1 Samuel 3:18 - Printer Friendly

ESV: So Samuel told him everything and hid nothing from him. And he said, “It is the LORD. Let him do what seems good to him.”

NIV: So Samuel told him everything, hiding nothing from him. Then Eli said, 'He is the LORD; let him do what is good in his eyes.'

NASB: So Samuel told him everything and hid nothing from him. And he said, 'He is the Lord; let Him do what seems good to Him.'

CSB: So Samuel told him everything and did not hide anything from him. Eli responded, "He is the Lord. Let him do what he thinks is good."

NLT: So Samuel told Eli everything; he didn’t hold anything back. 'It is the Lord’s will,' Eli replied. 'Let him do what he thinks best.'

KJV: And Samuel told him every whit, and hid nothing from him. And he said, It is the LORD: let him do what seemeth him good.

NKJV: Then Samuel told him everything, and hid nothing from him. And he said, “It is the Lord. Let Him do what seems good to Him.”

Samuel has been visited in the night by the Lord God of Israel, with a prophecy of judgment against his own guardian and mentor, Eli the priest (1 Samuel 3:10–14). Eli knows Samuel has received a prophecy. He warns the boy of his solemn responsibility to report the entire message without hiding any part of it. Now Samuel does exactly that, telling Eli about God's inescapable punishment against him and his household for the blasphemy of his sons which he failed to stop. Samuel must have wondered how Eli would respond. He was reluctant, at first, to pass along the message (1 Samuel 3:15).

For all his moral and spiritual failures, Eli is humble and resigned, rather than argumentative. And yet, he expresses neither repentance nor sorrow. It's almost as if the old priest shrugs and says, "Oh, well, what are you going to do?" His literal words reflect that exact sort of indifference mixed with fatalism: let God do what God will do. Eli recognizes he cannot stop what is coming and decides not to engage emotionally about it.

Why did the Lord give Samuel this same prophecy that had already been delivered to Eli by another prophet (1 Samuel 2:27–26)? It may have been to confirm for Eli that it was true. It also provided confirmation for both Eli and Samuel that the message from the Lord to Samuel was genuine. This reinforced that God had really initiated young Samuel as a prophet in Israel. Given the nature of the message, it also demonstrated that Samuel's loyalty was to the Lord: that he would speak truth, even in difficult circumstances. In hearing and giving the message, Samuel also saw the holiness of God and the reality of judgment for those who would scorn His ways. He knew not to follow the example of Eli's sons, and he knew that a change would be coming at the temple. His trust must be in God Himself, not in his mentor.

First Samuel 3:15–21 indicates Samuel was reluctant to share his first prophetic word from God. The Lord's message was dire: that Eli, the current priest, would suffer consequences for his sin. His sons and family were abusing their power and profaning God. With some prompting, Samuel delivers this message to Eli, who accepts it. Samuel continues to grow and is recognized by all of Israel as a prophet of the Lord.

Samuel is just a boy when the Lord calls Him to serve as a prophet in Israel. Sleeping in the temple, Samuel hears his name and thinks Eli the priest is calling him. Eli finally tells Samuel it is the Lord. The Lord tells Samuel that He is going to fulfill His judgment against Eli and his household for the sins of Eli's sons and for Eli's failure to restrain them. Samuel delivers the entire message to Eli and begins his lifelong career as an official prophet of the Lord.

First Samuel 3 follows the prophecy of judgment against Eli and his household at the end of the previous chapter (1 Samuel 2:27–36) with a repeat of the prophecy through the words of young Samuel. Eli helps the boy to understand the Lord is speaking to him, and Samuel delivers the Lord's harsh message. Eli accepts Samuel's word, passively accepting whatever God will do. The next chapters explain Eli's death and Israel's renewed conflict with the Philistines.

First Samuel introduces the key figures who led Israel after the era of the judges. The books of 1 and 2 Samuel were originally part of a single text, split in certain translations shortly before the birth of Christ. Some of the Bible’s most famous characters are depicted in this book. These including the prophet Samuel, Israel’s first king, Saul, her greatest king, David, and other famous names such as Goliath and Jonathan. By the end of this book, Saul has fallen; the book of 2 Samuel begins with David’s ascension to the throne.