Bede — Commentary on Scripture

1 Samuel 2:8 · 2 passages

He raiseth up the poor out of the dust, and lifteth up the beggar from the dunghill, to set them among princes, and to make them inherit the throne of glory: for the pillars of the earth are the LORD'S, and he hath set the world upon them.

To sit with princes, etc. He himself explains this verse, when questioned by those whom he made poor so that he might enrich them; he humbled them on earth so that he might exalt them in heaven; when asked what reward they would have in the future; he responded: When the Son of Man will sit on the throne of his majesty, you also will sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel (Matt. XIX). And Solomon, in praise of a strong woman, that is, the Church, or any chosen soul: Noble, he says, is her husband in the gates, when he sits with the elders of the land (Proverbs XXXI).

He raises the needy from the dust, etc. He raises Christ from the dead, so that His flesh may not see corruption; and He lifts Him to the heavens, that He may not be overcome by the persecutors, the Jews, whose traditions the Apostle considers as dung (Colossians III). For He Himself became needy, He Himself became poor for our sakes, that by His poverty we might be made rich (II Cor. VIII).

1 Samuel 2:9 · 2 passages

He will keep the feet of his saints, and the wicked shall be silent in darkness; for by strength shall no man prevail.

For a man will not be strengthened by his own strength. He looks up. Therefore, the impious who, trusting in their own strength, despise seeking divine help, should finally be silent in darkness, that is, condemned at last to cease from blind impiety; because whoever rightly desires to be called a true man will be strengthened not in his own strength but in the grace of his Creator.

He has kept the feet of His saints, etc. He has defended the actions and minds of the pious, by which they advance towards perfection as though by steps, from the snares of the impious; and these same impious people, in the dark devices which they set for the good, will perish. Therefore, one of the saints, giving thanks to the Savior for the safety of his feet, sings: I will exult in your salvation; the nations are sunk down in the pit that they made, etc. (Psalm IX.)

1 Samuel 2:10 · 3 passages

The adversaries of the LORD shall be broken to pieces; out of heaven shall he thunder upon them: the LORD shall judge the ends of the earth; and he shall give strength unto his king, and exalt the horn of his anointed.

His adversaries will fear the Lord, etc. He openly predicts the terrible day of the strict and final judgment; on that day, since His adversaries will fear the Lord, it is necessary now for us who do not yet see Him to humbly fear Him, so that then we may rejoice at His sight in majesty. But even today, the Lord thunders from the lofty and luminous pages of Holy Scripture, which His Spirit enriched, to chide the stubbornness of the wicked.

The Lord will judge the ends of the earth. It is certain that the Lord will judge not only the ends of the earth but also the inland regions. Thus it is said: He will judge the ends of the earth; as if it were said, He will also judge the ends of the earth; because no one can hide from His heat (Psalm XVIII). But it is better understood to say the ends of the earth signify the end times or the final moments of every person or the whole world; because as someone departs from the body, so will he be presented to the examination of the strict judge.

And He will give power to His king, etc. After the trial of the final examination, the kingdom of Christ, which unbelievers now despise, will be elevated and shown gloriously with the revelation of His divine majesty. But the horn of Christ is fittingly understood not only of the only-begotten Son of God but also of each of His chosen ones. Hence at the very beginning of this hymn, in which throughout she marvelously commends the grace of God, she says: My horn is exalted in my God. For we rightly call all His anointed ones christs, that nevertheless with their head they are one body, one Christ; now in part as strangers on earth, but then to be wholly exalted in the heavenly homeland. Recall the hymn of blessed Mary (Luke I), and see how the prophetess, mother, and Lord, both woman and virgin, felt similarly about God's judgments and grace.

1 Samuel 2:11

And Elkanah went to Ramah to his house. And the child did minister unto the LORD before Eli the priest.

