Have you ever prayed so hard people thought you were crazy or drunk? See 1 Samuel 1: 1-2:10
“Lord Almighty, look at me, your servant! See my trouble and remember me!” Hannah wailed as tears rolled down her cheeks, encircled her lips and dropped into the coarse fabric of her dress. Pouring out her soul to God in the Tabernacle, she raised her hands in anguish and mouthed her plea without sound.
Hannah was beyond tired and frankly did not care she broke protocol to slip into the Tabernacle to pray. She was weary and desperate. God had not blessed her with children during a time in ancient Israel when children were considered a clear sign of His blessing. She felt humiliated and shamed, even disgraced by her infertility.
For years, Hannah was bullied while struggling through her pain. This was a polygamist society. Her husband had a second wife, Peninnah, who cruelly and gleefully gloated over the fact that she had conceived children. Some say 10.
“Don’t forget me!” Hannah cried bitterly.
Hannah, whose name means grace, mercy, demonstrated her faith by her actions and lifestyle. She did not retaliate against Peninnah; she bore the ridicule and exhibited a quiet humility deeply rooted in her love for God above everyone else. So, Hannah wondered why should she be unable to fulfill her God-given purpose of producing offspring for her family?
“If you give me a son,” Hannah promised in her fervent prayer, “I promise that I will dedicate him to you for his whole life …”
Hannah’s desperation did not blind her to the fact that she had married a good man. Elkanah was a Levite who lived in the days of the judges 1171 BC with his wives in the city of Ramathaim-sophim, which was part of the hill country of Ephraim. His name means “God has created” or “God has taken possession.” He followed basic Jewish Oral Law that required a husband to take a second or additional wife if he had been married to the first wife for 10 years without bearing children. The goal was to fulfill God’s commandment to be fruitful and multiply; he ignored the country’s civil law to divorce Hannah for her barrenness.
The trip to Shiloh, where the Tabernacle and the Art of the Covenant were the focal point of Israel’s worship, was annual. Elkanah would travel with his family to Shiloh to worship and to sacrifice animals to the Lord. This was the time each year that Elkanah could demonstrate his devotion and loyalty to God.
For Hannah, however, the pilgrimage was hell. Peninnah taunted her mercilessly the entire way. Then, to add insult to injury, the temple’s rituals only accentuated her childlessness.
The New International Version describes what happened in verses 4-8:
“Whenever the day came for Elkanah to sacrifice, he would give portions of the meat to his wife Peninnah and to all her sons and daughters. But to Hannah he gave a double portion because he loved her, and the Lord had closed her womb.Because the Lord had closed Hannah’s womb, her rival kept provoking and irritating her. This went on year after year. Whenever Hannah went up to the house of the Lord, her rival provoked her till she wept and would not eat.
“Her husband Elkanah would say to her, ‘Hannah, why are you weeping? Why don’t you eat? Why are you downhearted? Don’t I mean more to you than 10 sons?’”
If Peninnah overheard her husband’s sweet talk to her rival, her jealously and mistreatment of Hannah would seem justified since she had produced the large family that ensured the continuation of Elkanah’s name and lineage. Children not only meant status and wealth but also laborers for daily chores and longtime jobs. The overall economic wellbeing of the family was set with the children.
“… and that he will never have his hair cut,” Hannah concluded in a gut-wrenching vow produced when her heart, mind and lips merged. This prayer was unlike earlier requests for children she had made during dozens of treks to Shiloh. She added the Nazarite vow that promises the child will wholeheartedly serve the Lord. This trip also was different because she left the sacrificial meal and fled to the Tabernacle to seek the Lord. Jewish men did most of the praying, especially in the temple. The seriousness of Hannah’s vow manifested in her pledge to forgo the joys of parenting, to forfeit the status that a child would bring in her society and commit her child to the Lord’s work.
Watching Hannah, Eli, the Tabernacle priest, thought she was crazy, drunk, or just intoxicated by her own desires. He was unaccustomed to such silent, heartfelt prayers and was quick to reprimand her.
NIV verses 12-17 said: “As she kept on praying to the Lord, Eli observed her mouth. Hannah was praying in her heart, and her lips were moving but her voice was not heard. Eli thought she was drunk and said to her, ‘How long are you going to stay drunk? Put away your wine.’”
Smacked with yet another insult, Hannah humbly answered Eli.
“Not so, my lord,” Hannah replied in verses 15 and 16, “I am a woman who is deeply troubled. I have not been drinking wine or beer; I was pouring out my soul to the Lord. Do not take your servant for a wicked woman; I have been praying here out of my great anguish and grief.”
Unapologetic, Eli answered, “Go in peace, and may the God of Israel grant you what you have asked of him.”
Hannah had begun her prayer shattered and depressed but rose from her knees a different woman.
“Oh, thank you, sir!” the NLT version said she exclaimed in verse 18. Then she went back, began to eat again, and was no longer sad.
