The conquest and the judges · 1 Samuel 1–2
Hannah and the Birth of Samuel
Every year, Elkanah goes up to Shiloh to worship the LORD with his two wives. Peninnah has children; Hannah, who is barren, endures her taunting and weeps without eating. One day, in bitterness of soul, Hannah prays near the temple and makes a vow: if God gives her a son, she will give him to the LORD all the days of his life, and no razor will touch his head. The priest Eli, seeing her lips move though no sound comes out, thinks she is drunk; she explains that she has been pouring out her soul before the LORD. Eli blesses her. God remembers her: she bears Samuel, “Because I have asked him of the LORD.” Once the child is weaned, she brings him to Shiloh and “lends” him to the LORD for as long as he lives. She sings her joy in a song of praise, and God later gives her three more sons and two daughters.
What happens
- Hannah, barren, is taunted every year by her rival Peninnah 1 Samuel 1:6–7
- At Shiloh, Hannah prays through her tears and makes a vow 1 Samuel 1:10–11
- Eli thinks she is drunk, then blesses her 1 Samuel 1:14–17
- Samuel is born, “asked of the LORD” 1 Samuel 1:20
- Hannah lends the child to the LORD for as long as he lives 1 Samuel 1:27–28
- Hannah’s song: “There is none holy as the LORD” 1 Samuel 2:1–2
Who is in this story
The lesson
Hannah brings her distress to God in prayer instead of nursing bitterness, and God answers her. What she received from God, she gives back to him: true gratitude dedicates our best gifts to the Lord.
For this child I prayed; and the Lord hath given me my petition which I asked of him:
Quick quiz on this story
What is the name of Hannah’s rival, who had children?
Elkanah had two wives, “the name of the one was Hannah, and the name of the other Peninnah: and Peninnah had children, but Hannah had no children.” 1 Samuel 1:2
Where does Hannah pray and make her vow?
After the meal at Shiloh, Hannah prays to the LORD through her tears near the temple, where Eli is sitting, and vows to give her son to him. 1 Samuel 1:9–11
Why does Eli think Hannah is drunk?
Hannah “spake in her heart; only her lips moved, but her voice was not heard: therefore Eli thought she had been drunken.” 1 Samuel 1:13–14
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