1 Samuel 2:28-30

2:28 I chose your ancestor 1  from all the tribes of Israel to be my priest, to offer sacrifice on my altar, to burn incense, and to bear the ephod before me. I gave to your ancestor’s house all the fire offerings made by the Israelites. 2:29 Why are you 2  scorning my sacrifice and my offering that I commanded for my dwelling place? 3  You have honored your sons more than you have me by having made yourselves fat from the best parts of all the offerings of my people Israel.’

2:30 Therefore the Lord, the God of Israel, says, ‘I really did say 4  that your house and your ancestor’s house would serve 5  me forever.’ But now the Lord says, ‘May it never be! 6  For I will honor those who honor me, but those who despise me will be cursed!

1 tn Heb “him”; the referent (Eli’s ancestor, i.e., Aaron) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

2 tc The MT has a plural “you” here, but the LXX and a Qumran ms have the singular. The singular may be the correct reading; the verb “you have honored” later in the verse is singular even in the MT. However, it is more probable that the Lord here refers to Eli and his sons. Note the plural in the second half of the verse (“you have made yourselves fat”).

3 tn Heb “which I commanded, dwelling place.” The noun is functioning as an adverbial accusative in relation to the verb. Since God’s dwelling place/sanctuary is in view, the pronoun “my” is supplied in the translation.

4 tn The infinitive absolute appears before the finite verb for emphasis.

5 tn Heb “walk about before.”

6 tn Heb “may it be far removed from me.”