Hophni: Edit history

Biblical Account

Hophni appears only in 1 Samuel. His father was the high priest Eli, and his brother was Phinehas. This Phinehas is a different person from Phinehas the grandson of Aaron (Numbers 25); the two merely share a name. The brothers always appear together in the order "Hophni and Phinehas." The meaning of the name Hophni is uncertain.

• Priests at Shiloh: The two brothers served as priests of the LORD at Shiloh (1 Samuel 1:3).
• Contempt for the offerings: 1 Samuel 2:12-17 records that "they knew not the LORD." Their servant used a fleshhook to take meat from the people's offerings and even demanded raw meat by force before the fat had been burned. The text regards this as a great sin, because it treated the offering of the LORD with contempt. Burning the fat was the step in the Old Testament sacrificial system by which God's portion was offered first.
• Immoral conduct and warning: The brothers lay with the women who assembled at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation (2:22). Eli rebuked them, but they would not listen (2:23-25). A man of God came and prophesied judgment upon Eli's house, declaring that the death of both sons on a single day would be its sign (2:27-36). The young Samuel also received a revelation of the same judgment (3:11-14).
• Death: After a defeat in battle against the Philistines, Israel brought the Ark of the Covenant from Shiloh to the battlefield, and Hophni and Phinehas accompanied it. Israel nevertheless suffered a great defeat: the Ark was captured, and the two brothers were killed (4:1-11). When Eli heard the news, he fell backward, broke his neck, and died (4:18).

Significance Within Scripture

The account of Hophni serves to contrast the downfall of Eli's house with the rise of Samuel. Psalm 78:60-64 portrays God's forsaking of Shiloh and the death of the priests by the sword as judgment on Israel's disobedience. 1 Kings 2:27 records that Solomon's removal of Abiathar, a descendant of Eli, from the priesthood fulfilled the word the LORD had spoken concerning the house of Eli in Shiloh. Hophni is not mentioned in the New Testament.

Interpretation and Issues

• 1 Samuel 2:25: The text explains that the sons did not heed their father "because the LORD would slay them." This verse is frequently discussed in debates over predestination and free will. The Reformed tradition generally reads it as evidence of God's sovereign decree. Arminian interpreters, including those in the Wesleyan tradition, tend to read it as a hardening of heart that came as judgment on long-persistent sin.
• Textual issues: The statement in 2:22 that the brothers lay with the women is reportedly absent from some manuscripts of the Septuagint. For this reason, scholars debate whether it is a later addition.
• Common embellishments: Hophni is often described as the elder brother. However, although his name appears first, the text does not say which brother was older. Nor is there any record of Hophni's descendants; the descendant of Eli mentioned in 1 Samuel 14:3 belongs to the line of Phinehas.

In the Korean Church

In Korean Protestant preaching, Hophni and Phinehas are treated mainly under two themes. The first is parents' responsibility to instruct their children, drawing on Eli's failure to restrain his sons (3:13). The second is a warning against church officers who take worship and offerings lightly. The carrying of the Ark into battle as though it were a talisman is often cited as a warning against formalistic, blessing-seeking faith. In Korean Sunday school teaching, the brothers are usually presented not as figures in their own right but as characters in the story of Samuel's childhood.