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The Rise of Samuel - The Book of 1 Samuel · Bible in a Year with Jack Graham

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  Speaker 1: Wherefore the Lord God of Israel saith, I said indeed
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  Speaker 1: that thy house and the house of thy father should
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  Speaker 1: walk before me forever. But now the Lord saith, Be
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  Speaker 1: it far from me, for them that honor me I
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  Speaker 1: will honor, and they that despise me shall be lightly esteemed.
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  Speaker 1: 1 Samuel 2.20 Lord, I know that you are not
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  Speaker 1: taken back by bold prayers. So, like Hannah, I will
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  Speaker 1: not be ashamed to lay before you and make my
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  Speaker 1: request known. Thank you, Jesus, that because of your sacrifice
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  Speaker 1: I can come boldly before the Lord in prayer and
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  Speaker 1: make the desires of my heart known to Him. As
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  Speaker 1: a child of God, living in alignment with my assignment,
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  Speaker 1: I thank you in advance for moving and working on
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  Speaker 1: my behalf to bring my purpose into focus. In the
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  Speaker 1: same way Hannah dedicated Samuel to do your work, I
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  Speaker 1: also dedicate and devote my gifts, my promotions, and all
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  Speaker 1: opportunities to you, because my focus is to bring you glory. Therefore,
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  Speaker 1: I will listen when you call me like Samuel. I
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  Speaker 1: will say, Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening, because
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  Speaker 1: I know that one word from you is worth a
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  Speaker 1: thousand elsewhere. I declare that I am chosen and that
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  Speaker 1: I am set apart. I will live differently, speak differently,
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  Speaker 1: think differently, and believe differently because I've been called to
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  Speaker 1: do great things. The days of me playing small so
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  Speaker 1: others don't get uncomfortable are done. You've placed me where
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  Speaker 1: I am, and I am ready to receive my calling.
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  Speaker 1: I am your servant. Speak, Lord.
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  Speaker 2: I'm ready.
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  Speaker 1: In Jesus' name. Amen. Thank you for making prayer a
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  Speaker 1: priority in your day. To learn more about the Bible,
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  Speaker 1: stay tuned for today's story. Brought to you by BibleInAYear.com.
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  Speaker 2: The Rise of Samuel In our last story, we learned
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  Speaker 2: about the romance of Ruth and her kinsman redeemer, Boaz.
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  Speaker 2: Boaz redeemed Ruth from her poverty and loneliness, and the
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  Speaker 2: two were married. They had a child named Obed, who
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  Speaker 2: would be the grandfather of one of Israel's greatest kings.
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  Speaker 2: Now we begin a new adventure with Samuel, a prophet, judge,
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  Speaker 2: and ruler over Israel. He would pave the way for
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  Speaker 2: a new era in Israel, the era of kings. Inspired
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  Speaker 2: by the book of 1 Samuel.
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  Speaker 3: Hello, I'm Pastor Jack Graham with today's episode of the
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  Speaker 3: Bible in a Year podcast. In yesterday's episode, we heard
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  Speaker 3: the story of how Boaz and Ruth married and had
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  Speaker 3: a son named Obed. Obed would be the grandfather of
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  Speaker 3: Israel's greatest king, David. It was the dawn of a
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  Speaker 3: new era in the history of God's people, the age
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  Speaker 3: of the kings. And today we'll hear how this new
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  Speaker 3: era began with a child born to a woman named Hannah.
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  Speaker 3: This child named Samuel would be promised to God's service
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  Speaker 3: by his mother Hannah, who had prayed and longed for
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  Speaker 3: him many years. Samuel would grow to be a great
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  Speaker 3: prophet and judge, but first he would serve in the
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  Speaker 3: temple and receive a very special calling from God. Let's
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  Speaker 3: listen to today's reading.
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  Speaker 2: The country of Israel lived in captivity to their own idolatry.