The entire family got up early the next morning, attended worship one last time and then traveled back home to Ramah.
When Elkanah slept with Hannah, the Lord remembered her plea, and in time she gave birth to Samuel. She said, “I asked the Lord for him.”
The next year when Elkanah prepared for the family’s annual trip to the Tabernacle, Hannah asked that she be allowed to stay home to nurse Samuel until he was weaned.
Once weaned, Hannah kept her promise. She and Elkanah journeyed back to Shiloh with a 3-year-old bull for the sacrifice and a basket of flour and some wine. Seeing Eli, Hannah asked him a poignant question.
“‘Sir, do you remember me?’” Hannah asked in verses 26-28 of NIV. “‘I am the very woman who stood here several years ago praying to the Lord. I asked the Lord to give me this boy, and he has granted my request. Now I am giving him to the Lord, and he will belong to the Lord his whole life.’ And they worshiped the Lord there.”
Hannah then offered a prayer of praise, acknowledging that God, the giver, is much more important than the gift of a son. She noted that God is in control, despite living in a world where evil abounds and where war and terrorism threaten. Elements of her prayer are found in Psalm 113:7-9 and in portions of Mary’s Song of Praise, The Magnificat, Luke 1: 46-55. Hannah eventually had five more children.
My heart rejoices and triumphs in the Lord;
My horn (strength) is lifted up in the Lord,
My mouth has opened wide [to speak boldly] against my enemies,
Because I rejoice in Your salvation.
There is no one holy like the Lord,
There is no one besides You,
There is no Rock like our God.
Do not go on boasting so very proudly,
Do not let arrogance come out of your mouth;
For the Lord is a God of knowledge,
And by Him actions are weighed (examined).
The bows of the mighty are [a]broken,
But those who have stumbled equip themselves with strength.
Those who were full hire themselves out for bread,
But those who were hungry cease [to hunger].
Even the barren [woman] gives birth to seven,
But she who has many children withers away.
The Lord puts to death and makes alive;
He brings down to Sheol (the grave) and raises up [from the grave].
The Lord makes poor and makes rich;
He brings low and He lifts up.
He raises up the poor from the dust,
He lifts up the needy from the ash heap
To make them sit with nobles,
And inherit a seat of honor and glory;
For the pillars of the earth are the Lord’s,
And He set the land on them.
He guards the feet of His godly (faithful) ones,
But the wicked ones are silenced and perish in darkness;
For a man shall not prevail by might.
The adversaries of the Lord will be broken to pieces;
He will thunder against them in the heavens,
The Lord will judge the ends of the earth;
And He will give strength to His [b]king,
And will exalt the horn (strength) of His anointed.
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Hannah demonstrates a primer on prayer. Her prayer is the example used in the Torah by male orthodox followers. Here are other take-aways from the story:
- Your family member can also be your adversary without provocation
- Fervent prayer plus belief equals answered prayer
- Your can cry while praying to God
- Hannah had no ‘prayer partner’ or ‘prayer line’ yet God answered
- When we pray for specific “wants” and “needs” God’s answer can be yes to both.
- Hannah’s desperation was fueled by an adversary within her household NOT a lack of faith
- The man of God does not know everything. You do not have to reveal your prayer requests to the priest, prophet or pastor for him or her to declare your request granted by God.
- Hannah petitioned God for one male child. He kept giving her children without another desperate episode. It does not have to be – one sacrifice equals one child; another sacrifice equals a second child. It is one act of extreme faith that God rewards with multiplicity of blessings.
Written by COH and TMCH
Sources:
Binder, Chava. Chana’s Prayer. https://www.chabad.org/
Dunn, Mark. Hannah: Trust-filled Prayer. Founders Ministries
https://founders.org/studies/ss-ife-2017-11-19/
Foster, John. Hannah in the Bible.
https://lifehopeandtruth.com/change/faith/women-of-faith/hannah/
Kadari, Tamar. “Peninnah: Midrash and Aggadah.” Shalvi/Hyman Encyclopedia of Jewish Women. 31 December 1999. Jewish Women’s Archive. (Viewed on March 31, 2022) https://jwa.org/encyclopedia/article/peninnah-midrash-and-aggadah
Keneesha. Hannah in the Bible – 4 Lessons from Her Story. Megan Allen Ministries.
Weisberg, Chana. Hannah: The Woman Who Corrected the High Priest. https://www.chabad.org/
2 thoughts on “God does answer prayers. Just ask Hannah!”
Right here is the perfect web site for anyone who hopes to find out about this topic. You understand a whole lot its almost hard to argue with you (not that I actually would want toÖHaHa). You definitely put a new spin on a topic that has been discussed for decades. Excellent stuff, just great!
How many times have I heard this story but reading it today was different. Perhaps it is age, experience but today I understood more the meaning. Praying is so very important and understanding that God acts in his own time frame is important. Hannah was blessed beyond what she could ever have thought.