“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 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: 10, 11.
In this chapter we have a vivid account of Hannah’s experiences of trials, grief, aggravations of trial, disappointments, perseverance in prayer and finally a promise from the Lord and the fulfilment of it. These experiences are by no means peculiar to Hannah, but rather typical of God’s dealings with His own in all generations. Her trial was of a very personal nature and though trials are common to the Lord’s people the nature of a particular trial may be very personal. Her reaction is worthy of our notice. We read that she prayed unto the Lord and wept sore. Blessed are the trials which drive or draw us to the throne of grace. The carnal mind rebels against adversity, but grace in living exercise submits to the Lord’s dealings and acknowledges His sovereignty in all things. Hannah glorified God in so doing.
We may briefly consider: Firstly, Hannah’s grief occasioned by her affliction. Secondly, her resolution to go to the temple. Thirdly, deliverance from affliction. (a) in the promise (b) in the fulfilment of the promise.
I. Hannah’s grief occasioned by her affliction.
First of all we may notice that Hannah’s grief was due to a personal affliction — an affliction which was ordained of God. He hath foreordained whatsoever comes to pass. When affliction, personal or otherwise, overtakes us we must humbly acknowledge that that very affliction was foreordained and consequently unavoidable. It would be to God’s glory and to the good of our own souls to meditate quietly and calmly and prayerfully on affliction affecting us. We should search diligently into all the known circumstances attending it, give secondary and apparent causes their own subordinate place and trace the disposing of all things to Him who does according to His will in the armies of Heaven and among us, the inhabitants of the earth. It ill becomes us to question in a querulous spirit “What doest Thou?” but rather let us be still and know that He is God.
Now Hannah’s grief was aggravated by the apparent prosperity of the wicked. Penninah, Elkanah’s other wife, enjoyed the blessing denied to Hannah, but it is obvious from the context that she was denied the greater blessing possessed, if not immediately enjoyed by Hannah. This is evident from her attitude to Hannah; she showed her no sympathy in her affliction but despised and mocked her. This was very trying, but more salutary for Hannah than the feigned sympathy of the ungodly. It is the sad lot of many to have daily contact with Penninah’s descendants. We may not be the direct target of the despisers and scoffers and scorners as Hannah was but the very conversation of the wicked grieves the soul of the righteous as was the case with Lot in his day. To rob God of His Glory was and is the life work of Satan and all his servants.
Further, her affliction and the grief occasioned by it was not for a day or an hour. It was prolonged over a number of years, though in God’s wisdom we are not told how many. Over the years, faint hope and frustration fluctuated until she was well nigh overwhelmed. Even Elkanah’s well intentioned attempts at comforting were futile and a sense of his own virtues were more obvious to himself than to Hannah in her distress. If we have no personal trial comparable to Hannah’s surely the low state of the Cause of Christ should be a burden to us. How frequently are our hopes in this direction disappointed! Too often the promising bud fails to blossom let alone bear fruit. This should and does cause us sadness but we must not give way to despondency.
Hannah did not give way to despondency. We read that she prayed unto the Lord. Before she could pray unto the Lord she must have been taught of the Lord, “He that cometh unto God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of all them that diligently seek Him.” The Saviour assures us that this knowledge is life eternal.
Real and earnest praying to God is generally accepted as an evidence of grace in the soul. We can almost hear the sigh of relief with which the early Christians informed each other, “Behold! he prayeth!” We have nothing to fear from this man now. Saul the persecutor is converted; Paul the petitioner is praying! Like Hannah we too can confide in the Lord and feel assured that all our secrets are safe with Him. However much we may be tempted at times to believe otherwise, God hears and answers the prayers of His people — not always as and when we would wish, but as and when He deems best for us and when the answer will redound most to His own glory. His delays in answering our petitions should make us more earnest and more importunate in pressing our request. This was the effect God’s silence had on Hannah. She kept on praying. She retained her integrity. Like Job she would not complain against the Lord.
II. Her resolution to go to the temple.
From the private means of grace she resolved to attend the public means at the appointed time, which leads us to consider her resolution to go to the temple. She decided to go to the temple of God where His servant was. From him, no doubt, she expected guidance and comfort. On her way to the temple hope was in the ascendant but poor Hannah may have been expecting too much from Eli — the Lord’s servant, holding a high office in His house on earth, but none the less a mere man. “Cease from man whose breath is in his nostrils.” If this was the case Hannah’s hopes were soon disappointed. While praying in the temple her lips were moving, but her voice was not heard. Words are often feeble to express deep feelings. It is written that the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.
But how did Eli from whom Hannah expected comfort address her, “How long wilt thou be drunken, put away thy wine from thee.” How shattering for poor Hannah to be classed among the wicked and depraved and that by the Lord’s servant! No doubt Eli felt very wise in his own conceit. Let present day Elis who would purge the sanctuary with harsh rebukes come aside for a little. Together let us visit a garden outside the walls of Jerusalem and there meet our risen Lord. How does He address a woman of a sorrowful spirit? “Woman why weepst thou? Whom seekest thou?” Every word is steeped in the oil of tenderness. What a pleasing contrast is here! Let us learn of the meek and lowly one rather than of Eli speaking hastily and unadvisedly. In passing, one could wish that Eli had administered his rebuke to his erring sons and shown some of the charity, misspent on them, to a woman of a sorrowful spirit.
Being taught of the Lord, Hannah knew when to speak and when to be silent. We do not read that she tried to reason or argue with Penninah or indeed with Elkanah, but on this occasion she must speak. Though bowed down and drinking bitter things she must vindicate her character and profession. How becoming a Christian is the dignity with which she answered Eli! “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. Count not thine handmaid for a daughter of Belial; for out of the abundance of my complaint and grief have I spoken hitherto.”
