1 Samuel 2:17 kjv
Wherefore the sin of the young men was very great before the LORD: for men abhorred the offering of the LORD.
1 Samuel 2:17 nkjv
Therefore the sin of the young men was very great before the LORD, for men abhorred the offering of the LORD.
1 Samuel 2:17 niv
This sin of the young men was very great in the LORD's sight, for they were treating the LORD's offering with contempt.
1 Samuel 2:17 esv
Thus the sin of the young men was very great in the sight of the LORD, for the men treated the offering of the LORD with contempt.
1 Samuel 2:17 nlt
So the sin of these young men was very serious in the LORD's sight, for they treated the LORD's offerings with contempt.
1 Samuel 2 17 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Lev 10:1-2 | "Now Nadab and Abihu...offered strange fire before the LORD...and they died." | Priestly desecration met with judgment. |
| Mal 1:7-8 | "You offer defiled food on My altar...when you offer the blind for sacrifice." | Priesthood dishonoring God through improper offerings. |
| Mal 1:12-13 | "You profane it, in that you say, 'The table of the LORD is defiled.'" | Profaning sacred worship with contempt. |
| Mal 2:8-9 | "You have turned aside from the way...caused many to stumble by the law." | Priests causing others to falter due to corruption. |
| Isa 52:5 | "My name is continually blasphemed all day long." | God's name profaned by the conduct of His people. |
| Ezek 22:26 | "Her priests have violated My law and profaned My holy things..." | Priestly failure and profanation. |
| Rom 2:24 | "The name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you." | Unrighteous behavior of God's people brings disrepute. |
| 1 Sam 2:29 | "Why do you kick at My sacrifice and My offering?" | God's accusation of Eli's sons' contempt. |
| 1 Sam 3:13 | "I am telling him that I will judge his house forever for the iniquity..." | Judgment for priestly corruption, Eli's failure to restrain. |
| 1 Sam 4:11 | "The ark of God was captured; and Eli's two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, died." | Consequences for their sin and dishonor to God. |
| Hos 4:6 | "My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge...I will reject you from being priest." | Rejecting God's instruction leads to spiritual downfall. |
| Isa 1:11-15 | "The multitude of your sacrifices...I do not delight in the blood of bulls." | God despises ritual worship when hearts are unholy. |
| Matt 23:13-14 | "You shut up the kingdom of heaven against men; for you neither go in..." | Religious leaders hindering people's access to God. |
| Luke 17:1-2 | "It is impossible that no offenses should come, but woe to him through whom!" | Causing others to stumble leads to severe woe. |
| 1 Cor 8:9 | "Take heed lest by any means this liberty of yours become a stumblingblock." | Actions that cause others to sin or abandon faith. |
| 2 Tim 3:1-5 | "Having a form of godliness but denying its power." | Superficial religion without true piety. |
| Heb 10:29 | "Trampled the Son of God underfoot...counted the blood of the covenant common." | Greater guilt for those who scorn sacred things under new covenant. |
| Gen 13:13 | "The men of Sodom were exceedingly wicked and sinful against the LORD." | Sin identified as great before the LORD. |
| Gen 6:5 | "Every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually." | Human wickedness and sin recognized by God as great. |
| Psa 51:4 | "Against You, You only, have I sinned, and done this evil in Your sight." | Understanding that sin is primarily against God Himself. |
| 2 Sam 12:9-10 | "Why have you despised the commandment of the LORD...killed Uriah?" | Despising God's command leading to severe consequence. |
| Zeph 3:4 | "Her prophets are treacherous, her priests have profaned the sanctuary..." | Corruption of religious leaders. |
1 Samuel 2 verses
1 Samuel 2 17 Meaning
1 Samuel 2:17 declares that the sin of Eli's sons, Hophni and Phinehas, was exceptionally severe in God's sight because their contemptible actions regarding the Lord's sacrificial offerings caused the people to treat those very offerings with utter scorn and disgust. Their abuse of sacred priestly duties directly led to a profound degradation of worship and respect for God among the Israelites.
1 Samuel 2 17 Context
First Samuel chapter 2 details a stark contrast: the beautiful prayer of Hannah (verses 1-10) praising God's justice and sovereignty, followed by the reprehensible conduct of Eli's sons, Hophni and Phinehas, at the tabernacle in Shiloh (verses 12-17). The context of Israelite worship centered around sacrifices, which were God's prescribed means for atonement, communion, and fellowship with His people. Specifically, the peace offering, often brought by common Israelites, involved portions for God (fat, blood), the priests, and the offerer who consumed their share in a sacred meal. Verses 13-16 describe how Hophni and Phinehas actively corrupted this ritual by demanding prime raw meat before God's portion was burnt and taking by force what was not rightfully theirs. This grave disrespect for God's holy requirements, committed by those meant to facilitate pure worship, created a pervasive spiritual crisis. Their actions demonstrated greed, violence, and utter contempt for the holiness of God's sanctuary and the very means He ordained for His people to draw near to Him. This defilement sets the stage for the severe judgment prophesied against Eli's house.
