Bible Talks

From: Messages of God's Love: 1954

1 Samuel 1:1-28¹Now 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: ²And 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. ³And 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. ⁴And when the time was that Elkanah offered, he gave to Peninnah his wife, and to all her sons and her daughters, portions: ⁵But unto Hannah he gave a worthy portion; for he loved Hannah: but the Lord had shut up her womb. ⁶And her adversary also provoked her sore, for to make her fret, because the Lord had shut up her womb. ⁷And 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. ⁸Then 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? ⁹So 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. ¹⁰And she was in bitterness of soul, and prayed unto the Lord, and wept sore. ¹¹And 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. ¹²And it came to pass, as she continued praying before the Lord, that Eli marked her mouth. ¹³Now Hannah, she spake in her heart; only her lips moved, but her voice was not heard: therefore Eli thought she had been drunken. ¹⁴And Eli said unto her, How long wilt thou be drunken? put away thy wine from thee. ¹⁵And 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. ¹⁶Count not thine handmaid for a daughter of Belial: for out of the abundance of my complaint and grief have I spoken hitherto. ¹⁷Then Eli answered and said, Go in peace: and the God of Israel grant thee thy petition that thou hast asked of him. ¹⁸And 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. ¹⁹And 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. ²⁰Wherefore 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. ²¹And the man Elkanah, and all his house, went up to offer unto the Lord the yearly sacrifice, and his vow. ²²But 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. ²³And 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. ²⁴And 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. ²⁵And they slew a bullock, and brought the child to Eli. ²⁶And she said, Oh my lord, as thy soul liveth, my lord, I am the woman that stood by thee here, praying unto the Lord. ²⁷For this child I prayed; and the Lord hath given me my petition which I asked of him: ²⁸Therefore 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. (1 Samuel 1:1‑28).

We now come to a distinct turning point in God’s ways with His people Israel, and a careful consideration of this interesting book of First Samuel will be for much profit.

The priesthood, which had been set up, in the wilderness, had been the means by which God went on with His erring people. But oh, what sad departure had come in. Eli, the high priest, had been faithful himself, but he had honored his sons before the Lord, and allowed them to remain as priests, while practicing the most horrible sins publicly. God was about to judge this, though He had waited patiently. He is never in a hurry to judge, for it is a principle in His ways that He always gives space to repent (Rev. 2:21²¹And I gave her space to repent of her fornication; and she repented not. (Revelation 2:21)).

It is also beautiful to see God’s grace rising above all man’s failure, and here, before we ever read of the sad condition of things in the house of the Lord, we are told of a woman named Hannah, who, though passing through trial, had a real love for the Lord and a quiet confidence in Him. She would not be hindered or turned aside in spite of these things in Eli’s household, nor even by the false accusation of Eli himself. Her confidence was in the Lord. Surely no flesh can glory in His presence (1 Cor. 1:29²⁹That no flesh should glory in his presence. (1 Corinthians 1:29)), and He uses the weak and foolish things of the world to confound the wise. He always encourages the faith which looks to Him, for He never fails in His love to His people, no matter how failing they are (John 13: 1).

Hannah did not have a child, though she longed for one, and so she asked the Lord for a son. She said she would give her son to the Lord if He gave her one. How lovely it would be if every parent followed this touching example! While she was praying in the temple, asking for a son, her lips were moving, but she was not talking out loud, and Eli thought she was drunk with wine. He therefore rebuked her and told her to stop her drinking, but she gently replied that she was praying, and had not been drinking at all. Eli then said, “Go in peace: and the God of Israel grant thee thy petition that thou hast asked of Him.”

She then returned home with her husband to their house at Ramah, and the Lord answered the desire of her heart and gave them a little son, whom they named Samuel. After a short time she and her husband went up to Shiloh with their young child and presented him to the Lord. Recognizing that their little lad was born in sin, they killed a bullock at this time, for the ground of any approach to God, or claim for blessing for ourselves or our children, is the death of Christ. It is beautiful to see the faith of Hannah laying hold of this, in a typical way, when they presented little Samuel to the Lord. Hannah then told Eli that this child was the one for whom she had prayed, and now she would lend him to the Lord as long as he lived. Let us, too, lend our children to the Lord and, acknowledging His claims over them, seek to “bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.” Ephesians 6:4⁴And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. (Ephesians 6:4). What a terrible mistake to bring them up to occupy high positions in this poor world that is under judgment, and yet how many parents seem to put success in this world first for their children. Oh, for more devotedness to Christ today!

ML 04/04/1954

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