“After weaning him, she took him up with her, along with three young bulls, a bushel of flour and a skin of wine, and brought him to the house of Adonai in Shiloh, even though he was just a child.”-1 Samuel 1:24
Anyone who begins a journey into the “Old” Testament will eventually run into what I call IDIOT SCHOLARS!
And nowhere is this more apparent than some of the ridiculous commentary you’ll encounter out there on verse 24 of 1 Samuel chapter 1.
So let’s set the context before I start diving into things.
Following on the heels of yesterday’s post when Elkanah confirmed Hannah’s vow (which he had every right to overturn), some time had passed, Hannah had finished weaning her young Samuel and the family had once again journeyed up to Shiloh for the annual festivities.
During this time we’re told Hannah brought “three young bulls” with her.
Okay, so here’s where the idiot scholarship begins.
The text clearly say 3 young bulls were brought up to Shiloh.
Got it?
THREE!
As in 1, 2 and 3.
That’s the plain reading of the text.
However, some folks will say (the idiot scholars I’m talking about) it’s NOT that 3 bulls were presented…
But rather instead one 3 year old bull was brought up to be sacrificed.
And what’s the reason given?
Brace yourself because this is gonna sound ridiculous.
They’ll say…
“3 bulls of any age were way too many to be brought all the way up to Shiloh…
Therefore, the text must have been corrupted over time and should read as “one 3 year bull”.
What a bunch of booooooooooool sheeeeeeeeeeet!!!
No pun intended.
But what’s scary is these conclusions are written right into some of the English Bible translations we read every day.
For example, here’s the same verse from the NIV:
“After he was weaned, she took the boy with her, young as he was, along with a three-year-old bull, an ephah of flour and a skin of wine, and brought him to the house of the Lord at Shiloh.”
Now you know what’s interesting?
In the NIV, there’s a scholarly footnote provided which says the following: “Dead Sea Scrolls, Septuagint and Syriac; Masoretic Text with three bulls“.
So apparently this means the Dead Sea Scrolls, Septuagint and Syriac all say a “three year old bull”.
And only the Masoretic text says “with three bulls”.
Thanks Eric for keeping me on my toes on this!
I’ve already discussed why I think the Hebrew Masoretic texts are more reliable than the Septuagint.
You can read my thoughts on that in this article by clicking HERE.
And it seems like the the good ‘ole King James agrees with the Masoretic text in this case.
“And when she had weaned him,
she took him up with her,
with three bullocks,
and one ephah of flour,
and a bottle of wine,
and brought him unto
the house of the Lord in Shiloh:
and the child was young.”
-1 Samuel 1:24
Again the difference is simply because one group of translators felt 3 bulls of any age were too much…and that over time the integrity of the Scriptures became questionable.
Seriously folks, is that sound scholarship?
We should go with the literal reading which says 3 young bulls were brought to Shiloh.
Look, it’s one thing to make an assertion…
It’s a totally other thing to be able to back it up with valid reasons…
And that’s what I’m gonna do right now.
I’m gonna provide sound reasons and proof straight from the Torah.
And the truth be told, if you possess even a basic understanding of the Levitical sacrificial system, this answer should come as no surprise to you.
So let’s get started…
FIRST, according to the Law of Moses, BEFORE any type of sacrifice can occur, a sacrifice known as the OLAH or “Burnt Offering” has to be offered up.
So this OLAH sacrifice was bull number 1 that was offered up.
SECOND, after all of the sacrificing occurred, we’re told Elkanah’s family had a banquet and were feasting afterwards.
However, we know from Torah that the worshipper is forbidden from eating from the OLAH sacrifice…
Which means another type of sacrifice, one that was okay to be eaten, also had to have been sacrificed.
That type of sacrifice is called the ZEVAH SHELAMIM (Gratitude Offering) or ZEVAH for short.
This was bull number 2 that was offered up.
Are you with me so far?
Based on the context, so far we’ve got 2 sacrifices that were offered up.
One bull for the OLAH (Burnt Offering) and one bull for the ZEVAH SHELAMIM (Gratitude Offering).
So 2 bulls down with 1 left to go.
Onwards.
So what about the third bull?
Well, Hannah made that vow which was affirmed by her husband Elkanah, right?
Remember, according to the Law of Moses, anytime a vow is made, a vow offering is required upon the completion of the terms of the vow.
So in addition to the OLAH and the ZEVAH, a separate “Vow Offering” also had to be offered up.
So the Vow Offering was Bull Number 3.
And there you have it homies.
That’s your evidence we should take the plain reading of verse 24 at face value…
And that Hannah did indeed take 3 bulls with her from Ramah up to Shiloh to be sacrificed.
The OLAH (Burnt Offering), the ZEVAH (Gratitude Offering) and the Vow Offering.
Incidentally, I find it interesting that in the New Testament, we have an incident of the Apostle Paul traveling up to Jerusalem to perform just such a vow offering.
If you’ve ever wanted some New Testament evidence that the Law was NOT done away with, this is it folks.
And of course, one of the most tragic examples of vow-making ever to occur in Biblical history was when Jephthah sacrificed his daughter because he made a vow to God that if he achieved victory over his enemies he would sacrifice the first thing that came to greet him when he returned home.
Unfortunately it was Jephthah’s daughter that was the first thing that rushed out to greet him when he returned home.
Anyways, I think the takeaway here is clear today.
It’s always best to take the plain reading of what’s said in Scripture at face value…
Instead of projecting our own assumptions and ridiculous prejudices onto the text.
Ya feel me?
CONNECTING THIS TEACHING TO THE NEW TESTAMENT
“The next day Paul took the men
and purified himself along with them.
Then he went to the temple
to give notice of the date
when the days of purification
would end and the offering
would be made for each of them.”
-Acts 21:26
Rich,
I think you mis-read the NIV footnote. When it says “Dead Sea Scrolls, Septuagint and Syriac; Masoretic Text with three bulls”
It means that the DSS, LXX, and Syriac all say what is in the translation above, i.e., “three year old bull”. Any manuscript *after* the footnote’s semicolon indicate a variant. So the Masoretic text differs from the other three by saying “with three bulls.”
Here is the interlinear LXX indicating “a bullock being three years old” (https://www.studylight.org/interlinear-study-bible/greek/1-samuel/1-24.html)
Which also agrees with verse 25 where they slay the bullock – singular
Thanks for keeping me on my toes with this Eric. I double checked and you’re right. Ironically, I feel this strengthens my conclusion because I feel the Masoretic text is far more reliable than the Septuagint.
I talk about why HERE and HERE.
So I fixed the article to correspond with your kind correction.
Thanks again!
My pleasure!
I think I’m also gonna incorporate the info in this video to substantiate why 3 bulls (the PLAIN reading of the text) is accurate.
The NASU also uses “a three year old bull”. I use the NASU primarily and make note of discrepancies when I find them. Thank you for clearly pointing out the error in translation.
Thanks for reading Lee. Be blessed.
Amen, always best to study Hebrew and Greek as the English has bastardised the Holy Scriptures!