Thus Elkanah went to Ramah, to his house, etc. The Church of the Gentiles, recently called to faith, which we said signified the birth of the blessed Samuel, God's possession, which is His co-eternal wisdom, Christ, went to enlighten, as always, the lofty hearts of His saints, faithful and angels and humans, which are His house, strongly built upon the rock of faith against the gates of hell. But the people called to faith, even seen by and wondered at by the Jewish priesthood, humbly served Christ's commands as if they were always observing themselves.

1 Samuel 2:12

Now the sons of Eli were sons of Belial; they knew not the LORD.

Furthermore, the sons of Eli, sons of Belial, etc. The sons of the Jewish priesthood, sons of blind light, or without a yoke (for both Belial and Beliar mean this), were those who did not know the doctrine of Christ; not following the commands of the divine law but adhering to their own statutes and traditions.

1 Samuel 2:15 · 2 passages

Also before they burnt the fat, the priest's servant came, and said to the man that sacrificed, Give flesh to roast for the priest; for he will not have sodden flesh of thee, but raw.

But whoever had sacrificed a victim, the priest's boy would come, etc. Whoever at that time had decided to consecrate his life to the Lord, the disciples of the scribes, Pharisees, and chief priests would come, as his carnal customs began to be boiled away by the fire of heavenly devotion, and they had the rapacious desire of the world in their works; whose three-pronged bite the Apostle John describes, saying: For all that is in the world is the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life (1 John 2). And they would send examples or even teachings of earthly desires into whatever heart of the listener, whether it be teachable, or of slower and narrower intellect, whether weak and fragile, or patient of adversity, whether effective in speaking, or rustic and less eloquent, which is distinguished by the variety of larger and smaller iron, bronze, or earthen vessels; and they would pollute the small flame of divine love that someone had recently conceived by their worst touch, not expecting the reward of preaching as the law decreed, but rather compelling what was due…

But whoever had sacrificed a victim, the priest's boy would come, etc. Whoever at that time had decided to consecrate his life to the Lord, the disciples of the scribes, Pharisees, and chief priests would come, as his carnal customs began to be boiled away by the fire of heavenly devotion, and they had the rapacious desire of the world in their works; whose three-pronged bite the Apostle John describes, saying: For all that is in the world is the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life (1 John 2). And they would send examples or even teachings of earthly desires into whatever heart of the listener, whether it be teachable, or of slower and narrower intellect, whether weak and fragile, or patient of adversity, whether effective in speaking, or rustic and less eloquent, which is distinguished by the variety of larger and smaller iron, bronze, or earthen vessels; and they would pollute the small flame of divine love that someone had recently conceived by their worst touch, not expecting the reward of preaching as the law decreed, but rather compelling what was due to God to be made an offering to themselves in obedience; by which most crooked staff they also now defile sacred offerings in the church, whoever, having received the mystery of faith or even the ministry of the word, seek their own benefit, not that of Jesus Christ.

Even before they burned the fat, etc. The wickedness of Pharisaic deception progressed so far that even before they taught that the rich offering of love, most pleasing to God, should be made, which should be offered singularly on the altar of the heart before other sacrifices of virtues, they would put their own service before divine worship; telling their wretched listeners that each should not consume the enticements of carnal lust with a flame of heavenly charity worthy of God, but should spend these less chastised in the injury to the Creator according to the whim of carnal commands. However, these wicked ones said this to their listeners not with words, but with the deeds themselves. We wish we did not know that very similar things are being done today by teachers and priests of the Church.

1 Samuel 2:17

Wherefore the sin of the young men was very great before the LORD: for men abhorred the offering of the LORD.

The sin of the boys was therefore exceedingly great, etc. The sin of the scribes and Pharisees was exceedingly great before the Lord, although before men they justified themselves through hypocrisy (Luke 11); because they, being men, annulled the commandment of God through their traditions; or certainly taking away the key of knowledge, they themselves did not enter, and they prohibited those who wished to enter. If, however, the boys committed exceedingly great sin before the Lord, who unworthily handled the flesh of sacrificial victims, what do you think those deserve of punishment who, with childish foolishness, have trampled underfoot the Son of God and considered the blood of the eternal covenant polluted (Hebr. 10)? Who receiving, do not discern the body of the Lord (1 Cor. 11), that is, from the perception of common and mean foods, they by no means discern the mystery of heavenly life.

