15 Even before the fat was burned, the priest’s servant would come and say to the man who was sacrificing, “Give the priest some meat to roast, because he won’t accept boiled meat from you — only raw.”
16 If that man said to him, “The fat must be burned first; then you can take whatever you want for yourself,” the servant would reply, “No, I insist that you hand it over right now. If you don’t, I’ll take it by force! ”
17 So the servants’ sin was very severe in the presence of the Lord, because they treated the Lord’s offering with contempt.
18 The boy Samuel served in the Lord’s presence and wore a linen ephod.
19 Each year his mother made him a little robe and took it to him when she went with her husband to offer the annual sacrifice.
20 Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife: “May the Lord give you children by this woman in place of the one she has given to the Lord.” Then they would go home.
21 The Lord paid attention to Hannah’s need, and she conceived and gave birth to three sons and two daughters. Meanwhile, the boy Samuel grew up in the presence of the Lord.