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  Speaker 2: After the civil war of Benjamin and Israel, the people
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  Speaker 2: retreated back into their old ways of idol worship and
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  Speaker 2: living selfishly. During this time, there were a few remaining
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  Speaker 2: faithful who continued to devote their lives to the Lord,
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  Speaker 2: seeking Him in all their ways. One of those people
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  Speaker 2: was a man in the hill country of Ephraim, Elkanah.
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  Speaker 2: Elkanah had two wives, since one of his wives, Hannah,
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  Speaker 2: was unable to have children. His other wife, Penina, had
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  Speaker 2: many children, but Elkanah loved Hannah more. Penina lived without
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  Speaker 2: the undivided love of her husband and spited Hannah because
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  Speaker 2: of it. She tormented and teased Hannah endlessly. Just as
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  Speaker 2: Jacob's wives, Rachel and Leah, the two women hated one
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  Speaker 2: another because of their husband's lack of sense. Year by year,
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  Speaker 2: Hannah would endure the relentless provocation from Penina, Hannah, would
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  Speaker 2: often approach the altar of God to pray. Day after
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  Speaker 2: day she would enter into the house of the Lord
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  Speaker 2: and beg Him for a child. One day she lay
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  Speaker 2: on the floor of the temple and wept bitterly. Her
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  Speaker 2: tears fell upon the altar, and her indiscernible prayers echoed
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  Speaker 2: through the empty chamber. Hannah lifted her eyes to heaven
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  Speaker 2: and prayed, Lord of hosts, maker of heaven and earth,
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  Speaker 2: please look at my pain and have pity on me.
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  Speaker 2: If you give me a son, I promise to give
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  Speaker 2: him to you as a servant for the rest of
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  Speaker 2: his life. As Hannah continued to pray, Eli, the priest
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  Speaker 2: of the temple, watched her. Hannah was speaking so deeply
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  Speaker 2: and from her heart that it almost seemed as though
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  Speaker 2: she was drunk. ELI, AN ALREADY GRUMPY OLD MAN, SCOFFED
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  Speaker 2: AT HER AND SAID, HOW LONG WILL YOU LAY THERE DRUNK?
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  Speaker 2: HANNAH TURNED AROUND, STARTLED BY ELI'S VOICE. SHE WIPED HER
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  Speaker 2: FACE AND STOOD UP. OH, NO, MY LORD, I AM
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  Speaker 2: SIMPLY A WOMAN WITH A TROUBLED SPIRIT. I WAS BEARING
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  Speaker 2: MY SOUL BEFORE GOD. SHE SPOKE SOFTLY, EMBARRASSED AT ELI'S COMMENTS.
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  Speaker 2: PLEASE DO NOT SEE ME AS A WORTHLESS WOMAN. I
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  Speaker 2: JUST PRAY WITH GREAT ANXIETY. Eli saw that she was
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  Speaker 2: truly distraught. He sighed and then gave a quick smile.
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  Speaker 2: Go in peace, he said. God will answer, I am
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  Speaker 2: sure of it. Then Eli departed to leave Hannah to
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  Speaker 2: her prayers. Hannah smiled and returned to her husband to eat.
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  Speaker 2: They worshipped God more in the house of God and
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  Speaker 2: returned home. Time passed, and Penina's pestering lost all its sting,
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  Speaker 2: for Hannah had conceived a son and named him Samuel.
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  Speaker 2: The Lord had answered her prayers. Hannah remembered her prayer
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  Speaker 2: to God. She swore to God that if she was
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  Speaker 2: given a son, she would offer him up into his service.
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  Speaker 2: When Samuel was old enough, she brought him to Eli.
