1 Samuel 3:1-21 NIV
Observations/Literary Context/Historical Context
1 Samuel 2 focuses on Eli’s sinful sons and Hannah’s prayer for Samuel. God gets angry at Eli for his failure to control his sons and curses him, saying the next priest will not come from his bloodline.
1 Samuel 3 focuses on Samuel’s call from the Lord. He is told about Eli’s coming death, which he then relays to Eli. By the end of the chapter, Samuel becomes a prophet recognized by all of Israel.
1 Samuel 4 focuses on the battle between Israel and the Philistines. It is going badly so Eli’s sons, Hophni and Phineas, bring the Ark into battle hoping that it would give them an advantage. However, they die and Israel is defeated then the Ark is taken by the Philistines. Upon hearing all this news, Eli falls in agony and dies. Phineas’ wife heard the news of the
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Repetition of phrases and messages is found throughout the passage. For example, the Lord calls Samuel three times; Eli and his two sons all die on the same day; and Eli is given his curse/warning two different times (once from God then again from Samuel). Also, Eli and Phineas’ wife were both more concerned with the Ark being captured than they were with Phineas and Hophni’s death, which I thought was interesting.
Chapter 2 focuses on Samuel’s call from the Lord to become a priest. We eventually find out in later chapters that Samuel will be the priest who anoints Israel’s first kings: Saul and David. He has many responsibilities as a priest—the main one is to share the words of God with His people and Israel is expected to respond to those words in obedience. This is what Hannah, his mother, promises him to when she gives Samuel over to the