.</div><div class="p"> 5When they reached the district of Zuph, Saul said to the servant who was with him, &#8220;Come, let&#8217;s go back, or my father will stop thinking about the donkeys and start worrying about us.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 6But the servant replied, &#8220;Look, in this town there is a man of God; he is highly respected, and everything he says comes true. Let&#8217;s go there now. Perhaps he will tell us what way to take.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 7Saul said to his servant, &#8220;If we go, what can we give the man? The food in our sacks is gone. We have no gift to take to the man of God. What do we have?&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 8The servant answered him again. &#8220;Look,&#8221; he said, &#8220;I have a quarter of a shekel#9:8 That is, about 1/10 ounce or about 3 grams of silver. I will give it to the man of God so that he will tell us what way to take.&#8221; 9(Formerly in Israel, if someone went to inquire of God, they would say, &#8220;Come, let us go to the seer,&#8221; because the prophet of today used to be called a seer.)</div><div class="p"> 10&#8220;Good,&#8221; Saul said to his servant. &#8220;Come, let&#8217;s go.&#8221; So they set out for the town where the man of God was.</div><div class="p"> 11As they were going up the hill to the town, they met some young women coming out to draw water, and they asked them, &#8220;Is the seer here?&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 12&#8220;He is,&#8221; they answered. &#8220;He&#8217;s ahead of you. Hurry now; he has just come to our town today, for the people have a sacrifice at the high place. 13As soon as you enter the town, you will find him before he goes up to the high place to eat. The people will not begin eating until he comes, because he must bless the sacrifice; afterward, those who are invited will eat. Go up now; you should find him about this time.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 14They went up to the town, and as they were entering it, there was Samuel, coming toward them on his way up to the high place.</div><div class="p"> 15Now the day before Saul came, the Lord had revealed this to Samuel: 16&#8220;About this time tomorrow I will send you a man from the land of Benjamin. Anoint him ruler over my people Israel; he will deliver them from the hand of the Philistines. I have looked on my people, for their cry has reached me.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 17When Samuel caught sight of Saul, the Lord said to him, &#8220;This is the man I spoke to you about; he will govern my people.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 18Saul approached Samuel in the gateway and asked, &#8220;Would you please tell me where the seer&#8217;s house is?&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 19&#8220;I am the seer,&#8221; Samuel replied. &#8220;Go up ahead of me to the high place, for today you are to eat with me, and in the morning I will send you on your way and will tell you all that is in your heart. 20As for the donkeys you lost three days ago, do not worry about them; they have been found. And to whom is all the desire of Israel turned, if not to you and your whole family line?&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 21Saul answered, &#8220;But am I not a Benjamite, from the smallest tribe of Israel, and is not my clan the least of all the clans of the tribe of Benjamin? Why do you say such a thing to me?&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 22Then Samuel brought Saul and his servant into the hall and seated them at the head of those who were invited&#8212;about thirty in number. 23Samuel said to the cook, &#8220;Bring the piece of meat I gave you, the one I told you to lay aside.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 24So the cook took up the thigh with what was on it and set it in front of Saul. Samuel said, &#8220;Here is what has been kept for you. Eat, because it was set aside for you for this occasion from the time I said, &#8216;I have invited guests.&#8217;&#8198;&#8221; And Saul dined with Samuel that day.</div><div class="p"> 25After they came down from the high place to the town, Samuel talked with Saul on the roof of his house. 26They rose about daybreak, and Samuel called to Saul on the roof, &#8220;Get ready, and I will send you on your way.&#8221; When Saul got ready, he and Samuel went outside together. 27As they were going down to the edge of the town, Samuel said to Saul, &#8220;Tell the servant to go on ahead of us&#8221;&#8212;and the servant did so&#8212;&#8220;but you stay here for a while, so that I may give you a message from God.&#8221;</div>
