Hannah Presents Samuel to Eli at the SanctuaryBibleWorld
1:271 Samuel 1:27
For this child I prayed; and the LORD hath given me my petition which I asked of him:
Hannah prayed for a child amid grief and taunting at the family worship in Shiloh, and the Lord granted what she asked so that Samuel was given in answer to prayer. In gratitude she fulfilled her vow by treating him as belonging to God and giving him as a consecrated offering to lifelong service in His house under the care of Eli to be trained for service. Giving him up after he was weaned and parting from his daily care was a sacrifice of great self-denial, yet the gift was accepted by the Lord with gratitude and joy. From his earliest years at home she faithfully trained him to love and reverence God and to know good from evil, and her care continued while apart through daily prayers for his character and the yearly robe, seeking not worldly greatness but a life honoring God and blessing others. That training held him in integrity amid the evil example of Eli's sons, in contrast to Eli's failure to restrain his own sons, showing that the Lord holds parents responsible for duty at home and rewards faithfulness in training children for God.
Setting and Answered Prayer
The verse belongs to the family worship of Elkanah and Hannah at the appointed gatherings in Shiloh. There Hannah's childlessness was a source of grief to her, sharpened by taunting.
For this child she had prayed, and the Lord granted the petition which she asked of Him. Samuel was that child, given to her by the Lord in answer to her prayer for a child.
She recognized him as the answer with gratitude, publicly acknowledging God's gift when she presented him at Shiloh. In that acknowledgment she owned the divine mercy and loving-kindness shown in giving her the child she had asked for.
Her asking shows faithful prayer and perseverance, for she asked the Lord for a child and the Lord granted her request.
Dedication and Training Example
Hannah's gratitude for the answered prayer was joined to dedication, for in fulfillment of her vow she treated Samuel as belonging to God and gave him as a consecrated offering to the Lord's service in His house for all his life, placing him under the care of Eli the high priest to be trained for service. She fulfilled her vow by giving him to Eli for service to God after he was weaned, although parting from the child and giving up his daily care was a sacrifice made with great self-denial. The Lord accepted her gift and offering, and she was grateful and joyful that He had done so.
From his earliest years and during his first three years at home she faithfully trained him to love and reverence God and to distinguish between good and evil, seeking by every familiar object around him to lead his thoughts up to the Creator. That early home training makes home and school one, with instruction by the loving hearts of father and mother instead of stranger lips, associating thoughts of God with all the events of daily life. It recounts God's mighty works in delivering His people with eloquence and reverential awe, impressing God's providence and the future life on the young mind and making it acquainted with the true, the good, and the beautiful. By figures and symbols the lessons are illustrated and fixed in memory, initiating the child almost from infancy into the mysteries, wisdom, and hopes of his fathers and guiding thought and feeling beyond things seen and transitory to the unseen and eternal. From such education comes vigor in body and mind, quick to perceive and strong to act, with the heart prepared like good ground for seed and the mind trained to see God in revelation and nature, so that stars, trees, flowers, mountains, and brooks speak of Him and the prophets' voices meet a response in the heart.
Her care continued while he was apart from her through daily prayers and continued praying for his character and goodness, and through the yearly robe she made for his service. She sought for him not worldly greatness but a life honoring God and blessing others. That training led Samuel to maintain integrity when his youth at the tabernacle exposed him to evil influences and sinful example, for he did not seek the company of Eli's sons nor follow their evil ways, though they feared not God nor honored their father. He chose to maintain his integrity, became firm in principle and a precious and useful gift to Israel, and because of his pure heart and reverence the Lord accepted him for a special work and made him a channel of light, showing that the young can be honored and chosen for important work.
Hannah and Samuel's faithful example is contrasted with Eli's failure to restrain and discipline his sons. The Lord spoke to Samuel about that failure, that their wickedness would not be pardoned and Eli's house would not be blessed. The account warns that the Lord holds parents responsible for duty at home even when experienced and serving in sacred work, and Hannah's reward and example encourage faithfulness in training children for God. The same giving is seen with Henry: after his mother believed the Lord had spared him when he was sick, she entrusted him to another family's care while she and her husband went out to serve others, as Hannah gave Samuel into the Lord's service.
