1 Samuel 3
3
The Lord Calls Out to Samuel
1The boy Samuel served the Lord under the direction of Eli. In those days the Lord didn’t give many messages to his people. He didn’t give them many visions.
2One night Eli was lying down in his usual place. His eyes were becoming so weak he couldn’t see very well. 3Samuel was lying down in the Lord’s house. That’s where the ark of God was kept. The lamp of God was still burning. 4The Lord called out to Samuel.
Samuel answered, “Here I am.” 5He ran over to Eli and said, “Here I am. You called out to me.”
But Eli said, “I didn’t call you. Go back and lie down.” So he went and lay down.
6Again the Lord called out, “Samuel!” Samuel got up and went to Eli. He said, “Here I am. You called out to me.”
“My son,” Eli said, “I didn’t call you. Go back and lie down.”
7Samuel didn’t know the Lord yet. That’s because the Lord still hadn’t given him a message.
8The Lord called out for the third time. He said, “Samuel!” Samuel got up and went to Eli. He said, “Here I am. You called out to me.”
Then Eli realized that the Lord was calling the boy. 9So Eli told Samuel, “Go and lie down. If someone calls out to you again, say, ‘Speak, Lord. I’m listening.’ ” So Samuel went and lay down in his place.
10The Lord came and stood there. He called out, just as he had done the other times. He said, “Samuel! Samuel!”
Then Samuel replied, “Speak. I’m listening.”
11The Lord said to Samuel, “Pay attention! I am about to do something terrible in Israel. It will make the ears of everyone who hears about it tingle. 12At that time I will do everything to Eli and his family that I said I would. I will finish what I have started. 13I told Eli I would punish his family forever. He knew his sons were sinning. He knew they were saying bad things about me. In spite of that, he did not stop them. 14So I made a promise to the family of Eli. I said, ‘The sins of Eli’s family will never be paid for by bringing sacrifices or offerings.’ ”
15Samuel lay down until morning. Then he opened the doors of the Lord’s house. He was afraid to tell Eli about the vision he had received. 16But Eli called out to him. He said, “Samuel, my son.”
Samuel answered, “Here I am.”
17“What did the Lord say to you?” Eli asked. “Don’t hide from me anything he told you. If you do, may God punish you greatly.” 18So Samuel told him everything. He didn’t hide anything from him. Then Eli said, “He is the Lord. Let him do what he thinks is best.”
19As Samuel grew up, the Lord was with him. He made everything Samuel said come true. 20So all the Israelites recognized that Samuel really was a prophet of the Lord. Everyone from Dan all the way to Beersheba knew it. 21The Lord continued to appear at Shiloh. There he made himself known to Samuel through the messages he gave him.
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1 Samuel 3: NIrV
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Holy Bible, New International Reader’s Version®, NIrV®
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1 Samuel 3
3
The Lord Speaks to Samuel
1-2Samuel served the Lord by helping Eli the priest, who was by that time almost blind. In those days, the Lord hardly ever spoke directly to people, and he did not appear to them in dreams very often. But one night, Eli was asleep in his room, 3and Samuel was sleeping on a mat near the sacred chest in the Lord's house. They had not been asleep very long#3.3 They … long: The Hebrew text has “The lamp of God was still burning.” An olive oil lamp would go out after a few hours if the wick was not adjusted. 4when the Lord called out Samuel's name.
“Here I am!” Samuel answered. 5Then he ran to Eli and said, “Here I am. What do you want?”
“I didn't call you,” Eli answered. “Go back to bed.”
Samuel went back.
6Again the Lord called out Samuel's name. Samuel got up and went to Eli. “Here I am,” he said. “What do you want?”
Eli told him, “Son, I didn't call you. Go back to sleep.”
7The Lord had not spoken to Samuel before, and Samuel did not recognize the voice. 8When the Lord called out his name for the third time, Samuel went to Eli again and said, “Here I am. What do you want?”
Eli finally realized that it was the Lord who was speaking to Samuel. 9So he said, “Go back and lie down! If someone speaks to you again, answer, ‘I'm listening, Lord. What do you want me to do?’ ”
Once again Samuel went back and lay down.
10The Lord then stood beside Samuel and called out as he had done before, “Samuel! Samuel!”
“I'm listening,” Samuel answered. “What do you want me to do?”
11The Lord said:
Samuel, I am going to do something in Israel that will shock everyone who hears about it! 12I will punish Eli and his family, just as I promised. 13He knew that his sons refused to respect me,#3.13 refused … me: Or “were insulting everyone.” and he let them get away with it, even though I said I would punish his family forever. 14I warned Eli that sacrifices or offerings could never make things right! His family has done too many disgusting things.
15The next morning, Samuel got up and opened the doors to the Lord's house. He was afraid to tell Eli what the Lord had said. 16But Eli told him, “Samuel, my boy, come here!”
“Yes, sir!” Samuel answered.
17Eli said, “What did God say to you? Tell me everything. I'll ask God to punish you terribly if you don't tell me every word he said!”
18Samuel told Eli everything. Then Eli said, “He is the Lord, and he will do what's right.”
The Lord Helps Samuel
19As Samuel grew up, the Lord helped him and made everything Samuel said come true. 20From the town of Dan in the north to the town of Beersheba in the south, everyone in the country knew that Samuel was truly the Lord's prophet. 21The Lord often appeared to Samuel at Shiloh and told him what to say.
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Contemporary English Version, Second Edition (CEV®)
© 2006 American Bible Society. All rights reserved.