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 called me?”  But  Heli  replied:  “I  did  not  call  thee,  my  son: return and  sleep.”

So he  returned  and  slept  again. But the  Lord  called  him  a second  time,  and  Samuel  acted  as  before. Heli said:  “I  did  not call thee,  my  son:  return  and  sleep.”  Then  the  Lord  called  Samuel a third time. And Samuel,  rising  up,  went  again  to  Heli,  saying: “Here am  I,  for  thou  didst  call  me.”  Heli  now  understood  that the Lord  had  called  the  boy.

And he  said  to  Samuel:  “Go  and  sleep,  and  if  He  shall call thee  anymore,  thou  shalt  say:  ‘Speak,  Lord,  for  Thy  servant heareth!’ ” So  Samuel  went  and  slept  in  his  place. Then the  Lord came and  stood,  and  called:  “Samuel,  Samuel.”  He  answered: “Speak, Lord,  for  Thy  servant  heareth.”  The  Lord  spoke:  “Behold, I will do  a thing  in  Israel,  and  whosoever  shall  hear  it,  both  his ears shall  tingle. In that  day  I will  raise  up  against  Heli  all the things  that  I have  spoken. I will begin  and  I will  make  an end,  because  he  knew  that  his  sons  did  wickedly,  and  he  would not chastise  them.”

Next morning,  Heli  asked  the  boy  to  tell  him  what  the Lord had  said. But Samuel  was  afraid. Heli, however,  insisted, and Samuel  at  length  told  the  vision. Thereupon Heli  humbly replied: “It is  the  Lord: let  Him  do  what  is  good  in  His sight.”

And swiftly  the  judgment  of  God  overtook  the  house  of  Heli. For it  soon  came  to  pass  that  the  Philistines  waged  war  against Israel, and  when  they  joined  battle  the  Israelites  were  defeated, and lost  about  four  thousand  men. After the  people  had  returned to the  camp,  the  ancients  of  Israel  said: “Let  us  fetch  the  Ark of the  Covenant  from  Silo,  that  it  may  save  us  from  the  hands of our  enemies.”  They  sent  therefore  to  Silo,  and  the  two  sons of Heli,  Ophni  and  Phinees,  accompanied  the  Ark  to  the  camp. The people,  on  beholding  the  Ark  in  their  midst,  set  up  a great shout, and  the  earth  rang  with  their  shouting.