1 Samuel 4:16-22 ▼

16 The man told Eli, |I've just come from the battle line, and I escaped from the battle today.| He asked, |What happened, my son?|

17 The messenger answered, |Israel fled from the Philistines and the people suffered a great defeat as well. Moreover, your two sons, Hophni and Phineas, are dead, and the Ark of God was captured.|

18 When he mentioned the Ark of God, Eli fell off the seat backwards by the side of the gate. His neck was broken and he died, since he was old and heavy. Eli had judged Israel for 40 years.

19 Eli's daughter-in-law, the wife of Phineas, was pregnant and ready to give birth. When she heard the report about the capture of the Ark of God and that her father-in-law and husband were dead, she crouched down and gave birth, because her labor pains suddenly began.

20 As she was about to die, the women standing around her said, |Don't be afraid! You've given birth to a son.| But she did not respond or pay attention.

21 She had named the boy Ichabod, saying, |Glory has departed from Israel,| because the Ark of God had been captured and because her father-in-law and husband were dead.

22 She said, |Glory has departed from Israel, because the Ark of God has been captured.|