1 Samuel 3:2
in 1 Samuel 3And at that time Eli, whose eyesight had grown so dim that he could not see, was lying in his room.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And it came to pass at that time, when Eli was laid down in his place (now his eyes had begun to wax dim, so that he could not see),
KJV
And it came to pass at that time, when Eli was laid down in his place, and his eyes began to wax dim, that he could not see;
⋯
This verse in 1 Samuel 3
Commentary
10 notes on this verseEli was laid down in his place - It is very likely that as the ark was a long time at Shiloh, they had built near to it certain apartments for the high priest and others more immediately employed about the tabernacle. In one of these, near to that of Eli, perhaps under the same roof, Samuel lay when he was called by the Lord.
This site's exposition
the word of the LORD was rare
on 1 Samuel 3:1-2
The chapter opens on a famine of revelation, “the word of the LORD was rare and visions were scarce”, and its last verses answer it. Eli's eyesight has “grown so dim that he could not see” in the next sentence, so the old priest's failing sight pictures Israel's failing sight of God.
This site's exposition
And at that time Eli, whose eyesight had grown so dim
Albert Barnes reads Eli's failing eyes as the reason Samuel ran to him at each call, for a blind old priest would need the boy at night. Adam Clarke places their rooms near each other by the tabernacle. The boy slept within earshot.
The record, by era
The Medieval Church3 voices
It happened on a certain day, Eli was lying in his place, etc. He designates the lamp of God according to the dignity of Eli's rank. But by signification, we correctly take the lamp to mean the old priesthood, necessary indeed in the night under …
A commentator
Gregory the DialogistCommentary on 1 Kings, Book 2, Chapter 4 · Written before 604.
proposed
6. For the boy Samuel is called by the Lord whenever the secrets of divine counsel are revealed to humble subjects, and they acquire by the merit of their humility the light of contemplation, which proud preachers lose as the recompense of their pride. But it should be noted that this is shown to have happened on a certain day, on which Eli is reported both to have been lying in his place and to have been unable to see.
A commentator
Gregory the DialogistCommentary on 1 Kings, Book 3, Chapter 1 · Written before 604.
proposed
4. For his vision would have been clear, if he had believed in the Redeemer whom he had heard had come to visit him. Concerning this blindness of his, it is added: (Verse 2.) Now it came to pass that Eli was lying in his place, and he could not see the lamp of God before it was extinguished. For the vision of Eli is not clear, because the priesthood of the Jews is buried in the blindness of its own faithlessness. Eli therefore lies in his place, because he both possesses the letter of the law, and yet in the law and the prophets he does not have the standing of light, but the fall of blindness. For the place of Eli, that is, of the Jewish preacher, is the sacred law. Because therefore the Jewish priesthood still possesses Sacred Scripture, it is in its place. And because, not knowing the power of Sacred Scripture, it is not raised up to the standing of faith, it is rightly said not to stand in its place, but to lie down. Because likewise it has been cast out until the end of the world, it is recorded as being unable to see the lamp of God. Hence also, when they daily receive so many exhortations of preaching from holy Church, when the Jews, overcome by so many assertions of the sacred faith, still do not believe, what else is this but what we read about them in Sacred Scripture, and also hold through experience — namely, that they have been cast out, not only so that they do not see, but so that they cannot even see? Hence also the apostles, reckoning as futile the labor spent on those who could not see, say in their Acts: "Because you have made yourselves unworthy of eternal life, behold, we turn to the Gentiles" (Acts 13:46). But he who is reported as unable to see is called the lamp of God. […]
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
God's message to Eli, ver. 11-14. His faithful delivery of that message, and Eli's submission to God, ver. 15-18. The establishment of Samuel to be a prophet, ver. 19-21 Commentary on Chapter III
quarantine:anchor (2026-07-29) — cites-ver-15/19-anchored-1-10
And it came to pass at that time,....
2 more voices on this verse
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
He chose to take Samuel into this office rather than any of his own family, because of the towardly disposition he observed in him. When his own sons were a grief to him, his little servitor was his joy. Let those that are afflicted in their children thank God if they have any about them in whom they are comforted.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
The passage should be rendered thus: “And it came to pass at that time that Eli was sleeping in his place; and his eyes had begun to grow dim; he could not see. And the lamp of God was not yet gone out, and Samuel was sleeping in the temple of the Lord where the ark of God was; and the Lord called Samuel, etc.” Eli’s old age and dimness of sight is probably mentioned as the reason why Samuel thought Eli had called him. Being a blind and feeble old man, he was likely to do so if he wanted anything, either for himself, or for the service of the temple.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
On the verses either side of this one
And the boy Samuel was serving before the LORD during the life of Eli.
