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Texts -- 1 Samuel 2:1-31 (NET)

Context
Hannah Exalts the Lord in Prayer
2:1 Hannah prayed , “My heart rejoices in the Lord ; my horn is exalted high because of the Lord . I loudly denounce my enemies , for I am happy that you delivered me. 2:2 No one is holy like the Lord ! There is no one other than you! There is no rock like our God ! 2:3 Don’t keep speaking so arrogantly , letting proud talk come out of your mouth ! For the Lord is a God who knows ; he evaluates what people do . 2:4 The bows of warriors are shattered , but those who stumble find their strength reinforced . 2:5 Those who are well-fed hire themselves out to earn food , but the hungry no longer lack . Even the barren woman gives birth to seven , but the one with many children withers away . 2:6 The Lord both kills and gives life ; he brings down to the grave and raises up . 2:7 The Lord impoverishes and makes wealthy ; he humbles and he exalts . 2:8 He lifts the weak from the dust ; he raises the poor from the ash heap to seat them with princes and to bestow on them an honored position . The foundations of the earth belong to the Lord , and he has placed the world on them. 2:9 He watches over his holy ones , but the wicked are made speechless in the darkness , for it is not by one’s own strength that one prevails . 2:10 The Lord shatters his adversaries ; he thunders against them from the heavens . The Lord executes judgment to the ends of the earth . He will strengthen his king and exalt the power of his anointed one .” 2:11 Then Elkanah went back home to Ramah . But the boy was serving the Lord under the supervision of Eli the priest .
Eli’s Sons Misuse Their Sacred Office
2:12 The sons of Eli were wicked men. They did not recognize the Lord’s authority. 2:13 Now the priests would always treat the people in the following way: Whenever anyone was making a sacrifice , while the meat was boiling , the priest’s attendant would come with a three-pronged fork in his hand . 2:14 He would jab it into the basin , kettle , caldron , or pot , and everything that the fork brought up the priest would take for himself. This is what they used to do to all the Israelites when they came there to Shiloh . 2:15 Even before they burned the fat , the priest’s attendant would come and say to the person who was making the sacrifice , “Hand over some meat for the priest to roast ! He won’t take boiled meat from you, but only raw .” 2:16 If the individual said to him , “First let the fat be burned away , and then take for yourself whatever you wish ,” he would say , “No! Hand it over right now ! If you don’t , I will take it forcibly !” 2:17 The sin of these young men was very great in the Lord’s sight , for they treated the Lord’s offering with contempt . 2:18 Now Samuel was ministering before the Lord . The boy was dressed in a linen ephod . 2:19 His mother used to make him a small robe and bring it up to him at regular intervals when she would go up with her husband to make the annual sacrifice . 2:20 Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife saying , “May the Lord raise up for you descendants from this woman to replace the one that she dedicated to the Lord .” Then they would go to their home . 2:21 So the Lord graciously attended to Hannah , and she was able to conceive and gave birth to three sons and two daughters . The boy Samuel grew up at the Lord’s sanctuary. 2:22 Now Eli was very old when he heard about everything that his sons used to do to all the people of Israel and how they used to have sex with the women who were stationed at the entrance to the tent of meeting . 2:23 He said to them, “Why do you behave in this way ? For I hear about these evil things from all these people . 2:24 This ought not to be, my sons ! For the report that I hear circulating among the Lord’s people is not good . 2:25 If a man sins against a man , one may appeal to God on his behalf. But if a man sins against the Lord , who then will intercede for him?” But Eli’s sons would not listen to their father , for the Lord had decided to kill them. 2:26 Now the boy Samuel was growing up and finding favor both with the Lord and with people .
The Lord Judges the House of Eli
2:27 A man of God came to Eli and said to him, “This is what the Lord says : ‘Did I not plainly reveal myself to your ancestor’s house when they were in Egypt in the house of Pharaoh ? 2:28 I chose your ancestor from all the tribes of Israel to be my priest , to offer sacrifice on my altar , to burn incense , and to bear the ephod before me. I gave to your ancestor’s house all the fire offerings made by the Israelites . 2:29 Why are you scorning my sacrifice and my offering that I commanded for my dwelling place ? You have honored your sons more than you have me by having made yourselves fat from the best parts of all the offerings of my people Israel .’ 2:30 Therefore the Lord , the God of Israel , says , ‘I really did say that your house and your ancestor’s house would serve me forever .’ But now the Lord says , ‘May it never be ! For I will honor those who honor me, but those who despise me will be cursed ! 2:31 In fact, days are coming when I will remove your strength and the strength of your father’s house . There will not be an old man in your house !

