Israel was ruled by judges for 200 years. Eli and Samuel are the last of those judges. Although the nation has fallen away from God, it is clear that God is preparing Samuel, yet unborn in most of this story, to lead the nation back to right living. God is always in control; He is able to bring His people back to Him.
We open our story today with Eli in the temple when a woman named Hannah came to worship and sacrifice. She was unhappy as she confessed that her husband had another wife who had given him many children, and although she had desired a child desperately, she had none. Her husband's other wife provoked her constantly and Hannah would not be able to eat or sleep. When Hannah finished telling her story, she wept in desperation. She admitted that her husband loved her very much, but she felt desperate to give him a child, because of that love. Hannah admitted to Eli that she had made a vow, and said to her husband, "O Lord Almighty, if you will only look upon your servant's misery and remember me, and not forget your servant but give her a son, then I will give him to the Lord for all the days of his life." And Eli answered, "Go in peace, and may the God of Israel grant you what you have asked of him."
In the course of time, Hannah conceived and gave birth to a son, and she named him Samuel. When her husband went up with all his family to offer the annual sacrifice to the Lord. Hannah did not go. She said to her husband, "After the boy is weaned, I will take him and present him before the Lord, and he will live there always." And her husband agreed, saying, "Do what seems best to you, and may the Lord make good His word."
After he was weaned, she took the boy with her, young as he was, along with a three-year-old bull for slaughtering, an offering of flour, and a skin of wine for the priests. She took the boy to Eli, and she said to him, "As surely as you live, my lord, I am the woman who stood here beside you praying to the Lord. I prayed for this child, and the Lord has granted me what I asked of Him. So now I give him to the Lord. For his whole life he will be given over to the Lord."
Then Hannah, praying, said, "My heart rejoices in the Lord; in the Lord my horn is lifted high. My mouth boasts over my enemies, for I delight in your deliverance. There is no one holy like the Lord; there is no one besides You, there is no Rock like our God!"
And Samuel worshipped the Lord there, ever after.
Study/ "Hannah praised God for being a Rock--firm, strong, and unchanging. In our fast-paced world, friends come and go, and circumstances change. It's difficult to find a solid foundation that will not change. Those who devote their lives to achievements, causes, or possessions have as their security that which is finite and changeable. But God is always present. Hope in Him. He will never fail you."
In my own life I, too, often tried to encourage change which I thought important, both in my home and in my church. I tend to be one of those people that is a seeker, a provider, and a doer, so oftentimes this was not the answer at all or the timing was off. Not all changes are the best for others and too often I have been a catalyst for something others were not yet ready for. I love Hannah for living with her own sorrow, for praying and trusting God, and waiting patiently. And she kept her word! And that would have most certainly been difficult!
More about Samuel coming up. He's a great guy!
Jo INMN
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