1 Den unge Samuel tjente Herren under Eli. I de dagene var Herrens ord skjult for folk; det var ingen åpen visjon.

Now the young Samuel was the servant of the Lord before Eli. In those days the Lord kept his word secret from men; there was no open vision.

2 Den gangen, mens Eli lå og hvilte, (øynene hans begynte å bli tåkete så han ikke kunne se)

And at that time, when Eli was resting in his place, (now his eyes were becoming clouded so that he was not able to see,)

3 og Guds lampe fortsatt brant, sov Samuel i Herrens tempel der Guds ark var,

And the light of God was still burning, while Samuel was sleeping in the Temple of the Lord where the ark of God was,

4 Herren ropte på Samuel, og han svarte: Her er jeg.

The voice of the Lord said Samuel's name; and he said, Here am I.

5 Han løp til Eli og sa: Her er jeg, for du ropte på meg. Men Eli sa: Jeg ropte ikke; gå og legg deg igjen. Så gikk han og la seg.

And running to Eli he said, Here am I, for you said my name. And Eli said, I did not say your name; go to your rest again. So he went back to his bed.

6 Og igjen ropte Herren: Samuel. Samuel stod opp, gikk til Eli og sa: Her er jeg, for du ropte på meg. Men han svarte: Jeg ropte ikke, min sønn; gå og legg deg igjen.

And again the Lord said, Samuel. And Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, Here am I; for you certainly said my name. But he said in answer, I said nothing, my son; go to your rest again.

7 På den tiden kjente ikke Samuel Herren, og Herrens ord hadde ikke blitt åpenbart for ham.

Now at that time Samuel had no knowledge of the Lord, and the revelation of the word of the Lord had not come to him.

8 For tredje gang ropte Herren på Samuel. Han stod opp, gikk til Eli og sa: Her er jeg, for du ropte på meg. Da forstod Eli at det var Herren som ropte på gutten.

And for the third time the Lord said Samuel's name. And he got up and went to Eli and said, Here am I; for you certainly said my name. Then it was clear to Eli that the voice which had said the child's name was the Lord's.

9 Eli sa til Samuel: Gå og legg deg; hvis stemmen roper igjen, skal du svare: Tal, Herre, din tjener hører. Så gikk Samuel og la seg igjen.

So Eli said to Samuel, Go back: and if the voice comes again, let your answer be, Say on, Lord; for the ears of your servant are open. So Samuel went back to his bed.

10 Da kom Herren og ropte som før: Samuel, Samuel. Og Samuel svarte: Tal, Herre, din tjener hører.

Then the Lord came and said as before, Samuel, Samuel. Then Samuel made answer, Say on, Lord; for the ears of your servant are open.

11 Herren sa til Samuel: Se, jeg vil gjøre noe i Israel som får ørene til alle som hører om det til å brenne.

And the Lord said to Samuel, See, I will do a thing in Israel at which the ears of everyone hearing of it will be burning.

12 Den dagen vil jeg oppfylle over Eli alt jeg har talt mot hans slekt, fra begynnelse til slutt.

In that day I will do to Eli everything which I have said about his family, from first to last.

13 Fortell ham at jeg vil sende straff over hans slekt for alltid, for den synden han visste om; hans sønner forbandt Gud, og han gjorde ingenting for å stoppe dem.

And you are to say to him that I will send punishment on his family for ever, for the sin which he had knowledge of; because his sons have been cursing God and he had no control over them.

14 Derfor har jeg sverget over Elis slekt at ingen offer av kjøtt eller korn kan sone deres synd.

So I have made an oath to the family of Eli that no offering of meat or of meal which they may make will ever take away the sin of his family.

15 Samuel ble liggende til det ble morgen, da han åpnet dørene til Guds hus. Men han fryktet for å fortelle Eli om sin visjon.

And Samuel kept where he was, not moving till the time came for opening the doors of the house of God in the morning. And fear kept him from giving Eli an account of his vision.

16 Da ropte Eli: Samuel, min sønn. Og Samuel svarte: Her er jeg.

Then Eli said, Samuel, my son. And Samuel answering said, Here am I.

17 Eli sa: Hva sa Herren til deg? Ikke skjul det for meg! Må Guds straff ramme deg hvis du holder noe tilbake fra meg.

And he said, What did the Lord say to you? Do not keep it from me: may God's punishment be on you if you keep from me anything he said to you.

18 Samuel fortalte ham alt og skjulte ingenting. Og Eli sa: Han er Herren; la ham gjøre det som er godt i hans øyne.

Then Samuel gave him an account of everything, keeping nothing back. And he said, It is the Lord; let him do what seems good to him.

19 Samuel vokste opp, og Herren var med ham og lot ingen av hans ord falle til jorden.

And Samuel became older, and the Lord was with him and let not one of his words be without effect.

20 Og det ble kjent over hele Israel, fra Dan til Beersheba, at Samuel var blitt en profet for Herren.

And it was clear to all Israel from Dan to Beer-sheba that Samuel had been made a prophet of the Lord.

21 Herren viste seg igjen i Sjilo; for Herren åpenbarte seg for Samuel i Sjilo gjennom sitt ord.

And the Lord was seen again in Shiloh; for the Lord gave to Samuel in Shiloh the revelation of his word.