Then Elkanah went home to Ramah, but the boy began ministering to the LORD before Eli the priest.
Parallel translations
- WEB Elkanah went to Ramah to his house. The child served Yahweh before Eli the priest.
- KJV And Elkanah went to Ramah to his house. And the child did minister unto the LORD before Eli the priest.
- NKJV Then Elkanah went to his house at Ramah. But the child ministered to the Lord before Eli the priest.
- NASB Then Elkanah went to his home at Ramah. But the boy continued to attend to the service of the Lord before Eli the priest.
- NLT Then Elkanah returned home to Ramah without Samuel. And the boy served the Lord by assisting Eli the priest.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Elkanah returned home while the child Samuel stayed to minister before the Lord under Eli. Samuel's lifelong service begins.
Overview
The family departs but Samuel remains, fulfilling Hannah's vow that he would serve the Lord. Even as a young child he 'served Yahweh,' marking the start of a faithful ministry. His quiet faithfulness is set immediately against the wickedness of Eli's sons described next, sharpening the contrast the narrative draws.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 5
- 1 Sam 2:18Now Samuel was ministering before the LORD—a boy wearing a linen ephod.
- 1 Sam 3:1And the boy Samuel ministered to the LORD before Eli. Now in those days the word of the LORD was rare and visions were scarce.
- 1 Sam 1:28I now dedicate the boy to the LORD. For as long as he lives, he is dedicated to the LORD.” So they worshiped the LORD there.
- 1 Sam 3:15Samuel lay down until the morning; then he opened the doors of the house of the LORD. He was afraid to tell Eli the vision,
- 1 Sam 1:19The next morning Elkanah and Hannah got up early to bow in worship before the LORD, and then returned home to Ramah. And Elkanah had relations with his wife Hannah, and the LORD remembered her.
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Christ at the center
The rise of the anointed king after Israel's failed first choice points to the true Anointed One (Messiah means 'anointed'), the shepherd-king after God's own heart from Bethlehem.
How 1 Samuel 2:11 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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