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<div class="version vid111 iso6393eng" data-vid="111" data-iso6393="eng">
 <div class="book bk1SA">
 <div class="chapter ch10" data-usfm="1SA.10">
 <div class="label">10</div><div class="p"> 1Then Samuel took a flask of olive oil and poured it on Saul&#8217;s head and kissed him, saying, &#8220;Has not the Lord anointed you ruler over his inheritance?#10:1 Hebrew; Septuagint and Vulgate over his people Israel? You will reign over the Lord&#8217;s people and save them from the power of their enemies round about. And this will be a sign to you that the Lord has anointed you ruler over his inheritance: 2When you leave me today, you will meet two men near Rachel&#8217;s tomb, at Zelzah on the border of Benjamin. They will say to you, &#8216;The donkeys you set out to look for have been found. And now your father has stopped thinking about them and is worried about you. He is asking, &#8220;What shall I do about my son?&#8221;&#8198;&#8217;</div><div class="p"> 3&#8220;Then you will go on from there until you reach the great tree of Tabor. Three men going up to worship God at Bethel will meet you there. One will be carrying three young goats, another three loaves of bread, and another a skin of wine. 4They will greet you and offer you two loaves of bread, which you will accept from them.</div><div class="p"> 5&#8220;After that you will go to Gibeah of God, where there is a Philistine outpost. As you approach the town, you will meet a procession of prophets coming down from the high place with lyres, timbrels, pipes and harps being played before them, and they will be prophesying. 6The Spirit of the Lord will come powerfully upon you, and you will prophesy with them; and you will be changed into a different person. 7Once these signs are fulfilled, do whatever your hand finds to do, for God is with you.</div><div class="p"> 8&#8220;Go down ahead of me to Gilgal. I will surely come down to you to sacrifice burnt offerings and fellowship offerings, but you must wait seven days until I come to you and tell you what you are to do.&#8221;</div><div class="s1">Saul Made King</div><div class="p"> 9As Saul turned to leave Samuel, God changed Saul&#8217;s heart, and all these signs were fulfilled that day. 10When he and his servant arrived at Gibeah, a procession of prophets met him; the Spirit of God came powerfully upon him, and he joined in their prophesying. 11When all those who had formerly known him saw him prophesying with the prophets, they asked each other, &#8220;What is this that has happened to the son of Kish? Is Saul also among the prophets?&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 12A man who lived there answered, &#8220;And who is their father?&#8221; So it became a saying: &#8220;Is Saul also among the prophets?&#8221; 13After Saul stopped prophesying, he went to the high place.</div><div class="p"> 14Now Saul&#8217;s uncle asked him and his servant, &#8220;Where have you been?&#8221;</div><div class="p">&#8220;Looking for the donkeys,&#8221; he said. &#8220;But when we saw they were not to be found, we went to Samuel.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 15Saul&#8217;s uncle said, &#8220;Tell me what Samuel said to you.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 16Saul replied, &#8220;He assured us that the donkeys had been found.&#8221; But he did not tell his uncle what Samuel had said about the kingship.</div><div class="p"> 17Samuel summoned the people of Israel to the Lord at Mizpah 18and said to them, &#8220;This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: &#8216;I brought Israel up out of Egypt, and I delivered you from the power of Egypt and all the kingdoms that oppressed you.&#8217; 19But you have now rejected your God, who saves you out of all your disasters and calamities. And you have said, &#8216;No, appoint a king over us.&#8217; So now present yourselves before the Lord by your tribes and clans.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 20When Samuel had all Israel come forward by tribes, the tribe of Benjamin was taken by lot. 21Then he brought forward the tribe of Benjamin, clan by clan, and Matri&#8217;s clan was taken. Finally Saul son of Kish was taken. But when they looked for him, he was not to be found. 22So they inquired further of the Lord, &#8220;Has the man come here yet?&#8221;</div><div class="p">And the Lord said, &#8220;Yes, he has hidden himself among the supplies.