Naomi Loses Her Husband and Sons

1 In the days when the judges ruled,^[a](A) there was a famine in the land.^(B) So a man from Bethlehem in Judah,^(C) together with his wife and two sons, went to live for a while^(D) in the country of Moab.^(E)

¹⁸ When he mentioned the ark of God, Eli fell backward off his chair by the side of the gate. His neck was broken and he died, for he was an old man, and he was heavy. He had led^[a](A) Israel forty years.^(B)

⁶ When they had assembled at Mizpah,^(A) they drew water and poured^(B) it out before the Lord. On that day they fasted and there they confessed, “We have sinned against the Lord.” Now Samuel was serving as leader^[a](C) of Israel at Mizpah.

¹⁵ Samuel^(A) continued as Israel’s leader^(B) all^(C) the days of his life.

²⁰ All this took about 450 years.

“After this, God gave them judges^(A) until the time of Samuel the prophet.^(B)