Hannah prayed, and said: “My heart exults in Yahweh! My horn is exalted in Yahweh. My mouth is enlarged over my enemies, because I rejoice in your salvation.
There is no one as holy as Yahweh, for there is no one besides you, nor is there any rock like our God.
“Don’t keep talking so exceedingly proudly. Don’t let arrogance come out of your mouth, for Yahweh is a God of knowledge. By him actions are weighed.
“The bows of the mighty men are broken. Those who stumbled are armed with strength.
Those who were full have hired themselves out for bread. Those who were hungry are satisfied. Yes, the barren has borne seven. She who has many children languishes.
“Yahweh kills and makes alive. He brings down to Sheol and brings up.
Yahweh makes poor and makes rich. He brings low, he also lifts up.
He raises up the poor out of the dust. He lifts up the needy from the dunghill to make them sit with princes and inherit the throne of glory. For the pillars of the earth are Yahweh’s. He has set the world on them.
He will keep the feet of his holy ones, but the wicked will be put to silence in darkness; for no man will prevail by strength.
Those who strive with Yahweh shall be broken to pieces. He will thunder against them in the sky. “Yahweh will judge the ends of the earth. He will give strength to his king, and exalt the horn of his anointed.”
Elkanah went to Ramah to his house. The child served Yahweh before Eli the priest.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On vv1, 3, 5, 8, 10, 11 After that she had obtained a son by prayer,…
After that she had obtained a son by prayer, she gave thanks.
I have recovered strength and glory by the benefit of the Lord.
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I can answer them that reprove my barrenness.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv1–11 1Sa 2:1 And Hannah prayed, and said, My heart…
1Sa 2:1 And Hannah prayed, and said, My heart rejoiceth in the LORD, mine horn is exalted in the LORD: my mouth is enlarged over mine enemies; because I rejoice in thy salvation.
Ver. 1. And Hannah prayed, and said,] i.e., She praised God, and said; for there is not one petition in all this holy hymn: but thanksgiving is a principal part of prayer; it is also an artificial begging.
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My heart rejoiceth in the Lord.] Leapeth and danceth levaltoes, danceth a galliard; as did also Mary’s {Luk 1:47} for like cause; and betwixt this song and that of the holy Virgin there is a great likeness, as Peter Martyr rightly observeth.
My horn is exalted in the Lord.] My might and mirth is advanced. A metaphor from horned creatures, or, as some say, from conquerors setting up their crest.
My mouth is enlarged over mine enemies.] Peninnah and her accomplices, over whom now I can crow and triumph, my mouth magnifically praising the Lord.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11 Hannah prayed, i.e. praised God; which is a part…
Hannah prayed, i.e. praised God; which is a part of prayer, Col 4:2; 1Ti 2:1; so it is a synecdochical expression. My heart rejoiceth, or, leapeth for joy; for the words note not only inward joy, but also the outward demonstrations of it.
In the Lord, as the author and the master of my joy, that he hath heard my prayer, and accepted my son for his service.
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Mine horn is exalted; my strength and glory (which are oft signified by a horn, as Psa 89:17,24; 92:10) are advanced and manifested to my vindication, and the confusion of mine enemies.
My mouth is enlarged, i.e. opened wide, to pour forth abundant praises to God, and to give a full answer to all the reproaches of mine adversaries; whereas before it was shut through grief and confusion.
Over mine enemies, i.e. more than theirs, or so as to get the victory over them, as she saith afterwards. Here she manifests her great prudence, and piety, and modesty, that she doth not name Peninnah, but only her enemies in the general.
Because I rejoice in thy salvation; because the matter of my joy is no trivial or worldly thing, but that strange and glorious salvation or deliverance which thou hast given me from my own oppressing care and grief, and from the insolencies and reproaches of mine enemies, in giving me a son, and such a son as this, who shall be serviceable to God, and to his people, in helping them against their enemies, which she presaged, as may be guessed from 1Sa 2:10.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Matthew Henry 1710 · Public Domain On vv1, 11 We have here Hannah's thanksgiving, dictated, not only by…
We have here Hannah's thanksgiving, dictated, not only by the spirit of prayer, but by the spirit of prophecy. Her petition for the mercy she desired we had before (Sa1 1:11), and here we have her return of praise; in both out of the abundance of a heart deeply affected (in the former with her own wants, and in the latter with God's goodness) her mouth spoke. Observe in general, 1. When she had received mercy from God she owned it, with thankfulness to his praise. Not like the nine lepers, Luk 17:17. Praise is our rent, our tribute. We are unjust if we do not pay it. 2. The mercy she had received was an answer to prayer, and therefore she thought herself especially obliged to give thanks for it. What we win by prayer we may wear with comfort, and must wear with praise. 3. Her thanksgiving is here called a prayer: Hannah prayed; for thanksgiving is an essential part of prayer. In every address to God we must express a grateful regard to him as our benefactor. Nay, and thanksgiving for mercies received shall be accepted as a petition for further mercy. 4. From this particular mercy which she had received from God she takes occasion, with an elevated and enlarged heart, to speak glorious things of God and of his government of the world for the good of his church. Whatever at any time gives rise to our praises in this manner they should be raised. 5. Her prayer was mental. Her voice was not heard; but in her thanksgiving she spoke, that all might hear her. She made her supplication with groanings that could not be uttered, but now her lips were opened to show forth God's praise. 6. This thanksgiving is here left upon record for the encouragement of those of the weaker sex to attend the throne of grace. God will regard their prayers and praises. The virgin Mary's song has great affinity with this of Hannah, Luk 1:46. Three things we have in this thanksgiving: -
I. Hannah's triumph in God, in his glorious perfections, and the great things he had done for her, Sa1 2:1-3. Observe,
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1. What great things she says of God. She takes little notice of the particular mercy she was now rejoicing in, does not commend Samuel for the prettiest child, the most toward and sensible for his age that she ever saw, as fond parents are too apt to do. No, she overlooks the gift, and praises the giver; whereas most forget the giver and fasten only on the gift. Every stream should lead us to the fountain; and the favours we receive from God should raise our admiration of the infinite perfections there are in God. There may be other Samuels, but no other Jehovah. There is none beside thee. Note, God is to be praised as a peerless being, and of unparalleled perfection. This glory is due unto his name, to own not only that there is none like him, but that there is none besides him. All others were pretenders, Psa 18:31. Four of God's glorious attributes Hannah here celebrates the glory of: - (1.) His unspotted purity. This is that attribute which is most praised in the upper world, by those that always behold his face, Isa 6:3; Rev 4:8. When Israel triumphed over the Egyptians God was praised as glorious in holiness, Exo 15:11. So here, in Hannah's triumph, There is none holy as the Lord. It is the rectitude of his nature, his infinite agreement with himself, and the equity of his government and judgment in all the administrations of both. At the remembrance of this we ought to give thanks. (2.) His almighty power: Neither is there any rock (or any strength, for so the word is sometimes rendered) like our God. Hannah had experienced a mighty support by staying herself upon him, and therefore speaks as she had found, and seems to refer to that of Moses, Deu 32:31. (3.) His unsearchable wisdom: The Lord, the Judge of all, is a God of knowledge; he clearly and perfectly sees into the character of every person and the merits of every cause, and he gives knowledge and understanding to those that seek them of him. (4.) His unerring justice: By him actions are weighed. His own are so, in his eternal counsels; the actions of the children of men are so, in the balances of his judgment, so that he will render to every man according to his work, and is not mistaken in what any man is or does.
2. How she solaces herself in these things. What we give God the glory of we may take the comfort of. Hannah does so, (1.) In holy joy: My heart rejoiceth in the Lord; not so much in her son as in her God; he is to be the gladness of our joy (Psa 43:4), and our joy must not terminate in any thing short of him: "I rejoice in thy salvation; not only in this particular favour to me, but in the salvation of thy people Israel, those salvations especially which this child will be an instrument of, and that, above all, by Christ, which those are but the types of." (2.) In holy triumph: "My horn is exalted; not only is my reputation saved by my having a son, but greatly raised by having such a son." We read of some of the singers whom David appointed to lift up the horn, an instrument of music, in praising God (Ch1 25:5), so that, My horn is exalted means this, "My praises are very much elevated to an unusual strain." Exalted in the Lord; God is to have the honour of all our exaltations, and in him must we triumph. My mouth is enlarged, that is, "Now I have wherewith to answer those that reproached me." He that has his quiver full of arrows, his house full of children, shall not be ashamed to speak with the enemy in the gate, Psa 127:5.
3. How she herewith silences those that set up themselves as rivals with God and rebels against him (Sa1 2:3): Talk no more so exceedingly proudly. Let not Peninnah and her children upbraid her any more with her confidence in God and praying to him: at length she found it not in vain. See Mic 7:10, Then she that is my enemy shall see it, and shame shall cover her that said, Where is thy God? Or perhaps it was below her to take so much notice of Peninnah, and her malice, in this song; but this is intended as a check to the insolence of the Philistines, and other enemies of God and Israel, that set their mouth against the heavens, Psa 73:9. "Let this put them to silence and shame; he that has thus judged for me against my adversary will judge for his people against all theirs."
II. The notice she takes of the wisdom and sovereignty of the divine providence, in its disposals of the affairs of the children of men; such are the vicissitudes of them, and such the strange and sudden turns and revolutions of them, that it is often found a very short step between the height of prosperity and the depth of adversity. God has not only set the one over against the other (Ecc 7:14), but the one very near the other, and no gulf fixed between them, that we may rejoice as though we rejoiced not and weep as though we wept not.
1. The strong are soon weakened and the weak are soon strengthened, when God pleases, Sa1 2:4. On the one hand, if he speak the word, the bows of the mighty men are broken; they are disarmed, disabled to do as they have before done and as they have designed to do. Those have been worsted in battle who seemed upon all accounts to have the advantage on their side, and thought themselves sure of victory. See Psa 46:9; Psa 37:15, Psa 37:17. Particular persons are soon weakened by sickness and age, and they find that the bow does not long abide in strength; many a mighty man who has gloried in his might has found it a deceitful bow, that failed him when he trusted to it. On the other hand, if the Lord speak the word, those who stumble through weakness, who were so feeble that they could not go straight or steady, are girded with strength, in body and mind, and are able to bring great things to pass. Those who were weakened by sickness return to their vigour (Job 33:25), and those who were brought down by sorrow shall recover their comfort, which will confirm the weak hands and the feeble knees, Isa 35:3. Victory turns in favour of that side that was given up for gone, and even the lame take the prey, Isa 33:23.
2. The rich are soon impoverished and the poor strangely enriched on a sudden, Sa1 2:5. Providence sometimes does so blast men's estates and cross their endeavours, and with a fire not blown consume their increase, that those who were full (their barns full, and their bags full, their houses full of good things, Job 22:18, and their bellies full of these hidden treasures, Psa 17:14) have been reduced to such straits and extremities as to want the necessary supports of life, and to hire out themselves for bread, and they must dig, since to beg they are ashamed. Riches flee away (Pro 23:5), and leave those miserable who, when they had them, placed their happiness in them. To those that have been full and free poverty must needs be doubly grievous. But, on the other hand, sometimes Providence so orders it that those who are hungry cease, that is, cease to hire out themselves for bread as they have done. Having, by God's blessing on their industry, got beforehand in the world, and enough to live upon at ease, they shall hunger no more, not thirst any more. This is not to be ascribed to fortune, nor merely to men's wisdom or folly. Riches are not to men of understanding, nor favour to men of skill (Ecc 9:11), nor is it always men's own fault that they become poor, but (Sa1 2:7) the Lord maketh some poor and maketh others rich; the impoverishing of one is the enriching of another, and it is God's doing. To some he gives power to get wealth, from others he takes away power to keep the wealth they have. Are we poor? God made us poor, which is a good reason why we should be content, and reconcile ourselves to our condition. Are we rich? God made us rich, which is a good reason why we should be thankful, and serve him cheerfully in the abundance of good things he gives us. It may be understood of the same person; those that were rich God makes poor, and after awhile makes rich again, as Job; he gave, he takes away, and then gives again. Let not the rich be proud and secure, for God can soon make them poor; let not the poor despond and despair, for God can in due time enrich them again.
3. Empty families are replenished and numerous families diminished and made few. This is the instance that comes close to the occasion of the thanksgiving: The barren hath borne seven, meaning herself, for, though at present she had but one son, yet that one being a Nazarite, devoted to God and employed in his immediate service, he was to her as good as seven. Or it is the language of her faith. Now that she had one she hoped for more, and was not disappointed; she had five more (Sa1 2:21), so that if we reckon Samuel but for two, as we well may, she has the number she promised herself: the barren hath borne seven, while, on the other hand, she that hath many children has waxed feeble, and hath left bearing. She says no more. Peninnah is now mortified and crest-fallen. The tradition of the Jews is that when Hannah bore one child Peninnah buried two. There are many instances both of the increase of families that were inconsiderable and the extinguishing of families that made a figure, Job 22:23; Psa 107:38, etc.
4. God is the sovereign Lord of life and death (Sa1 2:6): The Lord killeth and maketh alive. Understand it, (1.) Of God's sovereign dominion and universal agency, in the lives and deaths of the children of men. He presides in births and burials. Whenever any die it is God that directs the arrows of death. The Lord killeth. Death is his messenger, strikes whom and when he bids; none are brought to the dust but it is he that brings them down, for in his hand are the keys of death and the grave, Rev 1:18. Whenever any are born it is he that makes them alive. None knows what is the way of the spirit, but this we know, that it comes from the Father of spirits. Whenever any are recovered from sickness, and delivered from imminent perils, it is God that bringeth up; for to him belong the issues from death. (2.) Of the distinction he makes between some and others: He killeth some, and maketh, that is, keepeth, others alive that were in the same danger (in war, suppose, or pestilence), two in a bed together, it may be, one taken by death and the other left alive. Even so, Father, because it seemed good in thy eyes. Some that were most likely to live are brought down to the grave, and others that were as likely to die are brought up; for living and dying do not go by likelihoods. God's providences towards some are killing, ruining to their comforts, and towards others at the same time reviving. (3.) Of the change he makes with one and the same person: He killeth and bringeth down to the grave, that is, he brings even to death's door, and then revives and raises up, when even life was despaired of and a sentence of death received, Co2 1:8, Co2 1:9. He turns to destruction, and then says, Return, Psa 110:3. Nothing is too hard for God to do, no, not the quickening of the dead, and putting life into dry bones.
5. Advancement and abasement are both from him. He brings some low and lifts up others (Sa1 2:7), humbles the proud and gives grace and honour to the lowly, lays those in the dust that would vie with the God above them and trample upon all about them (Job 40:12, Job 40:13), but lifts up those with his salvation that humble themselves before him, Jam 4:10. Or it may be understood of the same persons: those whom he had brought low, when they are sufficiently humbled, he lifteth up. This is enlarged upon, Sa1 2:8. He raiseth up the poor out of the dust, a low and mean condition, nay, from the dunghill, a base and servile condition, loathed, and despised, to set them among princes. See Psa 113:7, Psa 113:8. Promotion comes not by chance, but from the counsel of God, which often prefers those that were very unlikely and that men thought very unworthy. Joseph and Daniel, Moses and David, were thus strangely advanced, from a prison to a palace, from a sheep-hook to a sceptre. The princes they are set among may be tempted to disdain them, but God can establish the honour which he gives thus surprisingly, and make them even to inherit the throne of glory. Let not those whom Providence has thus preferred be upbraided with the dust and dunghill they are raised out of, for the meaner their beginnings were the more they are favoured, and God is glorified, in their advancement, if it be by lawful and honourable means.
6. A reason is given for all these dispensations which obliges us to acquiesce in them, how surprising soever they are: For the pillars of the earth are the Lord's. (1.) If we understand this literally, it intimates God's almighty power, which cannot be controlled. He upholds the whole creation, founded the earth, and still sustains it by the word of his power. What cannot he do in the affairs of families and kingdoms, far beyond our conception and expectation, who hangs the earth upon nothing? Job 26:7. But, (2.) If we understand it figuratively, it intimates his incontestable sovereignty, which cannot be disputed. The princes and great ones of the earth, the directors of states and governments, are the pillars of the earth, Psa 75:3. On these hinges the affairs of the world seem to turn, but they are the Lord's, Psa 47:9. From him they have their power, and therefore he may advance whom he pleases; and who may say, What doest thou?
III. A prediction of the preservation and advancement of all God's faithful friends, and the destruction of all his and their enemies. Having testified her joyful triumph in what God had done, and is doing, she concludes with joyful hopes of what he would do, Sa1 2:9, Sa1 2:10. Pious affections (says bishop Patrick) in those days rose many times to the height of prophecy, whereby God continued in that nation his true religion, in the midst of their idolatrous inclinations. This prophecy may refer, 1. More immediately to the government of Israel by Samuel, and by David whom he was employed to anoint. The Israelites, God's saints, should be protected and delivered; the Philistines, their enemies, should be conquered and subdued, and particularly by thunder, Sa1 7:10. Their dominions should be enlarged, king David strengthened and greatly exalted, and Israel (that in the time of the judges had made so small a figure and had much ado to subsist) should now shortly become great and considerable, and give law to all its neighbours. An extraordinary change that was; and the birth of Samuel was, as it were, the dawning of that day. But, 2. We have reason to think that this prophecy looks further, to the kingdom of Christ, and the administration of that kingdom of grace, of which she now comes to speak, having spoken so largely of the kingdom of providence. And here is the first time that we meet with the name Messiah, or his Anointed. The ancient expositors, both Jewish and Christian, make it to look beyond David, to the Son of David. Glorious things are here spoken of the kingdom of the Mediator, both before and since his incarnation; for the method of the administration of it, both by the eternal Word and by that Word made flesh, is much the same. Concerning that kingdom we are here assured, (1.) That all the loyal subjects of it shall be carefully and powerfully protected (Sa1 2:9): He will keep the feet of his saints. There are a people in the world that are God's saints, his select and sanctified ones; and he will keep their feet, that is, all that belongs to them shall be under his protection, down to their very feet, the lowest part of the body. If he will keep their feet, much more their head and hearts. Or he will keep their feet, that is, he will secure the ground they stand on, and establish their goings; he will set a guard of grace upon their affections and actions, that their feet may neither wander out of the way nor stumble in the way. When their feet are ready to slip (Psa 73:2) his mercy holdeth them up (Psa 94:18) and keepeth them from falling, Jde 1:24. While we keep God's ways he will keep our feet. See Psa 37:23, Psa 37:24. (2.) That all the powers engaged against it shall not be able to effect the ruin of it. By strength shall no man prevail. God's strength is engaged for the church; and, while it is so, man's strength shall not prevail against it. The church seems destitute of strength, her friends few and feeble, but prevalency does not go by human strength, Psa 33:16. God neither needs it for him (Psa 147:10) nor dreads it against him. (3.) That all the enemies of it will certainly be broken and brought down: The wicked shall be silent in darkness, Sa1 2:9. They shall be struck both blind and dumb, not be able to see their way nor have any thing to say for themselves. Damned sinners are sentenced to utter darkness, and in it they will be for ever speechless, Mat 22:12, Mat 22:13. The wicked are called the adversaries of the Lord, and it is foretold (Mat 22:10) that they shall be broken to pieces. Their designs against his kingdom among men will all be dashed, and they themselves destroyed; how can those speed better that are in arms against Omnipotence? See Luk 19:27. God has many ways of doing it, and, rather than fail, from heaven shall he thunder upon them, and so, not only put them in terror and consternation, but bring them to destruction. Who can stand before God's thunderbolts? (4.) That the conquests of this kingdom shall extend themselves to distant regions: The Lord shall judge the ends of the earth. David's victories and dominions reached far, but the uttermost parts of the earth are promised to the Messiah for his possession (Psa 2:8), to be either reduced to his golden sceptre or ruined by his iron rod. God is Judge of all, and he will judge for his people against his and their enemies, Psa 110:5, Psa 110:6. (5.) That the power and honour of Messiah the prince shall grow and increase more and more: He shall give strength unto his king, for the accomplishing of his great undertaking (Psa 89:21, and see Luk 22:43), strengthen him to go through the difficulties of his humiliation, and in his exaltation he will lift up the head (Psa 110:7), lift up the horn, the power and honour, of his anointed, and make him higher than the kings of the earth, Psa 89:27. This crowns the triumph, and is, more than any thing, the matter of her exultation. Her horn is exalted (Sa1 2:1) because she foresees the horn of the Messiah will be so. This secures the hope. The subjects of Christ's kingdom will be safe, and the enemies of it will be ruined, for the anointed, the Lord Christ, is girded with strength, and is able to save and destroy unto the uttermost.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708–1710) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv1–11 And Hannah prayed and said,.... She had prayed before,…
And Hannah prayed and said,.... She had prayed before, but that was mental, this vocal; she had prayed and was answered, and had what she prayed for, and now she gives thanks for it; and thanksgiving is one kind of prayer, or a part of it; see Ti1 2:1, wherefore though what follows is a song, it was expressed in prayer; and therefore it is said she prayed, and that by a spirit of prophecy, as the Targum; hence she is by the Jews (h) reckoned one of the seven prophetesses; and indeed in this song she not only relates the gracious experiences of divine goodness she had been favoured with, and celebrates the divine perfections, and treats of the dealings of God with men, both in a way of providence and grace; but prophesies of things that should be done hereafter in Israel, and particularly of the Messiah and of his kingdom. There is a great likeness in this song to the song of the Virgin Mary; compare Sa1 2:1 with Luk 1:46 and Sa1 2:2 with Luk 1:49 and Sa1 2:4 with Luk 1:51,
my heart rejoiceth in the Lord: not in her son the Lord had given her, but in the goodness and kindness of the Lord in bestowing him on her, as an answer of prayer; which showed great condescension to her, the notice he took of her, the love he had to her, and his well pleasedness in her, and his acceptance of her prayer through Christ; she rejoiced not in her husband, nor in the wealth and riches they were possessed of, nor in any creature enjoyments, but in the Lord, the giver of all; nor in her religious services and sacrifices, but in the Lord Christ, through whom her duties were acceptable to God, and who was the antitype of the sacrifices offered; and it is in the person, offices, and grace of Christ, that we should alone rejoice: see Phi 4:4 this joy of Hannah's was not worldly, but spiritual; not outward, but inward; not hypocritical, but real and hearty:
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mine horn is exalted in the Lord: which supposes that she had been in a low estate, was crest fallen, and her horn was defiled in the dust, as Job says was his case, Job 16:15, when God had shut up her womb, and her adversary upbraided her with it, and provoked and fretted her; and when she was so full of grief, that she could not eat her food, and prayed in the bitterness of her soul; but now she could lift up her horn and her head, as horned creatures, to whom the allusion is, do, when they are lively and strong; now she could look pleasant and cheerful, and even triumph, being raised to an high estate, and greatly favoured of the Lord, to whom she ascribes this change of her state and circumstances: it was owing to his power and grace that she was thus strengthened and exalted; as it is owing to the same, that the people of God, who are in a low estate by nature, are raised out of it in conversion, and brought into an open state of grace and favour with God, and put into the possession of rich blessings and mercies, and have hope of eternal glory, on account of which they can exult and triumph:
my mouth is enlarged over mine enemies; meaning Peninnah, and those that provoked her, and upbraided her with her barrenness, to whom she was not able to make any reply; but now her mouth was opened, and she could speak largely, and did; not in a way of reproach and reviling, in retaliation for what she had met with from others; but in prayer to God, to whom she could come with open mouth, and use freedom and boldness, and plead with importunity, fervency, and in faith, and in praise and thanksgiving to him for the great and good things he had done for her, and would now freely and largely speak of them to others; to some, her friends, to their joy and pleasure; and to others, her enemies, to their grief and confusion:
because I rejoice in thy salvation; not only in temporal salvation wrought by the Lord for her, whereby she was delivered from the reproach of barrenness, through a son being given unto her; but in spiritual and eternal salvation, through the Messiah, she had knowledge of, and faith in, as appears from Sa1 2:10, as all believers in him do, as it is contrived by the wisdom of God, wrought out by Christ, and applied by his Spirit; it being so great, so suitable, so perfect and complete, entirely free, and of an everlasting duration; see Psa 20:5.
