Hannah Asks the Lord for a Child
1 Elkanah lived in Ramah, a town in the hill country of Ephraim. His great-great-grandfather was Zuph, so Elkanah was a member of the Zuph clan of the Ephraim tribe. Elkanah's father was Jeroham, his grandfather was Elihu, and his great-grandfather was Tohu.
2 Elkanah had two wives, Hannah and Peninnah. Although Peninnah had children, Hannah did not have any.
3 Once a year Elkanah traveled from his hometown to Shiloh, where he worshiped the Lord All-Powerful and offered sacrifices. Eli was the Lord's priest there, and his two sons Hophni and Phinehas served with him as priests.
4 Whenever Elkanah offered a sacrifice, he gave some of the meat to Peninnah and some to each of her sons and daughters. 5 But he gave Hannah even more, because he loved Hannah very much, even though the Lord had kept her from having children of her own.
6 Peninnah liked to make Hannah feel miserable about not having any children, 7 especially when the family went to the house of the Lord each year.
One day, Elkanah was there offering a sacrifice, when Hannah began crying and refused to eat. 8 So Elkanah asked, “Hannah, why are you crying? Why won't you eat? Why do you feel so bad? Don't I mean more to you than ten sons?”
9 When the sacrifice had been offered, and they had eaten the meal, Hannah got up and went to pray. Eli was sitting in his chair near the door to the place of worship. 10 Hannah was heartbroken and was crying as she prayed, 11 “Lord All-Powerful, I am your servant, but I am so miserable! Please let me have a son. I promise to give him to you for as long as he lives, and his hair will never be cut.”
12-13 Hannah prayed silently to the Lord for a long time. But her lips were moving, and Eli thought she was drunk. 14 “How long are you going to stay drunk?” he asked. “Sober up!”
15-16 “Sir, please don't think I'm no good!” Hannah answered. “I'm not drunk, and I haven't been drinking. But I do feel miserable and terribly upset. I've been praying all this time, telling the Lord about my problems.”
17 Eli replied, “Go home. Everything will be fine. The God of Israel will answer your prayer.”
18 “Sir, thank you for being so kind to me,” Hannah said. Then she left, and after eating something, she felt much better.
Samuel Is Born
19 Elkanah and his family got up early the next morning and worshiped the Lord. Then they went back home to Ramah. Later the Lord blessed Elkanah and Hannah 20 with a son. She named him Samuel because she had asked the Lord for him.
Hannah Gives Samuel to the Lord
21 The next time Elkanah and his family went to offer their yearly sacrifice, he took along a gift that he had promised to give to the Lord. 22 But Hannah stayed home, because she had told Elkanah, “Samuel and I won't go until he's old enough for me to stop nursing him. Then I'll give him to the Lord, and he can stay there at Shiloh for the rest of his life.”
23 “You know what's best,” Elkanah said. “Stay here until it's time to stop nursing him. I'm sure the Lord will help you do what you have promised.” Hannah did not go to Shiloh until she stopped nursing Samuel.
24-25 When it was the time of year to go to Shiloh again, Hannah and Elkanah took Samuel to the Lord's house. They brought along a three-year-old bull, a sack containing about nine kilograms of flour, and a clay jar full of wine. Hannah and Elkanah offered the bull as a sacrifice, then brought the little boy to Eli.
26 “Sir,” Hannah said, “a few years ago I stood here beside you and asked the Lord 27 to give me a child. Here he is! The Lord gave me just what I asked for. 28 Now I am giving him to the Lord, and he will be the Lord's servant for as long as he lives.”
