1 Samuel 2:4-9
1 Samuel 2:2-10 The Message (MSG)
Nothing and no one is holy like GOD, no rock mountain like our God. Don’t dare talk pretentiously— not a word of boasting, ever! For GOD knows what’s going on. He takes the measure of everything that happens. The weapons of the strong are smashed to pieces, while the weak are infused with fresh strength. The well-fed are out begging in the streets for crusts, while the hungry are getting second helpings. The barren woman has a houseful of children, while the mother of many is bereft. GOD brings death and GOD brings life, brings down to the grave and raises up. GOD brings poverty and GOD brings wealth; he lowers, he also lifts up. He puts poor people on their feet again; he rekindles burned-out lives with fresh hope, Restoring dignity and respect to their lives— a place in the sun! For the very structures of earth are GOD’s; he has laid out his operations on a firm foundation. He protectively cares for his faithful friends, step by step, but leaves the wicked to stumble in the dark. No one makes it in this life by sheer muscle! GOD’s enemies will be blasted out of the sky, crashed in a heap and burned. GOD will set things right all over the earth, he’ll give strength to his king, he’ll set his anointed on top of the world!
1 Samuel 2:4-9 King James Version (KJV)
The bows of the mighty men are broken, And they that stumbled are girded with strength. They that were full have hired out themselves for bread; And they that were hungry ceased: So that the barren hath born seven; And she that hath many children is waxed feeble. The LORD killeth, and maketh alive: He bringeth down to the grave, and bringeth up. The LORD maketh poor, and maketh rich: He bringeth low, and lifteth up. He raiseth up the poor out of the dust, And lifteth up 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. He will keep the feet of his saints, And the wicked shall be silent in darkness; For by strength shall no man prevail.
1 Samuel 2:4-9 New American Standard Bible - NASB 1995 (NASB1995)
The bows of the mighty are shattered, But the feeble gird on strength. Those who were full hire themselves out for bread, But those who were hungry cease to hunger. Even the barren gives birth to seven, But she who has many children languishes. The LORD kills and makes alive; He brings down to Sheol and raises up. The LORD makes poor and rich; He brings low, He also exalts. He raises the poor from the dust, He lifts the needy from the ash heap To make them sit with nobles, And inherit a seat of honor; For the pillars of the earth are the LORD’S, And He set the world on them. He keeps the feet of His godly ones, But the wicked ones are silenced in darkness; For not by might shall a man prevail.
1 Samuel 2:4-9 New Century Version (NCV)
“The bows of warriors break, but weak people become strong. Those who once had plenty of food now must work for food, but people who were hungry are hungry no more. The woman who could not have children now has seven, but the woman who had many children now is sad. “The LORD sends death, and he brings to life. He sends people to the grave, and he raises them to life again. The LORD makes some people poor, and others he makes rich. He makes some people humble, and others he makes great. The LORD raises the poor up from the dust, and he lifts the needy from the ashes. He lets the poor sit with princes and receive a throne of honor. “The foundations of the earth belong to the LORD, and the LORD set the world upon them. He protects those who are loyal to him, but evil people will be silenced in darkness. Power is not the key to success.
1 Samuel 2:4-9 American Standard Version (ASV)
The bows of the mighty men are broken; And they that stumbled are girded with strength. They that were full have hired out themselves for bread; And they that were hungry have ceased to hunger: Yea, the barren hath borne seven; And she that hath many children languisheth. Jehovah killeth, and maketh alive: He bringeth down to Sheol, and bringeth up. Jehovah maketh poor, and maketh rich: He bringeth low, he also lifteth up. He raiseth up the poor out of the dust, He lifteth up the needy from the dunghill, To make them sit with princes, And inherit the throne of glory: For the pillars of the earth are Jehovah’s, And he hath set the world upon them. He will keep the feet of his holy ones; But the wicked shall be put to silence in darkness; For by strength shall no man prevail.
1 Samuel 2:4-9 New International Version (NIV)
“The bows of the warriors are broken, but those who stumbled are armed with strength. Those who were full hire themselves out for food, but those who were hungry are hungry no more. She who was barren has borne seven children, but she who has had many sons pines away. “The LORD brings death and makes alive; he brings down to the grave and raises up. The LORD sends poverty and wealth; he humbles and he exalts. He raises the poor from the dust and lifts the needy from the ash heap; he seats them with princes and has them inherit a throne of honor. “For the foundations of the earth are the LORD’s; on them he has set the world. He will guard the feet of his faithful servants, but the wicked will be silenced in the place of darkness.
1 Samuel 2:4-9 New King James Version (NKJV)
“The bows of the mighty men are broken, And those who stumbled are girded with strength. Those who were full have hired themselves out for bread, And the hungry have ceased to hunger. Even the barren has borne seven, And she who has many children has become feeble. “The LORD kills and makes alive; He brings down to the grave and brings up. The LORD makes poor and makes rich; He brings low and lifts up. He raises the poor from the dust And lifts the beggar from the ash heap, To set them among princes And make them inherit the throne of glory. “For the pillars of the earth are the LORD’s, And He has set the world upon them. He will guard the feet of His saints, But the wicked shall be silent in darkness. “For by strength no man shall prevail.
1 Samuel 2:4-9 Amplified Bible (AMP)
“The bows of the mighty are broken, But those who have stumbled equip themselves with strength. “Those who were full hire themselves out for bread, But those who were hungry cease [to hunger]. Even the barren [woman] gives birth to seven, But she who has many children withers away. “The LORD puts to death and makes alive; He brings down to Sheol (the grave) and raises up [from the grave]. “The LORD makes poor and makes rich; He brings low and He lifts up. “He raises up the poor from the dust, He lifts up the needy from the ash heap To make them sit with nobles, And inherit a seat of honor and glory; For the pillars of the earth are the LORD’S, And He set the land on them. “He guards the feet of His godly (faithful) ones, But the wicked ones are silenced and perish in darkness; For a man shall not prevail by might.
1 Samuel 2:4-9 New Living Translation (NLT)
The bow of the mighty is now broken, and those who stumbled are now strong. Those who were well fed are now starving, and those who were starving are now full. The childless woman now has seven children, and the woman with many children wastes away. The LORD gives both death and life; he brings some down to the grave but raises others up. The LORD makes some poor and others rich; he brings some down and lifts others up. He lifts the poor from the dust and the needy from the garbage dump. He sets them among princes, placing them in seats of honor. For all the earth is the LORD’s, and he has set the world in order. “He will protect his faithful ones, but the wicked will disappear in darkness. No one will succeed by strength alone.
1 Samuel 2:4-9 English Standard Version Revision 2016 (ESV)
The bows of the mighty are broken, but the feeble bind on strength. Those who were full have hired themselves out for bread, but those who were hungry have ceased to hunger. The barren has borne seven, but she who has many children is forlorn. The LORD kills and brings to life; he brings down to Sheol and raises up. The LORD makes poor and makes rich; he brings low and he exalts. He raises up the poor from the dust; he lifts the needy from the ash heap to make them sit with princes and inherit a seat of honor. For the pillars of the earth are the LORD’s, and on them he has set the world. “He will guard the feet of his faithful ones, but the wicked shall be cut off in darkness, for not by might shall a man prevail.