1 Samuel 2:18

But Samuel ministered before the LORD, being a child, girded with a linen ephod.

Now Samuel was ministering before the face of God, etc. Ephod in Hebrew, in Latin it is called a superhumeral or overgarment; the garment of this name, woven from gold, blue, purple, twice-dyed scarlet, and twisted fine linen, is mentioned in the Scripture of Exodus (Exod. XXV) as allowed only for the high priests. However, the same linen ephod is typified as usable by priests, Levites, and others, as the examples of Samuel, who was a Levite, the priests who Saul slew, and David dancing before the ark of the Lord demonstrate. For it could not have been eighty-five high priests of the same age, but priests of a lesser order. Typologically, the Ephod of various colors shows the manifold grace of virtues in a holy man. Linen, on the other hand, since it is produced from the earth, and through long practice reaches its own beauty, signifies the pure mortification of chaste flesh. Therefore, Samuel ministered before the face of the Lord, a boy girded with a linen ephod; Christ ministered to our infirmity humbly in a man, always carrying a body and soul most clean from every filth of sins…

Now Samuel was ministering before the face of God, etc. Ephod in Hebrew, in Latin it is called a superhumeral or overgarment; the garment of this name, woven from gold, blue, purple, twice-dyed scarlet, and twisted fine linen, is mentioned in the Scripture of Exodus (Exod. XXV) as allowed only for the high priests. However, the same linen ephod is typified as usable by priests, Levites, and others, as the examples of Samuel, who was a Levite, the priests who Saul slew, and David dancing before the ark of the Lord demonstrate. For it could not have been eighty-five high priests of the same age, but priests of a lesser order. Typologically, the Ephod of various colors shows the manifold grace of virtues in a holy man. Linen, on the other hand, since it is produced from the earth, and through long practice reaches its own beauty, signifies the pure mortification of chaste flesh. Therefore, Samuel ministered before the face of the Lord, a boy girded with a linen ephod; Christ ministered to our infirmity humbly in a man, always carrying a body and soul most clean from every filth of sins. For He did not sin, nor did He do evil before the Lord: He who was conceived without iniquities, and His mother bore Him without sins. The Christian people serve Christ, crucifying their flesh with its vices and desires, chastening their body, and bringing it into subjection.

1 Samuel 2:19 · 2 passages

Moreover his mother made him a little coat, and brought it to him from year to year, when she came up with her husband to offer the yearly sacrifice.

And his mother made for him a little tunic. The Lord assumed not only a chaste and free from all sin, but also an entirely humble flesh, which the Church makes for Him, or whoever believes Him rightly and most wholesomely such, or because the virgin, a not ignoble member of the Church, from whom He Himself was born, shines brightly.

Which he offered on the appointed days, etc. And the Church, never deserted by Christ, whom it has with it in secret all the days until the end of the age, ascending on the solemn days of the Mass to sacrifice, carries with it the mysteries of his flesh and blood in wine and bread. Indeed, to the people whom the Church bears for Christ, it instills the habit of humility, which it brings with it through the increase of each one's virtues, progressing to higher things with the grace of Christ, that it may render the vows of thanksgiving to the Father of lights. This is the wedding garment, according to the parable of the Gospel (Matthew 22), that everyone who enters the solemnities of the heavenly kingdom needs. And this was first donned by the Son of the great King himself, the author and sanctifier of spiritual weddings; who, proceeding as a bridegroom from his chamber, humbled himself, becoming obedient unto death (Ezekiel 40; Philippians 2). This tunic de facto small in appearance but great in power, he did not allow to be torn even at the time of his death by those who inflicted d…

