3:1 During the time young Samuel was minister to the LORD under Eli, a revelation of the LORD was uncommon and vision infrequent.
3:2 One day Eli was asleep in his usual place. His eyes had lately grown so weak that he could not see.
3:3 The lamp of God was not yet extinguished, and Samuel was sleeping in the temple of the LORD where the ark of God was.
3:4 The LORD called to Samuel, who answered, "Here I am."
3:5 He ran to Eli and said, "Here I am. You called me." "I did not call you," Eli said. "Go back to sleep." So he went back to sleep.
3:6 Again the LORD called Samuel, who rose and went to Eli. "Here I am," he said. "You called me." But he answered, "I did not call you, my son. Go back to sleep."
3:7 At that time Samuel was not familiar with the LORD, because the LORD had not revealed anything to him as yet.
3:8 The LORD called Samuel again, for the third time. Getting up and going to Eli, he said, "Here I am. You called me." Then Eli understood that the LORD was calling the youth.
3:9 So he said to Samuel, "Go to sleep, and if you are called, reply, ’speak, LORD, for your servant is listening.'" When Samuel went to sleep in his place,
3:10 the LORD came and revealed his presence, calling out as before, "Samuel, Samuel!" Samuel answered, "Speak, for your servant is listening."
3:11 The LORD said to Samuel: "I am about to do something in Israel that will cause the ears of everyone who hears it to ring.
3:12 On that day I will carry out in full against Eli everything I threatened against his family.
3:13 I announce to him that I am condemning his family once and for all, because of this crime: though he knew his sons were blaspheming God, he did not reprove them.
3:14 Therefore, I swear to the family of Eli that no sacrifice or offering will ever expiate its crime."
3:15 Samuel then slept until morning, when he got up early and opened the doors of the temple of the LORD. He feared to tell Eli the vision,
3:16 but Eli called to him, "Samuel, my son!" He replied, "Here I am."
3:17 Then Eli asked, "What did he say to you? Hide nothing from me! May God do thus and so to you if you hide a single thing he told you."
3:18 So Samuel told him everything, and held nothing back. Eli answered, "He is the LORD. He will do what he judges best."
3:19 Samuel grew up, and the LORD was with him, not permitting any word of his to be without effect.
3:20 Thus all Israel from Dan to Beer-sheba came to know that Samuel was an accredited prophet of the LORD.
3:21 The LORD continued to appear at Shiloh; he manifested himself to Samuel at Shiloh through his word,