CALLED BY THE SEVENTY, The first Book of KINGS. THIS Book contains the history of the last two judges, Eli and Samuel and of Saul, the first king of Israel; including a period of about eighty years. A considerable part of it was written by Samuel himself, particularly what concerned Eli and his own times, and was continued by Nathan, or Gad, or some other inspired prophet, CHAP. I. e Contains an account of the family of Samuel, and his mother's grief before he was born; Hannah's prayer and vow for the removal of her grief; the answer to her prayer; the birth of her son; and the performance of her vow, by the dedication of Samuel to God, N of OW there was a certain man of Ramathaimzophim, of mount Ephraim, and his name [was] Elkanah,* the son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the son of 2 Zuph, an Ephrathite: And he had two wives, the name of the one [was] Hannah, and the name of the other Peninnah, and Peninnah had children, but Hannah had no children. His first wife was barren, he therefore took another; a custom which was tolerated in those days; by this wife he had many children, but in 3 other things she was a torment to him. And this man went up out of the city yearly, according to the law, to worship and to sacrifice unto the LORD of hosts in Shiloh, where the ark and the tabernacle were. And the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, the priests of the LORD, [were] there; though they were wicked, he did not neglect his duty because he did not like the priest, but came to offer prayer and thanksgiving, and such sacrifices as were suitable to the occasion, which probably was the pass4 over. And when the time was that Elkanah offered, he gave to Peninnah his wife, and to all her sons and her daughters, por • Elkanah was a Levite of Ranah, or Arimathea, of the most honourable house of the tribe of Levi. |