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  Speaker 2: Hannah held her child, trusting that God would be faithful
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  Speaker 2: to do great things because of her faithfulness. Her heart broke,
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  Speaker 2: just as Abraham's once did when he brought Isaac to
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  Speaker 2: the altar. So Samuel studied and served under Eli. He
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  Speaker 2: grew to be strong, wise, and attentive to the voice
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  Speaker 2: of God's Spirit. Samuel became like a son to Eli,
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  Speaker 2: which was fitting since his sons grew up to be
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  Speaker 2: wicked and worthless men. They would steal from the offerings
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  Speaker 2: given to God and treat his altar like their own
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  Speaker 2: personal feeding trough. The two men used their influence to
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  Speaker 2: seduce women who desired to serve God. They took advantage
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  Speaker 2: of the people and treated God's children as objects for
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  Speaker 2: their own pleasure. Eli was an old man and unable
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  Speaker 2: to keep his sons from sinning. Eli tried reasoning with them, saying,
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  Speaker 2: If you sin against man, there may be someone to
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  Speaker 2: pray on your behalf for forgiveness. But you are sinning
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  Speaker 2: against God, and there may be no one to help you. Naturally,
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  Speaker 2: the men refused to listen and continued to sin against
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  Speaker 2: God and His children. God was about to do a
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  Speaker 2: new work in Israel, a work of great justice, peace,
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  Speaker 2: and deliverance. He would not tolerate the priestly family to
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  Speaker 2: continue in such sin and selfishness. God's rage is not
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  Speaker 2: unpredictable or uncalled for. His anger is precise and always
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  Speaker 2: pointed towards those who would hurt His people and scorn
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  Speaker 2: His name. Therefore God's rage burst like a mighty wildfire
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  Speaker 2: against the sons of Eli. He spoke in an ancient fury.
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  Speaker 2: The voice of a righteous king bellowed in Eli's ear
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  Speaker 2: as he spoke, saying, Did I reveal myself to your
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  Speaker 2: forefathers in Egypt all to have you scorn my offering table?
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  Speaker 2: Your sons fatten themselves with the worship of my people.
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  Speaker 2: They abuse and neglect, and you have allowed it. Eli
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  Speaker 2: began to tremble as God spoke. Behold, the days are
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  Speaker 2: coming where your sons will be cast out into darkness.
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  Speaker 2: They shall behold the prosperity of my people and look
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  Speaker 2: upon them with envy. They shall both die on the
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  Speaker 2: same day, and I shall raise up a priest of
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  Speaker 2: my own, who shall be unified with my heart and mind,
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  Speaker 2: and your sons' lines shall beg for bread. Years had passed.
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  Speaker 2: and the boy Samuel was ministering to the Lord of Eli.
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  Speaker 2: He served Eli in his old age. He would tend
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  Speaker 2: to him, feed him, and perform the duties of a
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  Speaker 2: priest on his behalf. Samuel was attentive and eager to
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  Speaker 2: help God's people draw closer to him. One night Samuel
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  Speaker 2: was lying down in the temple of God where the
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  Speaker 2: Ark of the Covenant lay. The candles in the temple
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  Speaker 2: flickered and made shadows dance around the walls. There was
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  Speaker 2: a slight breeze coming in through the back, and Samuel
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  Speaker 2: slept in the coolness of night. Then a faint whisper
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  Speaker 2: grazed the ear of Samuel. He opened his eyes and
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  Speaker 2: walked towards Eli's chamber and said, Here I am, Eli.
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  Speaker 2: You called for me? Eli woke up from his sleep
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  Speaker 2: and said, You must be dreaming. I did not call
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  Speaker 2: for you. Go back to sleep. Sir Samuel went back
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  Speaker 2: into the floor of the temple to rest. As he
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  Speaker 2: began to drift, he heard that still and quiet voice
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  Speaker 2: once again.' Samuel!' the voice whispered intensely. Samuel jolted awake
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  Speaker 2: this time, running to the bedside of Eli.' Here I am, Eli!'
