Hannah's Prayer

1 Samuel Chapter 1

So during a period of quiet time and isolation not from covid-19 but from the stresses and busyness of life, my mind turned to Hannah. I found that I could not find the words to articulate what I was feeling, I was so overwhelmed, and my thoughts were turned to Hannah. I remembered that Hannah had come to a place of despair and desperation in her life situation. Like Hannah, in the then current circumstances, feelings of being treated unfairly or forgotten began to take its toll on my emotional and mental wellbeing, which is prime fertilization for bitterness. What is amazing is that Hannah made a conscious decision to make her petition directly to God. Scriptural history indicates that during this time Israel was flailing in with their God relationship, but Hannah felt a confidence that she could go the God and make her petition known. She went directly to God not to the priest.

I am intrigued by Hannah’s extraordinary example of faith and prayer also the compassion of her husband Elkanah as scriptures noted that he would give her a double portion of the offering presentations when they would go up to temple for worship and offer up their sacrifices to the Lord(vs 5 & 8). With all the contention within their home with Peninnah her nemesis who had a caboodle of children, mocking Hannah at every opportunity, Hannah did not retaliate but she would go to temple and pour out her anguish and bitterness to God. Scripture records Hannah’s prayer she prayed before receiving her answer – a sincere prayerful vow.

Hannah’s Prayer – 1 Samuel 1: 11

“O Lord of hosts, if thou wilt indeed look on the affliction (bareness and misery) 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.”

Hannah longed for something and she was deliberate in her asking, she was deliberate and sincere with her vow, she could and would not rescind and it would be recorded for all time, most of all in heaven. She acknowledges God as the one true God who could help her, Jehovah – "the existing One”. Everything begins and ends with Him, there is no other power and Hannah had tapped into that grand resource. So in that moment when confronted by Eli and she acknowledged that she was not drunk nor of Belial, that she was petitioning God because of the misery she was experiencing, Eli’s anointing as priest and prophet was ignited and he spoke a prophetic word of knowledge to Hannah and sent her on her way home. Vs 17 “Go in peace: and the God of Israel grant thee thy petition that thou hast asked of him.” Without argument or hesitation, but gratitude she went home; vs 18 “And 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.” 

Hannah’s prayer vow was bold to say the least, she committed her unborn son to a life of servitude to God in the temple away from her, she understood love and the unconditionality of it. Love of God and for her son. Hannah saw no other way to show her gratitude to Jehovah, but to give back what she so desperately desired and prayed for God’s plan unfolding. Things that I contemplated as I explored Hannah’s prayer: -

1. Did she make the vow without talking with her husband or did she know her husband’s response would favour it?

 - Ellicott’s commentary

1.1. She vowed a vow; knowing that her husband would willingly consent to it, otherwise she had not power to do it.

1.2. All the days of his life; not only from his twenty-fifth to his fiftieth year, as all the Levites, and so he himself, were obliged by God, Numbers 4:3 8:24, but for his whole time; which is still to be understood with a reservation of God’s right, which her now must give place to, as indeed it did; for God called him to be a prophet, and a general of the army, and a judge.

1.3. There shall no razor come upon his head, i.e. he shall be a perpetual Nazarite; for under this one rule, as the chief, all the rest are contained; as elsewhere the whole Mosaical law is understood, under the title of circumcision.

Samuel was what the Talmud calls a perpetual Nazarite.

{The Talmud is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (halakha) and Jewish theology. – not to be mistaken for the Torah - The Talmud is the compilation of the historic rabbis "discussing" or "debating" what the Torah means.} Wiki

2. Her prayers were sincere and maybe selfish at first; but

3. Her act was selfless, and she asked nothing in return.

4. She was content with seeing her son during her yearly trips to temple

5. She had a true reverence for God

6. In Hannah’s desperation to be like the other women in her village, to bare children she managed to  stand out unlike no other in her time, because she dared to exercise her faith in God and worshipped Him in true form by surrendering all.  In actual fact, it was no longer about her but about honouring God.

As parents, mothers particularly we tend to hold our children close and tightly and as praying mothers, we tend to pray prayers that are within our favour over our children. There is nothing wrong with that except that we are to be careful that our prayers are not contrary to what God’s plans are. Hannah merely vowed to dedicate her son to a lifetime of servitude in the temple but God had greater plans for Samuel’s life.

The vow of Hannah contained two solemn promises—the one pledged the son she prayed for to the service of the Eternal all the days of his life. The mother looked on to a life-long service in the ritual of the Tabernacle for him, but the Being who heard her prayer destined her son for higher work; in his case the priestly duties were soon merged in the far more responsible ones of the prophet—the great reformer of the people.

The second promise undertook that he should be a Nazarite. Now the Nazariteship included three things—
· the refraining from intoxicating drinks,
· the letting the hair grow, and the
· avoiding all ceremonial defilement by corpses even of the nearest kin. 'Ellicot'

Someone shared something with me recently that is rather radical, a word from the Lord – “Stop praying until you become serious about what you want from Me”. When we go into our closets and close the door, signifying, “ this is between You and me God”, the mood is set in anticipation for entrance into the throne room to set petitions before God in faith and complete trust. That’s worship because the acknowledgement is there that, only You LORD I bring this too, because only YOU have the power to deliver, to help, to heal, to break chains, to destroy yokes, to remove curses, to defeat the very demonic spirits from the pits of hell. It is indeed time for we who are watchmen, standing on wall, standing in the gap, gate keepers, prayer warriors and such to PUSH – PRAY UNTIL SOMETHING HAPPENS- this is the time. It matters not if you do in privately, or corporately what does matter is that it is in sincerity. Hannan’s prayer was simple but effective, God saw her heart's intents and desire, the simplicity of her words resonated with what was in her heart and spirit. How do we approach God, do we go before Him with a spirit of competition, or revenge, or formality, do we approach in fear and doubt? If we do then we are blocking our own access to the throne room where lies endless possibilities, miracles, and amazing acts and wonders of God. 

Whatever your Ebenezer is, I encourage you to raise it in worship to God for we have hope of eternal glory and, we have a hope of rest, we have a hope of deliverance and a life to live in abundance even in this present world because of the unfailing love of God and the sacrifice of His only begotten son, whose shed blood covers it all. Hallelujah!

Wow! There is so much more to glean from Hannah’s example of faith, trust and worship I encourage you to dig deeper, there is more that is required of us as functioning believers and there is so much more available to us from the throne of God.

Prayer: Sovereign God, our Father help our unbelief and strengthen us in our faith towards You. Amen

Continue in prayer

much love - Mauricia