Verse Lens · Concise explanation
1 Samuel 3:16 Explained in Context
Use this verse as a doorway into the larger passage—not as an isolated saying.
Verse 16. 16Then Eli called Samuel, and said, Samuel, my son. And he answered, Here am I.
King James Version — public domain in the United States · Bible text and permissions
Quick Meaning
Records Eli calling Samuel and receiving his ready answer.
Read It With
- 1 Samuel 3:15–3:18
Follow the scene from 1 Samuel 3:15–3:18, not verse 3:16 alone. This line records Eli calling Samuel and receiving his ready answer, and the surrounding movement is Samuel fears to report the vision, but Eli presses him under an oath formula, so Samuel tells everything and Eli acknowledges the LORD.
Why This Verse Appears Here
1 Samuel 3:16 belongs here because it records Eli calling Samuel and receiving his ready answer. Without that detail, the transition traced in 1 Samuel 3:15–3:18 would lose a stated action, speech, or consequence.
What Remains True
Records Eli calling Samuel and receiving his ready answer. Within 1 Samuel 3:15–3:18, this contribution supports the unit's enduring claim: Leadership and loyalty remain answerable for the effects traced here: Samuel fears to report the vision, but Eli presses him under an oath formula, so Samuel tells everything and Eli acknowledges the LORD. Samuel's truth-telling does not make coercive disclosure safe in every setting, excuse Eli's pressure on a child, or require passive acceptance instead of protective action.
How It Can Shape Life
- Records Eli calling Samuel and receiving his ready answer. The proportionate response is therefore the one traced from the complete unit: Before making or enforcing a serious promise, consider who may bear its cost, seek wise accountability, and protect life and consent rather than defending harmful words merely because they were spoken. Samuel's truth-telling does not make coercive disclosure safe in every setting, excuse Eli's pressure on a child, or require passive acceptance instead of protective action.
Continue in Context
The full thought-unit study remains the final contextual authority for this Verse Lens.
Read 1 Samuel 3:15–3:18 — Samuel tells Eli the whole messageSources used for this Verse Lens
How certain is this explanation? strong
These are the sources used directly for this lens. Language, grammar, disagreements, and the complete source shelf remain attached to the full thought-unit research record.
Biblical text
King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006
eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society
USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.
Supports: Exact displayed KJV words, verse order, paragraph metadata, supplied-word markup, and complete unit coverage.
Exact location: 1 Samuel 3:15–3:18, pinned eng-kjv2006 USFM-derived repository corpus
Open source ↗hebrew text and morphology
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible: 1 Samuel
Open Scriptures
Open Scriptures, release 2.2
Supports: Masoretic Hebrew wording and morphology, with the two KJV-Hebrew versification shifts stated rather than silently offset.
Exact location: Open Scriptures MorphHB v2.2, commit 6a5db284c715c18b239422e57bb89684e6a19f00, wlc/1Sam.xml, OSIS 3:15–3:18; KJV 20:42 spans Hebrew 20:42–21:1, KJV 21:1–15 maps to Hebrew 21:2–16, KJV 23:29 maps to Hebrew 24:1, and KJV 24:1–22 maps to Hebrew 24:2–23
Open source ↗translation and translator notes
NET Bible First Edition Notes: 1 Samuel
Biblical Studies Press
Biblical Studies Press, 2006
Supports: Only the translator notes actually printed for these verses, used for lexical, grammatical, textual, historical, and older-English controls.
Exact location: NET Bible First Edition Notes, 1 Samuel PDF, printed pp. 504–543, exact tc/tn/sn entries attached to 3:15–3:18
Open source ↗