(h) T. Megillah, fol. 14. 1.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11 Hannah's song of thanksgiving, ver. 1-10. Elkanah leaves Samuel…
Hannah's song of thanksgiving, ver. 1-10. Elkanah leaves Samuel to minister before the Lord, ver. 11. The wickedness of Eli's sons, ver. 12-17. A farther account of Samuel and his parents, ver. 18-21. Eli's too mild reproof of his sons, ver. 22-25. Samuel's growth, ver. 26. God's dreadful message to Eli, ver. 27- 36.
Prayed - That is, praised God; which is a part of prayer. Rejoiceth - Or, leapeth for joy: for the words note not only inward joy, but also the outward demonstrations of it. In the Lord - As the author of my joy, that he hath heard my prayer, and accepted my son for his service. Horn - My strength and glory (which are often signified by an horn,) are advanced and manifested to my vindication, and the confusion of mine enemies. Mouth enlarged - That is, opened wide to pour forth abundant praises to God, and to give a full answer to all the reproaches of mine adversaries. Enemies - So she manifests her prudence and modesty, in not naming Peninnah, but only her enemies in the general. Salvation - Because the matter of my joy is no trivial thing, but that strange and glorious salvation or deliverance which thou hast given me from my oppressing care and grief, and from the insolencies and reproaches of mine enemies.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv1–11 Hannah's prophetic hymn, 1-10.
CHAPTER II
Hannah's prophetic hymn, 1-10.
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Samuel ministers to the Lord, 11.
The abominable conduct of Eli's sons, 12-17.
Farther account of Samuel, and of the Divine blessing on
Elkanah and Hannah, 18-21.
Eli's reprehensible remissness towards his sons in not
restraining them in their great profligacy, 22-26.
The message of God to Eli, and the prophecy of the downfall of
his family, and slaughter of his wicked sons Hophni and
Phinehas, 27-36.
NOTES ON CHAP. II
Verse 1. And Hannah prayed, and said] The Chaldee very properly says, And Hannah prayed in the spirit of prophecy; for indeed the whole of this prayer, or as it may be properly called oracular declaration, is a piece of regular prophecy, every part of it having respect to the future, and perhaps not a little of it declaratory of the Messiah's kingdom.
Dr. Hales has some very good observations on this prophetic song.
"This admirable hymn excels in simplicity of composition, closeness of connection, and uniformity of sentiment; breathing the pious effusions of a devout mind, deeply impressed with a conviction of God's mercies to herself in particular, and of his providential government of the world in general; exalting the poor in spirit or the humble-minded, and abasing the rich and the arrogant; rewarding the righteous, and punishing the wicked. Hannah was also a prophetess of the first class, besides predicting her own fruitfulness, 1Sa 2:5, (for she bore six children in all, 1Sa 2:21,) she foretold not only the more immediate judgments of God upon the Philistines during her son's administration, 1Sa 2:10, but his remoter judgments 'upon the ends of the earth,' 1Sa 2:10, in the true spirit of the prophecies of Jacob, Balaam, and Moses. Like them, she describes the promised Saviour of the world as a KING, before there was any king in Israel; and she first applied to him the remarkable epithet MESSIAH in Hebrew, CHRIST in Greek, and ANOINTED in English, which was adopted by David, Nathan, Ethan, Isaiah, Daniel, and the succeeding prophets of the Old Testament; and by the apostles and inspired writers of the New. And the allusion thereto by Zacharias, the father of the Baptist, in his hymn, Lu 1:69, where he calls Christ a 'horn of salvation,' and the beautiful imitation of it by the blessed Virgin throughout in her hymn, Lu 1:46-55, furnishing the finest commentary thereon, clearly prove that Hannah in her rejoicing had respect to something higher than Peninnah her rival, or to the triumphs of Samuel, or even of David himself; the expressions are too magnificent and sublime to be confined to such objects. Indeed the learned rabbi, David Kimchi, was so struck with them that he ingenuously confessed that 'the King of whom Hannah speaks is the MESSIAH,' of whom she spake either by prophecy or tradition; for, continues he, 'there was a tradition among the Israelites, that a great King should arise in Israel; and she seals up her song with celebrating this King who was to deliver them from all their enemies.' The tradition, as we have seen, was founded principally on Balaam's second and third prophecies, Nu 24:7-17; and we cannot but admire that gracious dispensation of spiritual gifts to Hannah (whose name signifies grace) in ranking her among the prophets who should first unfold a leading title of the blessed Seed of the woman."
In the best MSS. the whole of this hymn is written in hemistich or poetic lines. I shall here produce it in this order, following the plan as exhibited in Kennicott's Bible, with some trifling alterations of our present version: -
Ver. 1. My heart exulteth in Jehovah;
My horn is exalted in Jehovah.
My mouth is incited over mine enemies,
For I have rejoiced in thy salvation.
Ver. 2. There is none holy like Jehovah,
For there is none besides thee;
There is no rock like our God.
Ver. 3. Do not magnify yourselves, speak not proudly, proudly.
Let not prevarication come out of your mouth;
For the God of knowledge is Jehovah,
And by him actions are directed.
Ver. 4. The bows of the heroes are broken,
And the tottering are girded with strength.
Ver. 5. The full have hired out themselves for bread,
And the famished cease for ever.
The barren hath borne seven,
And she who had many children is greatly enfeebled.
Ver. 6. Jehovah killeth, and maketh alive;
He bringeth down to the grave, and bringeth up.
Ver. 7. Jehovah maketh poor, and maketh rich;
He bringeth down, and he even exalteth.
Ver. 8. He lifteth up the poor from the dust;
From the dunghill he exalteth the beggar,
To make him sit with the nobles,
And inherit the throne of glory.
For to Jehovah belong the pillars of the earth,
And upon them he hath placed the globe.
Ver. 9. The foot of his saints he shall keep,
And the wicked shall be silent in darkness;
For by strength shall no man prevail.
Ver. 10. Jehovah shall bruise them who contend with him;
Upon them shall be thunder in the heavens.
Jehovah shall judge the ends of the earth;
And he shall give strength to his King.
And shall exalt the horn of his Messiah.
It is not particularly stated here when Hannah composed or delivered this hymn; it appears from the connection to have been at the very time in which she dedicated her son to God at the tabernacle, though some think that she composed it immediately on the birth of Samuel. The former sentiment is probably the most correct.
Mine horn is exalted in the Lord] We have often seen that horn signifies power, might, and dominion. It is thus constantly used in the Bible, and was so used among the heathens. The following words of Horace to his jar are well known, and speak a sentiment very similar to that above: -
Tu spem reducis mentibus anxiis,
Viresque et addis CORNUA pauperi.
Hor. Odar. lib. iii., Od. 21, v. 18.
Thou bringest back hope to desponding minds; And thou addest strength and horns to the poor man.
Paraphrastically expressed by Mr. Francis: -
"Hope, by thee, fair fugitive,
Bids the wretched strive to live.
To the beggar you dispense
Heart and brow of confidence."
In which scarcely any thing of the meaning is preserved.
My mouth is enlarged] My faculty of speech is incited, stirred up, to express God's disapprobation against my adversaries.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11 1Sa 2:1. Hannah prayed — That is, praised God.…
1Sa 2:1. Hannah prayed — That is, praised God. Hymns of praise are frequently comprehended under the name of prayers. To utter this hymn Hannah was raised by divine inspiration, while she was engaged in devout meditation on the extraordinary goodness of God to her. My heart rejoiceth — Or, leapeth for joy; for the words signify, not only inward joy, but also the outward demonstration of it. She was influenced by the same spirit which moved St. James to say, Is any afflicted? Let him pray, as she did, 1Sa 1:10. Is any merry? Let him sing psalms, as she now does. In the Lord — As the author of my joy, that he hath heard my prayer, and accepted my son for his service. My horn is exalted — My strength and glory (which are often signified by a horn) are advanced, and manifested to my vindication, and the confusion of my enemies. She who was bowed down and dejected, now lifts up her head and triumphs. My mouth is enlarged, &c. — That is, opened wide to pour forth abundant praises to God, and to give a full answer to all the reproaches of my adversaries. Enemies — So she manifests her prudence and modesty in not naming Peninnah, but only her enemies in general. I rejoice in thy salvation — The matter of my joy is no trivial thing, but that strange and glorious deliverance thou hast given me from my oppressing grief and care, and from the insolent reproaches of my enemies.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 5, 10, 11 The song of Hannah is a prophetic Psalm. It…
The song of Hannah is a prophetic Psalm. It is poetry. and it is prophecy. It takes its place by the side of the songs of Miriam, Deborah, and the Virgin Mary, as well as those of Moses, David, Hezekiah, and other Psalmists and prophets whose inspired odes have been preserved in the Bible. The special feature which these songs have in common is, that springing from, and in their first conception relating to, incidents in the lives of the individuals who composed them, they branch out into magnificent descriptions of the Kingdom and glory of Christ, and the triumphs of the Church, of which those incidents were providentially designed to be the types. The perception of this is essential to the understanding of Hannah’s song. Compare the marginal references throughout.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain On vv1–11 Rejoiced. Septuagint and Chaldean, "been strengthened." Anna composed this…
Rejoiced. Septuagint and Chaldean, "been strengthened." Anna composed this canticle at the nativity of her son; or rather at his presentation in the tabernacle. She foretells the reign and glory of the Messias, and of his church. (St. Augustine, de C.[City of God?] xvii. 4. --- Horn. The horn in the Scripture signifies strength, power, and glory: so the horn is said to be exalted, when a person receives an increase of strength or glory. (Challoner) --- So Horace (3 Ode, 21.) says, addis cornua pauperi. --- Enlarged. Chaldean, "I have opened my mouth, to speak great things against my enemies." She has Phenenna principally in view, and compares her present glory with her former distress. (Calmet) --- I may boast more on account of Samuel, than my rival can of her numerous offspring. (Menochius)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Lange's Commentary on the Holy Scriptures 1864 · Public Domain On vv1, 11 Hannah’s Song of Praise
THIRD SECTION
Hannah’s Song of Praise
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1Sa_2:1-10
1 And Hannah prayed, and said:
My heart rejoiceth in the Lord [Jehovah1],
My horn is exalted in the Lord [ Jehovah];
My mouth is enlarged [opened wide] over mine enemies,
Because2 I rejoice in thy salvation.
2 There is none holy as the Lord [Jehovah],
‘For there is none beside thee,
Neither is there any [And there is no] rock like our God.
3 Talk no more so exceeding3 proudly;
Let not arrogancy come out of your mouth;
For the Lord [Jehovah] is a God of knowledge,4
And by him5 actions are weighed.
4 The bows of the mighty men are broken,
And they that stumbled are girded with strength.
5 They that were full have hired themselves out for bread,
And they that were hungry ceased [ins. to hunger6];
So that [Even6] the barren hath borne seven,
And she that hath many children hath waxed feeble.
6 The Lord [Jehovah] killeth and maketh alive,
He [om. He] bringeth down to the grave (underworld7) and bringeth up.
7 The Lord [Jehovah] maketh poor and maketh rich,
He (om. He) bringeth low and lifteth up.
8 He raiseth up the poor out of the dust,
And [om. And] lifteth up the beggar [needy] from the dunghill,
To set them8 among princes,
And to make [And he makes] them to inherit the [a] throne of glory:
For the pillars of the earth are the Lord’s [Jehovah’s],
And he hath set the world upon them.
9 He will keep the feet of his saints,9
And the wicked shall be silent9 in darkness;
For by strength shall no man [not by strength shall a man] prevail.
10 The adversaries10 of the Lord [Jehovah] shall be broken to pieces;
Out of heaven shall [will] he thunder upon them.
The Lord [Jehovah] shall [will] judge the ends of the earth,
And he shall [will] give strength unto his king,
And exalt the horn of his anointed.
EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL
1Sa_2:1. The superscription, “and Hannah prayed,” does not suit precisely the contents of the following Song, which is not exactly a prayer (תְּפִלָּה) but a thanksgiving-testimony to the Lord and the revelation of His glory. Clericus: “Hannah rather sings praises to God than asks anything of Him.” So the word “prayers” (תְּפִלִּוֹת) in Psa_72:20, includes all the Pss. from 1 to 72, in the broad sense of thinking and speaking of God and in God’s presence, when the heart is most thoroughly concentrated and deeply immersed in Him, though the form of thinking and speaking to God may be lacking. The “thou,” however, referring to God, appears in two places (1Sa_2:1-2). [Chald.: “H. prayed in the spirit of prophecy.”—Tr.].
The content of the Song is: 1) The manifestation of deep joy in the Lord at the deliverance vouchsafed by Him over against enemies (1Sa_2:1). With lofty flight the four-membered strophe rises from the depth of the heart’s joyful emotion on high, where the source of salvation and help in the living God is seen and praised. The heart (as elsewhere the soul) is the central organ of all painful and joyful feelings. The “horn” is the symbol—derived from horned beasts, which carry the head high in consciousness of power—of vigorous courage and consciousness of power, of which the Lord is the source, (comp. Deu_33:17; Psa_75:5; Psa_89:18; Psa_89:25).11 The repetition of the “in the Lord” emphasizes the fact that the joyous frame of mind and lofty consciousness of power has its root in the Lord, and presupposes the most intimate communion with the living God. The “mouth opened wide over my enemies,” intimates that the joy and courage that filled her soul had found utterance, partly in exulting over adversaries, as contrasted with the silence of subjection to them, partly in proclaiming the glory of the Lord in thanks and praise for the help received from Him in the attacks of foes. The ground of her joy in the Lord is His salvation, His help against enemies. 2) The praise of the majesty of God in His holiness and His faithfulness, which is as firm as a rock (1Sa_2:2). The “holy” indicates here in the broad sense the infinite superiority of God to everything earthly and human, His isolation from the world, but at the same time His absolute completeness of life in contrast with the nothingness and perishableness of everything in the sphere of the creaturely, as in Psa_99:2-5; comp. 1Ki_8:27. This is evident from the double negation: “none is holy as the Lord; for there is none beside thee.” The ground of this exclusive holiness is the aloneness and absoluteness of God; there is no God beside Him, He shares the divine being [Germ. Sein und Wesen] with none; therefore He is apart from everything human and earthly, and lifted up above it.12—The words “there is no rock like our God,” express the aloneness and exclusiveness of God’s character as set forth by the name rock. This superiority of God to all earthly and worldly being, this absolute glory beyond everything finite and human does not exclude, but is the ground of His self-revelation as the Fixed, Unchangeable, Immovable amid everything earthly and human. The “our God” presupposes the revelation of God by which He, as the Holy One, has chosen His people to be His possession, announced Himself to this people as their God, and made a covenant with them. The symbolical designation of this covenant-God by Rock, which occurs frequently, was suggested naturally by the configuration of the ground in Palestine, where masses of rock surrounded by steep precipices offered an image of solid and sure protection. God is a rock in His firm unshakable faithfulness; and it is the more necessary to suppose this attribute to be here set forth, because His relation to His people as covenant-God is assumed in the words “our God.” This term has the signification of faithfulness and indestructible trustworthiness in Deu_32:4, also; where it is clearly the same as אֱמוּנָה “faithfulness,” Psa_18:3, (2) sq.; Psa 92:16.13—The presupposition is the declaration “there is none beside Thee.” Jehovah, as the Holy One who has revealed Himself to His people as their God in His lofty elevation above the earthly and human, and is alone the truly existing living God, is for this very reason the Rock also in the absolute sense, the unchangeable, unshakably faithful, trustworthy God, and therefore claims from men, to whom He has revealed Himself as their God, and is known as such, unconditioned complete confidence, as it is expressed in this brief sentence, “none is a rock like our God.”14
3) The manifestations of the holy and faithful God in His conduct, as it is determined by His omniscience and omnipotence, partly towards the ungodly, partly towards the godly, 1Sa_2:3; 1Sa_2:8).
1Sa_2:3. The negative particle is omitted before “come out” (יֵצֵא) as before “speak”15 (תְּדַבְּרוּ), and the sense requires that it be supplied (Gesenius, §152, 3). Partly by the “more,” [Heb. literally, “do not increase to speak.”—Tr.], partly by the doubling of the noun [גְּבֹהָה “pride;” in Eng. A. V. the intensive doubling is rendered by “exceeding,”—TR.], the boastful vaunting character, the haughty soul of the ungodly is characterized, showing itself, as it often does, in arrogant words, and becoming, as it were, a second nature. The warning, “talk not so proudly, proudly,” stands in contrast with the praise of God’s grandeur in His holiness, and brings out the more sharply the contrast between human pride and the humility which is appropriate towards the holy God. Herder’s reference of the word (Geist d. ebräisch. Poesie 2, 282) to the “heights, which were used for defence, and in which pride was felt” is untenable, the Heb. not permitting it. The talking with so many proud and arrogant words stands in contrast with the expression of humility and gratitude in 1Sa_2:2 : “My mouth is opened wide, etc., there is none holy.”.......” עָתָק “arrogance” specially marks the haughty talk as the expression of a bold defiant soul, which will not bend, and manifests itself particularly towards the pious and God fearing by bold words, comp. Psa_75:6; Psa_94:4; Psa_31:19. Sins of word, corresponding to the proud nature, are here emphasized, because what the heart is full of the mouth will speak.
His warning is supported by pointing to God’s omniscience and omnipotence, in which the relation of His holiness to earthly and human things is shown. “For Jehovah is a God of omniscience.” The plu. “knowledges” (דֵּעוֹת) indicates that God knows and is acquainted with every individual thing, that, as He is raised above every created thing, and thus present with all things and creatures, so they are present and known to Him; and thus it expresses the thought that the concrete content of God’s omniscience is everything finite and created.16 The proud and bold men, who speak so haughtily, must recollect that God knows all their deeds and hears their words, that therefore they cannot withdraw from His rule.—Secondly, reference is made to God’s power, which controls all things according to a fixed unchangeable plan. We must first inquire whether the “actions” (עֲלִלוֹת) is to be understood of human or divine deeds, and then whether we are to read “not” (לֹא) or the Qeri “by him” (לוֹ). The first question can be decided only by the connection. The preceding context speaks not of the deeds, but of the words of ungodly men. In what follows it is similarly not works and deeds of men that are treated of, but the conditions and relations of human life, with which divine agency has to do; in 1Sa_2:4, sq., the thought expressly confines itself to divine deeds. We cannot therefore with Böttcher (Aehrenlese, in loco) suppose a question, and, retaining the Kethib, render, “and are not deeds measured?” that is, “ is not care taken that human deeds shall not become immoderate, insolent?” nor, with Thenius, adopting the Qeri, “and by Him actions are measured,” that is, “He determines how far human doing may go;” nor, with Luther, paraphrase “the Lord does not suffer such conduct to prosper.” But, if we have to suppose only divine deeds, then the translation “to him or by him actions are weighed or measured” is certainly to be preferred to the other—“are not actions weighed or measured, that is, determined?”—because of the vagueness of the thought in the latter. The thought, then, is this: God’s actions are weighed, measured, fixed; He proceeds, in His working, by unchangeable paths established by Himself, so that none can free himself from His omnipotence, as none can withdraw from His all-pervading omniscience. Against the explanation “by Him the actions of men are weighed” (Bunsen: according to their essential worth), Keil properly urges: “God weighs the spirits, the hearts of men indeed (Pro_16:2; Pro_21:2; Pro_24:12), but not their deeds. This expression is never found.” It is without ground, however, that he introduces the idea of righteousness, since we have here to do with nothing but the free, unrestricted activity of the divine omnipotence, to which, as to His omniscience, men are absolutely subject. [The correctness of this interpretation is open to doubt. The conception of God weighing His own actions, acting with prudence and forecast, is not, I believe, found elsewhere in the Bible; the higher conception of immutable wisdom is every where presented. On the other hand, that God weighs the actions of men, if not (as Keil says) explicitly stated, is yet involved in many passages, in all, for example, which set forth His righteous retribution; as, “Thou renderest to every man according to his work” (Psa_62:12); “God shall bring every work into judgment” (Ecc_12:14); and comp. Psa_10:18; Psa_11:5; Psa_14:2; Pro_15:3; Job_34:21; Job_34:23; Jer_9:23-24; Joe_3:12. And this interpretation agrees very well with the context. The word “actions” may well include all exhibitions of human character, and the antithesis throughout the Song is between the wicked and the righteous. The thought, therefore, may be: Jehovah is holy and immutable. Give ho exhibition of pride, for He knows and weighs your actions. He reverses human conditions, bringing down (i. e. the wicked), and setting up (i. e. the righteous). Expositors are about equally divided between these interpretations. With Erdmann are Targum, Sept., Theodoret, Patrick, Keil; in favor of the other, Syr., Clarke, Henry, Ewald; doubtful, Vulg., Synop. Crit., Gill, “Wordsworth. Deu_32:4 does not seem to bear on the decision, for it is Jehovah’s righteousness that is there emphasized.—Tr.]
