Bible Studies

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The Song of Hannah
(1 Samuel 2:1-10)

How my heart was deeply touched when I read the story of Hannah! She appeared in the end of the Judges, the darkest period of the history of Israel. Hannah doubtlessly was one of the noblest women in the Bible. Her beautiful story told us that although ¡°everyone did as he saw fit¡± (Judges 21:25), Hannah was an exception. We know God always keeps some real seekers for His own glory regardless of the situation.

As a bright star shining in the night, a colorful flower rising among the thorns, Hannah lived in a painful circumstance. Her life was filled with sorrow because she was barren. It is not difficult to imagine how dreadful it is to be a barren woman in a polygamy society. Elkanah, Hannah¡¯s husband, was a godly man. He loved her and gave her double portion of gift every time, but Hannah could not get comfort from these. The narrative of the Scripture told us that Hannah was cruelly treated by a loveless woman, Peninnah, another wife of his husband. Hannah was despised in her own family. She wept day and night. She had a burning desire to have a son.

In such hard situation, Hannah began to seek her beloved God. She worshipped God with her spirit and faith. Her voiceless prayer even confused the priest, Eli. She was a woman of ¡°poor spirit¡±! She was a woman of ¡°mourning¡±! She was a woman of ¡°meekness¡±! Was not Hannah the one our Lord Jesus blessed on the Mount? (Matt. 5: 3-5). God closed her womb, but she still opened her heart to God. God was her only Comforter, Helper, and Hope. She never required a consolation from anybody around her, nor did she let her maidservant birth a son for her like Abraham¡¯s wife, Sarah. Hannah¡¯s eyes only gazed on Yahweh her God.

If God would give Hannah a son, she would submit her son to God. That was Hannah¡¯s promise in her prayer. God knows every heart, and hears every voice and voiceless prayer. God gave Hannah a son, Samuel, and made her become one of the greatest mothers in the history of Israel. God blessed Hannah and satisfied her strongest desire. As a woman who feared God, Hannah did not abuse the grace of God. She did not keep her son Samuel as her idol, despite her great love for him. Hannah carried out her promise. When baby Samuel was weaned, she sent him to the house of God. Led by Samuel, the great son of a pious woman, Israel stepped into a new history.

The song of Hannah is a joyful river flowing out from a devout heart. It is a sacrifice of thanksgiving to the Lord Savior. It is a love channel to connect God and His people. Hannah, what a blessed woman, a genius prophetess, and a great psalmist!

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