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  Speaker 2: he shouted. Eli shook in his bed, surprised and annoyed
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  Speaker 2: that he had been waken up again. He did not
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  Speaker 2: call him and shooed Samuel out of his room. Again,
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  Speaker 2: as Samuel was falling asleep, a voice beckoned him. When
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  Speaker 2: he went to the bedside of Eli again, Eli perceived
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  Speaker 2: it might be from the Lord. Eli waved for Samuel
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  Speaker 2: to come closer. He held his hand and spoke gently, saying, Samuel,
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  Speaker 2: if you hear the voice again, do not come running
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  Speaker 2: to me. Ask for it to speak again and listen carefully.
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  Speaker 2: Samuel left Eli and knelt down at the altar of God.
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  Speaker 2: He closed his eyes, intent on listening. Samuel! Samuel! the
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  Speaker 2: voice said again. Samuel remained still. Small drops of sweat
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  Speaker 2: began to form around his forehead. He knew now that
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  Speaker 2: it was the Lord who beckoned him. Samuel gulped and said,
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  Speaker 2: Here I am, Lord. Your servant hears. Pleased, God spoke
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  Speaker 2: with Samuel. Their conversation reflected dimly the time God visited
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  Speaker 2: Moses in fire. God spoke with clarity, strength, and love
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  Speaker 2: for his people. Behold, I am making things new in Israel.
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  Speaker 2: Everyone who hears will quiver as I eradicate the sons
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  Speaker 2: of Eli to establish my new priesthood. The next morning,
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  Speaker 2: Eli inquired of what Samuel heard from God. Samuel was
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  Speaker 2: not sure whether he should divulge everything to Eli, for
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  Speaker 2: it meant grave news for his sons. Over breakfast, Samuel
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  Speaker 2: told Eli of his experience. Somber, thoughtful, and content, Eli
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  Speaker 2: spoke and said, If it is the Lord's will, so
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  Speaker 2: be it. After this Samuel grew, and the Lord was
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  Speaker 2: with him in everything he did. The favor of Joseph
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  Speaker 2: was upon him. Every word Samuel spoke uplifted the people,
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  Speaker 2: and no exhortation fell on deaf ears. Every tribe of
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  Speaker 2: Israel recognized Samuel as their prophet and priest. It would
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  Speaker 2: be Samuel who would endure the complaints of Israel. as
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  Speaker 2: Moses once did. He would lead them well, and soon
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  Speaker 2: he would pave the way for a new era in Israel,
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  Speaker 2: the era of kings.
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  Speaker 3: Today's story begins with a man named Elkanah who lived
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  Speaker 3: in Ephraim. He was one of the few who remained
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  Speaker 3: faithful to God in those days. But though he was faithful,
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  Speaker 3: he was also flawed because he had two wives, Hannah
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  Speaker 3: and Penanah. His wives were bitter rivals, just like Leah
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  Speaker 3: and Rachel. You see, though Penanah had given him many children,
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  Speaker 3: Elkanah loved Hannah more. Hannah, however, was unable to conceive,
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  Speaker 3: and Penanah held this over Hannah's head, ruthlessly tormenting her.
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  Speaker 3: Every year when Elkanah went to offer sacrifices to God
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  Speaker 3: in the temple at Shiloh, Hannah would plead to God
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  Speaker 3: for a son. This continued year after year. Finally, one
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  Speaker 3: day as she prayed, she promised God that if he'd
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  Speaker 3: give her a son, she would give that son back
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  Speaker 3: to God to serve him all his life. When Eli,
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  Speaker 3: the temple priest, saw her praying, her lips moving without
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  Speaker 3: making a sound as she spoke to God, he thought
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  Speaker 3: she was drunk. Listen to her response in 1 Samuel
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  Speaker 3: 1 15. Hannah answered, No, my Lord, I am a
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  Speaker 3: woman troubled in spirit. I have drunk neither wine nor
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  Speaker 3: strong drink. but I've been pouring out my soul before
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  Speaker 3: the Lord. We should always remember when we are troubled,
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  Speaker 3: when we are in turmoil, when we are in anguish
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  Speaker 3: and desperate, there is no better place to pour out
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  Speaker 3: our hearts, our souls than to God. God hears our
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  Speaker 3: prayers and cares for us just as he did for Hannah.
