1 There was a certain man from Ramathaim, a Zuphite from the hill country of Ephraim, whose name was Elkanah son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the son of Zuph, an Ephraimite.
1. What can we tell about the man Elkanah from this brief description?
1:1 a certain man.. Ramathaim Zophim is another name for Ramah (v. 19), a village about five miles north of Jerusalem. The mountains of Ephraim refers to the hill country primarily occupied by the tribe of Ephraim. Elkanah, whose Hebrew name means “God Has Created,” was a Levite (1 Chr. 6:26, 34). He is referred to as an Ephraimite since he lived in the territory of Ephraim.
This is a Levitical family that lived in Ephraim. The Levites were scattered all over the country in forty-eight cities. It’s important to note that they were Levites, because Samuel becomes a priest, and so the priestly family was the Levitical family.
“The priests, the Levites—all the tribe of Levi—shall have no part nor inheritance with Israel; they shall eat the offerings of the LORD made by fire, and His portion. 2 Therefore they shall have no inheritance among their brethren; the LORD is their inheritance, as He said to them. Deut. 18:1-2
The location of the Levitical cities, which tended to be on the borders between the tribes rather than at their centers, had the result of distributing the Levites throughout the country. This made the cities:
Mission stations for teaching. The Levites had a special ministry of teaching among the tribes (Deut. 33:8–10;2 Chr. 35:3–6). Their cities were not to be places for shrines but bases from which the Levites helped all the cities and tribes know and follow the Law.
Centers of justice and political influence. The Levitical teaching was more than just religious; it had significance for civil and political policy as well, as is evident in the reforms of King Jehoshaphat. He sent Levites along with governmental officials to teach the Law, so that peace might prevail over rebellion (2 Chr. 17:7–10).
2 He had two wives; one was called Hannah and the other Peninnah. Peninnah had children, but Hannah had none.
2. What is God’s attitude toward polygamy?
24 Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh. Gen 2:24
15If a man have two wives, the one beloved, and the other hated, and they have borne him children, both the beloved and the hated; and if the first-born son be hers that was hated;16 then it shall be, in the day that he causeth his sons to inherit that which he hath, that he may not make the son of the beloved the first-born before the son of the hated, who is the first-born:17 but he shall acknowledge the first-born, the son of the hated, by giving him a double portion of all that he hath; for he is the beginning of his strength; the right of the first-born is his. Deut. 21:15-17
Two wives. Although polygamy was not God’s intention for mankind, it was tolerated, but never endorsed in Israel.
Elkanah probably married Peninnah because Hannah was barren. Hannah. Meaning “grace,” she was probably Elkanah’s first wife. Peninnah. Meaning “ruby,” she was Elkanah’s second wife and the first bearer of his children.
1 Timothy 3:2 The bishop therefore must be without reproach, the husband of one wife, temperate, sober-minded, orderly, given to hospitality, apt to teach;
12 Let deacons be husbands of one wife, ruling their children and their own houses well.
3 Year after year this man went up from his town to worship and sacrifice to the LordAlmighty at Shiloh, where Hophni and Phinehas, the two sons of Eli, were priests of the Lord.
3. What was happening at Shiloh?
1:3 This man would go up … yearly. All Israelite men were required to attend 3 annual feasts at the central sanctuary.
(Dt 16:1–17).16 Three times in a year shall all thy males appear before JEHOVAH thy God in the place which he shall choose: in the feast of unleavened bread, and in the feast of weeks, and in the feast of tabernacles;
Elkanah regularly attended these festivals with his wives. The festival referred to here was probably the Feast of Tabernacles (Sept./Oct.) because of the feasting mentioned in 1:9. the Lord of hosts. This is the first OT occurrence of “hosts” being added to the divine name. “Hosts” can refer to human armies (Ex 7:4), celestial bodies (Dt 4:19), or heavenly creatures (Jos 5:14). This title emphasizes the Lord as sovereign over all of the powers in heaven and on earth, especially over the armies of Israel. Shiloh. Located about 20 mi. N of Jerusalem in Ephraim, the tabernacle and ark of the covenant resided here (Jos 18:1; Jdg 18:31). Eli. Meaning “exalted is the Lord.” He was the High-Priest at Shiloh. Hophni and Phinehas.Each of Eli’s two priestly sons had an Egyptian name: Hophni (“tadpole”) and Phinehas (“nubian”).
4 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.
Sacrificed. A peace offering since the worshipers ate a portion of the offering (see Lv 7:11–18).