1Sa_2:4-8 further carry out the thought of God’s almighty working in human life by a series of sharply contrasted changes of fortune. In this it is assumed that God’s omnipotent working is just, but it is not explicitly declared till afterwards. “The preceding thought is carried further: Every power which will be something in itself is destroyed by the Lord; every weakness, which despairs of itself, is transformed into power” (O. v. Gerlach).
1Sa_2:4. As in Isa_21:17 we have bows of heroes instead of heroes of the bow, so here the symbol of human power and might is poetically put first instead of the personal subject. [Dr. Erdmann translates: “the heroes of the bow are cast down,” which is, however, giving up the poetical form. Better: “the bows of heroes are broken.” So in Isa_21:17 : “the residue of the bows of the heroes shall become small.”—Tr.] The “broken” (חַתִּים) refers, according to the sense, to the latter (since “heroes” is the logical subject) instead of to “bows,” the breaking of which indicates the broken power of those who, like heroes of the bow, trust to their might. The strong are overcome by God, as a hero loses his power when his bow is broken. The antithesis: “And they that stumbled [or, stumble] are girded with strength.” As stumbling, tottering indicates weakness and powerlessness, so “being girded” with strength denotes fitness for battle, power prepared for battle. The strong He deprives of strength, the powerless He makes strong—according to the free working of His power.
1Sa_2:5. The “full,” who in the abundance of their wealth had no need, have hired themselves out for bread, that is, must earn their bread in order to appease their hunger. On the other hand, the hungry “cease” (חָדֵלוּ) either “to be hungry,” or, “to work for bread.” The latter is preferable on account of the contrast with “hire themselves out for bread” in the first clause; so Herder (“they now have holiday”) and Bunsen (“they no longer need work for bread”). Clericus: “Hannah here rightly attributes to divine providence what the heathen wrongly attribute to fortune, of whose instabilitv they speak ad nauseam.” See J. Stobæi, florileg. tit. 10517 The עַד [“till,” rendered in Eng. A.V. “so that”] is taken by some expositors in the sense “even” [Germ. sogar]. Clericus explains it as a sort of ellipsis “as if she said that all experienced the vicissitudes of human affairs, even to the barren woman, who,” etc. Similarly Keil explains it as a brachylogy: “it goes so far that”..… This adverbial construction, with the presupposed logical zeugma, would have as much in its favor as the view of Thenius, who asks: “Might not עַד be an adverb: the long barren?” But there are passages in which עַד, from its sense of continuance, must be taken simply as a conjunction, meaning “in that or while” (Jon_4:2; Job_1:18; 1Sa_14:19); in the two last passages it is followed as here by וְ [“and”], and introduces an occurrence contemporaneously with which, or following on which, something else occurred. Here then: “while the barren bears seven.” “Seven children” is, according to Rth_4:15, the “complete number of the divine blessing in children” (Keil). Comp. Psa_113:9 : “he makes the barren woman dwell in the house, the joyful mother of children.” [Erdmann translates: “he makes the barren woman of the house dwell as a joyful mother of children.”—Tr.] [Psa_113:7-9 resembles 1Sa_2:5; 1Sa_2:7-8 so closely as to suggest an imitation. It would be very natural in a later writer, in composing a Psalm celebrating Jehovah’s majesty and power, to take such general expressions from a well-known song, which we may suppose was committed to writing by Hannah herself, and through Samuel transmitted to the prophetic students, among whom, no doubt, were many psalmists. The Book of “Samuel” itself was probably in circulation soon after Rehoboam’s time.—Tr.] “And she who had many children languishes away.” Clericus remarks: “being exhausted before the end of the, usual bearing-time of women, and perhaps left solitary by the death of her children.” As to this last point comp. Jer_15:9.18 [The view held by some that in Hannah’s barrenness and subsequent fruitfulness there is a mystical or typical meaning, deserves consideration. It is advocated by Jerome, Augustine, Patrick, Gill, Wordsworth, and the Bib. Comm. Hannah is said to be the type of the Christian Church, at first barren and reviled, afterwards fruitful and rejoicing. As to such a typical character we must be guided, not by outward resemblances, but by fixed principles of biblical interpretation. If Hannah’s late fruitfulness is typical, it must be because it sets forth a spiritual element of the spiritual kingdom of God. These facts may guide us to a decision: 1) God’s relation to His people is set forth under the figure of marriage; He is the husband, His people the wife (Isaiah 54; Jeremiah 3; Hosea 1-3); 2) Isaiah (1Sa 54:1) describes God’s spiritual people as barren, yet with the promise of many children; 3) Paul (Gal_4:27) quotes this passage of Isaiah, refers it to the Church of Christ as distinguished from the Jewish dispensation, and declares that this antithesis is given in Sarah and Hagar. The barren Sarah is the new dispensation, the fruitful Hagar the old. Besides Sarah, other barren women in the Bible become the mothers of remarkable sons: Rebecca, Rachel, Samson’s mother, Hannah, Elizabeth. Are these all typical of the new dispensation or the Church of Christ? The answer is to be found in Paul’s treatment of Sarah’s history. What he declares is, that Sarah is the mother of the child of promise, while Hagar’s child was the product of natural fruitfulness. Thus Sarah sets forth the dispensation which is based on promise or free grace and faith; Hagar represents the dispensation of works. Paul quotes Isa_54:1, to show simply that the spiritual Jerusalem, the Church of Christ, is our mother. Throughout his argument it is the spiritual element of promise and faith on which Sarah’s typical position is based. Only, therefore, where we can show such spiritual element are we justified in supposing a typical character. There must be involved the truth that the origination and maintenance of God’s people depend on His promise and not on human strength. This is not necessarily involved in the history of every barren woman who becomes fruitful—certainly not in that of Rachel, probably in that of Rebecca, probably not in the others. These histories teach indeed that fruitfulness is the gift of God; and, as an encouragement to faith, He has in some instances granted to the barren to be the mothers of sons to whom He has assigned important positions in the development of His kingdom. But this fact does not in itself show that these mothers sustained to the kingdom of God the relation which Sarah sustained. Hannah seems to be simply a pious mother whose prayer for a son, contrary to human probabilities, is granted.—Tr.].
1Sa_2:6. This Keil connects with the preceding, explaining: This comes from the Lord, who kills, etc. But here, as in the remaining members of the Song, we must suppose a logical asyndeton. The contrast of death and life, killing and making alive demands even a wider extension of these conceptions than is indicated in the last clause of 1Sa_2:5. Killing denotes (with a departure from the ordinary sense) bringing into the extremest misfortune and suffering, which oppresses the soul like the gloom of death, or brings it near to death—making alive is extricating from deadly sorrow and introducing into safety and joy. This is confirmed by the second member: “He brings down to Sheol and brings up.” The same contrast is found in Deu_32:39, “I kill and I make alive; I wound and I heal;” Psa_30:4 (3), “Thou hast brought up my soul from Sheol, Thou hast made me alive,” etc.; Psa_71:20, “Thou, who hast showed us great and sore trouble, wilt quicken us again, and wilt bring us up again from the depths of the earth,” [Eng. A. V. reads, with Qeri, me; Kethib, us.—Tr.]. Psa_86:13 : “Great is Thy mercy towards me, and Thou hast delivered my soul from the lowest Sheol,” (comp. Job_5:18, and Psa_88:4-6). So also in Psa_66:9, misfortune is conceived of as death, salvation as revival. Calvin: “in the word ‘death’ Hannah properly embraces everything injurious, and whatever leads step by step to death, as, on the other hand, the word ‘life’ includes everything happy and prosperous, and whatever can make a fortunate man contented with his lot.” [As is apparent from the above exposition, there is no reference in this verse to the doctrine of the resurrection. The word שְּׁאוֹל “Sheol,” improperly rendered in Eng. A. V. “hell” and “the grave,” means “the underworld,” (Erdmann, the same, “unterwelt”), the gloomy abode of all the dead, conceived of by the Hebrews as the negation of all earthly activity. It thus became an image of darkness and suffering, only here and there illumined and soothed (as in Psalms 16) by the conviction that God’s love would maintain and develop into fulness of joy the life which He had bestowed on His servants.—The word is usually supposed to mean a “hole,” “cleft” like, Eng. hell (=“hole,” “hollow,” German hölle.—Tr.].
1Sa_2:7. By His power the Lord determines the contrast of rich and poor, high and low; comp. Psa_75:8 (7). The thought of the second clause is developed in 1Sa_2:8, with the first half of which Psa_113:7-8 agrees almost Word for word. Being low is here regarded as being despised, for “dust and dunghill” indicate a condition of deepest dishonor and disgrace, in which one is, as it were, trodden under foot; comp. Psa_44:26 (25). The “raising and lifting” denotes the divine government, by which shame and contempt are changed into honor and glory. The contrast to the dust and the dunghill is the sitting in the company of nobles and princes, on the throne of honor. Calvin: “Hannah goes on to say the same thing of honors and dignities as of fortunes, namely, that, when we behold in this world so many and so great vicissitudes, we should lift up our gaze to the providence of God, who rules all things in heaven and earth by His will, not imagining that there is anything fortuitous in our lives, (… but knowing that God’s providence controls everything).”—The two last clauses point to the foundation of the Lord’s determination and arrangement of the contrasted relations of life and fates of men: “for the pillars of the earth are Jehovah’s, and He hath set the earth upon them.”19 The control and government of God here portrayed is founded on the fact that He is the creator and sustainer of the earth, and therefore by His omnipotence exercises unrestricted rule over the earth-world. Here we have clear and plain the highest point of view, from which all that is said from 1Sa_2:4 on is to be looked at: the all-embracing power of the Lord. Clericus: “Hannah, therefore, means to say that God easily effects any change in human affairs, since He is creator and lord of the earth itself.”
4. The Song culminates (1Sa_2:9-10) in the prophetic testimony to the omnipotent rule of the holy God in the manifestation of His justice towards the godly and the ungodly, and in conducting His kingdom to glorious victory over the world, a) To the godly the Lord will grant His protection and salvation, and will guard them from misfortune, comp. Psa_56:13 (14): “Wilt Thou not deliver my feet from falling, that I may walk before God in the light of life [Germ, as Eng. A. V.: ‘the living’]?” So Psa_116:8; Psa_121:3; “he suffers not thy foot to fall.” The tottering [or falling] of the feet is not to be taken here in an ethical sense; the preservation of the feet from slipping, tottering, stumbling, often denotes deliverance from long-continued misfortune and suffering, so Psa_15:5; Psa_55:23; Psa_66:9. “His saints” points to the intimate association between God and His people, and its correlative is “my God,” “our God.” b) The godless will be the objects of His punitive justice. They will perish in darkness. The darkness is the symbol of misfortune and misery, as light of safety and life, Job_15:22; Psa_107:14. Godlessness is voluntary remoteness from the light of salvation, which God sheds abroad; and so its walking in darkness must end in destruction. For, not by strength, that is, by his own strength, shall a man prevail; “shall a man be strong” (יִגְבַּר־אִישׁ) is an allusion perhaps to the “mighty men” (גִבֹּרִים) in 1Sa_2:4. The godless rely on their own strength with which to help themselves in the darkness. But it is universally true that “we do nothing by our own strength.” Psa_33:16-17. He who leans on his own strength (which cannot be without turning away from the Lord, who alone can help) will receive his just reward, he will perish in darkness. Clericus: “No one can avoid calamity by his own strength, unhelped by divine providence.”—Human weakness is here specially brought out by the order of the words; on man [Heb. אִישׁ last word in 1Sa_2:9] follows immediately Jehovah [in the Heb., first word in 1Sa_2:10], which further stands as absolute subject (comp. Psa_11:4) and thus in sharper contrast. As “prevail” in 1Sa_2:9 alludes to 1Sa_2:4, so here the “broken” to the “broken” in that verse.—The thought, that God’s justice is shown in the punishment of the godless, is first very strongly and sharply expressed by the immediate collocation of the two verbs after Jehovah: “broken are his opposers,”20 and then illustrated by the allusion to a judicial process which ends with the carrying out of the sentence. The ungodly strive with God as in a judicial contest (מְרִיבָיו [Qeri]), but they are confounded in the presence of the process of law to which the Lord comes. The thunder, the sign of His fear-inspiring and destructive power, is the announcement of His proximity lo the tribunal. The “judge” (יָדִין) denotes the holding of the court. The judicial work of God is the outflow of His holiness, justice and almightiness, which three attributes of God have been celebrated up to this point. The object of the judicial interposition of God is not only the members of the chosen people, but the ends of the earth, that is, all peoples, the whole world. As before the whole earthly creation, founded and maintained by God’s power, was brought before us in order to establish God’s almighty control over the earth, so here our view is extended from punitive justice as it shows itself in the sphere of God’s people to God’s judgment as it stretches over the whole earth, to the all-embracing world-judgment. The prophetic view often rises to this universality of God’s judicial control as the judge of the whole world (Gen_18:25), which corresponds to the idea of the universal salvation embracing all the nations of the earth; so, for example, Mic_1:2 sq.; Isa_2:9 sq.; 1Sa_3:13; Psa_7:8 sq.; 1Sa_9:8. The conception of this general judgment over all the peoples of the earth, and that of the special judgment over Israel and every individual member of Israel are closely connected. The aim of both is to lead God’s kingdom to victory and glory. The broad glance at the ends of the earth filled with the judicial glory of King Jehovah fixes itself in the concluding words on the highest aim and end to be reached by the exercise of God’s judicial justice, namely, the unfolding of God’s power and dominion in the kingdom in Israel and in the person of His anointed. “And He will give strength to His king, and exalt the horn of His anointed.”
HISTORICAL AND THEOLOGICAL
After the explanation of the content of this Song of praise of Hannah, we must in the first place consider the question of its origin. The answer to this question is inseparable from our historical conception and estimate of the content of the Song, and is therefore connected with the historical and theological remarks. The question is: whether, as the author obviously assumes, Hannah herself sang it from her heart, or, whether it owed its origin to a totally different occasion, and was put into Hannah’s mouth by the author.
According to Ewald, this Song is an interpolation by a later hand, because 1Sa_2:1 is the immediate continuation of the concluding words of the first chapter, and is therefore a proper ending like 1Sa_1:19, (“ they worshipped and returned”); but we reply that the words, 1Sa_1:28, “they worshipped the Lord there,” form an appropriate introduction to the following prayer, and that the latter contains nothing out of keeping with the continuity of the narrative—rather its content quite suits the situation, and therefore from this point of view there is no necessity for regarding it (from its content) as a later insertion which breaks the connection.—But particularly two things in the content have been adduced against the ascription of the Song to Hannah or to Hannah’s time: the celebration of a glorious victory over foreign enemies, and the assumption of the existence of the theocratic kingdom in the conclusion.—But, as to the first, where in the Song is there the mention of a victory gained in war with foreign enemies? The only passage in which warriors are spoken of contrasts the “mighty bowmen” with the stumbling who are girded with the strength, not to portray heroes of war, but to show how this contrast also (which is parallel with others, none of which have anything to do with war) is brought about by the Lord’s omnipotent rule. The description of these contrasts and of the power of God which reveals itself in them is so general that it is impossible to discover here the character of a Song of victory which presupposes a war. The “enemies ” against whom the Song is directed are not the national enemies of the people of Israel, the heathen nations with whom they had to fight, but the ungodly within the chosen people as opposed to the truly pious and God-fearing. The contrasts which are introduced have their root in the fundamental view of the religious-moral opposition of pride and humility in reference to the holy God (1Sa_2:3, a), culminate in the testimony to God’s righteous judgment on godly and ungodly, and in their movement between these poles exhibit only the religious-moral condition of the people of Israel as the historical background. Nothing is said of opposition to external national enemies. Hence it is just as unfounded to regard David as the author of the Song (Bertholdt, Einl. III. 915), especially to suppose it a Song of praise for his victory over Goliath and the resulting defeat of the Philistines, (Thenius 1 ed., Böttcher), as it is arbitrary to suppose one of the oldest Kings of Judah its author.21 Neither one nor the other can be demonstrated, or even shown to be probable.—The second argument against the ascription of the Song to Hannah, and for referring it to the period of the Kings seems weightier; for the words of 1Sa_2:10, “He will give strength to his king, and exalt the horn of His anointed,” seem to assume the existence of a king. But nothing obliges us so to understand it. If we put ourselves in the period of Samuel’s early life, the fact is incontestable that in the consciousness of the people, and the noblest part of them too, the idea of a monarchy had then become a power, which quickened more and more the hope of a realization of the old promises that there should be a royal dominion in Israel, till it took shape in the express demand which the people made of Samuel. The divine promise that the people should be a kingdom is given as early as the patriarchal period, comp. Gen_17:6; Gen_17:16. The idea of the kingdom as bringing prosperity to the whole people connects itself with the Tribe of Judah, Gen_49:10. Judah will come forth victorious from the battle which awaits him, will remain in possession of everlasting imperishable dominion, and will never lose the sceptre. The period of the Law further develops the idea of this kingdom. The whole people is to be a priestly kingdom (Exo_20:6). In Balaam’s prophecy the royal power and dominion to which Israel would attain is celebrated under the figure of the Star which rises on Jacob, and in their victory over their enemies, Num_24:17; Num_24:19. This old prophecy is altogether unintelligible if the consciousness of the people did not attach the hope of future development and prosperity to the idea of the kingdom. That the law of the king in Deuteronomy 17 belongs to the legal period has been improperly doubted, (comp. Oehler in Herzog’s R.-E. s. v. Königthum). The proposition made to Gideon to be king (Jdg_8:23), though rejected by him, shows how in the period of the Judges the felt national disintegration brought out more strongly the desire for a single government which should embrace the whole people and protect them against external enemies. The phrase of refusal “Jehovah shall rule over you,” is based on the external non-theocratic conception of the kingdom which underlay that application, and at the same time expresses in the clearest manner the consciousness of the divine rule of which the kingly rule was to be the organ. At the close of the period of the Judges the need of such a theocratic kingdom was felt the more strongly, because the office which was entrusted with the duty of forming and guiding the theocratic life of the nation, namely, the high-priestly office, was itself with the people involved in the deepest degradation. The hope thereon based, that the Lord would set up a kingdom as the instrument of saving the people from their deep corruption, is expressed in our Song in the concluding mention of the anointed of the Lord, who would receive his power from Him, whose horn would be exalted by the hand of the Lord. The same thought is expressed by that man of God (1Sa_2:35), who announces to the High-priest Eli the judgment of his house and the raising up of a faithful priest who will walk before the anointed of the Lord; that is, he indicates a direct interposition by God in the fortunes of His people, by which a new order of things will be brought about under the guidance of a true theocratic priesthood in connection with a divinely established kingdom.
This was a testimony of the prophetical spirit which animated that man of God, that spirit of the prophecy and announcement of divine truth and promise, which had by no means completely died out in the time of the Judges. When God introduced the new era of Israel’s fortunes, the elevation of the theocratic development of His people’s life to a new plane by the prophet Samuel as instrument of His revelation, and first of the continuous theocratic line of prophets, He selected persons in the border-time between the old and the new in whom theocratic hopes dwelt in living power, informed them by direct influence of His Spirit of the approaching fulfillment of this hope, and prepared and impelled them to announce and to celebrate by prophetic testimony God’s new revelations of salvation. The “man of God” made such an announcement to Eli, who, according to the divine counsel, was to fall together with his house, that a new true priesthood might arise, which should be closely connected with the “anointed of the Lord,” the theocratic kingdom, in its effort to attain its end and aim, namely, God’s dominion over His people. Hannah made such an announcement respecting her child Samuel, she knowing by divine revelation that he was to be God’s instrument for great things, the renewer and restorer of the theocratic life under the God-given kingdom. She, like that man of God, is filled with the spirit of prophecy, whose representative and instrument she was the more fitted to be, as she belonged to the pious class of the people, and walked before God. Her song is a product of this prophetic spirit, which lifts her far above the joy (felt in her heart, and uttered at the outset) of her heard prayer and God’s acceptance of her child to be His possession, and above her personal experience of the might of the living God, and makes her see and celebrate His manifestations of might in his kingdom, which he has established in his people, and will develop in new glory by the revelation of His power and justice. From the depths of humble piety she looks up away from her poor self to the height of the holiness and faithfulness of the living God. The foundations on which rests all God’s revelation to His people, as well as His dominion over them, are His holiness and rock-firm faithfulness. On them is built God’s government in His kingdom and people, to which Hannah is led by the divine providence in her own life to look up. As she looks, her experience of her “adversaries” and of their pride and presumption is broadened and generalized into a view of God’s absolute government and dominion which brings to shame all the pride and insolence of the ungodly, and which is revealed, partly in the unlimited, unconditioned rule of His might, which accomplishes the life-changes of godly and ungodly in the extremest contrasts, contradicting all human calculation (1Sa_2:4-8), partly in the government of His justice, in which He shows Himself as the unchangeable rock of the godly, and gives the ungodly over to destruction (1Sa_2:9-10). From the idea of this government of justice the song rises finally with rapid flight to the conception of a judgment which the living, just God stretches with His dominion over the ends of the earth, and to the idea of a kingdom, which, in this divine domain, and by this ruling and governing of God, develops its power beyond the limits of Israel, and in the possession of this God-given power is the instrument of the divine dominion—a wide extension of the prophetic view, under the guidance of the divine Spirit, beyond the present which is the foundation of the word of the prophetic testimony. Thus the prophetic-historical description of the establishment of the kingdom in Israel is introduced by this lyric-prophetic witness of the God-ordained and God-serving power of the theocratic kingdom; and on this follows soon the prophetic announcement of the intimate relation in which the renovated priesthood is to stand to the “anointed of the Lord.” Hannah “beholds in her individual experience the general laws of the divine economy, and divines its significance for the whole history of the kingdom of God” (Auberlen, Stud. u. Krit., 1860, p. 564).