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 3 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
The words behind it
12 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַֽיְהִי֙ | vayhi | and it was | H1961 → | 3559 times |
| בַּיּ֣וֹם | baiyom | on the day | H3117 → | 2304 times |
| הַה֔וּא | hahu' | <the> that | H1931 → | 1879 times |
| וְעֵלִ֖י | veeli | and Eli | H5941 → | 33 times |
| שֹׁכֵ֣ב | shokhev | [was] lying | H7901 → | 212 times |
| בִּמְקֹמ֑וֹ | bimkomo | in place his | H4725 → | 401 times |
| וְעֵינָיו֙ | veeinov | and eyes his | H5869 → | 887 times |
| הֵחֵ֣לּוּ | hechelu | they began | H2490 → | 143 times |
| כֵה֔וֹת | khehot | dim | H3544 → | |
| לֹ֥א | lo' | not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| יוּכַ֖ל | yukhal | he was able | H3201 → | 194 times |
| לִרְאֽוֹת׃ | lirot | to see | H7200 → | 1300 times |
וַֽיְהִי֙and it was
vayhiH1961 →3559 times
בַּיּ֣וֹםon the day
baiyomH3117 →2304 times
הַה֔וּא<the> that
hahu'H1931 →1879 times
וְעֵלִ֖יand Eli
veeliH5941 →33 times
שֹׁכֵ֣ב[was] lying
shokhevH7901 →212 times
בִּמְקֹמ֑וֹin place his
bimkomoH4725 →401 times
וְעֵינָיו֙and eyes his
veeinovH5869 →887 times
הֵחֵ֣לּוּthey began
hecheluH2490 →143 times
כֵה֔וֹתdim
khehotH3544 →
לֹ֥אnot
lo'H3808 →5168 times
יוּכַ֖לhe was able
yukhalH3201 →194 times
לִרְאֽוֹת׃to see
lirotH7200 →1300 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Psalms 90:10The length of our days is seventy years— or eighty if we are strong— yet their pride is but labor and sorrow, for they quickly pass, and we fly away.
it leads to
- James 4:14
You do not even know what will happen tomorrow! What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.
- Psalms 78:39
He remembered that they were but flesh, a passing breeze that does not return.
- 2 Samuel 19:35
I am now eighty years old. Can I discern what is good and what is not? Can your servant taste what he eats or drinks? Can I still hear the voice of singing men…
- Deuteronomy 34:7
Moses was a hundred and twenty years old when he died, yet his eyes were not weak, and his vitality had not diminished.
- Genesis 47:9
“My travels have lasted 130 years,” Jacob replied. “My years have been few and hard, and they have not matched the years of the travels of my fathers.”
- James 4:14
Through
Genesis 48:10Now Israel’s eyesight was poor because of old age; he could hardly see. Joseph brought his sons to him, and his father kissed them and embraced them.
it leads to
- Genesis 27:1
When Isaac was old and his eyes were so weak that he could no longer see, he called his older son Esau and said to him, “My son.” “Here I am,” Esau replied.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Genesis 27:27
So he came near and kissed him. When Isaac smelled his clothing, he blessed him and said: “Ah, the smell of my son is like the smell of a field that the LORD has…
- Genesis 27:1
Through
Genesis 27:1When Isaac was old and his eyes were so weak that he could no longer see, he called his older son Esau and said to him, “My son.” “Here I am,” Esau replied.
it leads to
- Genesis 48:10
Now Israel’s eyesight was poor because of old age; he could hardly see. Joseph brought his sons to him, and his father kissed them and embraced them.
- Genesis 48:10
Where this verse is studied
On this page
About 1 Samuel
Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on 10 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes on the Old Testament; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Bede, Commentary on Samuel; Gregory the Dialogist, Commentary on 1 Kings, Book 2, Chapter 4; Gregory the Dialogist, Commentary on 1 Kings, Book 3, Chapter 1; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.