1 Samuel 4:14
And when Eli heard the noise of the crying, he said, What meaneth the noise of this tumult? And the man came in hastily, and told Eli. And when Eli heard the noise of the crying, he said, What meaneth the noise of this tumult? And the man came in hastily, and told Eli.
Eli was at Shiloh waiting anxiously for news from the battle when the wailing commotion of the town reached him, and at his question what the tumult meant the messenger came in hastily to him. The messenger reported that Israel had been defeated and had fled, that many had been killed, that his two sons were dead, and that the ark had been captured. The report of his sons' deaths brought him grief which he could bear, but the news that the ark had been taken overwhelmed him. The taking of the ark was Israel's great calamity, showing that his sin had dishonored God and led God to withdraw His presence from Israel.
Upon hearing that the ark was taken, Eli fell backward from his seat and died. The deaths of his sons and his own death came as judgment for their wrongdoing and for his failure to restrain them, for his partiality had led him to excuse their wrongdoing so that he shared their guilt and dishonored God. The account therefore warns parents, especially those serving as religious leaders, to correct children's faults rather than let wrong habits grow.