1 Samuel 3

1And the child Samuel ministered unto the LORD before Eli. And the word of the LORD was precious in those days; there was no open vision.

2And it came to pass at that time, when Eli was laid down in his place, and his eyes began to wax dim, that he could not see;

3And 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;

4That the LORD called Samuel: and he answered, Here am I.

5And he ran unto Eli, and said, Here am I; for thou calledst me. And he said, I called not; lie down again. And he went and lay down.

6And 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.

7Now Samuel did not yet know the LORD, neither was the word of the LORD yet revealed unto him.footnote a

8And the LORD called Samuel again the third time. And he arose and went to Eli, and said, Here am I; for thou didst call me. And Eli perceived that the LORD had called the child.

9Therefore Eli said unto Samuel, Go, lie down: and it shall be, if he call thee, that thou shalt say, Speak, LORD; for thy servant heareth. So Samuel went and lay down in his place.

10And the LORD came, and stood, and called as at other times, Samuel, Samuel. Then Samuel answered, Speak; for thy servant heareth.

11And 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.

12In that day I will perform against Eli all things which I have spoken concerning his house: when I begin, I will also make an end.footnote b

13For I have told him that I will judge his house for ever for the iniquity which he knoweth; because his sons made themselves vile, and he restrained them not.footnote cfootnote dfootnote e

14And therefore I have sworn unto the house of Eli, that the iniquity of Eli’s house shall not be purged with sacrifice nor offering for ever.

15And Samuel lay until the morning, and opened the doors of the house of the LORD. And Samuel feared to shew Eli the vision.

16Then Eli called Samuel, and said, Samuel, my son. And he answered, Here am I.

17And he said, What is the thing that the Lord hath said unto thee? I pray thee hide it not from me: God do so to thee, and more also, if thou hide any thing from me of all the things that he said unto thee.footnote ffootnote g

18And Samuel told him every whit, and hid nothing from him. And he said, It is the LORD: let him do what seemeth him good.footnote h

19And Samuel grew, and the LORD was with him, and did let none of his words fall to the ground.

20And all Israel from Dan even to Beer-sheba knew that Samuel was established to be a prophet of the LORD.footnote i

21And the LORD appeared again in Shiloh: for the LORD revealed himself to Samuel in Shiloh by the word of the LORD.

The LORD Calls Samuel

1And the boy Samuel ministered to the LORD before Eli.
Now in those days the word of the LORD was rare, and visions were scarce. 2And at that time Eli, whose eyesight had grown so dim that he could not see, was lying in his room.

3Before the lamp of God had gone out, Samuel was lying down in the temple of the LORD, where the ark of God was located.

4Then the LORD called to Samuel, and he answered, “Here I am.”

5He ran to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you have called me.”
“I did not call,” Eli replied. “Go back and lie down.”
So he went and lay down.

6Once again the LORD called, “Samuel!”
So Samuel got up, went to Eli, and said, “Here I am, for you have called me.”
“My son, I did not call,” Eli replied. “Go back and lie down.”

7Now Samuel did not yet know the LORD, because the word of the LORD had not yet been revealed to him. 8Once again, for the third time, the LORD called to Samuel. He got up, went to Eli, and said, “Here I am, for you have called me.”
Then Eli realized that it was the LORD who was calling the boy. 9“Go and lie down,” he said to Samuel, “and if He calls you, say, ‘Speak, LORD, for Your servant is listening.’”
So Samuel went and lay down in his place.

10Then the LORD came and stood there, calling as before, “Samuel! Samuel!”
And Samuel answered, “Speak, for Your servant is listening.”

11Then the LORD said to Samuel, “I am about to do something in Israel at which the ears of all who hear it will tingle. 12On that day I will carry out against Eli everything I have spoken about his house, from beginning to end. 13I told him that I would judge his house forever for the iniquity of which he knows, because his sons blasphemed Godfootnote a and he did not restrain them. 14Therefore I have sworn to the house of Eli, ‘The iniquity of Eli’s house shall never be atoned for by sacrifice or offering.’”

Samuel Shares the Vision

15Samuel lay down until the morning; then he opened the doors of the house of the LORD. He was afraid to tell Eli the vision, 16but Eli called to him and said, “Samuel, my son.”
“Here I am,” answered Samuel.

17“What was the message He gave you?” Eli asked. “Do not hide it from me. May God punish you, and ever so severely, if you hide from me anything He said to you.”

18So Samuel told him everything and did not hide a thing from him.
“He is the LORD,” replied Eli. “Let Him do what is good in His eyes.”

19And Samuel grew, and the LORD was with him, and He let none of Samuel’s words fall to the ground.

20So all Israel from Dan to Beersheba knew that Samuel was confirmed as a prophet of the LORD. 21And the LORD continued to appear at Shiloh, because there He revealed Himself to Samuel by His word.