| 3:1 | Then the boy Samuel ministered to the LORD before Eli. And the word of the LORD was rare in those days; [there was] no widespread revelation. |
| 3:2 | And it came to pass at that time, while Eli [was] lying down in his place, and when his eyes had begun to grow so dim that he could not see, |
| 3:3 | and before the lamp of God went out in the tabernacle of the LORD where the ark of God [was], and while Samuel was lying down, |
| 3:4 | that the LORD called Samuel. And he answered, "Here I am!" |
| 3:5 | So he ran to Eli and said, "Here I am, for you called me." And he said, "I did not call; lie down again." And he went and lay down. |
| 3:6 | Then the LORD called yet again, "Samuel!" So Samuel arose and went to Eli, and said, "Here I am, for you called me." He answered, "I did not call, my son; lie down again." |
| 3:7 | (Now Samuel did not yet know the LORD, nor was the word of the LORD yet revealed to him.) |
| 3:8 | And the LORD called Samuel again the third time. Then he arose and went to Eli, and said, "Here I am, for you did call me." Then Eli perceived that the LORD had called the boy. |
| 3:9 | Therefore Eli said to Samuel, "Go, lie down; and it shall be, if He calls you, that you must say, `Speak, LORD, for Your servant hears.'"So Samuel went and lay down in his place. |
| 3:10 | Now the LORD came and stood and called as at other times, "Samuel! Samuel!" And Samuel answered, "Speak, for Your servant hears." |
| 3:11 | Then the LORD said to Samuel: "Behold, I will do something in Israel at which both ears of everyone who hears it will tingle. |
| 3:12 | "In that day I will perform against Eli all that I have spoken concerning his house, from beginning to end. |
| 3:13 | "For I have told him that I will judge his house forever for the iniquity which he knows, because his sons made themselves vile, and he did not restrain them. |
| 3:14 | "And therefore I have sworn to the house of Eli that the iniquity of Eli's house shall not be atoned for by sacrifice or offering forever." |
| 3:15 | So Samuel lay down until morning, and opened the doors of the house of the LORD. And Samuel was afraid to tell Eli the vision. |
| 3:16 | Then Eli called Samuel and said, "Samuel, my son!" And he answered, "Here I am." |
| 3:17 | And he said, "What [is] the word that [the LORD] spoke to you? Please do not hide [it] from me. God do so to you, and more also, if you hide anything from me of all the things that He said to you." |
| 3:18 | Then Samuel told him everything, and hid nothing from him. And he said, "It [is] the LORD. Let Him do what seems good to Him." |
| 3:19 | So Samuel grew, and the LORD was with him and let none of his words fall to the ground. |
| 3:20 | And all Israel from Dan to Beersheba knew that Samuel [had been] established as a prophet of the LORD. |
| 3:21 | Then the LORD appeared again in Shiloh. For the LORD revealed Himself to Samuel in Shiloh by the word of the LORD. |
1 Samuel 3 - New King James Version
