גאל

Verse 14. -" a kinsman." here seems to

mean the son which Ruth had born, Naomi's grand

son.

-"that his name may be famous;" rather, "and his name be famous."

may

T

I. SAMUEL,

CHAP. I, 3. —“ yearly;" rather, "at stated times." Verse 5." a worthy portion." D'ON MON MID, "a particular portion of dressed meats."—" particular," for herself: that is the force of the adjective of лn. Besides the portions which he sent to Peninah and her sons and daughters in common, he sent a special portion of meats ready dressed [literally, baked,'] to Hannah, for herself.

The copies used by the LXX seem to have had another reading.

ולחנה יתן מנה אחת כי אין להילד אפס כי חנה אהב

"And unto Hannah he sent a single portion, because she had no child. Nevertheless he loved Han, nah, although," &c. But there is no necessity to depart from the textual reading.

-“ but the Lord;" rather," although Jehovah." Verse 16. "Count not thy handmaid for a daughter of Belial." Houbigant's emendation, though

merely conjectural, is very plausible. For

לפניך כבת he would read

Verse 23.-"his word." 137. The LXX read

7737, "thy word.”

Verse 24. -" with three bullocks." It appears by the following verse that they took with them but one bullock. For by, therefore, read, with Houbigant, upon the authority of the LXX,

a ; משלשה

"with a bullock of the third year."

Verse 25. -" a bullock.", "the bullock." CHAP. ii. See a translation of the first ten verses of this chapter, which is Hannah's thanksgiving, with notes thereon, in Volume III.

Verse 25.

"the judge shall judge him ;” rather,

"God shall judge him."

Verse 29. —" in my habitation." . The word

.מעון

has certainly no meaning here. Houbigant would

** תעוין read

ye do wickedly."

Verse 31," thine arm, and the arm"- rather, thy seed, and the seed"

Verse 32. "And thou shalt see an enemy

in

my

habitation," &c. Here again the word is inexplicable. Houbigant would read ; and with this emendation he renders the passage thus: "And thou shalt behold whatever good shall happen unto

Israel with sorrow and envy, for there shall not be," &c.

CHAP. iii, 3." And ere the lamp of God went out," &c. "The lamps of the candlestick in the sanctuary burnt in the night-time only." See Exod. xxvii, 21; xxx, 7; 2 Chron. xiii, 11.

Verse 21. "And the Lord appeared again," &c. It should seem that for the sins of Eli's sons, the oracular voice in the sanctuary had been for some time discontinued. Eli, we find, is warned of the destruction of his family (chap. ii, 27, &c.), not by a voice from the cover of the ark, but by a prophet. But from the first call of Samuel, the oracle was regularly uttered in the sanctuary as in former times. See Exod. xxv, 22, and Numb. vii, 89. There seems to be no necessity for Houbigant's emendation here, but the first sentence of the following chapter should certainly be joined to the end of this.

"And Jehovah was manifested again in Shiloh; for Jehovah revealed himself to Samuel in Shiloh, by the word of Jehovah, and the word of Samuel came to all Israel.”

-"by the word of Jehovah;" i. e. by the voice between the cherubim. Jehovah spake immediately to Samuel, and Samuel reported to the people,

what Jehovah said to him; and in this manner, Je

hovah was again, as in former times, manifested in Shiloh.

Chap. iv, 8. —“ with all the plagues in the wil derness." Between the words

and

insert,

upon the authority of the Chaldee and Arabic ver

; והעשים נפלאות,sions

--" with all the plagues, and

wrought wonders in the wilderness."

Verse 13. "Eli sat upon a seat by the wayside, watching." Read,

עלי ישב על הכסא בעד יד השער דרך מצפה

-"Eli sat upon, the seat close by the side of the gate, watching the road." See the version of the LXX, and compare verse 18. The change of 7 into

is justified by many of Kennicott's MSS.; but this alone is not a sufficient emendation.

Verse 21.-"(because-husband)." I am inclined to think that the whole of this parenthesis is an interpolation.

Verse 22. "And Israel: foris taken;" rather, "Now-Israel, because was taken."

CHAP. V, 6." and smote them with emerods ;". rather, "smote them in the fundaments. " See LXX, Vulgate, Aquila, and Symmachus. The Vulgate adds to this verse," Et ebullierant villæ et