Bible Discussion Thread

"Shall" and "will" are a little hard for me to grasp. What would an excellent translator say is the distinction he is making when he chooses one or the other verb? And is it found in the original language? Or is it a distinction a skilled translator understands from context? When it says in 1 Sam. 2:8, "He will keep the feet of his saints, and the wicked shall be silent in darkness; for by strength shall no man prevail," does the distinction between will and shall rise from the WILLINGNESS of the One who keeps his saints, while in the "shall" phrases -- to be silenced in the dark and to not prevail by strength -- these are UNWITTING CONSEQUENCES of someone's choice to act in such a way as to experience being silenced/not prevailing?

That's an interesting observation & has merit. Of course, in normal rules of grammar, this may not be applicable, as the words 'will & shall' are used according to first, second, or third person pronouns. Yet in 1 Samuel 2:9, there is a clear use of 'force', & when put in the same sentence as in verse 9, it gives the reader the sense that the One Who "keeps the feet of His saints" does so with His Own Authority & Power, as opposed to the lesser being ("the wicked") who can only remain "silent in darkness" as he comes before the One with the authority.

Then in verse 10, "shall" is used again, when I would have thought, that "will" might be more appropriate, given the strength of the language used. Maybe though, the writer continues with the same thought as expressed in verse 9, showing that the wicked not only has to humbly & quietly remain in darkness before the Lord, but also be subject to being visited by Him through mishap & judgement. The wicked might deem himself to be the one in authority & by his own supposed 'wisdom & power' direct himself & the world's affairs, but he "will or shall" (depending on the writer's emphasis), recoil when confronted by the One Who reigns righteously by His Own Authority & Power.