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 23They ran and brought him out, and as he stood among the people he was a head taller than any of the others. 24Samuel said to all the people, &#8220;Do you see the man the Lord has chosen? There is no one like him among all the people.&#8221;</div><div class="p">Then the people shouted, &#8220;Long live the king!&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 25Samuel explained to the people the rights and duties of kingship. He wrote them down on a scroll and deposited it before the Lord. Then Samuel dismissed the people to go to their own homes.</div><div class="p"> 26Saul also went to his home in Gibeah, accompanied by valiant men whose hearts God had touched. 27But some scoundrels said, &#8220;How can this fellow save us?&#8221; They despised him and brought him no gifts. But Saul kept silent.</div>
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<div class="version vid111 iso6393eng" data-vid="111" data-iso6393="eng">
 <div class="book bk1SA">
 <div class="chapter ch11" data-usfm="1SA.11">
 <div class="label">11</div><div class="s1">Saul Rescues the City of Jabesh</div><div class="p"> 1Nahash#11:1 Masoretic Text; Dead Sea Scrolls gifts. Now Nahash king of the Ammonites oppressed the Gadites and Reubenites severely. He gouged out all their right eyes and struck terror and dread in Israel. Not a man remained among the Israelites beyond the Jordan whose right eye was not gouged out by Nahash king of the Ammonites, except that seven thousand men fled from the Ammonites and entered Jabesh Gilead. About a month later, 1 Nahash the Ammonite went up and besieged Jabesh Gilead. And all the men of Jabesh said to him, &#8220;Make a treaty with us, and we will be subject to you.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 2But Nahash the Ammonite replied, &#8220;I will make a treaty with you only on the condition that I gouge out the right eye of every one of you and so bring disgrace on all Israel.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 3The elders of Jabesh said to him, &#8220;Give us seven days so we can send messengers throughout Israel; if no one comes to rescue us, we will surrender to you.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 4When the messengers came to Gibeah of Saul and reported these terms to the people, they all wept aloud. 5Just then Saul was returning from the fields, behind his oxen, and he asked, &#8220;What is wrong with everyone? Why are they weeping?&#8221; Then they repeated to him what the men of Jabesh had said.</div><div class="p"> 6When Saul heard their words, the Spirit of God came powerfully upon him, and he burned with anger. 7He took a pair of oxen, cut them into pieces, and sent the pieces by messengers throughout Israel, proclaiming, &#8220;This is what will be done to the oxen of anyone who does not follow Saul and Samuel.&#8221; Then the terror of the Lord fell on the people, and they came out together as one. 8When Saul mustered them at Bezek, the men of Israel numbered three hundred thousand and those of Judah thirty thousand.</div><div class="p"> 9They told the messengers who had come, &#8220;Say to the men of Jabesh Gilead, &#8216;By the time the sun is hot tomorrow, you will be rescued.&#8217;&#8198;&#8221; When the messengers went and reported this to the men of Jabesh, they were elated. 10They said to the Ammonites, &#8220;Tomorrow we will surrender to you, and you can do to us whatever you like.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 11The next day Saul separated his men into three divisions; during the last watch of the night they broke into the camp of the Ammonites and slaughtered them until the heat of the day. Those who survived were scattered, so that no two of them were left together.</div><div class="s1">Saul Confirmed as King</div><div class="p"> 12The people then said to Samuel, &#8220;Who was it that asked, &#8216;Shall Saul reign over us?&#8217; Turn these men over to us so that we may put them to death.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 13But Saul said, &#8220;No one will be put to death today, for this day the Lord has rescued Israel.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 14Then Samuel said to the people, &#8220;Come, let us go to Gilgal and there renew the kingship.&#8221; 15So all the people went to Gilgal and made Saul king in the presence of the Lord. There they sacrificed fellowship offerings before the Lord, and Saul and all the Israelites held a great celebration.</div>
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<div class="version vid111 iso6393eng" data-vid="111" data-iso6393="eng">