Which he offered on the appointed days, etc. And the Church, never deserted by Christ, whom it has with it in secret all the days until the end of the age, ascending on the solemn days of the Mass to sacrifice, carries with it the mysteries of his flesh and blood in wine and bread. Indeed, to the people whom the Church bears for Christ, it instills the habit of humility, which it brings with it through the increase of each one's virtues, progressing to higher things with the grace of Christ, that it may render the vows of thanksgiving to the Father of lights. This is the wedding garment, according to the parable of the Gospel (Matthew 22), that everyone who enters the solemnities of the heavenly kingdom needs. And this was first donned by the Son of the great King himself, the author and sanctifier of spiritual weddings; who, proceeding as a bridegroom from his chamber, humbled himself, becoming obedient unto death (Ezekiel 40; Philippians 2). This tunic de facto small in appearance but great in power, he did not allow to be torn even at the time of his death by those who inflicted death upon him; for he preserved even in death the example of humility which led him to death.

1 Samuel 2:20

And Eli blessed Elkanah and his wife, and said, The LORD give thee seed of this woman for the loan which is lent to the LORD. And they went unto their own home.

And Eli blessed Elkanah and his wife, etc. The priests of the Jews, having converted to faith, blessed Christ and the Church, of whom it is written: "A great number of the priests were obedient to the faith." The old priesthood often signifies in its types the Church to be blessed in Christ, and to be multiplied by the seed of the word among the nations of the Gentiles, and it speaks metaphorically to Christ: "May God the Father grant you believers from the Gentiles"; for they are the seed whom the Lord has blessed. For the return you lent to the Lord, that is, for that uniquely holy man, whom you chose to have taken from a virgin, sharing with you the person of Christ, that is, the name of God. For if a holy loan had not been received by the Lord, no one would have thought it hopeful to expect a seed from a barren woman. This means, if a man seized by God had not been glorified and seated at the right hand of the Father, the miserable gentility, and aware of its transgression, could not have reached the multiplication of the seed of Abraham at all. But while Christ, the firstfruits…

And Eli blessed Elkanah and his wife, etc. The priests of the Jews, having converted to faith, blessed Christ and the Church, of whom it is written: "A great number of the priests were obedient to the faith." The old priesthood often signifies in its types the Church to be blessed in Christ, and to be multiplied by the seed of the word among the nations of the Gentiles, and it speaks metaphorically to Christ: "May God the Father grant you believers from the Gentiles"; for they are the seed whom the Lord has blessed. For the return you lent to the Lord, that is, for that uniquely holy man, whom you chose to have taken from a virgin, sharing with you the person of Christ, that is, the name of God. For if a holy loan had not been received by the Lord, no one would have thought it hopeful to expect a seed from a barren woman. This means, if a man seized by God had not been glorified and seated at the right hand of the Father, the miserable gentility, and aware of its transgression, could not have reached the multiplication of the seed of Abraham at all. But while Christ, the firstfruits of the human race, was loaned to God the Father, hope is given to the faithful by His example to be saved through Him, to live in Him, to die for Him, to be resurrected by Him, and to reign eternally with Him. It can also be said that the Church, for the loan it lent to the Lord, earned seed from Him, when, by offering to the Lord a faithful and devoted people, it received greater gifts of faith and devotion, through preachers sent throughout the world; which in whatever nations, neglecting to obey the word of God when heard, failed to receive the multiplication of the holy seed for the unpaid loan of the word to the Lord by rejecting the teachers from itself.

1 Samuel 2:21

And the LORD visited Hannah, so that she conceived, and bare three sons and two daughters. And the child Samuel grew before the LORD.

