First Samuel 1:1

The Bible says in First Samuel 1:1-6, “Now there was a certain man of Ramathaim-zophim, of mount Ephraim, and his name was Elkanah, the son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the son of Zuph, an Ephrathite:[2] And he 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.[3] And this man went up out of his city yearly to worship and to sacrifice unto the LORD of hosts in Shiloh. And the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, the priests of the LORD, were there.[4] And when the time was that Elkanah offered, he gave to Peninnah his wife, and to all her sons and her daughters, portions:[5] But unto Hannah he gave a worthy portion; for he loved Hannah: but the LORD had shut up her womb.[6] And her adversary also provoked her sore, for to make her fret, because the LORD had shut up her womb.” It says about Elkanah that “he had two wives.” God’s original plan was for a man to have only one wife. In Genesis God made Eve for Adam, and only Eve. We see in the Bible often that where a man had more than one wife, it only caused problems. The women become rivals, and that makes it bad for them, for the husband, and also for the children. Eventually, Hannah would have a son, and what a great person that son would become. And so this is a story of God’s grace, and also of the value of children. Children are a gift from God. As a parent, dedicate your child to God. You never know what they might accomplish for the glory of God.

It says at the end of verse three that “Hannah had no children.” Why did not Hannah have any children? Verse six gives us the answer to that. It says, “the LORD had shut up her womb.” Conception only takes place when God makes it happen. Conception is a miracle. Conception is a gift from God. Conception results in children. Men and women should be responsible adults. They should not do anything that could result in conception if they are not ready to take care of a precious innocent child. The actions of people and God work together for many things, including the making of babies.

The Bible says in First Samuel 1:7-11, “And as he did so year by year, when she went up to the house of the LORD, so she provoked her; therefore she wept, and did not eat.[8] Then said Elkanah her husband to her, Hannah, why weepest thou? and why eatest thou not? and why is thy heart grieved? am not I better to thee than ten sons?[9] So Hannah rose up after they had eaten in Shiloh, and after they had drunk. Now Eli the priest sat upon a seat by a post of the temple of the LORD.[10] And she was in bitterness of soul, and prayed unto the LORD, and wept sore.[11] And she vowed a vow, and said, O LORD of hosts, if thou wilt indeed look on the affliction of thine handmaid, and remember me, and not forget thine handmaid, but wilt give unto thine handmaid a man child, then I will give him unto the LORD all the days of his life, and there shall no rasor come upon his head.” We see that Hannah had a very heavy burden to bear. And she bore her burden year after year. Hannah was a person of prayer. She constantly took her burden to the Lord. She did not give up on God. We see that Hannah was a gentle soul. She did not react with anger when her rival constantly provoked her about not having children. Hannah suffered a lot over the years. Often she would cry, and often miss meals because she was so saddened and distressed about not having a child. Finally, as Hannah talked to the Lord about her barren womb, she realized that if the Lord ever did give her a child that she would dedicate that child to God’s service. She said, “I will give him unto the LORD all the days of his life.” That is exactly what happened, and the result was one of the greatest believers in the Old Testament: Samuel the prophet. Sometimes parents have a great deal to say about the direction that a child takes in life spiritually speaking. In our day and age many parents block their children from hearing the Word of God and the Gospel of Christ, and keep them from going to a good Bible church. Hannah knew that if she had a child, that child would be a gift from God, and the most important thing for the child would be to know and serve the Lord.

The Bible says in First Samuel 1:12-18, “And it came to pass, as she continued praying before the LORD, that Eli marked her mouth.[13] Now Hannah, she spake in her heart; only her lips moved, but her voice was not heard: therefore Eli thought she had been drunken.[14] And Eli said unto her, How long wilt thou be drunken? put away thy wine from thee.[15] And Hannah answered and said, No, my lord, I am a woman of a sorrowful spirit: I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but have poured out my soul before the LORD.[16] Count not thine handmaid for a daughter of Belial: for out of the abundance of my complaint and grief have I spoken hitherto.[17] Then Eli answered and said, Go in peace: and the God of Israel grant thee thy petition that thou hast asked of him.[18] And she said, Let thine handmaid find grace in thy sight. So the woman went her way, and did eat, and her countenance was no more sad.” In all the years that Hannah suffered by not having a child and by being mocked and ridiculed by her husband’s other wife, Hannah did one thing consistently: “she continued praying before the LORD.” There are some things that you will pray for just once, and then you will see a marvelous answer to prayer. There are other times that you will see the Lord intervene and do marvelous things before you even prayed about it. But there are also things that you are burdened about, and you will have the same experience that Hannah had: you will need to pray for years. You will need to pray year after year until God decides to do something. This might include praying for someone to be saved, and it might include finding your soulmate so that you can be married to God’s choice for you: someone who loves the Lord Jesus. We do pray and ask for His will and not our will.