11 “And this is the law of the sacrifice of peace offerings that one may offer to the Lord.12 If he offers it for a thanksgiving, then he shall offer with the thanksgiving sacrifice unleavened loaves mixed with oil, unleavened wafers smeared with oil, and loaves of fine flour well mixed with oil. 13 With the sacrifice of his peace offerings for thanksgiving he shall bring his offering with loaves of leavened bread. 14 And from it he shall offer one loaf from each offering, as a gift to the Lord. It shall belong to the priest who throws the blood of the peace offerings. 15 And the flesh of the sacrifice of his peace offerings for thanksgiving shall be eaten on the day of his offering. He shall not leave any of it until the morning. 16 But if the sacrifice of his offering is a vow offering or a freewill offering, it shall be eaten on the day that he offers his sacrifice, and on the next day what remains of it shall be eaten. 17 But what remains of the flesh of the sacrifice on the third day shall be burned up with fire. 18 If any of the flesh of the sacrifice of his peace offering is eaten on the third day, he who offers it shall not be accepted, neither shall it be credited to him. It is tainted, and he who eats of it shall bear his iniquity. Leviticus 7:11-18
5 But to Hannah he gave a double portion because he loved her, and the Lordhad closed her womb. 6 And because the Lord had closed her womb, her rival kept provoking her in order to irritate her.
4. Why would Peninnah provoke Hannah?
7 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. 8 Elkanah her husband 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 ten sons?”
5. Is this the stupidest statement in scripture or what?
I think this points to the biblical truth that men are clueless when women cry. We instinctively try to fix things like when the garbage disposal breaks. We try to “fix” the wife when she cries. Wives are not garbage disposals. Sometimes it is best to follow that old American Indian saying, “keep’um mouth shut”.
Likewise, ye husbands, dwell with them according to knowledge, giving honour unto the wife, as unto the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life; that your prayers be not hindered. 1 Peter 3:7 (KJV)
9 Once when they had finished eating and drinking in Shiloh, Hannah stood up. Now Eli the priest was sitting on a chair by the doorpost of the Lord’s temple. 10 In bitterness of soul Hannah wept much and prayed to the Lord. 11 And she made a vow, saying, “O Lord Almighty, if you will only look upon your servant’s misery and remember me, and not forget your servant but give her a son, then I will give him to the Lord for all the days of his life, and no razor will ever be used on his head.”
6. Is it appropriate to make deals with God?
If-then statements are used in computer programming. If a statement is true, then a certain action will take place. If you hit the control and “p” buttons on your computer, then your printer will begin to print your document. Sometimes we want to play “Let’s make a Deal” with God. I think sometimes He plays and sometimes He doesn’t. When He enters into negotiations with us, it’s really not going to influence God because He is going to do the best thing always, but this is so we will do our part. I’ve made deals with God, and afterwards I was glad He didn’t give me what I wanted because I was praying for the wrong thing.
During the 59 day navel bombardment of
Okinawa, my father’s ship the battleship USS Colorado was hit 22 times by shells from the Japanese shore guns and was also hit twice by kamikaze special attack aircraft, diving and crashing into the ship. This resulted in 37 killed and 123 wounded. As my father’s shipmates were dying all around him, he made a deal with God. “If you get me out of this God , I will go to church and become a
Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart. Psalms 37:4 (ESV)
7 “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. Matt 7:7 (ESV)
Sometimes our deals with God don’t work out too well.
Adam was hanging around the garden of Eden feeling very lonely. So, God asked him, “What’s wrong with you?” Adam said he didn’t have anyone to talk to. God said that He was going to make Adam a companion and that it would be a woman. He said, “This pretty lady will gather food for you, she will cook for you, and when you discover clothing, she will wash it for you. She will always agree with every decision you make and she will not nag you, and will always be the first to admit she was wrong when you’ve had a disagreement. She will praise you! She will bear your children and never ask you to get up in the middle of the night to take care of them. “She will NEVER have a headache and will freely give you love and passion whenever you need it.” Adam asked God, “What will a woman like this cost?” God replied, “An arm and a leg.” Then Adam asked, “What can I get for a rib?” Of course the rest is history………………….
7. “I will give him to the Lord for all the days of his life, and no razor will ever be used on his head.” What does a hair style got to do with her son’s spiritual life?
Though not specified as such in this chapter, the Nazarite vow is certainly presupposed. The non cutting of thee hair one one’s head is one of the 3 requirements of the vow. This expression was used elsewhere of the Nazarite Sampson. The Nazarite vow could be for a specific period or for life.
When either a man or a woman makes a special vow, the vow of a Nazirite, to separate himself to the Lord,3 he shall separate himself from wine and strong drink. He shall drink no vinegar made from wine or strong drink and shall not drink any juice of grapes or eat grapes, fresh or dried. 4 All the days of his separation he shall eat nothing that is produced by the grapevine, not even the seeds or the skins. 5 “All the days of his vow of separation, no razor shall touch his head. Until the time is completed for which he separates himself to the Lord, he shall be holy. He shall let the locks of hair of his head grow long. 6 “All the days that he separates himself to the Lord he shall not go near a dead body. Num. 6:2-6
This verse refers to the birth of Sampson. This same Nazarite vow might also apply to John the Baptist.
