1 Samuel 2:17

17 It was a horrible sin these young servants were committing - and right in the presence of God! - desecrating the holy offerings to God.

1 Samuel 2:17 Meaning and Commentary

1 Samuel 2:17

Wherefore the sin of the young men was very great before the
Lord
That is, the sons of Eli; for they were the ringleaders who set these bad examples, which other priests followed, and therefore the sin is ascribed to them; and which was sadly aggravated by taking what was not their own, and by taking it in a forcible manner, and before the Lord had his part in the offering, and all this done in the tabernacle, in the presence of God; which plainly showed that they had not the fear of God before their eyes, nor any sense of his omniscience and omnipresence, any more than of his holiness and justice:

for men abhorred the offering of the Lord;
it was irksome and disagreeable to them to bring their sacrifices, when they saw the law of God was not attended to, and the rules of sacrificing were not observed; such contempt of God, such abuse of sacrifices, such injury done to the sacrificers, and such covetousness and sensuality in the priests, that it even set the people against sacrifices, and made them loath them, and neglect to bring them. And this aggravated the sin of the young men, though the sacrificers were not excused hereby, ( 1 Samuel 2:24 ) .

1 Samuel 2:17 In-Context

15 Before they had even burned the fat to God, the priest's servant would interrupt whoever was sacrificing and say, "Hand over some of that meat for the priest to roast. He doesn't like boiled meat; he likes his rare."

16 If the man objected, "First let the fat be burned - God's portion! - then take all you want," the servant would demand, "No, I want it now. If you won't give it, I'll take it."

17 It was a horrible sin these young servants were committing - and right in the presence of God! - desecrating the holy offerings to God.

18 In the midst of all this, Samuel, a boy dressed in a priestly linen tunic, served God.

19 Additionally, every year his mother would make him a little robe cut to his size and bring it to him when she and her husband came for the annual sacrifice.