When Eli heard the noise of the outcry, he said, “What does the sound of this tumult mean?” And the man came quickly and told Eli.
Parallel translations
- WEB When Eli heard the noise of the crying, he said, “What does the noise of this tumult mean?” The man hurried, and came and told Eli.
- KJV And when Eli heard the noise of the crying, he said, What meaneth the noise of this tumult? And the man came in hastily, and told Eli.
- BSB Eli heard the outcry and asked, “Why this commotion?” So the man hurried over and reported to Eli.
- NASB When Eli heard the noise of the outcry, he said, “What does the noise of this commotion mean?” Then the man came hurriedly and told Eli.
- NLT “What is all the noise about?” Eli asked. The messenger rushed over to Eli,
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
Hearing the outcry, the nearly blind Eli asks what the commotion means, and the messenger hurries to tell him. The moment of dreaded revelation arrives.
Overview
Eli, unable to see, perceives the city's tumult and demands to know its cause. The messenger comes quickly to deliver the report. The narrative slows to heighten the weight of the news that will confirm God's judgment on Eli's house and on a faithless Israel.
Cross-references & the web
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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 4:14 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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