In this song—uttered, in the spirit of prophecy, in the beginning of the development of the theocratic life, in so far as that development was determined by the kingdom which the people hoped for and God gave—Hannah passes unconsciously, impelled by the divine Spirit, over all the intermediate steps of the development of the kingdom of God, and points to the final goal, at which the divinely established, divinely equipped, royal dominion extends itself over the ends of the earth. To this answers, on the one hand, the idea of a universal revelation of salvation, which appears in that tribe-promise of the Shiloh, to whom the obedience of the nations belongs, and farther back in the patriarchal promises; and, on the other hand, there is connected with it the prophetic content of the songs of praise of Mary and Zachariah (Luk_1:46 sq. and 68 sq.), where there is express reference to the words of Hannah in view of the approaching final fulfillment of the idea, contained in her prophetic announcement, of the dominion of the anointed of the Lord which in divine power is to extend over the ends of the earth.
[Wordsworth: “The Magnificat of Hannah is an evangelical song, chanted by the spirit of Prophecy under the Levitical Law. It is a prelude and overture to the Gospel. It is a connecting link of sweet and sacred melody between the Magnificat of Miriam after the passage of the Red Sea—symbolizing the Death, Burial and Resurrection of Christ—and the Magnificat of Mary, after the Annunciation of His Birth..… Let this Song of Hannah be read in the Septuagint, and then the Magnificat in St. Luke’s original, and the connection of the two will be more clearly recognized.… The true characteristic of Sacred Poetry is, that it is not egotistical. It merges the individual in the nation, and in the Church Universal. It looks forward from the special occasion which prompts the utterance of thanksgiving, and extends and expands itself, with a loving power and holy energy, into a large and sympathetic outburst of praise to God for His love to all mankind in Christ.…… The Magnificat of Hannah is conceived in this spirit. It is not only a song of thanksgiving; it is also a prophecy. It is an utterance of the Holy Ghost moving within her, and making her maternal joy on the birth of Samuel to overflow in outpourings of thankfulness to God for those greater blessings in Christ, of which that birth was an earnest and a pledge. In this respect it may be compared with the Song of Moses (Deuteronomy 32) and the Song of David (2 Samuel 22).”—Augustine, in his comment on this Song (De Civ. Dei, 17, 4), follows the translation of the Sept. (which is often incorrect), and, along with some good thoughts, has much wrong exegesis and unfounded spiritualizing.—Tr.]
HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL
1Sa_2:1. The joy in the Lord, to which faith attains amid sore conflicts: 1) Its source—not our own heart with its frowardness and its despondency, not help and consolation from men, but only the Lord’s grace and compassion, which make the heart joyous again, lifting up with mighty power the mind that has been stricken down; 2) Its object: the fulness of the salvation which the Lord dispenses, and faith ever more richly appropriates: 3) Its expression: an open testimony to the salvation experienced—before God in praise, (“I rejoice in thy salvation”), before men—in confessing and celebrating our experience of salvation, to our companions in the faith that they may unite with us in joy and praise, so that their faith may be strengthened, to the adversaries of the faith that they may be ashamed, may be warned, may repent.—[Hannah’s song of praise compared with her former prayer. 1) She was then “in bitterness of soul” (1Sa_1:10); now her “ heart rejoiceth.” 2) Then she was humiliated (1Sa_1:5; 1Sa_1:8; 1Sa_1:11); now she is “exalted.” 3) Then her adversary provoked her (1Sa_1:6); now her “mouth is opened wide over her enemies.” 4) Then she “poured out her soul before the Lord” (1Sa_1:15); now she “rejoices in His salvation.” Often we remember to pray, and then forget to praise.—Tr.].
1Sa_2:2. The two characteristics of the life of God’s children in their relation to the living God: 1) The humble reverence before Him, in view of His holiness; 2) The heartiest confidence in Him, in view of His unchangeable faithfulness.
1Sa_2:3. The humbling of the natural man’s pride through the testimony concerning the living God: 1) Concerning his universal knowledge; 2) His universal wisdom which determines and regulates all the details of His action (1Sa_2:3); 3) His universal power which determines every change in the fortunes of human life, (1Sa_2:4-8). [The division 2) must be modified if the view of Tr. be adopted as to the reference of the term “actions.” See Exegetical on 1Sa_2:3.—Tr.]
[1Sa_2:3. “ By Him actions are weighed.” I. The manner of His weighing—with perfect knowledge (1Sa_2:3), with absolute rectitude (1Sa_2:2), with immutable justice (1Sa_2:2).—II. The result of His weighing is often a total reversal of men’s fortunes (1Sa_2:4-8). Application: Be not proud of present prosperity, but look well to the way in which you enjoy and use it (1Sa_2:3).—Tr.].
[Henry: 1Sa_2:1-3. Hannah’s triumph in God’s perfections, and in His blessings to her. I. She celebrates His glorious attributes: (1) His purity. (2) His power. (3) His wisdom. (4) His justice. II. She solaces herself in these things. III. She silences those who are enemies to her and to God.
1Sa_2:4-8. Providence in the changes of human life: 1) The strong are weakened and the weak strengthened, when God pleases (1Sa_2:4). 2) The rich are impoverished and the poor enriched (1Sa_2:5). 3) God is the Lord of life and death (1Sa_2:6). 4) He advances and He abases (1Sa_2:7-8). 5) And in all this we must acquiesce, for God is sovereign. “The pillars of the earth are the Lord’s.”—Tr.]
1Sa_2:4-8. The unity amid change of the opposite ways which the pious and the ungodly must go: 1) One starting-point, the Lord’s inscrutable will, which determines them; 2) One hand, the almighty hand of the Lord, which leads them; 3) One goal at which they end, humble submission under that hand.—The wonderful guidance of the children of men upon quite opposite ways: 1) The opposite direction in which they go, (a) from the height to the depth, (b) from the depth to the height; 2) The opposite design which the Lord has therein with men, (a) to lead them from the heights of pride and haughty self-complacency to humble submission under His unlimited power,(b) to exalt them from the depths of humble self-renunciation to a blessed life in the enjoyment of His free grace; 3) The opposite end, according as men cause the divine design to be fulfilled or defeated in them: (a) everlasting destruction without God, (b) everlasting salvation and life in and with God.
1Sa_2:3-10. The contrasts which the change in the relations of human life presents to us in the light of divine truth: 1) God’s holiness and man’s sin; 2) God’s almightiness and man’s powerlessness; 3) God’s gracious design and man’s destruction.
1Sa_2:4. Weakness and strength come from the Lord: 1) He makes the strong weak; 2) He makes the weak strong.
1Sa_2:5. The Lord alone gives full satisfaction: 1) He leads from false contentment in carnal fulness to wholesome destitution; 2) He changes hunger into blessed fulness with true contentment. [Fanciful and strained.—Tr.]—Blessed are they that hunger: 1) Because the Lord brings them from full to hungry, 2) From hungry to full.
1Sa_2:6. How the living God shows Himself as the Lord of life and of death: 1) In that He leads from life into death, 2) From death into life.
1Sa_2:7-8. The sovereign rule of the grace of God: 1) It makes poor, in order to make rich; 2) It humbles, in order to exalt.
1Sa_2:9-10. The Lord our God is a just God: 1) Upon the pious He bestows salvation in His light; 2) The ungodly he causes to perish in darkness.—As man with his whole life places himself towards God, so will God in the judgment place Himself towards him as a just Judge: 1) Either in the severity of His punitive justice; 2) Or in the kindness of His saving grace.—The great Either—Or—which God’s word writes over every human life: 1) Either with the pious for the Lord, or with the ungodly against Him; 2) Either trusting alone in the saving might of divine grace, or wishing to be strong by one’s own power; 3) Either preserved by the Lord with the pious to everlasting life, or banished with the ungodly to everlasting condemnation.
1Sa_2:10. The judgment of God’s punitive justice (“The Lord will judge”): 1) Whom it threatens—the ungodly, “adversaries.” 2) How God makes it approach with warning signs (“out of heaven shall be thunder”). 3) How it discharges itself against all the world that is opposed to God (“ The Lord shall judge the ends of the earth”). 4) How it promotes the perfecting of His Kingdom.
[Providence in the national government of Israel. Not only was the secular spirit in the nation beginning to desire a king (1Sa_8:5), but the inspired Hannah here predicts it with devout hope. Theocracy, Monarchy and Hierarchy each contributed in turn to the welfare of Israel, and each helped to prepare the way for the great Anointed, at once Prophet, King, and Priest, who should reign over the spiritual Israel.—Interesting lectures might be made on “Psalms outside of the Book of Psalms.” (See above, additions to Historical and Theological.)—Tr.]
Footnotes:
[1][Instead of “Jehovah,” 28 MSS., 3 printed copies, LXX. and Vulg., read “my God,” which some prefer as a variation; Syr. and Ar. omit the word. It is better to keep the Heb. text.—Tr.]
[2][“Because” is omitted in Vat. LXX. (probably by clerical error), retained in Chald. and Syr.—Tr.]
[3][The Heb. here repeats the subst. נְּבֹהָה נְּבֹהָה, “pride, pride,” in a superl. sense. Wellhausen takes these words as a quotation, and the ה as He local, “do not say, high up! high up!” but this rendering has little in its favor.—Tr.]
[4][Lit. “knowledges.” Ewald and Erdmann render “an omniscient God.”
[5][Kethib is לא, “not,” and so Syr. and Ar.; the Qeri לוֹ, “by him,” is found in many MSS., and LXX., Chald. and Vulg. See Dr. Erdmann’s note.—Tr.]
[6][On these interpretations of חדלו and עד see exegetical note.—Tr.]
[7][Heb. שְׁאוֹל, Sheol. See exeget. note.—Tr.]
[8][The Heb. has no pronoun here. Some MSS. have a Yod paragog. which may represent an original Waw in the text. The sense is not affected.—Tr.]
[9][Heb. has the sing. in Kethib, but the plur. of Qeri suits the connection better. (So Vulg.) The Kethib may be only a scriptio defectiva. (In Psa_16:10 Kethib is plur.; Qeri, not so well, sing.)—חָםִיד is literally “a favored one,” “beloved,” rendered by Erdmann “fromm” (pious).—Erdmann renders “shall perish.” The word means first “ be silent,” and then “perish,”—silence being a sign of destruction.—Tr.]
[10][Here again Kethib is sing., and Qeri plur., and the verb is plur. Lit. “Jehovah—his adversaries shall be broken.” LXX.: “the Lord will make his adversary weak;” Vulg.: “dominum formidabunt adversarii ejus;” Chald.: “Jehovah will destroy the enemies who rise up to hurt his people.” This simpler construction (reading the verb as sing.) is adopted by Wellhausen and the Bible Commentary—but there is not sufficient ground for changing the existing Hebrew text.*—Tr.]
[11][There is no reason for supposing here a reference to the eastern custom among Oriental women, (Druses and others), of wearing silver-horns on the head to which the vail is attached, and which by their position indicate the woman’s position as maiden, wife, or mother. There is no trace of such a custom among the ancient Hebrews. The word qeren “horn,” is used of the horns of beasts, of horns for blowing and drinking, or for any horn-shaped vessel, (so, the name of Job’s daughter Qeren-happuk “paint-horn,” “eyepigment-horn”), and of a mountain-peak. It signifies also “ray of light,” and the derived verb “to emit rays of light,” as of Moses, Exo_34:29. From the incorrect translation of the Vulg., “horned” probably came (as Gesenius suggests) the custom of the early painters of representing Moses with horns.—Tr.].
[12][These ideas are not properly indicated by the word “holy,” but may be said to be connected with and suggested by the lofty Heb. conception of the holiness of God.—Tr.]
[13][Bible-Commentary: “That the name was commonly applied to God so early as the time of Moses, we may conclude from the names Zurishaddai, “my Rock is the Almighty,” (Num_1:6; Num_2:12), and Zuriel, “my Rock is God,” (Num_3:35).—Tr.].
[14][More literally “there is not a rock like our God.”—Tr.].
[15][This is not correct. The neg. is not omitted before תּדברוּ which is, according to the Heb. syntax, merely an appendage of תּרבוּ, forming with it a compound notion.—This paragraph is improperly assigned in the Germ. to 1Sa_2:4.—Tr.].
[16][The Heb. plu. means not more than “great knowledge;” our author’s exposition cannot be gotten from the simple Heb. word, but is an interpretation into the word (here probably warranted) of ideas gotten from the Scriptures in general.—Tr.].
[17][The word חדלִ is used in the Bible either absolutely =“cease to exist” (Jdg_5:6-7; Psa_49:8 (9); Deu_15:11), or with an explanatory word (Job_3:17; Pro_10:9), or its complement is suggested by the immediate action or context (Amo_7:5; Zec_11:12). Here the statement is “the hungry ceased to exist as such.” as in Jdg_5:6; Deu_15:11–Tr.]
[18][Dr. Erdmann’s translation of this clause (1Sa_2:5) is hardly satisfactory. The word עַד (lit.“continuance) is used in the senses “while,” “until,” “so that,” and the question is, which is the appropriate sense here. Erdmann renders: “while the barren bears, the fruitful waxes feeble,”—that is, the clause, according to him, affirms the contemporaneousness of the two things. This would be appropriate in a narration, but is inappropriate and feeble here. To judge from the passages cited, he supposes the sense to be: “and while the barren is still bearing (that is, in the midst of her bearing), the fruitful languishes,” which is plainly out of keeping with the context. Rather we are to take עַד—in its well-sustained sense of “till”—as marking the limit of the action involved in the preceding context. The mutations in human life, brought about by God, reach to this astonishing point, namely, that the barren becomes fruitful and the fruitful barren. So Vulg. (donec) and Sept. (ὄτι). The other versions do not translate the עד. Gesenius and Fürst take the word as a preposition: “even the barren, she bears.” But it may also be a conjunction. It sometimes by suggestion (though not properly) includes the fact which it introduces.—Tr.]
[19][It is not necessary to find a geographical theory in this poetical statement. And, even if it expresses the author’s geographical views, it is not the thought of the passage, but only the framework of the thought; the real thought here is solely religious, and has nothing to do with physical science.—Tr.].
[20][Heb. literally: “Jehovah, broken are His opposers.” Some render, “Jehovah will break His opposers.”—Tr.].
[21][Equally arbitrary is the procedure of Geiger (Urschrift u. Ueberselzungen der Bibel, page 27), who makes Hannah’s Song an imitation of Psalms 113, and refers the latter to the postexilian period, explaining נְדִיבִים as foreign princes reigning over Israel!—Tr.].
Lange's Commentary on the Holy Scriptures (Critical, Doctrinal, and Homiletical), ed. John Peter Lange, English translation edited by Philip Schaff (1864–1880) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain On vv5, 6, 8, 10, 11 they that were hungry ceased--that is, to hunger.
they that were hungry ceased--that is, to hunger.
the barren hath born seven--that is, many children.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11 HANNAH’S SONG, 1Sa_2:1-10.
HANNAH’S SONG, 1Sa_2:1-10.
“This prayer and song of Hannah,” says Wordsworth, “is one of the golden links which connect the song of Sarah on the birth of Isaac (Gen_21:6-7) with the Magnificat of the Blessed Virgin. Luk_1:46-55. Another link is the triumphal song of Miriam, after the passage of the Red Sea. Exo_15:20-21. Another is the song of Deborah, praising the Lord for delivering his people by the hand of a woman. Judges 5. All these poetic hymns of thanksgiving, uttered by women, are celebrations of joyful events, which are prophetic foreshadowings of the universal deliverance and victory achieved by the Promised Seed of the woman.”
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The subject-matter of this song seems not, at first sight, fully to accord with the occasion that called it forth. It is professedly a psalm of thanksgiving by which Hannah glorifies God for having given her a child, but, with the exception of a part of 1Sa_2:5, it reads more like a war song of triumph than the rejoicing of a barren woman over the birth of a child. Hence certain modern critics have not hesitated to declare that it was composed for some other occasion, such as the victory of David over Goliath, or some other instance of Israelitish triumph, and that the compiler of the books of Samuel inserted it here in a wrong place. The mention of a king as the anointed of Jehovah, in 1Sa_2:10, has also been used as an argument to prove that this song must be the production of an age at least as late as that of the Kings. But if we view this song as a prophetic utterance, spoken by inspiration from the Almighty, these difficulties vanish; and if, by comparing the similar songs of Mary and Zacharias, (Luke 1,) we learn to appreciate the spiritual side of the prophecy, we shall see that, while this context acquaints us with the immediate occasion of this song, the song itself rises above the mere occasion, and, in the true spirit of prophecy, grasps a wider range of circumstances. And it was, doubtless, the high prophetic character of these songs that entitled them to a record in the sacred canon. The prophetic songs of Zacharias and Mary were occasioned by the birth of John Baptist and Jesus Christ, but their subject-matter has far more to do with the glorious results of John and Jesus’ coming into the world. “The true characteristic of sacred poetry,” says Wordsworth, “is that it is not egotistical. It merges the individual in the nation and in the church universal. Like a pebble cast into a clear and calm lake, it sends forth concentric rings of waves, ever enlarging towards the margin, so that the particular mercy to the individual produces ever-expanding undulations of praise.” So with this prophetic song of Hannah. Samuel is the great historic character during whose ministry the government of Israel took the form of a monarchy, and it is fitting that this inspired song should rise above the immediate occasion of its first utterance, and in its prophetic vision celebrate the triumphs of the coming kingdom. The Targum goes so far in its explanation of this passage as to regard each separate verse as a distinct prophecy against some enemy of Israel. Thus the first verse indicates a triumph over the Philistines; the second alludes to the Assyrian army under Sennacherib; the third is against the Chaldeans under king Nebuchadnezzar; the fourth against the Greeks, etc. It is possible, indeed, that this may have been used as a triumphal song on great occasions of victory, such as occurred in the later history of Israel, and possibly a later hand may have added somewhat to it; but no less comprehensive a composition than this, which celebrates throughout the signal providences of God, could satisfy the demands of the spirit of prophecy over the birth of Samuel. When, therefore, we view it as an inspired psalm, whose prophetic range takes in the triumphs of that monarchy which was inaugurated by the ministry of Samuel, and found its culmination in the personal Messiah, the difficulties suggested above disappear. As a part of the interpretation of this magnificent ode, we give, in connexion with the text, perhaps as literal a version of the Hebrew as our language will permit.
1. Hannah prayed — As the lyric psalm of Habakkuk is called a prayer, (Hab_3:1,) although its language is that of adoration — and as some of David’s psalms, which are really songs of praise, are called prayers, (Psa_72:20,) so this song of praise, in which Hannah pours out the strong feelings of her heart before God, is spoken of as an example of prayer. Adoration and praise are both, according to the Scriptures, legitimate parts of prayer.
My horn — The horn is the weapon of those animals that bear it, and the symbol of strength, honour, and glory. See Deu_33:17; Psa_75:4-5.
Exalted… in Jehovah — For he is the source of all strength and joy. Psa_92:10.
Opened… is my mouth over my enemies — I can now exult and sing in triumph over the jeers of Peninnah, and all who, like her, were wont to vex me, for it is more honourable to have one son consecrated to the service of the tabernacle than many living in comparative obscurity. This honourable triumph is a manifestation of thy salvation, O Jehovah.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10 1. And Hannah prayed] This description of the Psalm…
1. And Hannah prayed] This description of the Psalm is not inappropriate, for prayer includes thanksgiving and praise. Cp. the “prayer of Habakkuk” (Hab_3:1): and the “prayers of David” as a general designation of his psalms (Psa_72:20).
rejoiceth] Exulteth or triumpheth, a strong word.
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mine horn is exalted in the Lord] = ‘I am brought to great honour, and the author of that honour is Jehovah.’ The horn is frequently used as a symbol (a) of strength (Deu_33:17): (b) of honour Job_16:15). “To exalt the horn” signifies “to raise to a position of power or dignity.” Cp. Psa_89:17; Psa_148:14. The figure is probably derived from horned animals, tossing their heads in the air, and there is no allusion to the horns worn by women in the East at the present day. It is found in Latin poets, e.g. Ov. A. A. 1. 239, “Tum pauper cornua sumit” = “plucks up courage.”
my mouth is enlarged over mine enemies] “My mouth is opened wide against mine enemies;” I am no longer put to silence in their presence. Cp. Psa_38:13-14. In ch. 1Sa_1:7-8 it is implied that Hannah made no answer to Peninnah’s taunts.
thy salvation] Cp. Luk_1:47. “Salvation” in the O. T. means (a) deliverance, rescue from dangers or adversities of all kinds (ch. 1Sa_14:45); (b) help, the power by which the deliverance is effected, whether divine or human (Psa_35:3).