Hannah prayed for a child amid grief and taunting at the family worship in Shiloh, and the Lord granted what she asked so that Samuel was given in answer to prayer. In gratitude she fulfilled her vow by treating him as belonging to God and giving him as a consecrated offering to lifelong service in His house under the care of Eli to be trained for service. Giving him up after he was weaned and parting from his daily care was a sacrifice of great self-denial, yet the gift was accepted by the Lord with gratitude and joy. From his earliest years at home she faithfully trained him to love and reverence God and to know good from evil, and her care continued while apart through daily prayers for his character and the yearly robe, seeking not worldly greatness but a life honoring God and blessing others. That training held him in integrity amid the evil example of Eli's sons, in contrast to Eli's failure to restrain his own sons, showing that the Lord holds parents responsible for duty at home and rewards faithfulness in training children for God.
Setting and Answered Prayer
The verse belongs to the family worship of Elkanah and Hannah at the appointed gatherings in Shiloh. There Hannah's childlessness was a source of grief to her, sharpened by taunting.
For this child she had prayed, and the Lord granted the petition which she asked of Him. Samuel was that child, given to her by the Lord in answer to her prayer for a child.
She recognized him as the answer with gratitude, publicly acknowledging God's gift when she presented him at Shiloh. In that acknowledgment she owned the divine mercy and loving-kindness shown in giving her the child she had asked for.
Her asking shows faithful prayer and perseverance, for she asked the Lord for a child and the Lord granted her request.
Dedication and Training Example
Hannah's gratitude for the answered prayer was joined to dedication, for in fulfillment of her vow she treated Samuel as belonging to God and gave him as a consecrated offering to the Lord's service in His house for all his life, placing him under the care of Eli the high priest to be trained for service. She fulfilled her vow by giving him to Eli for service to God after he was weaned, although parting from the child and giving up his daily care was a sacrifice made with great self-denial. The Lord accepted her gift and offering, and she was grateful and joyful that He had done so.
From his earliest years and during his first three years at home she faithfully trained him to love and reverence God and to distinguish between good and evil, seeking by every familiar object around him to lead his thoughts up to the Creator. That early home training makes home and school one, with instruction by the loving hearts of father and mother instead of stranger lips, associating thoughts of God with all the events of daily life. It recounts God's mighty works in delivering His people with eloquence and reverential awe, impressing God's providence and the future life on the young mind and making it acquainted with the true, the good, and the beautiful. By figures and symbols the lessons are illustrated and fixed in memory, initiating the child almost from infancy into the mysteries, wisdom, and hopes of his fathers and guiding thought and feeling beyond things seen and transitory to the unseen and eternal. From such education comes vigor in body and mind, quick to perceive and strong to act, with the heart prepared like good ground for seed and the mind trained to see God in revelation and nature, so that stars, trees, flowers, mountains, and brooks speak of Him and the prophets' voices meet a response in the heart.
Her care continued while he was apart from her through daily prayers and continued praying for his character and goodness, and through the yearly robe she made for his service. She sought for him not worldly greatness but a life honoring God and blessing others. That training led Samuel to maintain integrity when his youth at the tabernacle exposed him to evil influences and sinful example, for he did not seek the company of Eli's sons nor follow their evil ways, though they feared not God nor honored their father. He chose to maintain his integrity, became firm in principle and a precious and useful gift to Israel, and because of his pure heart and reverence the Lord accepted him for a special work and made him a channel of light, showing that the young can be honored and chosen for important work.
Hannah and Samuel's faithful example is contrasted with Eli's failure to restrain and discipline his sons. The Lord spoke to Samuel about that failure, that their wickedness would not be pardoned and Eli's house would not be blessed. The account warns that the Lord holds parents responsible for duty at home even when experienced and serving in sacred work, and Hannah's reward and example encourage faithfulness in training children for God. The same giving is seen with Henry: after his mother believed the Lord had spared him when he was sick, she entrusted him to another family's care while she and her husband went out to serve others, as Hannah gave Samuel into the Lord's service.