The Lord therefore enriched Anna, etc. The Lord gave to the Church the Spirit of His grace, by which it, being fruitful, bore for Him spiritual offspring, partly to search out or preach the mysteries of the Holy Trinity powerfully, partly with perfect love of God and neighbor despised in its simplicity; because the humility of the incarnation assumed by Christ for a time was held in great esteem by the Father; by whom everyone who humbles himself, will be exalted (Luke XIV). Whence also their sound went out into all the earth, and their words unto the ends of the world (Psalm XVIII).

1 Samuel 2:22

Now Eli was very old, and heard all that his sons did unto all Israel; and how they lay with the women that assembled at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation.

And he heard everything that his sons were doing, etc. The transgression of the sons of Eli was not small nor uniform, which did not fear to tarnish both divine religion and love of neighbor. For it is read above that they presumed from the holy meats, not what was prescribed in the law, but what was pleasing to them; that before the sacred fat was burned for God, they presumed a portion for themselves from the sacrifice that was eaten; that they took raw meat from those offering it, to prepare it more carefully for themselves; that they made the people of the Lord transgress: and, which is exceedingly horrible, they did all this in contempt of the Creator. But now it is added that what would harm the brethren, because they polluted the women of the people who were coming together to pray; and below, it is added, which is the sum of all evils, that they did not repent even when corrected by their Father. We have spoken these things more precisely, so that, reader, you may remember what to beware of in each instance. Truly, what remains to be fulfilled in the typical part is for the p…

And he heard everything that his sons were doing, etc. The transgression of the sons of Eli was not small nor uniform, which did not fear to tarnish both divine religion and love of neighbor. For it is read above that they presumed from the holy meats, not what was prescribed in the law, but what was pleasing to them; that before the sacred fat was burned for God, they presumed a portion for themselves from the sacrifice that was eaten; that they took raw meat from those offering it, to prepare it more carefully for themselves; that they made the people of the Lord transgress: and, which is exceedingly horrible, they did all this in contempt of the Creator. But now it is added that what would harm the brethren, because they polluted the women of the people who were coming together to pray; and below, it is added, which is the sum of all evils, that they did not repent even when corrected by their Father. We have spoken these things more precisely, so that, reader, you may remember what to beware of in each instance. Truly, what remains to be fulfilled in the typical part is for the priests and teachers, both to watch in the Lord and to awaken others to watch, saying: Awake to righteousness, and do not sin (I Cor. XV). But even bad teachers sleep, and this with the women who keep watch at the door of the tabernacle, when seducing unstable souls, neither do they themselves enter, nor do they allow those who want to enter the door of life. Such was once the crime of the perishing Pharisaic faction; such is also now in the false professors of the Christian religion.

1 Samuel 2:23

And he said unto them, Why do ye such things? for I hear of your evil dealings by all this people.

And he said to them: Why do you do such things? etc. He rebuked the guilty sons of Eli, but they did not listen. And the very institution of the old priesthood orders its ministers to be perfect; but the scribes, Pharisees, and chief priests, being wicked, in their ruin despised the paternal voice of their law and priesthood. However, we must not overlook the literal aspect, that he rebuked the sons of Eli; but because they despised the rebuke and he neglected to cast them out as he should have, he perished along with them. What then do we wretched, what do our similars deserve, who delight in sins, who do not dare to amend, who fear their own conscience; and what the entire people shouts, they pretend not to know?

1 Samuel 2:25

If one man sin against another, the judge shall judge him: but if a man sin against the LORD, who shall intreat for him? Notwithstanding they hearkened not unto the voice of their father, because the LORD would slay them.

If a man sins against a man, etc. Both refer to the sons of Eli. For he sinned against a man when the priest violated the wife of another man under the pretext of religion; but this could be dismissed with appropriate penance by God. Not only this was done, but he sinned even worse against the Lord, when the same priest, contaminated by fornication, approached the holy mysteries of the altar not only unworthily, but completely unworthy. Indeed, the terrible sentence of Eli against such presumptuous persons resounds, but much more terrible is the word of the judge himself, who says: Whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, neither in this age nor in the age to come (Matt. XII; Luke XII).