Ch. 1Sa_2:1-11. The Song of Hannah
Hannah’s song is a true prophecy. She is inspired “to discern in her own individual experience the universal laws of the divine economy, and to recognise its significance for the whole course of the Kingdom of God.” The deliverance from her proud adversary which had just been vouchsafed to her was but one instance of the great principles of Jehovah’s moral government of the world, principles which receive their fullest illustration in the exaltation of the Lord’s Christ through humiliation to victory, and which will only he fully realised when “the kingdoms of this world shall have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of his Christ.” Hence it is that her own peculiar circumstances are so soon lost sight of in the wider view of the dealings of God’s Providence. The failure to recognise this has led critics to deny the authenticity of the song, and to conjecture that some ancient triumphal war-pæan has been erroneously placed in Hannah’s month by the compiler of the book.
A brief analysis will help to explain the connexion of thought.
“Jehovah is the sole author of my deliverance. He shall be the theme of my song.
There is none to be compared with Him for holiness, power, faithfulness: be silent before him, all ye proud boasters! He knows your thoughts and weighs your actions.
Observe the vicissitudes of human fortune: the haughty are humbled, the humble exalted: this is Jehovah’s doing: for He is the Almighty Governor of the universe. He guides and guards His saints, and destroys the wicked.
May He finally discomfit his adversaries, judge the world, and establish the kingdom of His Anointed One!”
The Magnificat (Luk_1:46-55) should be carefully compared with Hannah’s song, of which it is an echo rather than an imitation. The resemblance lies in thought and tone more than in actual language, and supplies a most delicate and valuable testimony to the appropriateness of this hymn to Hannah’s circumstances. The 113th Psalm forms a connecting link between the two.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11 (1) And Hannah prayed, and said.—“Prayed,” not quite in…
(1) And Hannah prayed, and said.—“Prayed,” not quite in the sense in which we generally understand prayer. Her prayer here asks for nothing; it is rather a song of thanksgiving for the past, a song which passes into expressions of sure confidence for the future. She had been an unhappy woman; her life had been, she thought, a failure; her dearest hopes had been baffled; vexed, tormented, utterly cast down, she had fled to the Rock of Israel for help, and in the eternal pity of the Divine Friend of her people she had found rest, and then joy; out of her own individual experience the Spirit of the Lord taught her to discern the general laws of the Divine economy; she had had personal experience of the gracious government of the kind, all-pitiful God; her own mercies were a pledge to her of the gracious way in which the nation itself was led by Jehovah—were a sign by which she discerned how the Eternal not only always delivered the individual sufferer who turned to Him, but would also at all times be ever ready to succour and deliver His people.
These true, beautiful thoughts the Spirit of the Lord first planted in Hannah’s heart, and then gave her lips grace and power to utter them in the sublime language of her hymn, which became one of the loved songs of the people, and as such was handed down from father to son, from generation to generation, in Israel, in the very words which first fell from the blessed mother of the child-prophet in her quiet home of “Ramah of the Watchers.”
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My heart rejoiceth.—The first verse of four lines is the introduction to the Divine song. She would give utterance to her holy joy. Had she not received the blessing at last which all mothers in Israel so longed for?
Mine horn is exalted.—She does not mean by this, “I am proud,” but “I am strong”—mighty now in the gift I have received from the Lord: glorious in the consciousness “I have a God-Friend who hears me.” The image “horn” is taken from oxen and those animals whose strength lies in their horns. It is a favourite Hebrew symbol, and one that had become familiar to them from their long experience—dating from far-back patriarchal times—as a shepherd-people.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 3, 9, 10, 11 HANNAH"S SONG OF PRAISE (vers. 1-10).
HANNAH"S SONG OF PRAISE (vers. 1-10).
And Hannah prayed and said. Like the Magnificat, Hannah"s hymn of thanksgiving begins with the temporal mercies accorded to herself, but rises immediately into the realms of prophecy, foretelling Christ"s kingdom and the triumphs of the Church. From this prophetic element, common more or less to all the hymns of the Bible, most of them have been used in Christian worship, and still merit a place in it, though we in the liturgy of the Church of England now use only two, taken both from the New Testament. In ver. 1, in four strophes of equal length, Hannah declares how, first, her heart, the centre with the Hebrews, not merely of the physical, but also of the moral and intellectual life, rejoices in Jehovah; while the exaltation of her horn, the symbol of strength and vigour, signifies that this inward joy is accompanied, or even occasioned, by the changed circumstances of her outward lot. Her mouth, therefore, is opened wide over her enemies, yet not for cursing and in bitterness, but for joyful praise of the God who has answered her prayers. It is his salvation, the being delivered by him, that makes her thus burst forth into thanksgiving. It is a proof too of her faith and spirituality that she thus refers all to Jehovah.
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In ver. 2 she gives her reasons for this holy joy. The first is God"s absolute holiness; the second his absolute existence, in which she finds the proof of his holiness. Hannah may have meant to express only the language of piety, but she also stated a primary philosophical truth, which was early grasped by the deeply religious instinct of the Hebrews, that outside of God is no existence. Many necessary deductions follow from this fundamental truth, that God alone absolutely exists, and that all other existence is secondary and derived; but no deduction is more certain than Hannah"s own, that such a Being must be absolutely holy. In calling him a rock she assigns to him strength, calm, immovable, enduring, but a strength which avails for the safety of his people (comp. Deu_32:4, Deu_32:15; Psa_18:2) For rocks, as being capable of easy defence, formed the nucleus of most ancient towns, and continued to serve as their citadels. In ver. 3 she appeals to God"s omniscience, "for Jehovah is a God of knowledges," the pl. being intensive, and signifying every kind of knowledge. As too he weighs and judges human actions, how can men venture to talk so arrogantly before him, lit. so proudly, proudly. The last clause is one of those numerous places in which there is a doubt whether the Hebrew word lo means not, or by him. If the negative sense be taken, which the Hebrew spelling favours, the rendering will be "though actions be not weighed." Though wicked actions be not immediately punished, yet Jehovah is cognisant of them, and in due time will requite.
In vers. 4-8 Hannah illustrates the working of this attribute of the Deity by enumerating the vicissitudes of human events, which are not the result of chance, but of that omniscience combined with holiness which she has claimed for Jehovah in vers. 2, 3. She begins with the vicissitudes of war; but these are not more remarkable than those of peace, by which the full, the rich and wealthy, have to descend to the position of a hireling; while those previously hungry have ceased, i.e. from labour, and keep holiday. In a nation of small proprietors, where the land was tilled by the owner and those "born in his house," the position of the hireling, the "mean white" of the southern States of America, was lower than that of the slave, especially in Judaea, where the slave was more in the position of a vassal than of a serf or forced labourer. In the next clause the translation may either be, "She that was long barren hath borne seven," or, "Until the barren" etc.; i.e. these vicissitudes may even reach so far as to make a barren woman the mother of seven, i.e. of a perfect number of children, happily generalised in Psa_113:9 into "a joyful mother of children." But see Rth_4:15; Jer_15:9. In this there is also a typical reference to the long barrenness of the Gentile world, to be followed by a fruitfulness far exceeding that of the Jewish Church, while it, prolific once in patriarchs, and prophets, and saints, is now comparatively sterile. In ver. 6 "the grave, Hebrews Sheol, is "the pit," the hollow vault underground, which is the dwelling of the dead. Lit., therefore, Hannah"s words might seem to imply a belief in the resurrection; but her meaning rather was that God brings a man to the very brink of the grave, and then, when all hope seems past, raises him up again. In ver. 8 beggar is simply needy, but the expressions dust and dunghill add dishonour to his poverty. To set might more correctly be translated to make them sit; sitting, especially on a raised seat, being a mark of honour among Orientals, who generally squat on mats on the ground. In the next clause the A.V particularises what in the Hebrews is quite general. "He will make them possess (or enjoy) a glorious throne.
Their seat among the princes is not inherited, but acquired; and though promoted thus to a place among men of hereditary rank, and given an honourable position among them, yet it was not necessarily "the throne of glory," the highest seat. Still even this was quite possible; for while the tribal chiefs and heads of fathers" houses obtained their rank by inheritance, nevertheless, in early days the judges, and among them Eli and Samuel, acquired rank and power for themselves. Subsequently, under the kings, the great officers of state took their place along with the hereditary princes, but were dependent upon royal favour. In the last clause the word rendered pillars is rare, being found only here and in, 1Sa_14:4. In both places the ancient versions are uncertain as to its signification, but in the latter it can only mean a crag, or mass of rock. If then the rock masses of the earth are Jehovah"s, and he can lift up and poise upon them the inhabited world (Hebrews rebel) how much more easily can he raise up a man!
Vers. 1-10.
Salvation.
The facts implied and indicated in the song are
1. Hannah"s deliverance from grief and realisation of desire are perfected.
2. God is recognised as the author of the great salvation.
3. Under Divine inspiration Hannah sees in her own personal experience atype of various triumphs which God achieves for his people.
4. She is conscious of an overwhelming joy in her own deliverance, and inthe prevision of future triumphs of the Church.
5. A clear and joyous recognition of Christ"s final triumph as the climax ofall. The burden of this glorious song is the salvation wrought by God, and this may be considered as
I TYPICAL. The term "salvation" is very common in the Old Testament, and its application is "exceeding broad," being inclusive of deliverance from evils and a realisation of positive good. It may be applied to an episode in personal experience, as in the case of Hannah, David, and others; a soul"s restoration to God through Christ; a nation"s rescue from calamity and elevation to relative influence, as when Israel was delivered from the waters of the Red Sea, and later, from the Assyrian hosts; the deliverance of the Church from persecution, as in apostolic days and subsequently; and especially the completion of Christ"s triumph over all enemies and the gathering into one of the redeemed children of God (Tit_2:13; Heb_9:28; Rev_7:9-17) The episode in the life of Hannah was typical of all other salvations to be wrought by the same merciful God. As in the physical world the trained eye can detect what are called "typical forms," so in the records of God"s dealings with the saints the spiritually enlightened can see in the personal experience of individuals a foreshadowing of numerous instances yet to occur in human experience. Omnia in Uno will hold true here. The elements of all salvations are found in the blessing vouchsafed to the "woman of sorrowful spirit." For there is in her case, as in all, a deep human need, arising from a pressure of a heavy burden, and the non-realisation of the very end for which life was supposed to be given; utter despair of human resources for the removal of the evil and the acquisition of the good; Divine energy graciously acting directly on the hidden forces by which sorrow or joy are governed and produced; Divine patience in working out the processes by which the want and sorrow shall be made to pass away; completeness of result in the bestowment of the very boon so long desired and waited for; connection of the result attained with some ulterior issue of still wider blessing; and employment throughout of visible and invisible second causes in working out the purposes of mercy. Each item found reality in Hannah"s experience, and has its counterpart in our deliverance from trouble; in the restoration of the lost soul; in the rescue of a nation or Church from destruction; and in the completion of the desire of him who from the travail of his soul looked on through the ages, saw, and was satisfied. Every deliverance of every saint now is a shadowing forth and a prediction sure and certain of the great salvation, in the bliss of which Christ, and angels, and men shall share.
II OCCASION OF JOY. Naturally salvation in every form brings joy. It is the great event of the life. It means freedom, rest, enrichment, full, sunny favour of God. Hannah could not but sing. Moses led the joy of Israel on the shores of the Red Sea. When Saul became Paul the Churches enjoyed "comfort of the Holy Ghost." The fatted calf and dance awaited the restored prodigal son. The very advent of the one true Saviour awoke the chorus of the skies, and heaven will resound with the joyous acclaim of innumerable hosts when the woes of earth are past, and all power submits to Christ. (Rev_19:1) It is noteworthy that the joy awakened by accomplished salvation is not a mere selfish delight in one"s own happiness. It is joy in God. In "thy salvation" do I rejoice. "In the Lord" is my "horn exalted." "The heart" is not set on the bliss of a Samuel"s love, it "rejoiceth in the Lord. Again, it is joy in God saving through his Anointed. The "promised seed," the foreordained Messiah, was the spring of all inspired Hebrew expectation of blessing. The birth of a son called forth Hannah"s song. It is curiously sweet to notice how like the echo of some distant melody is this song, reminding us of a Child more holy than even Samuel. Surely in the invisible spheres angels recognised here the substance of that hymn they on a later day sang over the plains of Bethlehem. In that severe but blessed discipline of years the spirit of Hannah had been trained to pass over in vision to a salvation more perfect than what Samuel would effect for Israel, and by a Child more truly given of God. The songs of faith and of fulfilment find alike their inspiration in "his King" and "my Saviour." But the relationship to his chosen One grows closer and dearer as the ages roll on. What shall it be at last! And what joy will it awaken! Also, the condition of sharing in this joy is twofold, being personally a saved one, and cherishing full sympathy with "his King." Hannah, blessed with a great deliverance from sorrow and desolation, could sing and, laying all at the feet of God in holy sympathy with the coming kingdom, she found inspiration for song beyond the range of her own experience. A "new song" is learnt on earth, in so far as its first notes, by all who have known in their personal experience the salvation of God; and it becomes sweeter and more inspired as the freed spirit sees by faith the blessed day when the ends of the earth shall also see the King in his beauty.
III REVELATION OF DIVINE PERFECTIONS. In some sense all God"s acts are revelations. Nature, as we call the beautiful system around us, is but the shadow of the Eternal Presence. The Eternal Power and Godhead are clearly seen through the visible creation. In the Incarnation of God in Christ we have, therefore, a higher expression of a general truth; so that in one respect the most stupendous and mysterious of all supernatural facts is in keeping with Nature. Especially is every instance of salvation, whether typical or antitypical, individual or national, a revelation to the universe of the ever blessed One. From Hannah"s deliverance from sorrow and desolation, on through the ages of mercy, to Christ"s final victory over death and sin, the same attributes are revealed in the deeds and processes by which the salvation in each instance is effected.
1. Mercy, as seen in compassion shown to the sorrowful and helpless.
2. Holiness, inasmuch as the salvation is wrought out against evil powers and persons, for only good and pure issues, by exacting and nourishing into maturity holy, unselfish motives, and ordaining suffering and deferred good only for pure and blissful ends.
3. Power, demonstrating that "beside" him "there is none," as seen in complete control over the hidden forces of Nature, and full realisation of all that is promised.
4. Wisdom, counteracting the devices of the proud, and causing the bitterest grief and protracted suffering to contribute at last to depth and fulness of joy.
5. Faithfulness, unshaken and firm as a "rock," insuring that all the strength and wisdom of the Divine nature shall be exercised for the final bestowment of the covenanted blessings. The retrospect of a personal history was to Hannah the means of reading the outlines of the manifestation of the Divine glory, especially in the salvation of the Church. She, like us, saw only the beginnings of things. The remote glory shone through a glass darkly. It was for St. Paul and St. John to declare the same truth in fuller and more precise terms, as the one tells of the "manifold wisdom of God" being made known "by the Church" unto "principalities and powers in heavenly places," and the other, of him who by virtue of what he has wrought out for his redeemed is "worthy" of all that is due to the only Lord of glory. Men are now intent on studying the material framework of the universe; the day will come when the best minds will study with unbounded delight the perfections of God as seen in the restoration of spiritual order, beauty, and joy out of the chaos of sin and sorrow.
IV INSTRUCTIVE TO THE WICKED. There was a time when the jealous and cruel Peninnah was proud in her strength and abundance. Also Pharaoh, and other oppressors of Israel, could boast of their power and resources. The infant Church in primitive times was as nothing in comparison with the numerical and social power of her enemy. The exceeding proud talk and arrogancy of men who proclaim their vast superiority in secular knowledge to the mass of Christians, is in keeping with the conduct of the kings and princes who "take counsel against the Lord and against his Anointed." But as Hannah"s fear and trembling yielded to confidence and joy, consequent on the casting down of her proud enemy and the lifting up of the sorrowful spirit, so the same ever recurring triumphs of the Redeemer, awakening in his people the song of salvation, reads out in clear and forcible terms the instructive lesson to the proud to "talk" no more, and to the arrogant to "shut their mouth," and to the seemingly prosperous that all "actions are weighed" by him who is a "God of knowledge." It is ever true that no weapon formed against God"s children can prosper. In what God has effected for the lowly pious in time past, the proud, the wise, the strong may find instruction; and, if they will, learn both how vain it is to curse in heart or mouth whom God has blessed, and how important for themselves that they "kiss the Son," lest they perish, "while his wrath is kindled but a little.
V INVOLVING GREAT REVERSIONS. Providence vindicated itself for former apparently unequal and undesirable distributions of favour by breaking the bows of the strong and giving strength to the feeble; by causing the self-satisfied Peninnah to feel the lack of a satisfaction not to be obtained by the cruel, and the yearning Hannah to want for nothing more. The once proud mother of many children, from causes in the home life, fails in her joys, while the unfruitful attains to the perfection of earthly bliss. In the one case hopes and joys are smitten; in the other, created. The rich in home delights becomes poor, by possibly erring sons, or enfeebled health; the poor and sorrowful is enriched with a treasure for the use of all ages. Thus does Hannah see in outline the reversions ever occurring in the working out of God"s salvation in the individual, the nation, or the Church.
1. In the human soul saved by Christ, forces of evil once strong and self-satisfied, lacking nothing, and usurping authority, are brought low, enfeebled, made conscious of their impotence, and finally killed; while the poor, faint, struggling spirit of love and faith is, when once "made alive," girded with strength, satisfied with good, and made finally dominant over the entire nature. Doubts, fears, and mighty temptations are laid low. Hopes, joys, and victories of faith are called forth; and, as a final issue, the once outcast, unhappy soul is enriched with the full bliss of a child of God.
2. In national affairs. The strength of Egypt sinks in the sea; the helplessness of Israel puts on the strength of God. The boastful nations that in pride of their resources set aside the practice of righteousness, one by one are brought low by the corruption concealed beneath their material splendour; while the feeble people who live in the fear of God go from strength to strength, and "delight themselves in the abundance of peace.
3. In the Church. The wealth, power, and wisdom of Rome and Greece fell before the rising power and spiritual know]edge of poor fishermen. The mighty evils of an age are at length brought down, and the despised "things that are not" are caused to be the most potent and blessed of all agencies.
VI TRACEABLE TO GOD. Well did Hannah know that her deliverance was of God, and not of man. In all the second causes cooperating towards the completion of her desire she, with true spiritual instinct, saw the work of the First Cause. "The Lord" it was who "killed and made alive." "The Lord" "brought low" the proud rival, and "lifted up" "the woman of sorrowful spirit." He it is who "keeps the feet of his saints," and causes the wicked at length "to be silent." So through the unfolding ages it is "the Lord" who works to destroy the evils of the soul, and to create and nourish the good. All the triumphs of the Church over political scheming, pseudo-learning, violent persecution, and satanic opposition are by the might and power of him who raiseth up the wise and good, checks the rage of man, and in the invisible sphere frustrates the "gates of hell." All things are of God, who worketh all and in all. It is not crude anthropomorphism that refers all the processes of individual, national, and Church salvation to the energy of God. It is the most penetrating philosophy, born of the inspiring Spirit of God. There are "pillars or foundations, or bases, of all terrestrial things. We may call this a cause, and that an effect. We may clothe matter with qualities, and point out their uniform and necessary interaction. But still they are all traceable down to some original constitution inherent in the elemental forces and materials; and that constitution, that firm and grand arrangement of invisible "pillars" or bases, is what it is because God made it so, and for no other reason. Wisely and beautifully, therefore, does the prophetess anticipate the philosophies of the coming ages by referring all the agencies and powers involved in the accomplishing of salvation for men to "the Lord." Not unto us, but to thy name be the glory.
VII CULMINATING IN CHRIST"S PERFECT REIGN. The prophetic eye looks on through the material disorder of Eli"s day to a typical King in Zion. The order and prosperity of a David"s reign are but the temporal shadow of the enduring order and unfading prosperity of the "Anointed," who is in the highest spiritual sense to "exalt" his "horn," and "judge the ends of the earth." What though, meanwhile, "adversaries" may combine, and the occasional "strength" of the wicked threaten to cast down "the saints;" he that sitteth in the heavens has in reserve his swift and awe inspiring forces (Psalm 2) to shatter all opposition, and ultimately insure a peaceful reign over mankind. It was some years before Peninnah s ground of annoyance to Hannah was removed, and the lowly one was raised to joy and full satisfaction; so, proportionately to the vaster deliverance to be wrought out for mankind, it may require many centuries to cast down all foes and create and perfect the bliss of the redeemed. But the" strength" of the "King" will bring it to pass by a combination of invisible and visible forces more subtle and intricate, but not less obedient to his will, than those which brought a mother"s joy to Hannah. Here we see the beautiful unity of all Scripture reference to the final triumph of Messiah. The "serpent"s head" is to be "bruised" was consolation to our weeping ancestors, bereft of Eden. In him "all nations shall be blessed" was the grand assurance that made Abraham"s life one of large sympathy with the future. "To him shall the gathering of the people be" was the solace of Jacob"s dying hour. And thus, aided by Hannah"s joyous song of victory, as though already real, the holy, blessed succession ran on, telling of the "kingdom" that "shall have no end," and the day when to the Name that is "above every name" every knee shall bow, and every tongue confess that he is Lord and Christ.
From this survey of truth concerning "salvation" note a few important Practical truths:
1. See here a beautiful instance of how a single life"s experience, when under the holy discipline of God, may be rich in instruction and inspiration for men in all ages. This is brought about not by mere natural genius, but by a woman"s pure and full consecration to Christ, and passionate desire to accelerate the advent of his kingdom. Happy they who can live so as to inspire and help posterity! Let our life become a song of thanksgiving to our successors. This is possible to all in some degree.
