Hannah's Prayer
1 Hannah prayed:
“The Lord has filled my heart with joy;
how happy I am because of what he has done!
I laugh at my enemies;
how joyful I am because God has helped me!
2 “No one is holy like the Lord;
there is none like him,
no protector like our God.
3 Stop your loud boasting;
silence your proud words.
For the Lord is a God who knows,
and he judges all that people do.
4 The bows of strong soldiers are broken,
but the weak grow strong.
5 The people who once were well fed
now hire themselves out to get food,
but the hungry are hungry no more.
The childless wife has borne seven children,
but the mother of many is left with none.
6 The Lord kills and restores to life;
he sends people to the world of the dead
and brings them back again.
7 He makes some people poor and others rich;
he humbles some and makes others great.
8 He lifts the poor from the dust
and raises the needy from their misery.
He makes them companions of princes
and puts them in places of honor.
The foundations of the earth belong to the Lord;
on them he has built the world.
9 “He protects the lives of his faithful people,
but the wicked disappear in darkness;
a man does not triumph by his own strength.
10 The Lord's enemies will be destroyed;
he will thunder against them from heaven.
The Lord will judge the whole world;
he will give power to his king,
he will make his chosen king victorious.”
11 Then Elkanah went back home to Ramah, but the boy Samuel stayed in Shiloh and served the Lord under the priest Eli.
The Sons of Eli
12 The sons of Eli were scoundrels. They paid no attention to the Lord 13 or to the regulations concerning what the priests could demand from the people. Instead, when someone was offering a sacrifice, the priest's servant would come with a three-pronged fork. While the meat was still cooking, 14 he would stick the fork into the cooking pot, and whatever the fork brought out belonged to the priest. All the Israelites who came to Shiloh to offer sacrifices were treated like this. 15 In addition, even before the fat was taken off and burned, the priest's servant would come and say to the one offering the sacrifice, “Give me some meat for the priest to roast; he won't accept boiled meat from you, only raw meat.”
16 If the person answered, “Let us do what is right and burn the fat first; then take what you want,” the priest's servant would say, “No! Give it to me now! If you don't, I will have to take it by force!”
17 This sin of the sons of Eli was extremely serious in the Lord's sight, because they treated the offerings to the Lord with such disrespect.
Samuel at Shiloh
18 In the meantime the boy Samuel continued to serve the Lord, wearing a sacred linen apron. 19 Each year his mother would make a little robe and take it to him when she accompanied her husband to offer the yearly sacrifice. 20 Then Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife, and say to Elkanah, “May the Lord give you other children by this woman to take the place of the one you dedicated to him.”
After that they would go back home.
21 The Lord did bless Hannah, and she had three more sons and two daughters. The boy Samuel grew up in the service of the Lord.
Eli and His Sons
22 Eli was now very old. He kept hearing about everything his sons were doing to the Israelites and that they were even sleeping with the women who worked at the entrance to the Tent of the Lord's presence. 23 So he said to them, “Why are you doing these things? Everybody tells me about the evil you are doing. 24 Stop it, my sons! This is an awful thing the people of the Lord are talking about! 25 If anyone sins against someone else, God can defend the one who is wrong; but who can defend someone who sins against the Lord?”
But they would not listen to their father, for the Lord had decided to kill them.
26 The boy Samuel continued to grow and to gain favor both with the Lord and with people.
The Prophecy against Eli's Family
27 A prophet came to Eli with this message from the Lord: “When your ancestor Aaron and his family were slaves of the king of Egypt, I revealed myself to Aaron. 28 From all the tribes of Israel I chose his family to be my priests, to serve at the altar, to burn the incense, and to wear the ephod to consult me. And I gave them the right to keep a share of the sacrifices burned on the altar. 29 Why, then, do you look with greed at the sacrifices and offerings which I require from my people? Why, Eli, do you honor your sons more than me by letting them fatten themselves on the best parts of all the sacrifices my people offer to me? 30 I, the Lord God of Israel, promised in the past that your family and your clan would serve me as priests for all time. But now I say that I won't have it any longer! Instead, I will honor those who honor me, and I will treat with contempt those who despise me. 31 Listen, the time is coming when I will kill all the young men in your family and your clan, so that no man in your family will live to be old. 32 You will be troubled and look with envy on all the blessings I will give to the other people of Israel, but no one in your family will ever again live to old age. 33 Yet I will keep one of your descendants alive, and he will serve me as priest. But he will become blind and lose all hope, and all your other descendants will die a violent death. 34 When your two sons Hophni and Phinehas both die on the same day, this will show you that everything I have said will come true. 35 I will choose a priest who will be faithful to me and do everything I want him to. I will give him descendants, who will always serve in the presence of my chosen king. 36 Any of your descendants who survive will have to go to that priest and ask him for money and food, and beg to be allowed to help the priests, in order to have something to eat.”
