THE BIRTH OF SAMUEL
According to biblical scholars, the First and Second Books of Samuel formed one book in the ancient Hebrew manuscripts. They were not divided into two books until the Old Testament was translated into the Greek language. We do not know who wrote the books; certainly, Samuel was a major contributor, but much of the book takes place after his death which takes place in The First Book Of Samuel:
“And Samuel died; and all the Israelites were gathered together, and lamented him, and buried him in his house at Ramah. And David arose, and went down to the wilderness of Paran.”
-1 Samuel 25:1 (KJV)
They are called the books of 1 and 2 Samuel, not because he wrote all of them, but because they describe his great ministry in Israel and the legacy of it.
"Samuel the Prophet" thus practically bridges the gulf between Samson the Judge and David the King: and there is deep significance in the fact that his name is identified with the two Books of Scripture which describe this great transitional period, every event of which was affected by his influence.
- F.B. Meyer
1 Samuel 1:1-2: The Family Of Elkanah
“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:
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.”
- 1 Samuel 1:1-2 (KJV)
The book begins with a certain man, living at a certain time in Israel. This was a critical time in Israel's history, because of the rising power of the Philistines, who were becoming stronger and stronger because of their more modern Greek military technology. Israel could compete on more equal terms with Moab and Ammon, but Greek military equipment, helmets, shields, coats of mail, swords and spears, made the Philistines much more formidable opponents.
According to ancient historians, the Philistines were an immigrant people from the military aristocracy of the island of Crete as we see in The Book of Amos:
“Are ye not as children of the Ethiopians unto me, O children of Israel? saith the Lord. Have not I brought up Israel out of the land of Egypt? and the Philistines from Caphtor, and the Syrians from Kir?”
- Amos 9:7 (KJV)
Small numbers of Philistines were in the land at the time of Abraham; but they only came in force soon after Israel came to Canaan from Egypt. They were organized into five city-states. Archaeologists tell us two other things about the Philistines: they were hard drinkers, and they were the first in the region to effectively use iron, and they made the most of it.
“A certain man:” At this strategic time and place, God begins His plan as He almost always does, with a person, a man or a woman He will use. God could accomplish His work all by Himself, or by using angels, or by any number of other means, but His normal way of working is to find “a certain man” and work through them.
Elkanah was a descendant of Zuph, and his family line shows he was a Levite as we see in The First Book of Chronicles:
“The sons of Levi; Gershom, Kohath, and Merari. And these be the names of the sons of Gershom; Libni, and Shimei. And the sons of Kohath were, Amram, and Izhar, and Hebron, and Uzziel. The sons of Merari; Mahli, and Mushi. And these are the families of the Levites according to their fathers. Of Gershom; Libni his son, Jahath his son, Zimmah his son, Joah his son, Iddo his son, Zerah his son, Jeaterai his son. The sons of Kohath; Amminadab his son, Korah his son, Assir his son, Elkanah his son, and Ebiasaph his son, and Assir his son, Tahath his son, Uriel his son, Uzziah his son, and Shaul his son. And the sons of Elkanah; Amasai, and Ahimoth. As for Elkanah: the sons of Elkanah; Zophai his son, and Nahath his son, Eliab his son, Jeroham his son, Elkanah his son. And the sons of Samuel; the firstborn Vashni, and Abiah. The sons of Merari; Mahli, Libni his son, Shimei his son, Uzza his son, Shimea his son, Haggiah his son, Asaiah his son.”
- 1 Chronicles 6:16-30 (KJV)
He is called an Ephraimite here because his family lived in a Levitical city in boundaries of Ephraim, not because he was of the tribe of Ephraim.
“And he had two wives; the name of the one was Hannah, and the name of the other Peninnah:” The “certain man” mentioned in verse one, whose name was Elkanah, had two wives. Polygamy was a fact of life in that whole part of the ancient world. However, the Bible never puts polygamy in a favorable light; strife and conflict always characterize polygamous families in the Bible.
In this account, we will see an intense, competitive relationship between the two wives, Peninnah (who had children) and Hannah, who did not.
"The custom of those times permitted polygamy; but wherever there was more than one wife, we find the peace of the family greatly disturbed by it."
- Clarke
The Book of Genesis shows that a man should have one wife:
“Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.”
- Genesis 2:24 (KJV)
God bless!
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1 Samuel 1:3-7: Elkanah And His Family Journey To The Tabernacle
“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. And when the time was that Elkanah offered, he gave to Peninnah his wife, and to all her sons and her daughters, portions: But unto Hannah he gave a worthy portion; for he loved Hannah: but the Lord had shut up her womb. And her adversary also provoked her sore, for to make her fret, because the Lord had shut up her womb. 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.”
- 1 Samuel 1:3-7 (KJV)
According to the law of Moses, Israelites were not to worship God through sacrifice any time and any way they pleased. They were to bring their sacrifices to the tabernacle of God, and the priests of God, which at this time, were at Shiloh.