Hannah Prays
Elkanah worshiped the Lord there at Shiloh, and
1 MuRamataim omwa li omulumenhu Omusufi, wokeemhunda daEfraim, edina laye Elkana yaJeroham yaElihu yaTohu yaSuf Omuefrat. 2 Ye okwa li e novalikadi vavali. Edina laumwe la li Hanna, nedina lomutivali ola li Peninna. Ndele Peninna okwa li e novana, ndelenee Hanna okwa li ehe novana. 3 Nomulumenhu ou okwa li ha di moshilando shavo ndele ta i omudo keshe okwiilikana nokuyambela Omwene womatanga ovakwaita kuSilo, oko ovana ovamati vavali vaEli, Hofni naPinehas, va li ovapristeli vOmwene. 4 Ndele mefiku limwe Elkana okwa yamba nokwa yandja komwalikadi waye Peninna nokovana vaye ovamati noukadona oitukulwa yombelela yeyambo. 5 Ndelenee okwa yandja kuHanna luvali oitukulwa, osheshi okwa li e hole Hanna. Ndelenee Omwene okwa fitika po oshidalelo shaye. 6 Nomukwao okwe mu shinda nokushindilila e mu handukife, shaashi Omwene okwa fitika po oshidalelo shaye. 7 Nosho ngaha sha ningwa omudo nomudo, ye eshi a ya kongulu yOmwene. Osho ngaha winya e mu handukifa, onghee Hanna a lila ndele ina hala okulya sha. 8 Nomulumenhu waye Elkana okwe mu lombwela: “Hanna, oto lilile shike ndele ito li sha? Nomolwashike omwenyo woye tau nyika oluhodi? Haame ngeno ndi dule ovamati omulongo?” 9 Opo nee Hanna okwa fikama, vo eshi va lya nova nwa muSilo, fimbo omupristeli Eli a li omutumba kolukalwa laye poshivelo shotembeli yOmwene. 10 Nokwa ilikana Omwene mouyehame ulula nokwa lila nokulililila. 11 Ndele ye okwa udaneka eudaneko ndele ta ti: “Omwene womatanga ovakwaita, Ove ngeenge to tale oluhepo lomupiya woye omukainhu, ndele to dimbulukwa nge, ndele ito dimbwa omupiya woye omukainhu, ndele to yandje komupiya woye omukainhu okaana okalume, opo nee ame ohandi ke ka yandja kOmwene ka ninge kOmwene omafiku aeshe omokukala kwako. Noshimbi itashi ke uya komutwe wako.” 12 Ndele ye eshi a ilikana efimbo lile koshipala shOmwene naEli ta tale okanya kaye, 13 osheshi Hanna okwa popya momutima waye, omilungu daye adike de linyenga, ndelenee ondaka yaye inai udika, ndele Eli okwa diladila ye a kolwa. 14 Ndele Eli ta ti kuye: “Fiyo onaini to kala ngaashi omunhu ongholwe? Litukumuna oukolwe woye!” 15 Ndelenee Hanna ta nyamukula ta ti: “Ahowe, omwene wange, aame omukainhu ndi nouyehame wokomwenyo. Inandi nwa omaviinyu ile oikunwa tai kolwifa, ndelenee nda tukumuna omwenyo wange koshipala shOmwene. 16 Ino tala omupiya woye omukainhu omukolokoshi, osheshi omolwouyehame wange nomolwounene woluhodi lange nda popya efimbo lile.” 17 Ndele Eli okwa nyamukula ndele ta ti: Inda nombili, Kalunga kaIsrael ne ku pe eshi we mu indila meilikano loye. 18 Opo nee ye ta ti: “Omupiya woye omukainhu na filwe onghenda momesho oye.” Omwalikadi okwa dja po opo, ta li ndele ina kala vali e noluhodi. 19 Vo eshi ve liungaana ongula inene ndele va ilikana koshipala shOmwene, vo ova shuna ndele tave uya meumbo lavo muRama. Elkana a nangala nomwalikadi waye Hanna, nOmwene okwe mu dimbulukwa. 20 Ndele eshi pa pita omudo umwe, Hanna ou a li omufimba, okwa dala okaana okamati nokwe ka luka Samuel, osheshi ye ta ti: “Ame nde ka indila kOmwene.”
21 Omulumenhu Elkana neumbo laye alishe eshi va fikama va ka yambele Omwene eyambo lomudo keshe nokutwala ko eyambo laye leudaneko, 22 Hanna ina ya ko. Ndelenee ye okwa lombwela omulumenhu waye: “Okaana okamati ngeenge ka tova, ohandi ke ka twala ko, opo ka holoke koshipala shOmwene nokukala ko efimbo alishe.” 23 Nomulumenhu waye Elkana okwe mu lombwela: “Ninga hano eshi tashi ku wapalele. Kala po fiyo okaana okamati ka tova; Omwene na wanife ashike eendjovo daye.” Omwalikadi a kala ko ndele ta nyamifa okaana kaye okamati fiyo e ka tovifa. 24 Ndelenee ye eshi e ka tovifa, okwa ya pamwe nako neengobe nhatu deemhedi noufila u fike peekilograma omulongo nomaviinyu oshitoo shimwe, nokwe ka twala kongulu yOmwene mu Silo. Nokaana okamati ka li kanini natango. 25 Ndele va toma ongobe yomhedi ndele tava twala okaana okamati kuEli. 26 Ndele ye ta ti: Akutu, omwene wange, oshili, ngaashi u nomwenyo aame omukainhu winya nda li ofika apa pwoove ndele handi indile kOmwene. 27 Okaana aka okamati onde ka indila kOmwene, nOmwene okwa pa nge eshi nde shi mu indila. 28 Onghee hano nda hala yo oku ka yandja kOmwene omafiku aeshe okukala kwako. Naka kale ka yandjelwa Omwene. Ndele oko vo va ilikana Omwene.