Pericope

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(Note: In "active" or "on" condition, the hymns music will be played automatically when mouse hover on a hymns title)
  • Hatiku Bersukaria [KJ.77]
  • Yang Mau Dibimbing oleh Tuhan [KJ.379]
  • [1Sa 2:6] Come, Every Pious Heart
  • [1Sa 2:6] The Grave Itself A Garden Is

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Expository Notes on the Bible (Constable)

  • 1:3 The world came into being by God's word (cf. Ps. 33:9; Heb. 11:3). Each of the six creative days began with God speaking.55Jesus Christ, the Word of God, was the Creator (John 1:3). The theme of God's word (spoken, writte...
  • The emphasis in this brief section is on the faithfulness and power of God in keeping His promise and providing an heir miraculously through Sarah (17:16; 18:14). Note the threefold repetition of "as He had said,""as He had p...
  • Joseph experienced God's blessing as he served faithfully in Potiphar's house. His master's wife repeatedly seduced him, but he refused her offers because he did not want to sin against God and betray Potiphar's trust. Joseph...
  • The Jews called their first month Abib (v. 2). After the Babylonian captivity they renamed it Nisan (Neh. 2:1; Esth. 3:7). It corresponds to our March-April. Abib means "ear-month"referring to the month when the grain was in ...
  • "As the laws increase and the constraints grow, the people seem less willing or less capable of following them. At this point in the narrative we see that the whole order of the priesthood is thrown open to direct confrontati...
  • The writer now recorded the fulfillment of God's instructions to Moses that Israel should destroy the Midianites (25:16-18). In this account, the aftermath of the battle receives more attention than the battle itself. Evident...
  • The supernatural victory God had given His people elevated Gideon into national recognition. Some of the men of Israel invited Gideon to be their king and to begin a dynasty of rulers (v. 22). Perhaps they were from the north...
  • God sent His Angel to revisit Manoah and his wife because they voiced questions in prayer about how they should rear Samson (v. 8), his way of life (v. 12), and his vocation (v. 12). Their desire to bring their son up accordi...
  • Only a group of "worthless fellows"("sons of Beliel,"i.e., ungodly men, AV, RV) surrounded the stranger's house (v. 22). However the men of Gibeah as a whole defended the actions of this group. Furthermore the whole tribe of ...
  • Statements in the Book of Samuel imply that someone who had witnessed at least some of the events recorded wrote it. However the original writer must have written most of it after Samuel's death (i.e., -1 Sam. 25-2 Sam. 24) a...
  • First and 2 Samuel are really one story. The translators divided them into two books for convenience, not because of subject matter.First Samuel records Israel's transition from amphictyony to monarchy.The key passage that ex...
  • I. Eli and Samuel chs. 1-3A. The change from barrenness to fertility 1:1-2:101. Hannah's condition 1:1-82. Hannah's vow 1:9-183. Hannah's obedience 1:19-284. Hannah's song 2:1-10B. The contrast between Samuel and Eli's sons 2...
  • In the first subsection (1:1-2:10) we have the joyful story of Samuel's miraculous birth and his mother's gratitude to God for reversing her barrenness and making her fertile. The significance of this story is not only that i...
  • "I Samuel 1 is presented as a conventional birth narrative which moves from barrenness to birth. Laid over that plot is a second rhetorical strategy which moves from complaint to thanksgiving. With the use of this second stra...
  • "The future of the story now to be told in I and II Samuel concerns not only the newly born son, but the rule of Yahweh to whom laments are addressed and thanksgiving uttered. No wonder the narrative ends with yielding, grate...
  • Some commentators have seen Hannah's prayer as a non-essential song of praise included in the text for sentimental reasons, but this magnificent prayer provides the key to interpreting the rest of 1 and 2 Samuel. In this pray...
  • Samuel's innocence and the godlessness of Eli's sons contrast strongly in this pericope (section). Samuel would succeed and become a channel of God's blessing. Eli's sons would fail, would become a source of frustration to El...
  • Eli's sons were not only evil in their personal lives, but they flagrantly disregarded the will of God even as they served as leaders of Israel's worship of Yahweh. They neither knew the Lord (in the sense of paying attention...
  • In the previous paragraphs two statements about the main characters described them and framed the paragraph: they did not regard the Lord, and they despised the Lord's offerings (vv. 12, 17). Likewise in this one the writer d...