Shiloh was the central city of Israel, the religious center, for almost four hundred years. The tabernacle, the majestic tent God command Moses to build when they came out of Egypt, was erected there, and in it sat the Ark of the Covenant. The Ark was the symbolic throne of God among Israel, the sacred chest containing the stone tablets of the Ten Commandments. At the Ark, once a year, the high priest would make atonement for the sins of the nation. Though it was hidden, it was a powerful and important part of Israel's religious life.
Today, if you visit Shiloh, you can see the bare, ancient outline of ruined walls of stone, walls that had once surrounded Israel's tabernacle for almost 400 years. On the heights you can see desolate, fruitless hills all around; rocky and bare, except for a distant Israeli neighborhood.
Shiloh enjoyed all this glory for hundreds of years, but it came to an end abruptly. Hundreds of years later, through the prophet Jeremiah, God used Shiloh as a lesson. "Go to Shiloh," He says. "Look what happened to a place of spiritual privilege and glory when they forgot about Me. The same will happen to you if you do not turn again to Me." Consider these passages in The Book of Jeremiah:
“But go ye now unto my place which was in Shiloh, where I set my name at the first, and see what I did to it for the wickedness of my people Israel. And now, because ye have done all these works, saith the Lord, and I spake unto you, rising up early and speaking, but ye heard not; and I called you, but ye answered not; Therefore will I do unto this house, which is called by my name, wherein ye trust, and unto the place which I gave to you and to your fathers, as I have done to Shiloh.”
- Jeremiah 7:12-14 (KJV)
“And the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, the priests of the Lord, were there.” These priests are mentioned by name because they were known among Israel as notoriously wicked priests, as we will see later in The First Book of Samuel:
“Wherefore the sin of the young men was very great before the Lord: for men abhorred the offering of the Lord.”
- 1 Samuel 2:17 (KJV)
“Nay, my sons; for it is no good report that I hear: ye make the Lord's people to transgress.”
- 1 Samuel 2:24 (KJV)
Their mention here is to show how godly Elkanah was, even though the priests were wicked, he still offered sacrifices to the LORD, knowing that the wickedness of the priest did not make his own service to the LORD invalid.
He would give “portions.” Every year, when Elkanah brought his family to the tabernacle for sacrifice, he would eat a ceremonial meal at the tabernacle with his family, giving portions to his wives and their children. He showed his favor and love to Hannah by giving her a “worthy portion.”
No one who offered a sin offering ate any portion of it; but of the peace offerings or offerings of thanksgiving, the offerer received a substantial portion.
Yet, because of the conflict between the two wives, Hannah could not enjoy this display of love and favor from Elkanah: “therefore she wept and did not eat.”
It is possible for problems at home to make your time at the house of God miserable. There is Hannah, at the house of the Lord, with a full, blessed, double portion in front of her, and she can't enjoy it at all!
Despite the pain of Hannah, God had a purpose in it all: “the Lord had shut up her womb. “God would use the closed womb of Hannah, and the pain from being childless, to accomplish something great in her life and in the whole plan of salvation. Even though things were hard, God was still in charge.
God's sovereignty over the womb is a familiar theme in the Bible as we see in The Book of Genesis:
“For the Lord had fast closed up all the wombs of the house of Abimelech, because of Sarah Abraham's wife.”
- Genesis 20:18 (KJV)
“And when the Lord saw that Leah was hated, he opened her womb: but Rachel was barren.”
- Genesis 29:31 (KJV)
“And God remembered Rachel, and God hearkened to her, and opened her womb.”
-Genesis 30:22 (KJV)
Though many couples today experience the same pain of childlessness, God has a plan and a purpose for something good, though not easy in it all.
Why should Peninnah (who seems of a bad character) be blessed with children, and Hannah (who seems of a good character) be cursed with barrenness? Often, we don't understand God's ways, until He has finished accomplishing His purpose. Hannah (her name means grace) has a barren womb, but a fruitful spirit. God is going to use this woman!
Christian brothers and sisters, this is yet another case of the world operating on God’s timeline, not man’s. Remember, tomorrow is not promised, so it is important to be about God’s work today!
God bless!
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1 Samuel 1:8-11: Hannah's Godly Vow
“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? 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. And she was in bitterness of soul, and prayed unto the Lord, and wept sore. 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 razor come upon his head.”
- 1 Samuel 1:8-11 (KJV)
“Hannah, why weepest thou? and why eatest thou not? and why is thy heart grieved? am not I better to thee than ten sons?” In Elkanah's response to Hannah's sorrow, we see that he really does love her; yet, as many men, he is at least somewhat insensitive to her. He does not recognize that she had needs that he could not fulfill, such as the desire to be a mother.
Hannah “was in bitterness of soul” and great anguish; yet she did the right thing. Hannah took those bitter and anguished feelings to God honestly in prayer.
Most people know a time of “bitterness of soul” and anguish at some time in their lives. Thomas Sutherland said that he lost his faith during his time as a hostage in Lebanon. "God, I prayed so many times and prayed so hard - so hard! - and nothing happened. After thinking about it deeply, I'm not so sure there is a God." He added, "But I never felt abandoned by my country." The headline to this story read: Sutherland Tells of Captivity Without Bitterness. But what about his bitterness towards God?
