And as he did so year by year, when she went up to the house of the LORD, so she provoked her; therefore she wept, and did not eat.

And it came to pass, as she continued praying before the LORD, that Eli observed her mouth.

And Hannah answered and said, No, my lord, I am a woman of a sorrowful spirit: I have drank neither wine nor strong drink, but have poured out my soul before the LORD.

Count not thy handmaid for a daughter of Belial: for out of the abundance of my complaint and grief have I spoken hitherto.

And she said, Let thy handmaid find grace in thy sight. So the woman went her way, and did eat, and her countenance was no more sad.

Wherefore it came to pass, when the time had arrived, after Hannah had conceived, that she bore a son, and called his name Samuel, saying, Because I have asked him of the LORD.

And Elkanah her husband said to her, Do what seemeth to thee good; tarry until thou hast weaned him; only the LORD establish his word. So the woman abode, and nursed her son until she weaned him.

Talk no more so exceeding proudly; let not arrogance come out of your mouth: for the LORD is a God of knowledge, and by him actions are weighed.

They that were full have hired out themselves for bread; and they that were hungry ceased: so that the barren hath borne seven; and she that hath many children is become feeble.

He raiseth the poor out of the dust, and lifteth the beggar from the dunghill, to set them among princes, and to make them inherit the throne of glory: for the pillars of the earth are the LORD'S, and he hath set the world upon them.

The adversaries of the LORD shall be broken to pieces; out of heaven shall he thunder upon them: the LORD shall judge the ends of the earth; and he shall give strength to his king, and exalt the horn of his anointed.

And he struck it into the pan, or kettle, or caldron, or pot; all that the flesh-hook brought up the priest took for himself. So they did in Shiloh to all the Israelites that came thither.

And if any man said to him, Let them not fail to burn the fat presently, and then take as much as thy soul desireth; then he would answer him, No; but thou shalt give it to me now: and if not, I will take it by force.

Moreover his mother made him a little coat, and brought it to him from year to year, when she came up with her husband, to offer the yearly sacrifice.

Now Eli was very old, and heard all that his sons did to all Israel; and how they lay with the women that assembled at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation.

No, my sons; for it is no good report that I hear: ye make the LORD'S people to transgress.

And did I choose him out of all the tribes of Israel to be my priest, to offer upon my altar, to burn incense, to wear an ephod before me? and did I give to the house of thy father all the offerings made by fire of the children of Israel?

Wherefore kick ye at my sacrifice and at my offering, which I have commanded in my habitation; and honorest thy sons above me, to make yourselves fat with the chiefest of all the offerings of Israel my people?

Wherefore the LORD God of Israel saith, I said indeed that thy house, and the house of thy father should walk before me for ever: but now the LORD saith, Be it far from me; for them that honor me I will honor, and they that despise me shall be lightly esteemed.

And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left in thy house, shall come and crouch to him for a piece of silver and a morsel of bread, and shall say, Put me, I pray thee, into one of the priest's offices, that I may eat a piece of bread.

And it came to pass at that time, when Eli was laid down in his place, and his eyes began to grow dim, that he could not see;

And ere the lamp of God went out in the temple of the LORD, where the ark of God was, and Samuel was laid down to sleep;

And the LORD called yet again, Samuel. And Samuel arose and went to Eli, and said, Here am I; for thou didst call me. And he answered, I called not, my son; lie down again.

Now Samuel did not yet know the LORD, neither was the word of the LORD yet revealed to him.

Therefore Eli said to Samuel, Go, lie down: and it shall be, if he should call thee, that thou shalt say, Speak, LORD; for thy servant heareth. So Samuel went and lay down in his place.

And the LORD came, and stood and called as at other times, Samuel, Samuel. Then Samuel answered, Speak; for thy servant heareth.

And the LORD said to Samuel, Behold, I will do a thing in Israel, at which both the ears of every one that heareth it shall tingle.

And he said, What is the thing that the LORD hath said to thee? I pray thee hide it not from me: God do so to thee, and more also, if thou shalt hide any thing from me, of all the things that he said to thee.

And Samuel told him every whit, and hid nothing from him. And he said, It is the LORD: let him do what seemeth him good.

And the word of Samuel came to all Israel. Now Israel went out against the Philistines to battle, and encamped beside Eben-ezer: and the Philistines encamped in Aphek.

And when the people had come into the camp, the elders of Israel said, Why hath the LORD smitten us to-day before the Philistines? Let us bring the ark of the covenant of the LORD out of Shiloh to us, that when it cometh among us, it may save us from the hand of our enemies.

And when the Philistines heard the noise of the shout, they said, What meaneth the noise of this great shout in the camp of the Hebrews? And they understood that the ark of the LORD had come into the camp.

Woe to us! Who shall deliver us out of the hand of these mighty Gods? these are the Gods that smote the Egyptians with all the plagues in the wilderness.

And there ran a man of Benjamin out of the army, and came to Shiloh the same day with his clothes rent, and with earth upon his head.

