Hannah is the second and barren yet preferred wife of Elkanah. She suffers silently in this predicament but eventually goes to a temple and prays fervently. She promises to return her child to YHWH if she is able to have a male baby, showing that she is most focused on securing her position in the community.
In the messiness of her grief, Hannah was accused of being drunk with wine by Eli the Priest, yet Hannah clarifies her position of prayer saying, “No, my lord, I am a woman troubled in spirit. I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but I have been pouring out my soul before the Lord.
The Bible doesn't say exactly, but we know Hannah's infertility went on for years. Her husband's extremely fertile and cruel 2nd wife, Peninnah, taunted and provoked Hannah regularly to irritate her. This caused Hannah such deep sorrow, that she would weep until she could not even eat.
But Hannah's biggest problem was not the fact that she could not have a baby, but it was that instead of rejoicing in the fact that Elkanah loved her, she became bitter and resentful towards the other wife, and missed joy in her life. This caused her husband grief and in verse eight, he questioned her about it.
Hannah demonstrates her faith through obedience, even when it means an extreme personal sacrifice. She has longed for this child, and she loves him as only a mother can love a child. But her love for God is greater and she shows it by letting go of Samuel.
Hannah trusted God without doubt or concern. Hannah's story teaches us that our faith in God allows Him to bless us. Her trust in God as she turned to Him, her deep desire for children and her faithfulness in bringing Samuel to God as promised are all evidences of God working in Hannah's life.
She prayed to God, reminding God that she was God's servant and wanted but one thing only. Then she made a promise. She said: "Oh, God Almighty, if you will only see my misery and remember me by giving me a son, then I will give my son to serve you, God, for all the days of his life."
First, she was unable to bear a child. Second, her husband's other wife harassed her. Because of her distress, Hannah went to the house of the Lord to pray. The Bible tells us of several women who faced difficulties because they could not conceive a child.
Hannah's specific request for a male child is therefore a reflection of the preference for sons in ancient Israel, which derived principally from the fact that, in that society, male children were greatly desired for the purpose of the perpetuation of the husband's lineage, as well as for land inheritance.
God had foreordained Samuel to be a substitute for Eli and also to be born through Hannah. However, God would not open Hannah's womb to conceive Samuel until God was certain that Hannah would be willing to release Samuel for His purpose, service and glory.
Penninah, her rival, is not kind to Hannah. She “used to provoke her grievously to irritate” Hannah (v. 6). Penninah tormented Hannah because the latter could not conceive.
Hannah, also spelled Anna, (11th century bce), in the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament), the mother of the prophet Samuel. Childless as one of the two wives of Elkanah, she prayed for a son, promising to dedicate him to God.
Not only did God remember Hannah with the birth of Samuel, he also gave her three more sons and two daughters. Samuel continued in his service at the temple, and when he was a young man, the Lord called to him and gave him the first of many visions. As he grew, the Lord was with him, and he became a trusted prophet.
She named him Samuel for she said “I have asked him of the Lord”. ' In this account we learn of Hannah's great distress because of her infertility and a sufficient number of symptoms are mentioned to make a diagnosis of depression.
Peninnah always upset Hannah and made her feel bad because the LORD had not made her able to have children. This happened every year when their family went to the LORD's house at Shiloh. Peninnah would upset Hannah so much that she would begin to cry and would not eat anything.
Hannah was one hundred and thirty years old when she became pregnant, as was Jochebed (Midrash Samuel 4:1); this midrash is part of the Rabbinic trend to compare Samuel with Moses (see below). I Sam.
2:21 attests that the Lord took note of Hannah and “she conceived and bore three sons and two daughters.” The midrash tells that when Hannah bore her children, Peninnah was punished: Hannah would give birth to one child, and Peninnah would bury two; Hannah bore four, and Peninnah buried eight.
In I Samuel 3:1 we read,” In those days the word of the Lord was rare; there were not many visions.” God needed a prophet to communicate His heart to the Israelites. Hannah longed to give birth to a son.
Hannah wanted the privilege of being a mother. The Bible says she prayed and cried unconsolably, including promising the Lord that if she conceived a child, she would dedicate him to God all the days of his life. She would never cut his hair. Let's remember that these people are from the tribe of Nazarene.
And God, who is rich in mercy, did not disappoint her.. Hannah was burdened with grief and sorrow: she longed to be a mother yet was childless (1 Samuel 1:2). Her infertility was a source of anguish and misery. Deeply distressed, Hannah was so spent with crying that she couldn't even eat (1:7).
Hannah's infertility was a continuing, persistent anguish for her. Year after year she prayed to God, and year after year nothing happened. Prayers of distress and sorrow sometimes last a long time.
Every year she would go with her husband to a place called Shiloh. While they were there, there would be a big festival and everyone would celebrate all that God did for them. They would thank God for their crops and everything God gave them, and give sacrifices or presents to God to show how thankful they were.
A few months earlier, she had entered the temple in Jerusalem and opened her heart to God, even promising that if God gave her a son, she would dedicate him to God's service. Now that she was a mother, her life was so dif- ferent. She named her son Samuel, which means “heard by God”.
Hannah had no other place to turn. It was as if, in her great anguish and grief, she cried, “Make me fruitful, or I don't want to go on.” She was at her end. “Give me a child or I will die!” God heard Hannah's weeping, and her prayer became the pathway to divine intervention.
Hannah asked the Lord for a son. She promised God that she would give this son to Him to serve God all of his days. God heard and answered Hannah's prayer and she kept her promise to Him and took Samuel to the tabernacle to serve the Lord all his days. Read 2 Samuel 2:1-10.