וַיְהִי֩ אִ֨ישׁ אֶחָ֜ד מִן־הָרָמָתַ֛יִם צוֹפִ֖ים מֵהַ֣ר אֶפְרָ֑יִם וּשְׁמ֡וֹ אֶ֠לְקָנָה בֶּן־יְרֹחָ֧ם בֶּן־אֱלִיה֛וּא בֶּן־תֹּ֥חוּ בֶן־צ֖וּף אֶפְרָתִֽי׃
May isang lalaki mula sa Ramataim-zofim, mula sa kabundukan ng Efraim, at ang pangalan niya ay Elkana, anak ni Jeroham, anak ni Elihu, anak ni Tohu, anak ni Zuf, isang taga-Efraim.
Rashi
And there was a man. It all follows the order: Moshe gave over the Torah to Yehoshua and Yehoshua to the Elders and each Judge to his successor until it reached Eili who gave it over to Shmuel1I.e., the “ו” of וְאֵלֶה links the Book of Shmuel with the preceeding Book of Shoftim and serves as a link between the oral tradition as stated in the Mishnah, “…and the Elders…” as we learned (in the Mishnah), "… and the Elders [gave it over] to the Prophets…"2Maseches Avos 1:1.
Metzudat David
Ramatayim of the Tzufites: That is the name of the place, due to there being two tall (ramot) mountains, viewing (tzofot) one across from the other.
Radak
And there was (Vayehi) a man from Ramatayim of the Tzufites: We have already written at the beginning of the book of Yehoshua that the you will find that the [letter,] vav (usually meaning, and), is customary in the Hebrew language at the beginning of things, and likewise in the language of Yishmael (Arabic). And we also wrote about the grammar of the word, yehi, there.
Rashi
From Ramasayim Tsofim. There were two hills each visible to the other.3Elkonoh lived in Romoh, see below verse 19; and he prophesied in Tsofim—Da’as Sofrim.4Maseches Megillah 14a. Targum Yonoson renders צוֹפִים: "of the disciples of prophets."
Metzudat David
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Elkonoh. He was a Levite of the sons of Aviosof, the son of Korach —his ancestry is thus recorded in Divrei Hayomim.5I Divrei Hayomim 6:19-23.
Rashi
From the land of Ephrayim. [Targum] Yonoson renders "on the mountain of the house of Ephrayim." The Midrash Aggadah [renders] אֶפְרָתִי —a palace dweller, an important person,6Rashi emphasizes that אֶפְרָתִי does not mean that he was from the tribe of Ephrayim because it has already been established that he was from the tribe of Leivi. as in "let us extend אַפִּרְיוֹן to Rabbi Shimon,"7Maseches Bava Metzia 119a. [meaning] an expression of favor.