What does 1 Samuel 2:26 mean?
This chapter continues to compare the sons of Eli with Samuel, the son of Hannah and Elkanah. All three served the Lord at the sanctuary in Shiloh under the authority of Eli the priest of Israel. Eli's sons, though, were famous for wickedly abusing their authority as priests to serve themselves (1 Samuel 2:22). They were worthless men who did not know the Lord despite their role as mediators between God and His people (1 Samuel 2:12).Samuel, on the other hand, served faithfully before the Lord. While Hophni and Phinehas were earning God's death sentence for their sinfulness (1 Samuel 2:25), Samuel was quietly growing up. This included physical growth and becoming increasingly pleasing to the Lord and other people. A similar phrase was used to describe Jesus' younger years before He stepped into His official ministry: "And Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man" (Luke 2:52).