12 As she kept on praying to the Lord, Eli observed her mouth. 13 Hannah was praying in her heart, and her lips were moving but her voice was not heard. Eli thought she was drunk 14 and said to her, “How long will you keep on getting drunk? Get rid of your wine.” 15 “Not so, my lord,” Hannah replied, “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. 16 Do not take your servant for a wicked woman; I have been praying here out of my great anguish and grief.” 17 Eli answered, “Go in peace, and may the God of Israel grant you what you have asked of him.” 18 She said, “May your servant find favor in your eyes.” Then she went her way and ate something, and her face was no longer downcast.
8. Why would Eli assume Hannah was drunk?
Notice his reaction, which is an insight into the conditions of that day. The sons of Eli drank and caroused there. Eli knew it but had shut his eyes to it-he was an indulgent father. When Hannah prayed with such zeal in her heart, Eli thought she was drunk. The sons of Eli had turned the place of worship into a place of evil and debauchery.
Now the sons of Eli were worthless men. They did not know the Lord. 1 Sam 2:12 (ESV)
22 Now Eli was very old. He heard about everything his sons were doing to all Israel and how they were sleeping with the women who served at the entrance to the tent of meeting. 1 Sam 2:22 (HCSB)
9. What made the difference in Hannah’s life that day?
She believed that God would answer her prayer.
Therefore I tell you, all the things you pray and ask for —believe that you have received them, and you will have them. Mark 11:24 (HCSB)
6 But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. 7 For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; 8 he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways. James 1:6-8 (NKJV)
19 Early the next morning they arose and worshiped before the Lord and then went back to their home at Ramah. Elkanah lay with Hannah his wife, and the Lord remembered her. 20 So in the course of time Hannah conceived and gave birth to a son. She named him Samuel, saying, “Because I asked the Lord for him.”
10. What does the name Samuel mean?
The name Samuel means “heard of God”, in honor of the fact that she cried out to God and He heard.
Isaiah. yeshaʿ-yāhû, “Jehovah is salvation.”
Ezekiel Yeḥezqēʾl, “God strengthens”
Daniel…………. “God my Judge”
Biblical names usually illustrate something in relationship to God or some Godly principle
.
21 When the man Elkanah went up with all his family to offer the annual sacrifice to the Lordand to fulfill his vow, 22 Hannah did not go. She said to her husband, “After the boy is weaned, I will take him and present him before the Lord, and he will live there always.” 23 “Do what seems best to you,” Elkanah her husband told her. “Stay here until you have weaned him; only may the Lord make good his word.” So the woman stayed at home and nursed her son until she had weaned him.
11. The statement “Do what seems best to you,” tells us what about Elkanah?
In that society a husband had the power to overrule any oath or agreement that a wife made. In giving her permission to use her own judgment he showed that he trusted and endorsed her agreement which she had made with God.
24 After he was weaned, she took the boy with her, young as he was, along with a three-year-old bull, an ephah of flour and a skin of wine, and brought him to the house of the Lord at Shiloh. 25 When they had slaughtered the bull, they brought the boy to Eli, 26 and she said to him, “As surely as you live, my lord, I am the woman who stood here beside you praying to the Lord.27 I prayed for this child, and the Lord has granted me what I asked of him. 28 So now I give him to the Lord. For his whole life he will be given over to the Lord.” And he worshiped the Lord there.
12. What does it mean that Hannah “gives” Samuel to the LORD?
It was customary in the ancient world to breast feed the child for 2 or 3 years. After the child was weaned Hannah brought the child and the appropriate offering to Eli to work in the tabernacle.
to fulfill a vow …………And when you prepare a young bull as a burnt offering, or as a sacrifice to fulfill a vow, or as a peace offering to the Lord, 9 then shall be offered with the young bull a grain offering of three-tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with half a hin of oil; 10 and you shall bring as the drink offering half a hin of wine as an offering made by fire, a sweet aroma to the Lord. Num 15:3-10 (NKJV)
The Hebrew word is shaw-el……..to lend. She is in effect lending her son to God for as long as He needed him. In Samuel’s case it was his entire life.
· ESVN………….ESV Study Bible Notes
· MSBN…….MacArthur NASB Study Notes
· NIVSN…..NIV Study Notes.
· JVM….J Vernon McGee,
· ACC…. Adam Clarke’s Commentary
· BN…..Barnes Notes
· WBC…… Wycliffe Bible Commentary
· CN…… Constables Notes
· IC……….Ironside Commentary
· NET………Net Bible Study Notes.
· JFB…………..Jamieson Fausset Brown Commentary
· VWS……………..Vincent Word Studies
· CMM………….Commentary on Matthew and Mark
· BDB………….. Barclay’s Daily Study Bible (NT)
· Darby………..John Darby’s Synopsis of the OT and NT
· Johnson………Johnson’s Notes on the New Testament.
· NTCMM…………..The New Testament Commentary: Matthew and Mark.
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