1 Samuel 1

This chapter opens 1 Samuel. Set at the close of the period of the judges, when Israel had no king, it recounts the birth of Samuel, who would become the last judge and a prophet.

Outline

• Verses 1–2: Elkanah, an Ephraimite, is introduced along with his genealogy. He has two wives: Peninnah, who has children, and Hannah, who has none.
• Verses 3–8: Each year Elkanah goes up to Shiloh to offer sacrifice. Eli's two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, serve there as priests. Elkanah gives Hannah a double portion of the offering, but Peninnah provokes her severely, so that Hannah weeps and will not eat. Elkanah comforts her, saying, "Am not I better to thee than ten sons?"
• Verses 9–18: Hannah prays and vows that if the LORD gives her a son, she will give him to the LORD all the days of his life and that no razor will come upon his head. Seeing only her lips move, Eli thinks she is drunk, but after hearing her explanation he blesses her. Afterward her countenance is no longer sad.
• Verses 19–20: The family returns home to Ramah, and Hannah conceives, bears a son, and names him Samuel.
• Verses 21–23: Hannah says she will not go up to Shiloh until the child is weaned, and Elkanah consents.
• Verses 24–28: After the child is weaned, Hannah goes up to Shiloh with three bullocks, an ephah of flour, and a bottle of wine, brings the boy to Eli, and gives him to the LORD for as long as he lives.

Key Verses

• 1 Samuel 1:11: "...but wilt give unto thine handmaid a man child, then I will give him unto the LORD all the days of his life..." (KJV). Hannah's vow drives the entire chapter.
• 1 Samuel 1:15: "...but have poured out my soul before the LORD" (KJV). This verse is often cited as portraying prayer as the pouring out of one's heart.
• 1 Samuel 1:27–28: "For this child I prayed..." (KJV). The chapter concludes with answered prayer leading to the fulfillment of the vow.

Characters and Places

• Elkanah: A man of Ramathaim-zophim in the hill country of Ephraim, the son of Jeroham.
• Hannah: Elkanah's wife and the mother of Samuel.
• Peninnah: Elkanah's other wife, whom the text calls Hannah's "adversary."
• Eli: The priest of the sanctuary at Shiloh.
• Hophni and Phinehas: Eli's two sons, priests at Shiloh.
• Samuel: The son Hannah received in answer to prayer.
• Shiloh: The site of "the house of the LORD," to which Elkanah's family went up every year.
• Ramah: The location of Elkanah's family home.

Points for Reflection

• The text says only that no razor will come upon the child's head and does not use the word Nazirite. Even so, many interpreters connect the passage with the Nazirite regulations of Numbers 6 and regard Samuel as a lifelong Nazirite. The manuscript of Samuel among the Dead Sea Scrolls is reported to include the word "Nazirite" at this point.
• Verse 20 explains the name Samuel as meaning "because I have asked him of the LORD." Scholars offer a variety of explanations for the Hebrew etymology of the name.
• Jewish tradition is said to have treated Hannah's prayer, in which her lips moved but her voice was not heard, as a model of prayer.
• Hannah's song in the following chapter, 1 Samuel 2, bears many similarities to the song of Mary in Luke 1, and the two are often read together.

In the Korean Church

Hannah is frequently held up in sermons as a model of a mother who prays for her children, and many churches name their mothers' prayer groups after her. The chapter is also cited in sermons on keeping vows made to God. Because it speaks of giving a child to God, verses 27–28 are commonly read at infant baptisms and child dedication services.