2. An underlying current of faith in Christ"s complete triumph runs through the ancient Church, and this should embolden us. True saints live much in the future, while not careless of present duties. There may be much inspiration for work from the prospect of what is to be.
1. The effect of true faith is to enlarge the vision and broaden the sympathies. Hannah"s faith in a coming Christ caused her spirit to be open
2. to those inspirations which carried the vision over the weary ages to the true golden age, and she felt with all the saints in all time. Religion of this kind becomes an expansive power in whatever nature it dwells.
3. The proper unity of the Church lies in the one faith which holds the life to Christ, whether to come, or having come; and this will insure sympathy with his kingdom and with purity of life, as well as consecration of what is most precious to its realisation.
HOMILIES BY B. DALE. Vers. 1-10. (SHILOH)
Rejoicing in the Lord.
heart rejoiceth in the Lord." The song of Hannah, "the Magnificat of the Old Testament Church," was the outburst of her deep and holy joy in the Lord. Whilst watching over the infant Samuel at Ramah, she had silently pondered the ways of God, and the condition and prospects of his people and kingdom. After several years of absence from the central sanctuary at Shiloh, she appears once more at its entrance; and, standing on the well remembered spot where she had prayed in her distress, she fulfils her vow, and gives back to God the sacred treasure intrusted to her care. The trouble of former years recalled, provocations and inward conflicts ended, the sunshine of Divine favour experienced, cause her full heart to "bubble up like a fountain," and pour itself out in lofty poetic strains (ver. 1). What a contrast does this language indicate between her condition at the time of the previous visit and her condition now!
1. Then her heart was full of grief; now it "rejoiceth in the Lord.
2. Then her "horn" (strength, a figure taken from animals whose strength is in their horns, and here first employed. (2Sa_22:3; Luk_1:69) was trampled in the dust; now it is "exalted," and she is endued with strength and honour "by the Lord.
3. Then her mouth was shut, in silent endurance, beneath the provocationof her adversary; (1Sa_1:6) now it is "enlarged," or opened in holy exultation, "above her enemies.
4. Then she was petitioning for the help of the Lord now she "rejoices inhis salvation," or the deliverance which he has wrought on her behalf; and it is "because" of this that she utters aloud her thanksgiving and praise. Her soul with all its powers, like a harp of many strings, touched by the Divine Spirit, gives forth exquisite music. "The Divinely inspired song of Hannah is like a golden key for the interpretation of the whole book" (Wordsworth"s "Com."). Compare this song with the song of Miriam and of Deborah. "Those compositions are grand, indeed, and elevated, and worthy of that inspiration which produced them; but they have not that tenderness of spirit, that personality of devotion, and that eucharistic anticipation of good things to come which characterise the hymn of Hannah" (Jebb, "Sac. Lit.," p. 395). It is the model after which the song of the Virgin Mary was formed, though there are notable points of difference between them. Considered in relation to the circumstances, and in its general nature, her song was a song of
1. Gratitude. Her prayer had been answered in the gift of a son; and, unlike those who look no further than the blessings bestowed upon them, she looked from the gift to the Giver, and praised him with joyful lips. Her heart rejoiced not in Samuel, but in the Lord.
2. Dedication. She had given back her child to God, and with him herself afresh. The more we give to God, the more our heart is enlarged, by the shedding abroad of his love therein, and filled with exceeding joy.
3. Triumph; remembering how she had been delivered from her adversaries in the past.
4. Faith in his continued help.
5. Patriotism. She sympathised with her people in their oppression by the Philistines; and, identifying herself with them, she almost lost sight of what God had done for her in the contemplation of what he would do for them. "From this particular mercy she had received from God she takes occasion, with an elevated and enlarged heart, to speak of the glorious things of God, and of his government of the world for the good of the Church." "She discerned in her own individual experience the general laws of the Divine economy, and its signification in relation to the whole history of the kingdom of God" (Anberlen).
6. Prophetic hope. She beheld the dawn of a new day, and was glad. In all and above all
7. Joy in the Lord. "My heart rejoiceth in the Lord;" not merely before him; (Deu_12:12) but in him, as the Object and Source of its joy; in communion with and contemplation of him, and in the admiration, affection, and delight thereby excited. "My meditation of him shall be sweet: I will be glad in the Lord". (Psa_104:34) "When I think of God," said Haydn (on being asked the reason why the style of his music was so cheerful), "my soul is so full of joy that the notes come leaping and dancing from my pen." More especially observe that Hannah rejoiced in
I THE PERFECTIONS OF HIS CHARACTER (vers. 2, 3). Such perfections must not, indeed, be thought of as existing in God separate and distinct from each other; they are essential attributes of his living personality, and are all really present in his every purpose and act. What is here declared of God is, that
1. He alone is "holy.
(1) Supremely excellent; whatever excellence exists in any other being falls infinitely short of his. (Isa_6:3)
(2) Morally perfect; invariably willing what is right and good; transcendently glorious in the view of conscience. (Lev_11:44)
(3) Absolutely existent, which is the ground of his excellence and perfection. "For there is none except thee." "God is the most perfect Being, and the cause of all other beings." His moral perfection is a peculiar distinction of the revelation which he made to his chosen people, needs to be specially magnified in times of corruption, and can only be rejoiced in by his saints. The conception which men form of God is an evidence of their own character, and exerts a powerful influence upon it. (Luk_1:49)
2. He alone is strong. "A Rock.
(1) Firm, unchanging, enduring; a sure foundation for confidence.
(2) None can be compared unto him. They may not be trusted in, and they need not be feared.
(3) Happy are those who can say, He is "our God." That which is a terror to others is a consolation to them. "The children of a king do not fear what their father has in his arsenal." "Let the inhabitant of the rock sing." But men often speak proudly and arrogantly (ver. 3), as if they were independent of him, and could do whatever they pleased. Let them not boast any more; for
3. He is the All-wise; a "God of knowledge" (lit., knowledges) of all knowledge. "The Lord knoweth the thoughts of man, that they are vanity". (Psa_94:11 Psa_138:6) His knowledge is
(1) immediate,
(2) perfect, and
(3) universal. And,
4. He is the Judge of human actions. He determines how far they may go before they are effectually checked by the manifestation of his power and wisdom (Thenius). "By strength shall no man prevail." He also forms a just estimate of their moral worth, and gives to every man his due reward. His righteousness and justice, as well as his strength and wisdom, when contemplated by the good, fill them with great joy.
II THE OPERATIONS OF HIS PROVIDENCE (vers. 4-8). The operations of Providence are the operations of God in the natural world, the laws of which are the uniform methods of his activity, and more especially in human affairs; wherein, whilst there is room for human freedom and prudence, and the use of means, his will encircles and overrules all things, and his hand moves in and through those events which are commonly attributed to chance or accident, and directs and controls them for the good of those who love him. (Rom_8:28) In and by these operations
1. He manifests the perfections of his character: his holiness, power, wisdom, and justice. "The Lord is righteous in all his ways. (Psa_97:2 Psa_145:17)
2. He apportions the different conditions of men, and accomplishes the varied changes of their condition.
(1) Makes the strong weak and the weak strong (ver. 4).
(2) The full empty and the empty full (ver. 5).
(3) Increases the lonely and diminishes the numerous family.
(4) Brings into great distress, even to the verge of the grave, and again restores to health and prosperity (ver. 6).
(5) Makes poor and makes rich.
(6) Brings low and raises up. Prosperity and adversity alike, when received from the hand of God and used aright, become occasions of joy; and the changes of life are morally beneficial (Psa_55:19; Jer_48:11; Jam_1:9, Jam_1:10)
1. He does great things, especially for the lowly (ver. 8). Stooping to them in their utmost need and shame, (Psa_113:7, Psa_113:8) and raising them to the highest honour and glory. "God does nothing else," said an ancient philosopher, "but humble the proud and exalt the lowly." "Set thyself in the lowest place, and the highest shall be given thee; for the more elevated the building is designed to be, the deeper must the foundations be laid. The greatest saints in the sight of God are the least in their own esteem; and the height of their glory is always in proportion to the depth of their humility" (Thomas a Kempis).
2. He supports the earth and all that is upon it. His dominion is supreme; and he has therefore the power, as he has the right, to do whatever may please him. An unfaltering trust in Providence is a cure of undue anxiety and a cause of abounding peace and joy. "Certainly it is heaven on earth to have a man"s mind move in charity, rest in Providence, and turn upon the poles of truth" (Bacon). "The prophets of the Old Testament inculcate with a remarkable perspicuity and decision the overruling agency of God"s providence in the affairs of the world. Their whole prophecy is more or less a commentary on this doctrine What a basis is laid by it of peace and tranquillity to every thoughtful and most feeling mind; and how different the aspect of the world becomes when we have reason to know that all things in it, and every combination of them, whether in the fortunes of kingdoms or in a more private state, are under the control of an intelligent and gracious Ruler. Were we in the chains of chance, how gloomy would our case be. Were we in the hands of men, too often how fearful, how humiliating, how conflicting. But the impression of the scene is changed when we admit into it the direction of an all-wise and perfect Being, in whose rectitude and goodness we may acquiesce through the whole course of his providential dispensation" (Davison "on Prophecy," p. 59).
One adequate support For the calamities of mortal life Exists, one only; an assured belief That the procession of our fate, howe"er Sad or disturb"d, is order"d by a Being Of infinite benevolence and power, Whose everlasting purposes embrace All accidents, converting them to good (Wordsworth).
III THE ESTABLISHMENT OF HIS KINGDOM (vers. 9, 10). God is a moral governor, and directs his providential operations with a view to the setting up of a kingdom of righteousness upon earth. This kingdom existed from the first, was more fully exhibited in the theocracy of Israel, and culminated in the rule of Christ, who "must reign until he hath put all enemies under his feet." In every stage of development it involves conflict. But
1. He will protect, its subjects; his saints (lit., pious, those who love God), against whom the wicked will contend in vain (ver. 9).
2. He will overthrow its adversaries (ver. 10); their overthrow being
(1) certain,
(2) unexpected,
(3) complete to pieces, and
(4) signally indicative of the interposition of heaven. (1Sa_7:10)
1. He will extend its borders to the ends of the earth.
2. And he will clothe with strength, honour, and majesty the king whom he appoints and anoints for the accomplishment of his purposes. Hannah commenced her song with rejoicing on account of the strength and honour conferred upon herself, and she closes it with rejoicing on account of the strength and honour which would be conferred on him who should be "higher than the kings of the earth." "Let the children of Zion be joyful in their king." "The anointed of the Lord, of whom Hannah prophesies in the spirit, is not one single king in Israel, either David or Christ, but an ideal king, though not a mere personification of the throne about to be established, but the actual king whom Israel received in David and the race, which culminated in the Messiah. The exaltation of the horn of the anointed of Jehovah commenced with the victorious and splendid expansion of the power of David, was repeated with every victory over the enemies of God and his kingdom gained by the successive kings of David"s house, goes on in the advancing spread of the kingdom of Christ, and will eventually attain to its eternal consummation in the judgment of the last day, through which all the enemies of Christ will be made his footstool" (Keil). D.
HOMILIES BY D. FRASER
Vers. 1-10.
The prayer song of Hannah.
In her prayer of asking Hannah was intent not merely on having a child, but on giving to the service of God a priest, and to the government of Israel a judge, very different from the sons of Eli a Nazarite, a second and a better Samson. No wonder, then, that when she brought her son to the sanctuary, her prayer of thanksgiving took a large scope, and revealed even a prophetic fervour. What religious poetess has made such an impression as Hannah with one ode? Reproduced in Psalm 113., and yet again in the song of the blessed Virgin Mary, commonly called the Magnificat, it may be said to have continued in devout minds, Hebrew and Gentile, for about 3000 years. The first verse is the introduction, and strikes the key in which all that follows is pitched a tone of warm and grateful confidence in God. Then follow the praises of the Lord, with some anticipation of better days to come.
I PRAISE OF JEHOVAH (vers. 2-8).
1. Because of his sublime attributes (vers. 2, 3). "There is none holy as Jehovah." The root idea of holiness is always that of separateness from what is evil or profane. The God of Israel was the Holy One, absolutely unique, immaculate, inviolate, and inviolable. None among the gods of the nations might be likened to him. So he called and required Israel to be a holy nation, i.e. separate from the nations of the world, who are idolatrous and unclean. So under the New Testament the saints are the separated ones who touch not the unclean thing. "Neither any rock like our God." His protection cannot be invaded. His purpose does not vacillate. His power does not fail. He is the Rock of Ages. This was what made Israel unconquerable so long as faithful to God. The "rocks" of the nations, i.e. the gods in whom they trusted, were not as Israel"s Rock. "Jehovah is a God of knowledge." Let not the wicked boast proudly. No word of scorn cast at the humble, no haughty glance of the eye, is unobserved by the Lord; and nothing is more certain than that, sooner or later, he will abase the proud. "And by him actions are weighed." In his estimate of human conduct he holds the balances of a perfect equity.
2. Because of his mighty works (vers. 4-8). Ruling in holy Sovereignty,god often reverses the conditions of men, lowering the exalted and exalting the lowly. He even kills and makes alive, leads down into Hades, and leads up from it again. Sheol or Hades was no mere pit of extinction from which there could be no uprising. God was able to raise even the dead. Such being his power, what could the boastful effect against Jehovah? What might not the humble hope from him? This is the central thought of Hannah"s song, and it is still more finely expressed in that of the blessed Virgin. "He hath showed strength," etc.. (Luk_1:51-53) Of the elevation of the despised, celebrated here and in Psalm 113., how many illustrations in sacred story! Joseph, Moses, Gideon, before the time of Hannah; and afterwards, David, and the great Son of David, the Man Christ Jesus, and his Galilean apostles. This fact is not to encourage contempt of, or impatience under, earthly dignities; but it is to cheer those who are or may be depressed by worldly disadvantage of poverty or obscurity. God"s grace is no appanage of the rich or powerful. Was not Martin Luther a poor miner"s son? David Brainerd a small farmer"s son? John Bunyan a tinker"s son, brought up to follow the same craft? Were not the good missionaries Carey and Knibb apprentices, the one bound to a cobbler, the other to a printer? And are not such men among the princes of God"s people? The house of Elkanah was of no eminence in Israel; but thence God was raising up this child Samuel, whom Hannah brought to his courts, to be, if not king, king maker, and to stand at the head of a line of prophets who should be the guides of the kings and the people so long as the kingdom stood.
II ANTICIPATION Of BETTER THINGS TO COME. The end of this prayer song has a prophetic strain (vers. 9, 10). Hannah was confident of God"s preservation of his saints, and of the correlative truth of the perdition of ungodly men. Not that he has any pleasure in their death; but that if men will fight against eternal order and righteousness, they must fail in the struggle, they must perish. "As for Jehovah, those who contend against him are broken." The prophetic element shows itself in the closing expressions of the song. The government of Israel at the time may be described as that of a commonwealth, so far as concerns human administration. It was a theocracy, as it had been from the time of the exodus; but the actual administration was carried on through leaders, or judges. The eye of Hannah opened on a new epoch, foresaw a king to whom Jehovah would give strength as his Anointed. It is the first mention of a Messiah in Holy Writ. No doubt Hannah"s words are a prediction of David, whose horn of power the Lord was to exalt, giving him a career of victory over all his enemies. But whether or not it was clear to Hannah"s mind, the Spirit who rested on her signified a King greater than David, and a more illustrious kingdom. It is he of whom the angel said to Mary, "He shall be great," etc.. (Luk_1:32, Luk_1:33) We see not yet his kingdom. We see not all things put under him. But we see Jesus crowned with glory and honour; and we wait for his appearing and his kingdom. The longings of many generations, the hopes of many Hannahs, the visions of many seers and prophets, O may they come to pass speedily! F.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 8, 9 And Hannah prayed, and said, My heart rejoiceth in…
1Sa_2:1-10
And Hannah prayed, and said, My heart rejoiceth in the Lord.
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Hannahs song
Modern criticism has decided, to its own satisfaction, that the noble hymn here attributed to Hannah, cannot possibly have been uttered by her lips as a thanksgiving for the birth of Samuel. It breaks the obvious connexion of the narrative: its real theme is the rout of the nations enemies, and the triumph of the national armies: above all, the concluding words, which speak of Jehovahs King, and pray that He may exalt the horn of His anointed, unmistakably stamp it as a product of the regal period, when the kingdom was already established. Some critics, of no mean reputation, go so far as to name David as the true author, and assign the slaughter of Goliath, and subsequent defeat of the Philistines, as the real occasion. Let us examine the hymn in detail. It is called a prayer; yet, with the exception of the concluding words, which should be rendered as a petition, it is wholly occupied with praise and thanksgiving. Prayer is not limited to supplication. It embraces all address of the human soul to the Most High: it includes all forms of worship. Praise and thanksgiving are true and necessary parts of prayer. And what are the thoughts which fill Hannahs heart, and will not be repressed? A deep and holy joy for the salvation which Jehovah has wrought for her. Her reproach of barrenness is taken away. She is now a mother in Israel: and mother of what a child! She is exultant; yet in the midst of triumph there is no vindictiveness, no uncharitable recollection of the taunts and unkindness which she had had to endure. Her heart is full, not of herself, but of God. He alone is holy: He alone is self-existent: He alone is the Rock of Israel, secure, unchanging, faithful in His covenant. From contemplating the character of Jehovah she passes to a survey of His dealings with men. In her own individual experience she sees an illustration of the laws which regulate the Divine economy. The most casual observer cannot fail to notice sudden vicissitudes of fortune in the lives of individuals and the history of nations. Whence these sharp contrasts? It is Jehovah who is the God of life and death and all things thereto pertaining; poverty and wealth, promotion and degradation, proceed from Him. The vicissitudes of humanity are not fortuitous; Jehovah created the world; Jehovah sustains the world; Jehovah governs the world and all that is therein in righteousness. He defends His saints: He silences the wicked: and who can resist His will? By strength shall no man prevail. Her prophetic vision grows clearer as she proceeds. We are now in a better position to estimate the worth of the hostile criticisms.
I. Can it be seriously maintained for a moment that this hymn interrupts the narrative and is obviously out of place? What could be more natural than that Hannah should join in her husbands worship, and pour out her full heart in the energy of a prophetic inspiration? What place could be more fitting for this than the tabernacle where Jehovah had fixed His visible dwelling place? What moment more appropriate than that of which she restored to Jehovah the gift she had received from His hands for His service?
II. Nor, secondly, can we agree with the assertion that the tone and contents of the hymn mark it to be an old war song, a thanksgiving for victory over enemies. There is no direct mention of an Israelite victory: the defeat of the mighty warriors is but an incidental illustration: it is but one of the contrasts introduced to show how Jehovahs government is exercised in the world.
III. The third objection is at first sight more forcible. The mention of a king might seem to argue a later date. But even this difficulty is only superficial. Why should not Hannah have spoken of a king, the anointed of Jehovah? The promises made to Abraham pointed to the eventual establishment of a kingdom for the chosen people. I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee. I will bless Sarah, and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of people shall be of her. And at this period the desire for a king was manifestly stirring in the national mind. Already the men of Israel bad proposed a hereditary monarchy when they said to Gideon, Rule thou over us, both thou, and thy son, and thy sons son; and though he refused, saying, The Lord shall rule over you, it must have been felt that the establishment of a monarchy could not be far distant. A monarchy, indeed, was not the ideal form of government for the chosen people. In demanding it they were actuated by unbelief and mistrust of Jehovah, and therefore it was displeasing to Him, for it was a rejection of Him. Yet it bore its part in the preparation for Messiahs coming; it was incorporated as an element in the evolution of the divine purposes. And why should not Hannah be inspired with a prophetic foresight to see that at length the king was inevitable, and to pray that Jehovah would make his rule effectual? The review of the Divine character, and the Divine government of the world is a theme which would most naturally suggest itself to one who felt that she had just experienced a manifestation of those principles in her own case. Let us turn to a consideration of the leading idea of the hymn. The problem of the mysterious and incalculable vicissitudes of fortune is one which has presented itself to all ages. What is the cause of them? It is Φθόνος the Νέμεσις, said the Greek. The Envy of the Gods, drags the over-prosperous down to the abyss of ruin, and smites down the pride of man in middle course. He counted the Gods to be beings of like passions with himself, slaves of jealousy and spitefulness. Some, in the spirit of a truer creed, denied such a degrading hypothesis: and saw Nemesis, the goddess of vengeance, dogging the footsteps of the sinner, and exacting from him to the utmost the penalty of his transgression. It is Necessity, answered the ancient Roman, stern, inexorable, heartless Necessity, before whose fiat we must bow, whose decisions we cannot investigate. It is Fortune, laughed the sceptical Horace: Fortune exulting in her cruel task, And bent on playing out her heartless game. But centuries before Greek or Roman faced the problem, its solution had been revealed to the Hebrew mind. The Hebrew prophetess sees no angry, spiteful deity, jealous of mans prosperity: no stern and pitiless fate: no fickle and capricious Fortune at the helm of the universe; but a personal Ruler, holy, just, omniscient, almighty, governing in truth and righteousness. It was a truth which had an especial value for the Israelite of that age. He had no clear revelation of a future life: and without the knowledge of a future life the mystery of human existence is a thousandfold more perplexing. His faith was often sorely tried, because he saw the wicked in such prosperity. The unmerited chastisement of righteous men like Job seemed almost like a flaw in the justice of the Almighty: and he had need to brace his moral consciousness by recourse to a confession such as this, declaring in no equivocal terms the universal rule of Jehovah, founded in righteousness and truth. For us the reiteration of this truth is valuable for a widely different reason. The study of second causes, the formation of laws, physical, social, moral, tend to obscure our view of the Great First Cause, and to obliterate our conception of the direct personal control exercised by the ruler of the universe. Jehovah bringeth low and lifteth up. By strength shall no man prevail. There is a personal and a national lesson in this. We are forced, all of us, some time in our lives, to learn our own impotence, our littleness, our dependence on a power not our own. There is a lesson for nations here too. It is God who lifteth up, it is God who gives national prosperity; the continuance of that prosperity is surely conditional upon the observance of His laws, and those laws will be best observed when the national conscience acknowledges that its prosperity springs ultimately from a higher source than its own genius or industry. Pride and self-confidence have ever been the parents of corruption and degeneracy. (A. F. Kirkpatrick, D. D.)