  • The sons of Eli followed the example of Canaanite worship rather than the instruction of the Mosaic Law. Ritual prostitution was part of Canaanite worship, and Eli's sons seem to have adopted this custom. Even when their fath...
  • The rest of the chapter explains why God would put Eli's sons to death (v. 25). The specific criticism that the man of God (a prophet, cf. 9:9-10) directed against Eli and his sons was two-fold. They had not appreciated God's...
  • The Hebrew word used to describe Samuel in verse 1 (naar) elsewhere refers to a young teenager (cf. 17:33). Consequently we should probably think of a boy in his early teens as we read this section. At this time in Israel's h...
  • These verses summarize Samuel's continuing ministry as a prophet in Israel. Samuel qualified for this privilege by his faithful obedience to God's will as he knew it. God sovereignly chose Samuel for this ministry, but his di...
  • The Philistines, as we have already seen in Judges, were Israel's primary enemy to the west at this time. Samson, too, fought the Philistines (Judg. 13-16).52There are about 150 references to the Philistines in 1 and 2 Samuel...
  • The primary purpose of this chapter, I believe, is to demonstrate the superiority of Yahweh over Dagon, the fertility god of the Philistines.655:1-5 Having captured the ark the Philistines brought it from Ebenezer to their ma...
  • Admirably Saul sought no personal revenge on those who initially had failed to support him (10:27; cf. Judg. 20:13; Luke 19:27). Furthermore he gave God the glory for his victory (cf. Jon. 2:9; Ps. 20:7; Prov. 21:31). He was ...
  • Armed with trust in God and courage Jonathan ventured out to destroy Israel's enemy in obedience to God's command to drive out the inhabitants of Canaan (cf. 9:16). He would have made a good king of Israel. Saul remained in G...
  • We have already seen that Jonathan was a man of faith and courage (14:1-15). Jonathan found a soul brother in David, a man who committed himself to trusting and obeying God as he did. This common purpose on the deepest level ...
  • David was wondering if he had done something wrong that had provoked Saul's hatred (v. 1). Walking with God is sometimes confusing. We need to learn, as David did, that when we try to follow God faithfully some people will op...
  • The writer's attention focused next on Saul's activities. He used the literary device of focusing on David, then on Saul, then on David, etc. He used the same technique in chapters 1-3 with Samuel and Eli's sons to contrast S...
  • Ackroyd, Peter R. The First Book of Samuel. Cambridge Bible Commentary on the New English Bible series. Cambridge, Eng.: University Press, 1971._____. "The Verb Love--'Aheb in the David-Jonathan Narratives--A Footnote."Vetus ...
  • First Samuel records David's preparation. Second Samuel records his service namely his reign. In our study of 1 Samuel I mentioned three aspects of his preparation: as shepherd, as courtier, and as "outlaw."In 2 Samuel we see...
  • Students of David's lament over Saul and Jonathan's deaths have called it the Song of the Bow (cf. v. 22).10Many people in Judah learned and sang it (v. 18). The Book of Jasher (v. 18) is no longer extant (cf. Josh. 10:13)."H...
  • David also observed that the ark's presence in Obed-edom's house resulted in blessing for its host. This made him more eager than ever to install the ark in Jerusalem.Verse 13 probably means after the priests had taken six st...
  • "It has long been recognized that 2 Samuel 22 is not only one of the oldest major poems in the OT but also that, because Psalm 18 parallels it almost verbatim, it is a key passage for the theory and practice of OT textual cri...
  • Thirty-two more soldiers obtained special distinction (vv. 24-39), including Uriah the Hittite (v. 39). The writer referred to them as "The Thirty."This designation seems to have been a title for their exclusive group (cf. v....
  • David proceeded to offer sacrifices in response to Gad's instructions (v. 18). David needed to commit himself again to God (the burnt offering) and to renew his fellowship with God (the peace offering, v. 25). God instructed ...
  • Adonijah was David's fourth son (2 Sam. 3:4) and the eldest one living at this time. Evidently he believed it was more important that the eldest son succeed David, as was customary in the Near East, than that the king of Yahw...
  • Solomon granted Abiathar a parole for participating in Adonijah's rebellion. By removing him from his office he cut off Eli's last descendant thereby fulfilling God's prophecy to Eli (1 Sam. 2:27-36). Eli's fertility ended be...
  • This great prayer centers on the Mosaic Covenant. That is its heart. Solomon introduced seven petitions with a backward look emphasizing God's faithfulness (vv. 23-26). He concluded with a forward look stressing God's mercy (...