Hannah had many problems. Her husband’s heart was divided. Her home, instead of being a place of refuge from trials, was a place of trials. Her hope had been disappointed. She was misunderstood by her husband. Yet in all those things, Hannah did the right things: she wept, she prayed, and she committed the whole situation to the LORD.
“O Lord of hosts:” Hannah begins her prayer by calling on the “Lord of hosts.” That title is used around 260 times in the Old Testament, and has the idea of Lord of the Mighty Armies. Hannah feels attacked by her rival, and so calls on the Lord of Mighty Armies to be her protector!
“She vowed a vow: Hannah promises her son to the work of the Lord, vowing that he will be a Nazarite from birth “I will give him unto the Lord all the days of his life, and there shall no razor come upon his head.” According to The Book of Numbers, the vow of a Nazirite included the following:
Abstinence from any product from a grape vine, signifying distance from all fleshly pleasures.
Taking no part in any mourning for the dead, nor to come near a dead body, because the dead show the corruption and the fruit of sin. Also, because the Nazirite had greater concerns than the ordinary joys and sorrows of life.
Never cutting the hair, because it was a public, visible sign to others of the vow.
Typically, the vow of a Nazirite was taken for a set and rather short period of time. Samuel and Samson were unique, because they were Nazarites from birth, as we see in The Book of Judges:
“For, lo, thou shalt conceive, and bear a son; and no razor shall come on his head: for the child shall be a Nazarite unto God from the womb: and he shall begin to deliver Israel out of the hand of the Philistines.”
- Judges 13:5 (KJV)
“I will give him unto the Lord all the days of his life:” The child born would be a Levite, and being of that tribe, would be already dedicated unto the Lord, because God regarded the tribe of Levi as His own special possession. But the time of a Levite's special dedication to the LORD only lasted from the age of 30 to 50 as we see in The Book of Numbers:
“Take the sum of the sons of Kohath from among the sons of Levi, after their families, by the house of their fathers, From thirty years old and upward even until fifty years old, all that enter into the host, to do the work in the tabernacle of the congregation.”
- Numbers 4:2-3 (KJV)
Here, Hannah was taking something that already belonged to the Lord, and gave it again to the Lord in a greater way. The dedication of a Nazirite, was a greater gift than the dedication of a Levite.
Christian brothers and sisters, we may be dedicated unto the Lord, but is there a greater dedication God wants from us? It would have been easy for Hannah to say, "I don't need to dedicate my child to the Lord, because he is already dedicated," but there was a deeper dedication the Lord was trying to draw out of Hannah. Is there a deeper dedication the Lord is trying to draw out of you?
It is difficult, even impossible to understand all the reasons and dynamics behind the plan of God; but certainly, if God wanted this little boy to be dedicated to Him in this special way, He had to allow Hannah to come to this place of desperation.
Certainly, this was not the first time Hannah had prayed for a child. But perhaps this was the first time she prayed, truly giving the child to the Lord, not just in her heart, but in this vow as well.
Christian brothers and sisters, remember things given to God are to be given wholey, without reservation. Promise God as He has promised you.
“For the word of the Lord is right; and all his works are done in truth.”
-Psalm 33:4 (KJV)
God bless!
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1 Samuel 1:12-14: Eli, The High Priest, Watches Hannah's Prayer
“And it came to pass, as she continued praying before the Lord that Eli marked her mouth. Now Hannah, she spake in her heart; only her lips moved, but her voice was not heard: therefore Eli thought she had been drunken. And Eli said unto her, How long wilt thou be drunken? put away thy wine from thee. ”
- 1 Samuel 1:12-14 (KJV)
“As she continued praying before the Lord.” literally; "as she multiplied to pray." We have recorded only a bare summary of Hannah's prayer. As is the case with most all of the prayers and speeches of the Bible, all we have recorded is a portion or a summary of what was said.
“Now Hannah, she spake in her heart; only her lips moved, but her voice was not heard:” It is often good to pray aloud, because it can help us to better focus our thoughts. Yet this passage shows that prevailing prayer doesn't need to be vocal, it can be silent in the heart.
Eli wonders how long she would be drunk. Of course, Eli misunderstands Hannah here. But the fact that he would even suspect that she was drunk shows that it may not have been all that unusual for people to be drunk at the "fellowship meals" they would have in sacrificing to the Lord at the tabernacle. The fact that Eli suspected Hannah of drunkenness doesn't speak well for what he had seen around the tabernacle area previously!
"The fact that Eli supposed her to be drunken, and the other of the conduct of Eli's sons already mentioned, prove that religion was at this time at a very low ebb in Shiloh; for it seems drunken women did come to the place, and lewd women were to be found there."
- Clarke
Hannah suffers from being misunderstood by both her husband and her high priest, but rest assured Christian brothers and sisters, our High Priest never misunderstands us as we see in The Book of Hebrews:
“Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.”
- Hebrews 4:14-16 (KJV)
God bless!
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