Hannahs song of thanksgiving
The emotion that filled Hannahs breast after she had granted Samuel to the Lord, and left him settled at Shiloh, was one of triumphant joy. In her song we see no trace of depression, like that of a bereaved and desolate mother. Some may be disposed to think less of Hannah on this account; they may think she would have been more of a true mother if something of human regret had been apparent in her song. But surely we ought not to blame her if the Divine emotion that so completely filled her soul excluded for the time every ordinary feeling. This was Hannahs feeling, as it afterwards was that of Elizabeth, and still more of the Virgin Mary, and it is no wonder that their songs, which bear a close resemblance to each other, should have been used by the Christian Church to express the very highest degree of thankfulness. Hannahs heart was enlarged as she thought how many lowly souls that brought their burden to Him were to be relieved; and how many empty and hungry hearts, pining for food and rest, were to find how He satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul with goodness. But it would seem that her thoughts took a still wider sweep. Looking on herself as representing the nation of Israel, she seems to have felt that what had happened to her on a small scale was to happen to the nation on a large. May not the Holy Spirit have given her a glimpse of the great truth--Unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given? And may not this high theme have been the cause of that utter absence of human regret, that apparent want of motherly heart stoking, which we mark in the song? When we examine the substance of the song more carefully, we find that Hannah derives her joy from four things about God:--
I. His nature (vv. 2-3). In the second and third verses we find comfort derived from
(1) Gods holiness,
(2) His unity,
(3) His strength,
(4) His knowledge, and
(5) His justice.
(1) The holiness, the spotlessness of God is a source of comfort, There is none holy as the Lord. To the wicked this attribute is no comfort, but only a terror. Left to themselves, men take away this attribute, and, like the Greeks and Romans and other pagans, ascribe to their gods the lusts and passions of poor human creatures. Yet to those who can appreciate it, how blessed a thing is the holiness of God!
(2) His unity gives comfort--There is none beside Thee.
(3) His strength gives comfort--Neither is there any rock like our God.
(4) His knowledge gives comforts--The Lord is a God of knowledge. He sees all secret wickedness, and knows how to deal with it. His eye is on every plot hatched in the darkness. He knows His faithful servants, what they aim at, what they suffer, what a strain is often put on their fidelity
(5) His justice gives comfort. By Him actions are weighed. Their true quality is ascertained; what is done for mean, selfish ends stands out before Him in all its native ugliness, and draws down the retribution that is meet.
II. Gods holy government (verses 3-8). The main feature of Gods providence dwelt on here is the changes that occur in the lot of certain classes. And these changes are the doing of God. If nothing were taught here but that there are great vicissitudes of fortune among men, then a lesson would come from it alike to high and low--let the high beware lest they glory in their fortune, let the low not sink into dejection and despair. If it be further borne in mind that these changes of fortune are all in the hands of God, a further lesson arises, to beware how we offend God, and to live in the earnest desire to enjoy His favour. But there is a further lesson. The class of qualities that are here marked as offensive to God are pride, self-seeking, self-sufficiency both in ordinary matters and in their spiritual development.
III. His most gracious treatment of his saints.
IV. Hannah rejoices in that dispensation of mercy that was coming in connection with Gods king, His anointed (5:10). Guided by the Spirit, she sees that a king is coming, that a kingdom is to be set up, and ruled over by the Lords anointed. Did she catch a glimpse of what was to happen under such kings as David, Jehoshaphat, Hezekiah, and Josiah? Did she see in prophetic vision the loving care of such kings for the welfare of the people, their holy zeal for God, their activity and earnestness in doing good? And did the glimpse of these coming benefits suggest to her the thought of what was to be achieved by Him who was to be the anointed one, the Messiah in a higher sense? We can hardly avoid giving this scope to her song. What is the great lesson of this song? That for the answer to prayer, for deliverance from trial, for the fulfilment of hopes, for the glorious things yet spoken of the city of our God, our most cordial thanksgivings are due to God. (W. G. Blaikie.)
Spiritual gladness
As the odours and sweet smells of Arabia are carried by the winds and air into the neighbouring provinces, so that before travellers come thither they have the scent of that aromatic country; so the joys of heaven are by the sweet breathings and gales of the Holy Ghost blown into the hearts of believers, and the sweet smells of the upper paradise are conveyed into the gardens of the churches. Those joys which are stirred up in us by the Spirit before we get to heaven are a pledge of what we may expect hereafter. (T. Manton, D. D.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Expositor's Bible 1887 · Public Domain On vv1, 11
CHAPTER I I I.
HANNAH'S SONG OF THANKSGIVING.
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1Sa_2:1-10.
THE emotion that filled Hannah's breast after she had granted Samuel to the Lord, and left him settled at Shiloh, was one of triumphant joy. In her song we see no trace of depression, like that of a bereaved and desolate mother. Some may be disposed to think less of Hannah on this account; they may think she would have been more of a true mother if something of human regret had been apparent in her song. But surely we ought not to blame her if the Divine emotion that so completely filled her soul excluded for the time every ordinary feeling. In the very first words of her song we see how closely God was connected with the emotions that swelled in her breast. "My heart rejoiceth in the Lord, mine horn is exalted in the Lord" The feeling that was so rapturous was the sense of God's gracious owning of her; His taking her into partnership, so to speak, with Himself; His accepting of her son as an instrument for carrying out His gracious purposes to Israel and the world. Only those who have experienced it can understand the overwhelming blessedness of this feeling. That the infinite God should draw near to His sinful creature, and not only accept him, but identify Himself with him, as it were, taking him and those dearest to him into His confidence; and using them to carry out His plans, is something almost too wonderful for the human spirit to bear. This was Hannah's feeling, as it afterwards was that of Elizabeth, and still more of the Virgin Mary, and it is no wonder that their songs, which bear a close resemblance to each other, should have been used by the Christian Church to express the very highest degree of thankfulness.
The emotion of Hannah was intensified by another consideration. What had taken place in her experience was not the only thing of this kind that had ever happened or that ever was to happen. On the contrary, it was the outcome of a great law of God's kingdom, which law regulated the ordinary procedure of His providence. Hannah's heart was enlarged as she thought how many others had shared or would share what had befallen her; as she thought how such pride and arrogance as that which had tormented her was doomed to be rebuked and brought low under God's government; how many lowly souls that brought their burden to Him were to be relieved; and how many empty and hungry hearts, pining for food and rest, were to find how He "satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul with goodness."
But it would seem that her thoughts took a still wider sweep. Looking on herself as representing the nation of Israel, she seems to have felt that what had happened to her on a small scale was to happen to the nation on a large; for God would draw nigh to Israel as He had to her, make him His friend and confidential servant, humble the proud and malignant nations around him, and exalt him, if only he endeavoured humbly and thankfully to comply with the Divine will. Is it possible the Holy Spirit have given her a glimpse of the great truth - "Unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given? May she not have surmised that it was to be through one born in the same land that the great redemption was to be achieved? May she not have seen in her little Samuel the type and symbol of another Child to be more wonderfully born than hers, to be dedicated to Gods service in a higher sense, to fulfill all righteousness far beyond anything in Samuel's power? And may not this high theme, carrying her far into future times, carrying her on to the end of the world's history bearing her uneven to eternity and infinity, have been the cause of that utter absence of human regret that apparent want of motherly heart-sinking, which we mark in the song?
When we examine the substance of the song more carefully, we find that Hannah derives her joy from four things about God: - 1. His nature, (1Sa_2:2-3); 2. His providential government, (1Sa_2:4-8); 3. His most gracious treatment of His saints, (1Sa_2:9); 4. The glorious destiny of the kingdom of His anointed.
I. In the second and third verses we find comfort derived from (1) God's holiness, (2) His unity, (3) His strength, (4) His knowledge, and (5) His justice.
(1) The holiness, the spotlessness of God is a source of Comfort, - "There is none holy as the Lord. To the wicked his attribute is no comfort, but only a terror. Left to themselves, men take away this attribute and like the Greeks and Romans and other pagans, ascribe to their gods the lusts and passions of poor human creatures. Yet to those who can appreciate it, how blessed a thing is the holiness of God! No darkness in Him. no corruption, no infirmity; absolutely pure. He governs all on the principles of absolute purity; He keeps all up, even in a sinful, crumbling world, to that high standard; and when His schemes are completed, the blessed outcome will be "the new heavens and the new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness."
(2) His unity gives comfort, - "There is none besides Thee." None to thwart His righteous and gracious plans, or make those to tremble whose trust is placed in Him. He doeth according to His will in the army of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth; and none can stay His hand, or say unto Him, "What doest Thou?"
(3) His strength gives comfort, - "Neither is there any rock like our God." ''If God be for us, who can be against us?" "Hast thou not known, hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, nor is weary? There is no searching of His understanding? He giveth power to the faint, and to them that have no might He increaseth strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall; but they that wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run and not be weary, and they shall walk and not faint."
(4) His knowledge gives comfort, - "The Lord is a God of knowledge." He sees all secret wickedness, and knows how to deal with it. His eye is on every plot hatched in the darkness. He knows His faithful servants, what they aim at, what they suffer, what a strain is often put on their fidelity. And He never can forget them, and never can desert them, for "the angel of the Lord encampeth about them that fear Him, and delivereth them."
(5) His justice gives comfort. ''By Him actions are weighed." Their true quality is ascertained; what is done for mean, selfish ends stands out before Him in all its native ugliness, and draws down the retribution that is meet. Men may perform the outward services of religion with great regularity and apparent zeal, while their hearts are full of all uncleanness and wickedness. The hypocrite may rise to honour, the thief may become rich, men that prey upon the infirmities or the simplicity of their fellows may prosper; but there is a God in heaven by Whom all evil devices are weighed, and Who in His own time will effectually checkmate all that either deny His existence or fancy they can elude His righteous judgment.
2. These views of God's holy government are more fully enlarged on in the second part of the song (1Sa_2:3-8). The main feature of God's providence dwelt on here is the changes that occur in the lot of certain classes. The class against whom God's providence bears chiefly is the haughty, the self-sufficient, the men of physical might who are ready to use that might to the injury of others. Those again who lie in the path of God's mercies are the weak, the hungry, the childless, the beggar. Hannah uses a variety of figures. Now it is from the profession of soldiers - "the bows of the mighty are broken"; and on the other hand they that for very weakness were stumbling and staggering are girded with strength. Now it is from the appetite for food - they that were full have had to hire out themselves for bread, and they that were hungry are hungry no more. Now it is from family life, and from a feature of family life that came home to Hannah - "the barren hath borne seven, and she that had many children is waxed feeble." And these changes are the doing of God, "The Lord killeth and maketh alive; He bringeth down to the grave and bringeth up. The Lord maketh poor and maketh rich, He bringeth low and lifteth up. He raiseth up the poor out of the dust, and lifteth up the beggar from the dunghill, to set them among princes, and to make them inherit the throne of glory; for the pillars of the earth are the Lord's, and He hath set the world upon them." If nothing were taught here but that there are great vicissitudes of fortune among men, then a lesson would come from it alike to high and low - let the high beware lest they glory in their fortune, let the low not sink into dejection and despair. If it be further borne in mind that these changes of fortune are all in the hands of God, a further lesson arises, to beware how we offend God, and to live in the earnest desire to enjoy His favour. But there is a further lesson. The class of qualities that are here marked as offensive to God are pride, self-seeking, self- sufficiency both in ordinary matters and in their spiritual development. Your tyrannical and haughty Pharaohs, your high-vaunting Sennacheribs, your pride-intoxicated Nebuchadnezzars, are objects of special dislike to God. So is your proud Pharisee, who goes up to the temple thanking God that he is not as other men, no, nor like that poor publican, who is smiting on his breast, as well such a sinner may. It is the lowly in heart that God takes pleasure in. "Thus saith the high and lofty One, that inhabiteth eternity, and whose name is Holy: I dwell in the high and in the holy place, but with him also that is of a humble and contrite heart; to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite one."
When we turn to the song of the Virgin we find the same strain - "He hath showed strength with His arm, He hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. He hath put down the mighty from their seats, and exalted them of low degree. He hath filled the hungry with good things, and the rich He hath sent empty away." Undoubtedly these words have primary reference to the social conditions of men. Thanks are given that the highest privilege that God could bestow on a creature had been conferred not on any one rolling in luxury, but on a maiden of the lowest class. This meaning does not exhaust the scope of the thanksgiving, which doubtless embraces that law of the spiritual kingdom to which Christ gave expression in the opening words of the Sermon on the Mount, "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." Yet it is plain that both the song of Hannah and the song of Mary dwell with complacency on that feature of providence by which men of low degree are sometimes exalted, by which the beggar is sometimes lifted from the dunghill, and set among princes to inherit the throne of glory. Why is this? Can God have any sympathy with the spirit which often prevails in the bosom of the poor towards the rich, which rejoices in their downfall just because they are rich, and in the elevation of others simply because they belong to the same class with themselves? The thought is not to be entertained for a moment. In God's government there is nothing partial or capricious. But the principle is this. Riches, fullness, luxury are apt to breed pride and contempt of the poor; and it pleases God at times, when such evil fruits appear, to bring down these worthless rich men to the dust, in order to give a conspicuous rebuke to the vanity, the ambition, the remorseless selfishness which were so conspicuous in their character. What but this was the lesson from the sudden fall of Cardinal Wolsey? Men, and even the best of men, thanked God for that fall. Not that it gave them pleasure to see a poor wretch who had been clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day, reduced to so pitiful a plight; but because they felt it a righteous thing and a wholesome thing that so proud and so wicked a career should be terminated by a conspicuous manifestation of the displeasure of God. The best instincts of men's nature longed for a check to the monstrous pride and wicked avarice of that man; and when that check was given, and given with such tremendous emphasis, there was not an honest man or woman in all England who did not utter a hearty "Praise God!" when they heard the terrible news.
So also it pleases God to give conspicuous proofs from time to time that qualities that in poor men are often associated with a hard-working, humble career are well-pleasing in His sight. For what qualities on the part of the poor are so valuable, in a social point of view, as industry, self-denying diligence, systematic, unwearying devotion even to work which brings them such scanty remuneration? By far the greater part of such men and women are called to work on, unnoticed and unrewarded, and when their day is over to sink into an undistinguished grave. But from time to time some such persons rise to distinction. The class to which they belong is ennobled by their achievements. When God wished in the sixteenth century to achieve the great object of punishing the Church which had fallen into such miserable inefficiency and immorality, and wrenching half of Europe from its grasp, he found his principal agent in a poor miner's cottage in Saxony. When he desired to summon a sleeping Church to the great work of evangelizing India, the man he called to the front was Carey, a poor cobbler of Northampton. When it was his purpose to present His Church with an unrivalled picture of the Christian pilgrimage, its dangers and trials, its joys, its sorrows, and its triumphs, the artist appointed to the task was John Bunyan, the tinker of Elstow. When the object was to provide a man that would open the great continent of Africa to civilization and Christianity, and who needed, in order to do this, to face dangers and trials before which all ordinary men had shrunk, he found his agent in a poor spinner-boy, who was working twelve hours a day in a cotton mill on the banks of the Clyde. In all such matters, in humbling the rich and exalting the poor, God's object is not to punish the one because they are rich, or to exalt the other because they are poor. In the one case it is to punish vices bred from an improper use of wealth, and in the other to reward virtues that have sprung from the soil of poverty. ''Poor and pious parents," wrote David Livingstone on the tombstone of his parents at Hamilton, when he wished to record the grounds of his thankfulness for the position in life which they held. "I would not exchange my peasant father for any king," said Thomas Carlyle, when he thought of the gems of Christian worth that had shone out all the brighter amid the hard conditions of his father's life. Riches are no reproach, and poverty is no merit; but the pride so apt to be bred of riches, the idleness, the injustice, the selfishness so often associated with them, is what God likes to reprove; and the graces that may be found in the poor man's home, the unwearied devotion to duty, the neighbourliness and brotherly love, and above all the faith, the hope, and the charity are what He delights to honour.
In the spiritual sense there is no more important ingredient of character in God's sight than the sense of emptiness, and the conviction that all goodness, all strength, all blessing must come from God. The heart, thus emptied, is prepared to welcome the grace that is offered to supply its needs. Air rushes into an exhausted receiver. Where the idea prevails either that we are possessed of considerable native goodness, or that we have only to take pains with ourselves to get it, there is no welcome for the truth that "by grace are ye saved." Whoever says, "I am rich and increased in goods, and have need of nothing," knows not that "he is wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked." Miserable they who live and die in this delusion! Happy they who have been taught, "In me dwelleth no good thing." "All my springs are in Thee." Jesus Christ "is made to us of God wisdom and righteousness and sanctification and redemption." "Out of His fullness have we all received, and grace for grace."
3. The third topic in Hannah's song is God's very gracious treatment of His saints. "He will keep the feet of His saints." The term "feet" shows the reference to be to their earthly life, their steps, their course through the world. It is a promise which others would care for but little, but which is very precious to all believers. To know the way in which God would have one to go is of prime importance to every godly heart. To be kept from wandering into unblest ways, kept from trilling with temptation, and dallying with sin is an infinite blessing. "Oh that my ways were directed to keep Thy statutes! Then shall I not be ashamed when I have respect unto all Thy commandments." "He will keep the feet of His saints."
4. And lastly, Hannah rejoices in that dispensation of mercy that was coming in connection with God's "king, His anointed" (1Sa_2:10). Guided by the Spirit, she sees that a king is coming, that a kingdom is to be set up, and ruled over by the Lord's anointed. She sees that God's blessing is to come down on the king, the anointed, and that under him the kingdom is to prosper and to spread. Did she catch a glimpse of what was to happen under such kings as David, Jehoshaphat, Hezekiah, and Josiah? Did she see in prophetic vision the loving care of such kings for the welfare of the people, their holy zeal for God, their activity and earnestness in doing good? And did the glimpse of these coming benefits suggest to her the thought of what was to be achieved by Him who was to be the anointed one, the Messiah in a higher sense? We can hardly avoid giving this scope to her song. It was but a small measure of these blessings that her son personally could bring about. Her son seems to give place to a higher Son, through whom the land would be blessed as no one else could have blessed it, and all hungry and thirsty souls would be guided to that living bread and living water of which whosoever ate and drank should never hunger or thirst again.
What is the great lesson of this song? That for the answer to prayer, for deliverance from trial, for the fulfillment of hopes, for the glorious things yet spoken of the city of our God, our most cordial thanksgivings are due to God. Every Christian life presents numberless occasions that very specially call for such thanks- giving. But there is one thanksgiving that must take precedence of all - ''Thanks be unto God for His unspeakable gift." "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a living hope, to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you, who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last day."
William Robertson Nicoll, ed., The Expositor's Bible (London: Hodder & Stoughton, 1887–1910) — public domain. 65 of 66 books (1 Corinthians is not separately keyed, as that volume carries no machine-parseable verse references); section-level commentary keyed to the opening verse. Introductory and overview sections not keyed to a specific passage are excluded.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary 1892 · Public Domain On vv1, 11 1Sa_2:1. “And Hannah prayed.” “Hymns are wont to be…
CRITICAL AND EXPOSITORY NOTES—
1Sa_2:1. “And Hannah prayed.” “Hymns are wont to be comprehended under the name of prayers” (Psa_71:20). “It was the most ancient way of preserving the memory of things to posterity, poets being more ancient than historians or orators.” (Patrick.) “Mine Horn.” “There is no reason for supposing here a reference to the custom among Oriental women (Druses and others) of wearing silver horns on the head to which the veil is attached, and which, by their position, indicate the woman’s position as maiden, wife, or mother. There is no trace of such a custom among the ancient Hebrews. The word translated horn is used of the horns of beasts, of horns for blowing and drinking, or for any horn-shaped vessel, and of a mountain peak. It is the symbol derived from horned beasts, which carry the head high in vigorous courage and consciousness of power.” (Lange’s Commentary.) “Mine horn is exalted” does not mean, I am proud, but “my power is great in the Lord.” (Keil.) “This figure appears first here, and connects this song with that of David, in 2Sa_22:3, and is adopted in the Gospel, and applied to Christ in the song of Zacharias” (Luk_1:69). (Wordsworth.) “The mouth is ‘enlarged,’ or ‘opened’ wide, to proclaim the salvation before which the enemies would be dumb.” (Keil.)
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1Sa_2:2. “Rock.” This figure is another connecting link which joins this song with that of Moses (Deu_32:4) with David, and all with Christ.” (Wordsworth.) (See on this subject in Comments.) “The symbolical designation of the covenant-God by Rock, which occurs frequently, was suggested naturally by the configuration of the ground in Palestine, where masses of rock, surrounded by steep precipices, offered an image of solid and sure protection.” (Lange’s Commentary.)
1Sa_2:3. “By Him actions are weighed.” Keil translates, “To Him deeds are weighed,” that is to say, the acts of God are weighed, i.e., are equal or just. Many expositors agree with him, and about an equal number understand it to signify that God weighs, or rightly estimates the actions of men.
1Sa_2:4. “The bows of the mighty,” etc. “Bows were a principal part of warriors’ weapons and their girdles a principal part of their military habit” (Patrick).
1Sa_2:5. “They that were full,” etc. “See an instance in 1Sa_2:36” (Biblical Commentary). “Ceased” either to be hungry or to work for bread. “The barren hath borne seven,” i.e. many. “Seven children are mentioned as the full number of the Divine blessing in children” (Rth_4:15).—(Keil.) “Here prophecy concerning the Church mingles with her hymn of praise.”—(Patrick.) (On this subject see Comments on the Song.)