  • David provided for a full orchestra and choir to sing God's praises at his new worship center. He originated musical guilds and services.51God's presence in Israel's capital symbolized His leadership over the nation, and it b...
  • Psalms 113-118 constitute the Egyptian Hallel(lit. praise, cf. Hallelujah). Hallelis the imperative singular and is a command to praise. The Hallelwas a collection of psalms the Jews sang at the three yearly feasts that all t...
  • 17:8 The owner of the bribe is the person who gives it. A bribe is an effective tool. It works like a charm. This proverb is not advocating bribery, only acknowledging that money talks. God's view of bribery becomes clear in ...
  • 26:1 The prophet revealed another song that will be sung "in that day"(the Millennium, cf. ch. 25) by those in Zion.The New Jerusalem that God will set up will be a place of strength and security for the redeemed (cf. Rev. 21...
  • The prophet emphasized the gracious character of Yahweh as the source of restoration for His people. Returning to the metaphor of the Lord's people as the his wife (51:17-20), Isaiah presented the joyful prospect of reconcili...
  • This message demonstrates a structure that is quite typical of many others in the Book of Jeremiah (cf. 11:1-17; 17:19-27; 34:8-22). First there is an explanation of Yahweh's will (word, law; vv. 1-7), then a description of I...
  • Invasion and war had already overtaken Jerusalem when Jeremiah wrote this lament, but more destruction was to come (v. 9).15:5 The Lord said that no one would have pity on Jerusalem when she had experienced His judgment (cf. ...
  • 29:17 Ezekiel received another message from the Lord about Egypt's judgment in 571 B.C. (on his New Year's day). This was probably the second to the last recorded prophecy of Ezekiel, and the prophet would have been about 50 ...
  • There were two rooms for singers in the inner court. One of them stood beside the north inner gate, and its door faced south. It also accommodated the needs of the priests who were responsible for the care of the temple. The ...
  • 1:17 In addition to favor with their overseers, God gave Daniel and his three friends the ability to master the subjects they studied and wisdom in these matters (cf. James 1:5). They may have thought that Nebuchadnezzar had ...
  • 4:10-12 The king described what he had seen in poetic language. His words therefore appear as a prophetic oracle. The ancients frequently used trees to describe rulers of nations (cf. Isa. 2:12-13; 10:34; Ezek. 31:3-17).141Th...
  • This section contains material unique in Luke. The only repeated statement occurs in Luke 2:39 and Matthew 2:23. Other unique features are Luke's alternating the reader's attention between John and Jesus, and the joy that sev...
  • This section brings the parallel stories of John's birth and Jesus' birth together. The two sons had their own identities and individual greatness, but Jesus was superior. John began his ministry of exalting Jesus in his moth...
  • Luke's comment on John's personal development shows his interest in human beings, which characterizes this Gospel (cf. 2:40, 52). John's spirit here corresponds roughly to his character and personality (cf. 1 Sam. 2:21).There...
  • Jesus' obedience to His heavenly Father included obedience to His earthly parents (Exod. 20:12; cf. Col. 3:20). Luke balanced the former revelation of Jesus' deity with this indication of His humanity. His second reference to...
  • A. Women served in the doorway of the Tabernacle (Exod. 38:8; 1 Sam. 2:22).The same word (saba) is used of their work as that of the Levites. These women were probably widows who devoted themselves to the service of God.B. Mi...
  • 11:8-10 Like Abraham we should look forward to our inheritance in the coming world and should live as strangers and pilgrims in this world (1 Pet. 1:1).360"Abraham's faith accepted God's promises and acted on them even though...
  • Having dealt with the source of interpersonal and inner personal conflicts that believers in particular and all people generally experience, James dealt next with a different aspect of the same problem. He did so to motivate ...
  • 5:6 As with our dreams, John's vision contained some unusual features. John saw the Messiah as a Lamb.229The Lamb is a symbol of Jesus Christ at His first advent, meek and submissive to a sacrificial death as our substitute (...

Expositions Of Holy Scripture (Maclaren)

  • 1 Samuel 3:1-14The opening words of this passage are substantially repeated from 1 Samuel 2:11-18. They come as a kind of refrain, contrasting the quiet, continuous growth and holy service of the child Samuel with the black n...
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