 <div class="book bk1SA">
 <div class="chapter ch12" data-usfm="1SA.12">
 <div class="label">12</div><div class="s1">Samuel&#8217;s Farewell Speech</div><div class="p"> 1Samuel said to all Israel, &#8220;I have listened to everything you said to me and have set a king over you. 2Now you have a king as your leader. As for me, I am old and gray, and my sons are here with you. I have been your leader from my youth until this day. 3Here I stand. Testify against me in the presence of the Lord and his anointed. Whose ox have I taken? Whose donkey have I taken? Whom have I cheated? Whom have I oppressed? From whose hand have I accepted a bribe to make me shut my eyes? If I have done any of these things, I will make it right.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 4&#8220;You have not cheated or oppressed us,&#8221; they replied. &#8220;You have not taken anything from anyone&#8217;s hand.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 5Samuel said to them, &#8220;The Lord is witness against you, and also his anointed is witness this day, that you have not found anything in my hand.&#8221;</div><div class="p">&#8220;He is witness,&#8221; they said.</div><div class="p"> 6Then Samuel said to the people, &#8220;It is the Lord who appointed Moses and Aaron and brought your ancestors up out of Egypt. 7Now then, stand here, because I am going to confront you with evidence before the Lord as to all the righteous acts performed by the Lord for you and your ancestors.</div><div class="p"> 8&#8220;After Jacob entered Egypt, they cried to the Lord for help, and the Lord sent Moses and Aaron, who brought your ancestors out of Egypt and settled them in this place.</div><div class="p"> 9&#8220;But they forgot the Lord their God; so he sold them into the hand of Sisera, the commander of the army of Hazor, and into the hands of the Philistines and the king of Moab, who fought against them. 10They cried out to the Lord and said, &#8216;We have sinned; we have forsaken the Lord and served the Baals and the Ashtoreths. But now deliver us from the hands of our enemies, and we will serve you.&#8217; 11Then the Lord sent Jerub-Baal,#12:11 Also called Gideon Barak,#12:11 Some Septuagint manuscripts and Syriac; Hebrew Bedan Jephthah and Samuel,#12:11 Hebrew; some Septuagint manuscripts and Syriac Samson and he delivered you from the hands of your enemies all around you, so that you lived in safety.</div><div class="p"> 12&#8220;But when you saw that Nahash king of the Ammonites was moving against you, you said to me, &#8216;No, we want a king to rule over us&#8217;&#8212;even though the Lord your God was your king. 13Now here is the king you have chosen, the one you asked for; see, the Lord has set a king over you. 14If you fear the Lord and serve and obey him and do not rebel against his commands, and if both you and the king who reigns over you follow the Lord your God&#8212;good! 15But if you do not obey the Lord, and if you rebel against his commands, his hand will be against you, as it was against your ancestors.</div><div class="p"> 16&#8220;Now then, stand still and see this great thing the Lord is about to do before your eyes! 17Is it not wheat harvest now? I will call on the Lord to send thunder and rain. And you will realize what an evil thing you did in the eyes of the Lord when you asked for a king.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 18Then Samuel called on the Lord, and that same day the Lord sent thunder and rain. So all the people stood in awe of the Lord and of Samuel.</div><div class="p"> 19The people all said to Samuel, &#8220;Pray to the Lord your God for your servants so that we will not die, for we have added to all our other sins the evil of asking for a king.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 20&#8220;Do not be afraid,&#8221; Samuel replied. &#8220;You have done all this evil; yet do not turn away from the Lord, but serve the Lord with all your heart. 21Do not turn away after useless idols. They can do you no good, nor can they rescue you, because they are useless. 22For the sake of his great name the Lord will not reject his people, because the Lord was pleased to make you his own. 23As for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord by failing to pray for you. And I will teach you the way that is good and right. 24But be sure to fear the Lord and serve him faithfully with all your heart; consider what great things he has done for you. 25Yet if you persist in doing evil, both you and your king will perish.&#8221;</div>
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