HANNAH, Woman of Prayer
Presented By Marvin Griffin
JULY 18, 2018

Scripture readings: 1 Samuel 1:1-28, 2:1-11, 18-21, 26

HANNAH means ‘grace’. She was the wife of Elkanah but childless, a disfavored and anguished condition. Perhaps this is why Elkanah took a second wife, Penninah.

ELKANAH means ‘God has acquired’. It would seem that Elkanah wanted to acquire an heir hence the second marriage. Elkanah was a Levite but was called an Ephraimite in scripture. Remember the Levites were not given an area to live in but were allotted towns in the other tribe’s areas so a Levite might well be called a Danite etc.

SAMUEL means ‘asked of God’

HANNAH WAS:

HUMBLE – She was saddened and humiliated by her inability to give Elkanah children. She was made humble by circumstances. Like Mary, she calls herself the Lord’s handmaid. Notice too, how Mary’s Magnificat is similar to Hannah’s Hymn/prayer.

LESSON: God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble. James 4:6

FAITHFUL – She could have let bitterness of circumstances interfere with her attendance of the Lord’s feasts since ‘the Lord had shut up her womb’. She went up yearly even though the pain was intensified there.

LESSON: Attendance of the meetings isn’t everything, but it’s a big part of being faithful.

TRUTHFUL- No hypocrisy here. Elkanah and his family had the right to partake of the peace-offering and so he gave to Penninah and her children each a portion but to Hannah a double portion. His loving heart wanted her to have peace but she had no peace and couldn’t eat. This double portion only brought rivalry in the family along with cruel taunts and provoking from Penninah. Well-meaning Elkanah just didn’t get the mothering instinct of Hannah. ‘Aren’t I better to you than ten sons?’

LESSONS: 1) Be real. 2)Husbands, think, and thinking, try to understand that God made your wives as a complement of you, not to think like you.

SUPPLICANT – She brought her great need to the Lord. Don’t think for a minute that the recorded prayer is her first! God’s answers might well be: yes, or no, or wait. Eli misread her but when Hannah explained he AMENed her prayer!

LESSON: Brothers and sisters, your AMENs have power. In Matthew 18:19 the Lord Jesus says,” if two of you agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven”. The context is prayer concerning church discipline but for collective general prayer other conditions must be met, such as, is the prayer according to the revealed will of God? Is the prayer in faith? Is the prayer in all sincerity?

BELIEVER – Hannah was no longer sad but went her way and ate that peace offering! Hannah’s greatest character strength is her believing prayers despite being tried in the crucible of affliction. Job said, “when He hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold”.

LESSON: Brother and sister, there is no blessing and no peace in doubting, so let us believe.

VOW-KEEPER – We read Hannah’s vow to the Lord. How that: “if the Lord will give his 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.” It was in effect, the Nazarite’s vow. In v.21 we read, “the yearly sacrifice, and his vow”. This may mean that Elkanah had made Hannah’s vow his own (see Numbers 30:10-15). They were both in agreement as per Elkanah’s words “only the Lord establish his word”. The vow was kept although no doubt the heart-strings stretched much!

LESSON: Better not to vow than to break it. Notable vows many of us make are marriage vows. These should be kept with all diligence except for scriptural reasons.

WORSHIPPER – Hannah’s hymn begins, “My heart rejoices in the Lord” and “I rejoice in your salvation”. She sets apart the Lord as holiest, unique, and the foundation rock for life. In effect, she also says, the Lord knows all including motives. The Lord is sovereign, often reversing cursing and blessing, first and last, life and death, earthly and spiritual. Her prayer seems to end in a Messianic prophesy of strength to his King and power to his Anointed.

LESSON: “The Lord seeks such to worship him”. (John 4:23) Brothers and sisters, his worth causes us to worship! If not publicly, at least, privately.

MOTHER (in every sense of that blessed word) – Hannah acted in the best interests of Samuel. Mothers do that! Children generally weren’t weaned til the age of 3 in those days due to the scarcity of good drinking water. In the meantime, she would prepare Samuel’s heart for a life of service to God. Hannah yearly provided Samuel the clothes he would need along with good counsel at those precious feast times. No doubt, her prayers for Samuel’s well-being were a daily habit.

LESSON: Mothers, provide not only the necessities of life but equally, the basis of spiritual life. Little things like: helping them learn their memory verse and daily prayer.

FRUITFUL – Hannah, as the handmaid of the Lord, provided a most remarkable man of God! In my eyes, Samuel as judge, prophet and priest, was greater than so many of Israel’s kings. Hannah also had several other children although 1 short of the 7 mentioned in her prayer!

LESSON: May we be fruitful in Christian character and in bringing sinners to the Lord.