And when he came, lo, Eli sat upon a seat by the way-side watching: for his heart trembled for the ark of God. And when the man came into the city, and told it, all the city cried out.

And when Eli heard the noise of the crying, he said, What meaneth the noise of this tumult? And the man came in hastily, and told Eli.

Now Eli was ninety and eight years old; and his eyes were dim, that he could not see.

And the man said to Eli, I am he that came out of the army, and I fled to-day out of the army. And he said, What is there done, my son?

And it came to pass, when he made mention of the ark of God, that he fell from off the seat backward by the side of the gate, and his neck broke, and he died: for he was an old man, and heavy. And he had judged Israel forty years.

And about the time of her death, the women that stood by her said to her, Fear not; for thou hast borne a son. But she answered not, neither did she regard it.

And the Philistines took the ark of God, and brought it from Eben-ezer to Ashdod.

When the Philistines took the ark of God, they brought it into the house of Dagon, and set it by Dagon.

And when the men of Ashdod saw that it was so, they said, The ark of the God of Israel shall not abide with us: for his hand is severe upon us, and upon Dagon our god.

They sent therefore, and gathered all the lords of the Philistines to them, and said, What shall we do with the ark of the God of Israel? And they answered, Let the ark of the God of Israel be carried about to Gath. And they carried the ark of the God of Israel thither.

And it was so, that after they had carried it thither, the hand of the LORD was against the city with a very great destruction: and he smote the men of the city both small and great, and they had emerods in their secret parts.

Therefore they sent the ark of God to Ekron. And it came to pass as the ark of God came to Ekron, that the Ekronites cried out, saying, They have brought about the ark of the God of Israel to us, to slay us and our people.

So they sent and convened all the lords of the Philistines, and said, Send away the ark of the God of Israel, and let it go again to its own place, that it slay us not, and our people: for there was a deadly destruction throughout all the city; the hand of God was very heavy there.

And the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners, saying, What shall we do to the ark of the LORD? tell us with what we shall send it to its place.

And they said, If ye send away the ark of the God of Israel, send it not empty; but in any wise return him a trespass-offering: then ye will be healed, and it will be known to you why his hand is not removed from you.

Then said they, What shall be the trespass-offering which we shall return to him? They answered, Five golden emerods, and five golden mice, according to the number of the lords of the Philistines: for one plague was on you all, and on your lords.

Wherefore ye shall make images of your emerods, and images of your mice that mar the land; and ye shall give glory to the God of Israel: it may be he will lighten his hand from off you, and from off your gods, and from off your land.

And take the ark of the LORD, and lay it upon the cart; and put the jewels of gold which ye return to him for a trespass-offering, in a coffer by its side; and send it away, that it may go.

And see, if it goeth up by the way of his own coast to Beth-shemesh, then he hath done us this great evil: but if not, then we shall know, that it is not his hand that smote us; it was a chance that happened to us.

And the men did so; and took two milch cows, and tied them to the cart, and shut up their calves at home:

And they of Beth-shemesh were reaping their wheat harvest in the valley: and they lifted up their eyes, and saw the ark, and rejoiced to see it.

And the cart came into the field of Joshua, a Beth-shemite, and stood there, where there was a great stone: and they cleaved the wood of the cart, and offered the cows a burnt-offering to the LORD.

And the Levites took down the ark of the LORD, and the coffer that was with it, in which were the jewels of gold, and put them on the great stone: and the men of Beth-shemesh offered burnt-offerings and sacrificed sacrifices the same day to the LORD.

And when the five lords of the Philistines had seen it, they returned to Ekron the same day.

And they sent messengers to the inhabitants of Kirjath-jearim, saying, The Philistines have brought again the ark of the LORD; come ye down, and bring it up to you.

And the men of Kirjath-jearim came, and brought up the ark of the LORD, and brought it into the house of Abinadab on the hill, and sanctified Eleazar his son to keep the ark of the LORD.

And it came to pass, while the ark abode in Kirjath-jearim, that the time was long; for it was twenty years: and all the house of Israel lamented after the LORD.

And they assembled at Mizpeh, and drew water, and poured it out before the LORD, and fasted on that day, and there said, We have sinned against the LORD. And Samuel judged the children of Israel in Mizpeh.

And when the Philistines heard that the children of Israel were assembled at Mizpeh, the lords of the Philistines went up against Israel. And when the children of Israel heard it, they were afraid of the Philistines.

And Samuel took a sucking lamb, and offered it for a burnt-offering wholly to the LORD: and Samuel cried to the LORD for Israel; and the LORD heard him.

And the men of Israel went out of Mizpeh, and pursued the Philistines, and smote them, until they came under Beth-car.

Then Samuel took a stone, and set it between Mizpeh and Shen, and called the name of it Eben-ezer, saying, Hitherto hath the LORD helped us.

And the cities which the Philistines had taken from Israel were restored to Israel, from Ekron even to Gath; and the borders of it did Israel deliver from the hands of the Philistines: and there was peace between Israel and the Amorites.

