Young Samuel served the Lord at the tabernacle in Shiloh. He helped Eli, the old priest. In those days, messages from the Lord were rare, and visions did not happen often.
One night, Eli was sleeping in his own place. His eyes had grown dim, and he could not see well. The lamp of God was still burning before the veil. Nearby, Samuel lay on his woven mat in the house of the Lord, close to the ark of God.
Suddenly, a voice called, “Samuel!”
Samuel jumped up. “Here I am!” he answered. He hurried to Eli’s bedside and said, “Here I am, for you called me.”
But Eli said, “I didn’t call. Lie down again.”
Samuel returned to his mat. He must have wondered who had called him.
Again the voice came. “Samuel!”
Samuel rose and ran to Eli. “Here I am, for you called me.”
“My son, I didn’t call,” Eli answered. “Lie down again.”
Samuel went back to his mat. He did not yet understand that the Lord was calling him.
A third time the voice called, “Samuel!”
Once more Samuel hurried to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you called me.”
Now Eli understood. The Lord was calling the boy.
Eli gently told Samuel to go back and lie down. “If he calls you again,” Eli said, “say, ‘Speak, Yahweh; for your servant hears.’”
Samuel returned to his place and waited quietly.
The Lord came and stood there. He called as he had before, “Samuel! Samuel!”
This time Samuel answered, “Speak, for your servant hears.”
Then the Lord gave Samuel a difficult message. Eli’s sons had done wrong, and Eli knew about it but had not stopped them. The Lord said that judgment was coming upon Eli’s family.
Samuel lay on his mat until morning. He was afraid to tell Eli what the Lord had said. When morning came, Samuel got up and opened the doors of the Lord’s house as usual.
Then Eli called, “Samuel, my son.”
“Here I am,” Samuel replied.
Eli asked what the Lord had told him. He told Samuel not to hide anything. So Samuel bravely told Eli the whole message. He held nothing back.
Eli listened. Then he accepted the Lord’s word. “It is Yahweh,” he said. “Let him do what seems good to him.”
Samuel continued to grow, and the Lord was with him. The Lord made Samuel’s words come true. From one end of Israel to the other, everyone knew that Samuel had been chosen as a prophet of the Lord. And the Lord continued to reveal himself at Shiloh through his word to Samuel.
What kids learn
- God can speak to children, and children can learn to listen.
- Wise helpers can teach us to recognize God’s guidance.
- We can tell the truth bravely, even when it feels difficult.
Memory verse
“Speak, Yahweh; for your servant hears.”
1 Samuel 3:9
Talk about it together
- What do you think Samuel wondered when he heard his name at night?
- How did Eli help Samuel understand who was calling him?
- Why might Samuel have been afraid to tell Eli the message?
- What can your family do to become better listeners?
People and places in this story
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