Ntembezelo wa Hana
1 Hana katembezela eti,
“Moyo wangu wakashathila Yahwe;
simba langu lakudziwa muna Yahwe.
Ndozwikudza na Yahwe.
Ndoseka zwita zwangu mahanya,
ngobe ndakashathila bhatsho yenyu.
2 “Akuna wakayengemala sa Yahwe,
akuna mmwe kuzhe kwenyu,
akuna shongwe inonga Ndzimu wedu.
3 Musitjalebeleke nge kuzwikudza,
misani matama enyu ekuzwikudza,
ngobe Yahwe Ndzimu we luzibo,
ngono zwiyito zwe bathu zoyegwa ndibo.
4 Matati e babhayani akavunika,
koga banodzembeleka banozhala masimba.
5 Bakamuka beguta boja ngo lubila,
koga bakabe bali mu zhala, boguta.
Wakabe asina mbeleko wabe ne bana bali kutendeka,
koga nkadzi wakabe ana bana banji, wabe bankulugwa.
6 Yahwe ndibo banobulaya bebuya betjidza,
banoyisa bathu ku bugalo gwe bafi,
bakabuya bakamusa mu lufu.
7 Yahwe banothama nthu kabe nshayi bakabuya bakanfumisa,
banodelusila nthu pasi bebuya bemmilidzila pezhugwi.
8 Banomilidza bashayi bebadusa mu hwuluba,
bemilidza basheti bebadusa mu tjizhalanlota,
bebe bebagadza ne bakololo be bushe
bebuya bewana tjigalo tje gudzo.
Ngobe thiwa dze shango nge dza Yahwe,
pezhugwi kwadzo bakagadza shango.
9 “Banowotjengeta makumbo e bagalimoyo babo,
koga babiibi banofila mu zhalima,
ngoti nthu aatokunda nge simba.
10 Zwita zwa Yahwe zowolobesiwa,
Yahwe banowobadadamula bali ku kudzimu,
Yahwe banowosumikilisa kunoti ku phelelo dze shango.
Banowopa mambo wabo simba,
bebuya bekudza simba le nzhodziwa wabo.”
11 Ndizo Elikana kayenda kanyi kwabo ku Rama, koga mbisana kasala eshingila Yahwe ali pasi kwe mpirisiti Eli.
Matjinyo e bakololo ba Eli
12 Bakololo ba Eli bakabe bali balume basi be tjimwe, basina hanya na Yahwe. 13 Mu tjilenje tje bapirisiti, kwakabe kuti ha nthu edusa tjibhayilo, nyama itjakapaila, nlanda we mpirisiti unobe ezha akabhata foroko ye meno matatu, 14 ebe ebhayila foroko mu hali, ngono nyama ya bhayiwa nge foroko inobe iyo iye. Koga ngwenu bakololo ba Eli bakabe bethama sahwoku ku Baiziraela bose bakabe bezha ku Shilo: 15 Kwakabe kuti mafuta asathu kapisiwa, nlanda we mpirisiti wakabe ezha kuna unobe episa tjibhayilo ebe endwa eti, “Dusila mpirisiti nyama inogotjiwa, ngobe aangaamutjile nyama mukuli yakabhikwa, ungaamutjila mbisi koga.” 16 Koga ha nthu angandwa eti, “Ima takhwa bapise mafuta, ndizo ukotolazo sekwa unoshaka,” nlanda ebe eshandula eti, “Andidi, undipe iyo ngwenu, ha ulamba ndoitola nge khani.” 17 Ndizo jinyo ileli le bazhuzha ibaba lakabe lisishoma mu mesho a Yahwe, ngobe bathu bakalengudza zwibhayilo zwa Yahwe.