She refuted the charge and explained her conduct. She spoke from the heart to the heart and the Holy Spirit enlightened Eli. Then Eli was used of the Lord to convey comfort and glad tidings to his handmaiden. “Go in peace: and the God of Israel grant thee thy petition that thou hast asked of Him.”
III. Hannah’s deliverance.
Here is a full answer to her prayer albeit in promise. Faith grasped it and would not let it go. The words fell from Eli’s lips but the unction and authority from the Lord. Every word of the promise was as balm to her soul. Peace, the very thing you need now, is yours now in actual possession. How apt to meet Hannah’s weariness! and your request is yours in promise and sure of fulfilment since the God of Israel has engaged Himself to grant thy request. Hannah was by now well disciplined in the school of patience and she was granted a measure of wisdom which enabled her to wait on the Lord. She was well fortified now to withstand the assaults of the adversary and his agents. Penninah’s poisoned arrows could blunt themselves on the shield of faith. At the set time deliverance came and with it Hannah’s obligation to fulfil her vow.
Some would discourage us from taking vows. They quote the Scripture. “it is better not to vow than to vow and not to pay.” True, but how much better to vow and to pay. Carnal ease would misquote the truth to encourage spiritual sloth. Such was not the case with Hannah. In much weakness and under many adverse circumstances she vowed unto the Lord and the very fact that she received grace and strength to perform the vow proves that she made it in humble dependence on the God of all grace. Enjoying such a wonderful deliverance and such an abundant answer to her prayers she performed her vow with alacrity. She made her way to the temple.
She would give Samuel to the Lord, Samuel this child for whom she had prayed and whom the Lord had given her. Samuel embodied the answer to her prayers. In this respect all believers have their Samuel. If we are enabled in the smallest measure to render thanks unto the Lord it is because He has poured the grace of gratitude into our souls. If we are enabled to pray it is because He has given us the Spirit of prayer. If we are enabled to praise it is because the Holy Spirit has given us the spirit of praise. In each and every case we must acknowledge “Of thy own have we given thee.” In this elevated frame of mind Hannah brought Samuel to the temple. She assured Eli of her identity. She was at ease in God’s house and conversed freely with His servant. She could without rancour recall their previous meeting. She introduced Samuel to him and told him of her resolution regarding him. Having fulfilled her vow she was further blessed with the spirit of praise. Her cup was running over. She found words to express her joy and gratitude. All believers do not enjoy the same measure of liberty, but the nature of it is the same. Their gladness is generally proportionate to their sadness and so the Psalmist’s prayer is answered,
According as the days have been,
Wherein we grief have had,
And years wherein we ill have seen
So do thou make us glad.
That was Hannah’s happy experience in her day and the same can be ours in our measure in our day. God is the same God still and He is as able and willing to succour the poor and needy now as He was then. Like Hannah may we be found making our requests known unto Him, persevering in our petitioning, waiting on His good pleasure, making our vows and performing them in the strength of His grace. Then may we expect to rejoice in the Lord, find comfort and solace in communion with him and edification in conversing with His people — recalling the multitude of His mercies, the wisdom of His ways, the boundlessness of His resources and the greatness of His faithfulness towards the sons of men in general and the excellency of His love towards His people in particular.
“This people have I formed for myself
They shall show forth my praise”
Great as our needs may be His resources are greater and always adapted to meet individual needs. Let us open our mouths wide and we are assured that God will fill them with good. For what is good the Lord shall give and what He gives is always good. When viewed in the light of eternity our capacities here are very limited but the happy day awaits His people when their souls will be enlarged and their faculties enlivened to partake of the pleasures at His right hand, where there are pleasures forever more. In that day they “shall be made perfectly blessed in the full enjoying of God to all eternity.”
In recalling the multitude of His mercies they note that they are new every morning causing the sun to rise on the just and on the unjust. His mercies provide food convenient for man and beast. He provides enough to satisfy the need of everything that lives. The sad fact that many lack the necessaries of life is due not to lack of provision on God’s part, but to lack of foresight and maladministration on man’s part. His mercies in providences are as the sands upon the seashore — innumerable but His mercies in grace are as the stars imparting light and cheer to wayworn pilgrims benighted on life’s rugged paths.
The wisdom of His ways often occupies their thoughts. How often have they been diverted from ways that were not good and directed into safer channels! How often have they noticed the hand of providence thus intervening in their own case and in the case of others! How often have they had to acknowledge “What a mercy that I was thwarted in such and such a venture!”
He leads His own in a way that they know not but as long as they follow His voice they will enter into His fold. “There will be one fold and one Shepherd.” May we hear His voice saying, “This is the way, walk ye in it.”
His unlimited resources and unfailing faithfulness are themes which have fed the intellects of many and for both we should be thankful. His resources enable Him to fulfil all His promises and His faithfulness obliges him. He will not deny Himself. “Faithful is He who has promised.”
But grand and admirable as these attributes are His blood-bought people are most attracted by His love — His wondrous love to a perishing world. His love in choosing to save a number which no man can number. His love in devising, accomplishing and applying the scheme of redemption. His love in making Himself known to His own. His love in enabling many in all ages to witness for Him and follow Him through good and evil report — some of them given to the lions, some to the scaffold. His love in leaving still a little salt in the earth and a little light in a dark world. Such is the extent and greatness of His love to the world in general, but how much more sweet does His love taste to the individual believer in particular. Like David each and every believer can say “His love to me is wonderful.” In the enjoyment of it they would invite gospel hearers everywhere to “taste and see that God is good. Who trusts in him is blest.”