23
And he said unto them, Why do ye
do such things? For I hear from all the people of your evil dealings.
24
No, my sons, for
it is no good report that I hear that ye cause the people of the LORD to transgress.
25
If one man sins against another, the judges shall judge him, but if someone sins against the LORD, who shall intreat for him? Notwithstanding they did not hearken unto the voice of their father because the LORD had
already decided to kill them.
26
And the child Samuel kept on growing and was in favour both with the LORD and also with men.
27
And a man of God came unto Eli and said unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Did I not plainly appear unto the house of thy father when they were in Egypt in the house of Pharaoh?
28
And I chose him out of all the tribes of Israel
to be my priest, to offer upon my altar, to burn incense, to wear an ephod before me, and I gave unto the house of thy father all the offerings on fire of the sons of Israel.
29
Why do ye trample my sacrifices and my offerings which I have commanded
to be offered in my tabernacle and honor thy sons above me, to make yourselves fat with the chiefest of all the offerings of Israel my people?
30
Therefore, the LORD God of Israel said, I had said indeed
that thy house and the house of thy father should walk before me for ever, but now the LORD said, It shall never be; for those that honor me I will honor, and those that lightly esteem me shall be vile.
31
Behold, the days come that I will cut off thine arm and the arm of thy father’s house that there shall not be an old man in thy house.
32
And thou shalt see a competitor
in my tabernacle in all the things in which I shall do good unto Israel, and there shall not be an old man in thy house for ever.
33
I shall not
totally cut off
all thy men from my altar to consume thine eyes and to grieve thy soul, and all the increase of thy house shall die as
young men.