1 Samuel 2 17 Word analysis
- Wherefore (al-ken): Indicates a direct consequence; introduces the divine conclusion drawn from the priests' specific acts of depravity (v. 13-16).
- the sin (הַחַטָּאת - ha-chattath): Not a mere mistake, but a moral and spiritual offense, a transgression against God's explicit commands and His holy character. It implies guilt and wrongdoing.
- of the young men (הַנְּעָרִים - han-ne'arim): Refers specifically to Hophni and Phinehas, Eli's priestly sons. "Young men" implies a level of immaturity and arrogance, but contextually, they were adults responsible for sacred duties. It emphasizes their unfitness for their holy office due to their behavior, rather than simply their age.
- was very great (גְּדֹלָה מְאֹד - g'dolah me'od): An emphatic phrase, highlighting the extraordinary severity and magnitude of their transgression. It signifies a profound affront, not trivial but reaching into the core of spiritual law.
- before the LORD (לִפְנֵי יְהוָה - lifney YHWH): This specifies the audience and judge. Their sin was not merely a societal wrong or procedural error, but a direct, open rebellion and insult to God Himself. God directly observed and deemed it of immense gravity.
- for (ki): Introduces the reason or explanation for the sin's greatness and God's judgment.
- men (הָאֲנָשִׁים - ha'anashim): Refers to the ordinary Israelite worshippers who came to present offerings.
- abhorred (יְנַאֲצוּ - yena'atsu): A strong verb meaning to spurn, despise, revile, or treat with contempt. It implies a deep emotional repulsion and moral rejection, demonstrating that the priests' actions caused others to lose reverence for sacred acts and for God Himself. It speaks of blasphemy in practice.
- the offering of the LORD (אֵת מִנְחַת יְהוָה - et minchat YHWH): While minchah often refers to grain offering, in this context of specific actions in verses 13-16, it stands for the broader sacrificial system and particularly the peace offerings. It represents God's prescribed means of worship, fellowship, and atonement. Abhorring the offering was effectively abhorring God.
Words-Group Analysis:
- "the sin...was very great before the LORD": This phrase emphasizes the divine perspective on their transgression. Their actions were not just an inconvenience or slight procedural breach, but a severe offense directly observed and judged by the holy God, constituting a frontal assault on His sanctity and authority. It frames the incident as a pivotal spiritual crisis.
- "for men abhorred the offering of the LORD": This reveals the devastating consequence and widespread spiritual corruption stemming from the priests' behavior. The priests, who were meant to mediate and encourage pure worship, instead became catalysts for common people's disillusionment and contempt towards God's sacred rituals. This implies that the priests’ actions undermined the very foundations of Israelite faith and contributed to national spiritual decline.
1 Samuel 2 17 Bonus section
- The stark contrast with Hannah's sincere devotion (1 Sam 2:1-10) emphasizes the spiritual bankruptcy within the priestly house at the center of worship.
- The incident highlights the importance of the internal state of the worshipper and the mediator. Ritual alone without reverence is detestable to God (Isa 1:11-15; Amos 5:21-24).
- This defilement of the sacred spaces and acts was not just immoral; it directly undermined the very foundation of Israel's relationship with God, as the offerings were a tangible expression of their covenant with Him.
- Eli's failure to effectively rebuke or restrain his sons is also implicitly condemned (1 Sam 2:23-25; 3:13), showing the ripple effect of poor leadership and a failure to uphold divine standards.
- The phrase "very great before the LORD" carries significant weight; it's God's assessment, foreshadowing the dire consequences to befall Eli's family and the tabernacle at Shiloh itself.
1 Samuel 2 17 Commentary
1 Samuel 2:17 serves as a crucial theological pivot, emphatically declaring the egregious nature of the sin of Eli's sons, Hophni and Phinehas. Their self-serving, violent disregard for the meticulously prescribed sacrificial laws directly violated God's holiness and desecrated the very means of covenant worship. This was not a passive failing, but an active "kicking" at God's sacred things (1 Sam 2:29). The ultimate severity of their sin was compounded by its catastrophic effect on the common worshiper. By perverting the sacred sacrificial system for personal gain and greed, they not only directly insulted God, but also caused the ordinary Israelites to "abhor" or treat with contempt God's own provisions for fellowship. This led to a pervasive spiritual apathy and cynicism, where the vital acts of worship became defiled and repulsive in the eyes of the people. This verse underscores the immense responsibility of those in spiritual leadership, as their integrity directly impacts the faith and reverence of the community they serve. It warns that abuses of power within sacred domains can lead to widespread apostasy and will certainly incur divine judgment. Their actions highlight a leadership void that God would soon fill with His chosen prophet, Samuel.