And it came to pass, when Samuel was old, that he made his sons judges over Israel.

According to all the works which they have done since the day that I brought them out of Egypt even to this day, by which they have forsaken me, and served other gods, so do they also to thee.

Now therefore hearken to their voice: yet protest solemnly to them, and show them the manner of the king that will reign over them.

And ye shall cry out in that day because of your king which ye shall have chosen for yourselves; and the LORD will not hear you in that day.

That we also may be like all the nations; and that our king may judge us, and go out before us, and fight our battles.

And he said to him, Behold now, there is in this city a man of God, and he is an honorable man; all that he saith cometh surely to pass: now let us go thither; it may be he can show us our way that we should go.

Then said Saul to his servant, But behold, if we go, what shall we bring to the man? for the bread is spent in our vessels, and there is not a present to bring to the man of God: what have we?

And the servant answered Saul again, and said, Behold, I have here at hand the fourth part of a shekel of silver: that will I give to the man of God, to tell us our way.

And as they went up the hill to the city, they found young maidens going out to draw water, and said to them, Is the seer here?

As soon as ye shall enter the city, ye will straightway find him, before he goeth up to the high place to eat: for the people will not eat until he cometh, because he doth bless the sacrifice; and afterwards they eat that are invited. Now therefore go up: for about this time ye will find him.

And they went up into the city: and when they had come into the city, behold, Samuel came out meeting them, to go up to the high place.

To-morrow about this time I will send thee a man out of the land of Benjamin, and thou shalt anoint him to be captain over my people Israel, that he may save my people from the hand of the Philistines: for I have looked upon my people, because their cry has come to me.

And Samuel answered Saul, and said, I am the seer: go up before me to the high place; for ye shall eat with me to-day, and to-morrow I will let thee go, and will tell thee all that is in thy heart.

And as for thy asses that were lost three days ago, set not thy mind on them; for they are found. And on whom is all the desire of Israel? Is it not on thee, and on all thy father's house?

And Samuel said to the cook, Bring the portion which I gave thee, of which I said to thee, Set it by thee.

And the cook took up the shoulder, and that which was upon it, and set it before Saul. And Samuel said, Behold that which is left! set it before thee, and eat; for to this time hath it been kept for thee since I said, I have invited the people. So Saul ate with Samuel that day.

And they rose early: and it came to pass about the spring of the day, that Samuel called Saul to the top of the house, saying, Arise, that I may send thee away. And Saul arose, and they went out both of them, he and Samuel, abroad.

Then Samuel took a vial of oil, and poured it upon his head, and kissed him, and said, Is it not because the LORD hath anointed thee to be captain over his inheritance?

When thou hast departed from me to-day, then thou shalt find two men by Rachel's sepulcher in the border of Benjamin at Zelzah; and they will say to thee, The asses which thou wentest to seek are found: and lo, thy father hath left the care of the asses, and sorroweth for you, saying, What shall I do for my son?

After that thou shalt come to the hill of God, where is the garrison of the Philistines: and it shall come to pass, when thou hast come thither to the city, that thou shalt meet a company of prophets coming down from the high place with a psaltery, and a tabret, and a pipe, and a harp before them; and they will prophesy:

And let it be, when these signs have come to thee, that thou do as occasion shall serve thee; for God is with thee.

And thou shalt go down before me to Gilgal; and behold, I will come down to thee, to offer burnt-offerings, and to sacrifice sacrifices of peace-offerings: seven days shalt thou tarry, till I come to thee, and show thee what thou shalt do.

And it was so, that when he had turned his back to go from Samuel, God gave him another heart: and all those signs came to pass that day.

And it came to pass when all that formerly knew him saw, that, behold, he prophesied among the prophets, then the people said one to another, What is this that hath come to the son of Kish? Is Saul also among the prophets?

And one of the same place answered and said, But who is their father? Therefore it became a proverb, Is Saul also among the prophets?

And Saul's uncle said, Tell me, I pray thee, What Samuel said to you.

And said to the children of Israel, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, I brought Israel out of Egypt, and delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians, and out of the hand of all kingdoms, and of them that oppressed you:

And ye have this day rejected your God, who himself saved you out of all your adversities, and your tribulations; and ye have said to him, No, but set a king over us. Now therefore present yourselves before the LORD by your tribes, and by your thousands.

Therefore they inquired of the LORD further, if the man would yet come thither. And the LORD answered, Behold, he hath hid himself among the stuff.

Then Samuel told the people the manner of the kingdom, and wrote it in a book, and laid it up before the LORD. And Samuel sent all the people away, every man to his house.

And Nahash the Ammonite answered them, On this condition will I make a covenant with you, that I may thrust out all your right eyes, and lay it for a reproach upon all Israel.

And the elders of Jabesh said to him, Give us seven days respit, that we may send messengers to all the borders of Israel: and then, if there is no man to save us, we will come out to thee.

And behold, Saul came after the herd out of the field; and Saul said, What aileth the people that they weep? And they told him the tidings of the men of Jabesh.