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  Speaker 3: Hearing this response, Eli told her to go in peace
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  Speaker 3: that God would answer her request. So Hannah became pregnant
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  Speaker 3: with a son. She was overjoyed. But Hannah also knew
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  Speaker 3: that her son would not stay with her because she
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  Speaker 3: had promised to God that she would give him back
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  Speaker 3: to him. True to her word, when Samuel was weaned,
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  Speaker 3: she took him to Eli to be raised in the
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  Speaker 3: service of God. And because of her great faithfulness, God
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  Speaker 3: blessed Hannah even more, giving her three more sons and
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  Speaker 3: two daughters. It's absolutely true, isn't it, that you can
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  Speaker 3: never outgive God. So Eli raised Samuel like a son.
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  Speaker 3: And that's a very good thing because his own sons,
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  Speaker 3: we find out, were up to no good. They served themselves,
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  Speaker 3: not God, under the guise of their own priesthood. It
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  Speaker 3: was a terrible affront to Almighty God, and he would
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  Speaker 3: not allow this to continue. But despite warnings, they would
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  Speaker 3: not stop. So God told Eli that his sons would
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  Speaker 3: be cast out, and rather than work through Eli's worthless offspring,
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  Speaker 3: God would raise up another priest, one who would serve
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  Speaker 3: him with integrity and devotion. One night as he was sleeping,
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  Speaker 3: Samuel heard a voice calling, but it was not Eli.
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  Speaker 3: Two more times he thought Eli was calling him and
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  Speaker 3: ran to Eli's room. Eli then understood what was going
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  Speaker 3: on and told Samuel to ask the voice to speak
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  Speaker 3: next time and then to listen. Samuel heard the voice
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  Speaker 3: again and this time he did listen. God told Samuel
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  Speaker 3: he was about to make things new in Israel and
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  Speaker 3: that Eli's line would be wiped out to make way
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  Speaker 3: for a new priesthood. When Eli heard the news, he
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  Speaker 3: submitted to God's will, trusting in the grace and the
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  Speaker 3: goodness of God even in this. Samuel would be this
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  Speaker 3: next priest, one like Israel had never known before. He
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  Speaker 3: would help usher in the time of kings. But first,
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  Speaker 3: Israel would be visited by an old enemy, and we'll
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  Speaker 3: hear that story the next time. Dear Lord, we thank
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  Speaker 3: you that you always hear our prayers. We thank you
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  Speaker 3: that You speak to us even as we listen to you.
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  Speaker 3: So today, we say, speak, Lord, for your servant is listening,
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  Speaker 3: just like Samuel of old. Just like Samuel so long ago,
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  Speaker 3: we submit our lives to do your will. Speak, Lord,
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  Speaker 3: we are listening. In Jesus' name, amen. Thank you for
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  Speaker 3: listening to today's Bible in a Year podcast. I'm Jack
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  Speaker 3: Graham of Dallas, Texas. And you can download the Pray.com
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  Speaker 3: app and make prayer the priority of your life. It
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  Speaker 3: is our prayer that you would know Jesus Christ in
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  Speaker 3: a personal way. Jesus and knowing him is the key
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  Speaker 3: to understanding the Bible. Jesus is on every page in
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  Speaker 3: the pathway of Scripture. So I pray that you would
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  Speaker 3: know him and look to him for eternal life. As
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  Speaker 3: we see all of these stories, some of them very sordid,
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  Speaker 3: we realize just how desperately we all need the Lord.
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  Speaker 3: So invite Christ into your life and receive him as
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  Speaker 3: your Lord and Savior. I would also encourage you to
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  Speaker 3: download the Pray.com app and let others know about this podcast.
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  Speaker 3: And if you want more resources on how to know
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  Speaker 3: God and experience his presence in your life, be sure
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  Speaker 3: to visit JackGraham.org. God bless you.
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