When Eli saw Hannah praying, she was in such emotional distress that Eli thought she was drunk with alcohol. When is the last time that you prayed like that? It says at the end of James 5:16, “The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.” When Eli heard that Hannah had been praying, he said to her in verse seventeen, “Go in peace: and the God of Israel grant thee thy petition that thou hast asked of him.” We see that the Lord used Eli to comfort her heart. A word of encouragement was exactly what she needed. That is one of the ways in which Christian fellowship is important. We give each other words of comfort. We remind each other of the promises of God. We quote scripture that applies to a particular situation. God answers prayer. Prayer changes things. Jesus said that whatsoever we ask the Father in His name, He will give to us. Hannah “went her way, and did eat, and her countenance was no more sad.” What made the difference: faith in God’s promise and the truth that God answers prayer.

The Bible says in First Samuel 1:19-20, “And they rose up in the morning early, and worshipped before the LORD, and returned, and came to their house to Ramah: and Elkanah knew Hannah his wife; and the LORD remembered her.[20] Wherefore it came to pass, when the time was come about after Hannah had conceived, that she bare a son, and called his name Samuel, saying, Because I have asked him of the LORD.” Notice the phrase in verse nineteen, “the LORD remembered her.” Hannah had been praying for many years to the Lord. And now is the Lord’s time for that prayer to be answered. Once again in verse twenty we see that conception, pregnancy, and birth are all part of the same event: God bringing a life into the world. Conception does not happen without God making it happen when this husband and wife come together. And then notice the name that Hannah gives to her son: Samuel. The name means “asked of the Lord.” Every time that Samuel’s name was used by Hannah, by Samuel himself, or by anyone else it would be a reminder that God answers prayer, and that Samuel was a gift from God as an answer to prayer. What do you do in order to help you remember all that God has done for you?

The Bible says in First Samuel 1:21-28, “And the man Elkanah, and all his house, went up to offer unto the LORD the yearly sacrifice, and his vow.[22] But Hannah went not up; for she said unto her husband, I will not go up until the child be weaned, and then I will bring him, that he may appear before the LORD, and there abide for ever.[23] And Elkanah her husband said unto her, Do what seemeth thee good; tarry until thou have weaned him; only the LORD establish his word. So the woman abode, and gave her son suck until she weaned him.[24] And when she had weaned him, she took him up with her, with three bullocks, and one ephah of flour, and a bottle of wine, and brought him unto the house of the LORD in Shiloh: and the child was young.[25] And they slew a bullock, and brought the child to Eli.[26] And she said, Oh my lord, as thy soul liveth, my lord, I am the woman that stood by thee here, praying unto the LORD.[27] For this child I prayed; and the LORD hath given me my petition which I asked of him:[28] Therefore also I have lent him to the LORD; as long as he liveth he shall be lent to the LORD. And he worshipped the LORD there.” Because the Lord gave to Hannah, Hannah wanted to give back to the Lord. Too bad that more people are not like that. The Lord gives to us all the time. He is the great giver. Most importantly, He gave us His love. How many return love to Him? “We love Him because He first loved us.” What Hannah did in giving her son to be raised by Eli at the house of the Lord in Shiloh ended up bearing great fruit. Samuel became one of the great prophets of the Old Testament. The Lord used Samuel to write several books of the Bible, including Judges, Ruth, First Samuel, and Second Samuel. Some Christian parents are afraid to give their children up to the Lord.

In verse twenty-three when Elkanah heard of Hannah’s plan for the child, he said to his wife, “Do what seemeth thee good.” He understood that his wife had a free will, and that if she thought the Lord wanted her to do something, then she should have the freedom to do that. He also said in verse twenty-three, “only the LORD establish his word.” That is an interesting phrase to use in regards to the young life of Samuel because that is exactly what would happen in Samuel’s life. The Word of the Lord would be established in and through Samuel. There is nothing more important than that.

Notice the last phrase of verse twenty-four: “and the child was young.” The younger that someone starts hearing the Bible and the things of the Lord, the better. Jesus certainly started early, and He is our greatest example of how to live life. By the time Jesus was twelve, He was teaching the doctors of the law. We become what we think about, and we think about what we hear and what we are taught. The longer that a person waits to be saved and to hear the Word of God, the more bad things and the more worldly things that there are to overcome to make their life as fruitful as possible for the Lord. It is a very good thing that Hannah delivered her son, Samuel, to the lord and gave him up at such a young age so that Samuel would be in a position to learn and to be trained and to be prepared to know and to serve the Lord. God needs a prepared person for a prepared place. Hannah lost a son, but the world gained one of the greatest prophets of the Old Testament. Hopefully, there are no Christian parents who want to hold onto their children for themselves.

___________________________________________________