Mwana Samuele ku Shilo
18 Samuele wakabe eshingila Yahwe, ali mbisana akaambala khiba ye bupirisiti ye jila. 19 Mmeyabe bakabe benthumila hazu yakanlizana ben'yendila iyo gole ne gole, abeyenda ne nlume wabo kunodusa tjibhayilo tje gole. 20 Ipapo Eli kakombolela Elikana ne nkadzi uwe eti, “Tshene Yahwe bangakupa bana nge nkadzi iwoyu kumisila iwoyo waakawana nge mitembezelo ebe empa Yahwe.” Ndizo bekobgwilila kanyi kwabo. 21 Ngono Yahwe bakahwila Hana ngoni, kazwisenga kawana bakololo batatu ne bakololokadzi babili. Sa ikoku mbisana Samuele kakulila mu mesho a Yahwe.
Eli ne bakololo babe
22 Ngweno Eli wakabe atjikwegula kwazo. Kahwa kose kwakabe kuthamwa nge bakololo babe mu Iziraela yose, nenge sekwa bakabe bewalilana ne bakadzi bakabe beshingila pa nkoba we nshasha we gubungano. 23 Kabadwa kati, “Apa hwutini muthama zwithu zwakajali kene? Bathu bose banondibudza ngekwe mishingo yenyu yakabipa. 24 Andidi, bana bangu, ate ili tjithu tjibuyanana tjandinohwa bathu ba Yahwe betjiandamisa. 25 Ha nthu angatjinyila mmwe, Ndzimu ungammila, koga ha nthu angatjinyila Yahwe, apa ndiani unganlebelekela kene?”
Koga bakololo ba Eli, bakasibhulutane matama a tate babo, ngobe kwakabe kuli kuda kwa Yahwe kuti bababulaye.
26 Mbisana Samuele kadwilila ekula ediwa ndi Yahwe nenge bathu.
Bulebesambeli ngekwe nsha wa Eli
27 Nthu we Ndzimu wakazha kuna Eli kandwa kati, “Etji nditjo tjakalebgwa ndi Yahwe beti, ‘Apa andizozwilakidza ku ng'umba ya tate babo Aroni pabakabe bali mu Egipiti bali balanda ku ng'umba ya Faro kene? 28 Apa andizoshalula ibo kudwa mu njudzi dzose dze Iziraela kube mpirisiti wangu, kuti batathile ku tjibeso tjangu tjinopisigwa zwibhayilo, kunopisa motsha ne kuti baambale khiba ye bupirisiti mbeli kwangu kene? Apa andizo papha hapa nsha wa tate babo zwipo zwangu zose zwinopisiwa nge moto kudwa mu bathu be Iziraela kene? 29 Apa hwutini makalembeledzela moyo zwibhayilo ne zwipo zwangu zwandakati zwithamigwe mu bugalo gwangu, iwe Eli ubuya uteta bana babo kupinda imi, muzwikodza nge mitezho yakashalulika ye tjipo tjimwe ne tjimwe tje bathu bangu Baiziraela kene?’ 30 Ndizo Yahwe Ndzimu we Iziraela baleba beti, ‘Ndakagadzabgwe nditi, nsha uwo ne wa tate babo inowotjilila mbeli kwangu nge kusingapele.’ Koga ngwenu Yahwe banolebeleka beti, ‘Ngakube kutjena nami. Ibo banonditeta ndowobatetabo, koga ibo banondilengudza, banowotogwa basi be tjimwe. 31 Bona, tjibaka tjaswika tjandinotapudza simba lilo ne simba le nsha wa tate babo, kuti kushete unowokwegula mu nsha uwo. 32 Ndizo mu kuhwa zogwadza unowodwila moyo zose zwakanaka zwinowokombolegwa Iziraela, ngono mu nsha uwo akuna unowokula kakwegula. 33 Wenyu wandinosathubula mu kushinga pa tjibeso tjangu tjinopisigwa zwibhayilo, unowobe asiyigwa kutebula mishodzi ne buyendasi mu moyo uwe, bose be ludzi gugo banowofa. 34 Tjinowowila bakololo babo babili, Hofini na Finihasi, tjowobe tjilakidzilo mu kuli, banowofa bose mu zhuba ling'ompela. 35 Ndowozwishaluligwa mpirisiti unogalikabgwe, unowoshinga kuyendidzana ne kuda kwe moyo wangu ne meya yangu. Ndowombakila nsha wakasima, ngono unowoshingila nzhodziwa wangu nge kusingapele. 36 Mmwe ne mmwe wasala mu nsha uwo, unowozha kuwonthigamila ekumbila siliva kene zojiwa, ngono unowoti, “Ndokumbila mundibige mu tjigalo tje bupirisiti kuti ndiwane zojiwa ndije.” ’ ”