1Sa_2:6. “The Lord killeth,” etc. Killing denotes (with a departure from the ordinary sense) bringing into the extremest misfortune and suffering, which oppresses the soul like the gloom of death, or brings it near to death—making alive is extricating from deadly sorrow and introducing into safety and joy.—See Deu_32:39; Psa_30:3, etc. (Lange’s Commentary).
1Sa_2:8. “The beggar from the dunghill.” “This alludes to a form of wretchedness known in the East, and indicating the lowest degree of poverty and humiliation. The dunghill—a pile of horse, cow, or camel offal, heaped up to dry in the sun and serve as fuel—was and is piled up in the huts of the poor; and sometimes, from necessity, is the haunt of wandering mendicants, who, finding it in some outhouse outside the city, lodge there for want of better accommodation: so that the change that had been made in the social position of Hannah appeared to her grateful heart as auspicious and as great as the elevation of a poor despised beggar to the highest and most dignified rank (Fausset.) “The pillars of the earth.” “There is no need to find a geographical theory in a poetical statement. And even if it expresses the author’s geographical views, it is not the thought of the passage, but only the framework of the thought; the real thought here is solely religious, and has nothing to do with physical science” (Translator of Lange’s Commentary). Wordsworth calls it “a figurative expression derived from a palace or temple.” Some understand by the pillars, the rulers of the earth.
1Sa_2:9. “Keep the feet,” etc. Either from error and sin (Fausset) or from misfortune (Lange’s Commentary). “Darkness.” Symbolic of misfortune.
1Sa_2:10. “Thunder.” “Thunder is a premonitory sign of the approach of the Lord to judgment” (Keil). “Literally fulfilled in this history” (Wordsworth). “The ends of the earth.” “The object of God’s judicial interposition is not only the members of the chosen people, but the whole world” (Lange’s Commentary). “His anointed” or “Messiah.” The first time the word is used in Holy Scripture.
MAIN HOMILETICS OF THE PARAGRAPH.—1Sa_2:1-10
HANNAH’S SONG
I. The end of a granted desire should be the beginning of praise. The desire of the husbandman ends when the last shock of corn is safely housed in the barn. Then comes the harvest song indicating that desire has been completed by fulfilment. The ploughing and sowing, the bearing of the precious seed, the toil, the hope, the fear, the patience are all things of the past, and the end of all these should be a beginning of something new—of a song of thanksgiving. So it will be in the kingdom of God at the end of the present dispensation. The groaning and travailing of the whole creation—the sin, the sorrow, the tears, and struggles of the present will one day be ended—the earnest expectation of the creature—the desire of the best of the human race in all worlds—the prayer of ages—will end in complete fulfilment: and the end of all the desire and longing of the present will be the beginning of praise. A “new song” will be sung to celebrate the incoming of the new era—the birth of the new heavens and the new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness (2Pe_3:13). The beginning of a perpetual thanksgiving will celebrate the end of the present state of things and the incoming of the new. And so it should always be in the life of the individual It was so with Hannah. She had not experienced the consummation of her desire without experiencing deep sorrow—without long and patient waiting upon God. But the desire, the tears, the hope were behind her. The child had been born, the son had been given. The vow had been paid and the gift of the Lord had been given back to Him. The tide of joy and gratitude had been rising higher and higher in her heart from the hour in which she left her home until she stood in the very same spot where she had stood before—“a woman sorrowful and grieved in spirit.” And now she was a joyful mother, and gladness flooded her soul and burst forth into a mighty song of exultation and thanksgiving.
II. The experience of one indvidual is often symbolic and prophetic of the experience of many. The light that shone upon Paul on his way to Damascus pained and blinded him at first. And the bodily pain and blindness were symbolic of the pain and darkness of his soul from the light which shined into his soul. But out of the darkness and sorrow came light and joy, such as he had never known before. Of the experience of how many was this experience of Paul symbolic and prophetic! How many through his pain and joy were brought to pass through a like experience! To how many was the soul transition of this man an earnest of the same transition from darkness to light! Hannah’s experience was symbolic and prophetic of what was to be the experience of many of her nation. Those who were godly among them had been long grieved at heart because of the persecution of their enemies—because it seemed, indeed, as if God had forgotten to be gracious to His own people. Many a time, doubtless, had they asked Gideon’s question—“If the Lord be with us, why then is all this befallen us? and where be all His miracles which our fathers told us of?” (Jdg_6:13). But a new era was now to begin. Hannah’s joy coming after her long sorrow was anticipatory of a time when the garment of praise should take the place of the spirit of heaviness with all true patriots and servants of God in the land of Israel.
III. The language of the human soul in one age is often fitted to express its feelings in all ages. A common life expresses its existence in the same general outward form from age to age. The life of the rose or of the lily finds expression in the same general outward form to-day as it did when God first called it into existence. There are modifications and individual distinctions, but the general outline is the same. So with the life of the human soul. Although time modifies the form in which it gives expression to its thoughts, although each individual has an experience which in some respects differs from that of any other creature, yet the language spoken ages ago finds an echo in the hearts of men and women in each generation, and expresses their feelings as well as it expresses the feelings of the person who first uttered them. How perfectly does the language of some of the Psalms, for instance, fit the experience of many men and women in this nineteenth century. What a close resemblance there is between this song of the happy mother of Israel’s prophet, and that of the mother of that prophet, priest, and king, who was not the Saviour of Israel merely, but the Saviour of the world. There are slight modifications, but the great backbone of thought running through the one is the same as that in the other. And the same words, with slight changes of expression, might be used by any soul who had emerged from a long night of sorrow and darkness into a new and brighter epoch in its history, and as a matter of fact it has been so used by the Church of God in all ages, and will be until time shall be no longer. These thoughts are suggested by the song as a whole. We will now notice its main subjects.
I. That there is one God in contradistinction to many. “There is none beside Thee.” The human soul and the world around us speak alike of the oneness of God. The heavens that declare His glory, and the firmament that showeth His handy work speak of One Supreme Ruler who controls all the forces by which the hosts of heaven move in their appointed paths. The vast machine has many complications, but the unity of its movements and operations bear the stamp of one ruling mind. The human soul cries out for One God—for one distinct and over-ruling power above all the principalities and powers of the universe. The Bible declares unmistakably that there is such a Being. There is one “everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the heavens and the earth, who hath meted out heaven with the span, and comprehended the dust of the earth in a measure, and weighed the mountains in scales and the hills in a balance,” and none “instructed Him, or taught Him knowledge, or showed to Him the way of understanding” (Isaiah 60). He alone is the “King eternal, immortal, invisible” (1Ti_1:17), who “doeth according to His will in the army of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth” (Dan_4:35). The human soul may well rejoice in the knowledge that its destinies and the destinies of all the creatures of the universe are in the hands of a distinct identity like itself, yet so much greater and more powerful as to be able to control all the apparently conflicting forces which are at work into a complete and perfect harmony for the good of His creatures. The Israel of Jehovah in all ages have reason to rejoice in the knowledge that “the Lord our God is one Lord” (Deu_6:4).
II. That this one God is pure in His character. “There is none holy as the Lord.” If a human creature who holds in his hands the earthly destinies of other creatures (who are inferior to him in power) is lawless and wicked, of what misery may he be the cause! When an earthly judge, although skilful and learned, is known to be morally bad, we feel that his want of purity is not only injurious to himself, but may affect the destinies of those upon whom he is called to pass sentence. So with any ruler or judge of men in any capacity: purity of character, perfect integrity (so far as a human creature can be pure and upright), is felt to be indispensable to the well-being of those whom they govern or whom they judge. If this be so in the case of a human and finite being, how much more so is it in the case of the Almighty and Infinite God? If such a thing as a moral flaw in His character could be conceived, how terrible would be the issue! He who is to judge the world must be perfectly righteous. There must be nothing in His feelings and disposition that would tend to influence Him to do anything but the strictest justice. Seeing that the destinies of untold millions are in His hands, He must be absolutely without spot in His moral character. “Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?” (Gen_18:25) But in order to do right at all times He must be absolutely incorruptible and un-defiled. And this He is declared to be, this He has shown Himself to be. He has shown it in His hatred to sin. A man’s moral purity, his holiness, may be estimated by the abhorrence in which he holds all moral impurity—anything which can defile his own soul and the souls of others. That God hates sin may be seen in the searching and binding character of His law. Human lawgivers make laws which deal with man’s outward life—which have to do with him as a citizen rather than as a man. If he abstains from certain outward actions, the law allows him to live unmolested. But God’s law is so holy that it penetrates into the spirit, legislates concerning thoughts and feelings, passes sentence upon hidden motives as well as upon visible actions. The “exceeding broadness” (Psa_119:96) of the law reveals the Lawgiver’s hatred to sin, and His consequent moral purity. And God’s hatred to sin, and, therefore, His holiness is seen in in the extent of the sacrifice He has made to put away sin. A human ruler’s abhorrence of any evil law or custom may be estimated by the efforts he makes to abolish it; by the self-sacrifice he is willing to undergo to rid his country of the curse. In nothing is the absolute holiness of God seen so plainly as in the fact that He “gave His only-begotten Son” to “put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself” (Heb_9:26). Those who sing the song of the Lamb slain glorify the name of the Lord for His holiness (Rev_15:3-4). And the contemplation of His work of redemption gives His saints on earth the most assuring proof of that holiness “at the remembrance” of which they join the first singer of this song in “giving thanks” (Psa_30:4).
III. That immutability is a necessary consequence of God’s absolute purity. “Neither is there any rock like our God.” The unchangeableness of any human being depends upon his goodness and upon the length of time he has been good. He will be unchangeable in his feelings and actions in proportion to his moral purity, and the longer he has lived a holy life the more fixed and rock-like will be his character. If a man has pursued a line of righteous conduct for half-a-century—if in all that time he has been a man of unblemished integrity—everyone will feel that he is less likely to change now than he was fifty years ago. Every year that has passed over his head—every step that he has taken in the path of uprightness—has added something to the immutability of his character. God has ever been perfectly holy—holiness is His most important attribute—the one which forms the most weighty theme of the adoration of those of His creatures who are nearest to Him in moral character (Isa_6:3). And because He is so holy He must be unchangeable in His character. His everlasting holiness is a guarantee that He will always be the same in thought, and word, and deed; while He remains the Holy One of Eternity, He must continue to be the unchangeable God (Mal_3:6). And that God is thus unchangeable may well furnish men with a theme of song. It is an instinct of humanity to reach out after something less changeable than themselves—to endeavour to lay hold of some object to which, as to a rock, they may anchor for rest and security. All the efforts of men to secure for themselves permanent positions in the world—to ensure to themselves and to their families a source of livelihood which will not fail them—are indications of their desire for a rock of some kind upon which they may rest. That upon which they place their dependence may be a very unworthy object of trust for an immortal spirit, yet men will make a rock of any object rather than have none. But those who, like Hannah, know the holy and unchangeable God, make Him, and Him only, the object of their entire trust—the Rock of their souls. They know from joyful experience that in all their need He has been, and ever will be, “a strength to the poor, a strength to the needy in his distress, a refuge from the storm, a shadow from the heat, when the blast of the terrible ones is as a storm against the wall” (Isa_25:4).
IV. God is likewise to be rejoiced in as a God of knowledge. “The Lord is a God of knowledge,” etc.
1. He knows Himself. This is more than any human creature can assert concerning his own identity. The anatomist who can describe every bone and vein and nerve in the human body is looked upon as a man of knowledge, but when he has done this there are many mysteries connected even with the body that are utterly beyond his grasp—he stands before them in absolute ignorance. The student of man’s mind is considered to be a man of knowledge if he can say something instructive concerning the world of thought and feeling within man—if he can analyse the operations of the mind and classify the mental faculties and throw some light upon the relations of body and soul. Yet when he has said all, how little has he said which can unfold to us the mystery of our own existence—how little does the wisest man know concerning himself. But God has a perfect knowledge of His own nature, He never returns from any reflection upon Himself with any mist of ignorance resting upon Him—He comprehends the whole length and breadth and depth and height of His own Infinite Being.
2. He has a perfect knowledge of His own actions. “By Him actions are weighed”—not only the acts of men but His own. Man cannot pretend to any perfect judgment of his own actions. He knows not the real value of his own deeds—he does not know whither they will tend—he can only come to an approximate estimate of his own motives. But God can perfectly weigh His acts—He knows exactly what will be their effect—He has a perfect knowledge of the motives which prompt them.
3. Having this perfect knowledge of Himself and of all that He does, the Divine Being must know man in all the mystery of his complicated being, and must be able perfectly to estimate the worth of every human action. The greater includes the less. He who made man must comprehend the nature of his existence; He knows what constitutes life; He comprehends how mind acts upon matter, and sees the subtle link which unites soul and body. And in the matter of human actions, He “is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart, and all things are naked and opened in the eyes of Him with whom we have to do” (Heb_4:12-13). The motives that prompt human deeds, the influence that those deeds will have upon future ages, the nature of the human will which is behind every human deed are all to Him as an open book.
4. The proper condition of heart in the presence of such a God is humility. “Talk no more so exceeding proudly; let not arrogancy come out of your mouth.” Limited knowledge on any subject should make men humble in the presence of those who are better informed. It ill becomes such to assume to dictate to and instruct those who are far more competent to speak upon the matter. How much more should man’s limited knowledge of himself and of his Creator—of his own actions, and of the actions of the All-Wise and All-knowing God—cause him, like Job, to “lay his hand upon his mouth” (Job_40:4). Unable as he is rightly to weigh even his own actions, how can he dare to constitute himself a judge in what seems to him dark in the mysteries of the Divine dealings. The only condition of heart proper to finite creatures is that of Him “who is of a contrite spirit,” and who “trembles” at the Divine Word (Isa_66:2). Our own ignorance and our conviction of God’s infinite knowledge should lead us to put unreserved faith in His declarations, and yield uncompromising obedience to His commands. We make the knowledge of a fellow-man a ground of confidence, and we show our confidence by obeying their word. Our narrow outlook around us and beyond us makes safety to be found only in listening to the words of “the God of Knowledge,” in striving to conform our lives to His revealed will, and leaving the result with confident trust in His hands.
V. This holy immutable God of Knowledge is the author of those inversions of the ordinary course of nature which often occur in a manner totally unforeseen and unexpected. “The bows of the mighty are broken.… The Lord maketh poor and maketh rich.… He raiseth up the poor out of the dust,” etc. The natural law of the world is that the strong will hold on their way against what is weak, and that they, being in power, shall remain in possession. It is a foregone conclusion that the warrior who has the greatest force at his command will win the victory. Men expect the race will be won by the swift, and the battle by the strong. But God has other forces which He can bring into the field, and if He is not “on the side of the great battalions” He will bring about such unlooked for combinations that those who have fallen in the struggle will stand upright, “being girded with power,” and those who have been mighty will be overthrown, and the lame will take the prey. When the forces of Egypt overtook the Israelites at Pi-hahiroth, the natural conclusion of a looker-on would have been that nothing could prevent the slaves so lately made free from being overmastered and retaken into bondage. But God, being on the side of the weak, brought auxiliaries into the combat such as Pharaoh had never dreamt of having to fight against. The water of the Red Sea was turned into an opposing force on behalf of the oppressed, and the army of Egypt was over thrown by a power against which their horsemen and chariots and their mighty men were utterly powerless. Between Egypt and Israel there was no comparison as to natural strength, but the Lord of nations brought supernatural reinforcements to the aid of the naturally weak, and thus “the bows of the mighty were broken, and they that stumbled were girded with strength.” The woman who first uttered these words had long been walking through life with a heavy burden of sorrow weighing her to the earth: gladness and exultation seemed to be the portion of her persecutor, but none seemed destined for her. But the Lord who “bringeth low and lifteth up,” brought laws into operation which entirely changed the colour of her existence, and from being an object of scorn she became most unexpectedly raised to a position of more than ordinary honour.
1. These unseen and unknown laws are generally brought into operation in order to punish the strong for their oppression of the weak. God alone is responsible for these inequalities in national or individual life; and because He is so, He will take account of those who, being endowed with greater physical or mental advantages, use them to lord it over those who have not been so favoured. Hannah’s sorrow arose from a cause entirely beyond her own control, and those who oppressed her because of it were guilty of a great sin against God Himself. In the exaltation of her despised rival, Peninnah receives a just punishment for her wickedness; from the birth of Samuel her influence in the family must have declined, and none of her children are even mentioned in the sacred history, while that of Hannah’s son was honoured throughout his nation during his life, and is held in honour now that two thousand years have passed away. And so it is with the rise of one nation on the stage of history and the decline and fall of another. “Therefore hear now this, thou afflicted and drunken, but not with wine: Thus saith thy Lord, the Lord, and thy God that pleadeth the cause of His people, Behold, I have taken out of thine hand the cup of trembling, even the dregs of the cup of my fury; thou shalt no more drink it again: But I will put it into the hand of them that afflict thee; which have said to thy soul, Bow down, that we may go over” (Isa_51:21-23). Such is the method of the Divine government—there is a purpose in this subversion of natural order, and that purpose is retribution to the strong oppressor who has trampled on the rights of the weak.
2. God has a just right and reason so to intervene. “For the pillars of the earth are the Lord’s, and He hath set the world upon them.” He is the proprietor of the earth—the land upon which the oppressor dwells is His by the most indisputable right—that of creation. The human proprietor claims a right over that which he has purchased—he can eject tenants from his property who do not meet his just demands. How much more is it the prerogative of Him who called the earth into being to eject from their dominion over it those who disregard His just demands, and abuse the power and the position which He has entrusted to them? God had a right to call Abraham from Ur of the Chaldees, and to give to his descendants the land of the Canaanite. He had a right to sweep the inhabitants of the cities of the plain from off the face of His earth when they so grossly defiled their fair inheritance. He had a right to call Moses and David from following the sheep, and set them in high places, to fulfil His eternal purposes. He had a right to take Nebuchadnezzar from his throne, and make his dwelling with the beasts of the field, until he knew “that the Most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever He will,” and until he acknowledged that all “His ways are judgment, and those who walk in pride He is able to abase” (Dan_4:25-37). “The earth is the Lord’s,” and “they that dwell therein” (Psa_24:1), and He, by right of proprietorship, puts in an absolute claim to dispose of that which belongs to Him as He sees best.
VI. God also bestows and takes away human life. “He bringeth down to the grave, and bringeth up.”
1. He alone can give life. There are many things in which man can imitate God. He can imitate God’s benevolence by bestowing upon his fellow creatures gifts which will sustain and embellish their existence. He can be, to some extent, an imitator of God’s character (Eph_5:1). But he can in no way imitate Him as the Giver of life. In that the Creator stands absolutely alone in the universe—this is His sole prerogative. Human life is continued in the world by the instrumentality of man, but human parents are but instruments. In this respect there can be no likeness between man and God. God is the only Being who has “life in Himself” (Joh_5:26). His is the only independent life, the highest archangel—he who is permitted to draw the nearest to the inaccessible light wherein dwells the Divine Majesty—is as much dependent for existence upon the only source of life as the tiniest insect that crawls beneath our feet. He was not until God called him into existence, and that existence is sustained only by Him who gave it at the first. Of One alone can it be said that He “hath immortality” (1Ti_6:16), because all others receive it as a gift from Him.
2. He only has the power and the right to take life. He who gave has a right to take, and He only does take it. For whatever may be the second cause coming between, it is by Divine appointment that men die. Coming to the grave is not a debt of nature, but a Divine appointment. Nature is inexorable in exacting her debts—she works always by laws which she cannot set aside. She is strong enough to kill, but not strong enough to make an exception to the rule—she cannot go out of her destined course to serve the highest purpose—to favour the most holy character. But there have been exceptions to the universal law of death—exceptions which have been made by Him who is the Lord of Nature, and who can set aside her claims—can leave her debt unpaid when He sees fit. Nature did not make the law, because she has no power to make exceptions to the rule. It is God alone who “bringeth to the grave.” Death is not a chance which happens unto us. The arrow that entered between the joints of Ahab’s armour came from a bow “drawn at a venture,” but the arrow winged its way by Divine appointment. And so it is with all death’s arrows, not one but hits the mark to which God has destined it. But it must be remembered that the appointment of death was not part of God’s original plan in relation to men. Although it is now “appointed unto men once to die” (Heb_9:27), it was not so from the beginning. God’s purpose concerning man at the first was to give life, and not to take it away; to bestow upon His creature an undying existence, a perfect and unending life of body as well as of soul. It is man’s disobedience alone which has brought about the Divine appointment of death. “Going to the grave” is not the outcome of God’s original purpose concerning man, but an appointed penalty for man’s transgression. Death being thus a Divine appointment, dying should be regarded as a duty to be cheerfully discharged. Men face death bravely and cheerfully when they feel that their country or their earthly ruler has appointed them to it. The good man should learn from such examples to die as a duty of Divine appointment. A Christian ought to die cheerfully, seeing he dies by the command of the Lord of life. This thought ought to reconcile him to the inevitable, and help him to meet the last enemy without dismay. In proportion as a fellow-creature is good, we trust him with our life—with interests that are dearer to us than life. In proportion as he is wise as well as good—especially if he is powerful in addition to his wisdom and his goodness—our confidence in him is increased, our feeling of security in his hands is strengthened. The claim of the Eternal and Infinite God to kill and to make alive rests not only upon His power, but upon His character. He is not only the Author of life, but He is the King who cannot wrong any of his subjects, the Judge of all the earth who must, from the necessity of his nature, do right at all times to all His creatures. If God kills, it is not only because He takes what is His own, but because He is doing what is the best thing to be done, and in the best manner.
3. The resurrection from the dead depends upon the Giver of life. He not only “bringeth down to the grave,” but He “bringeth up.” (a) This we might have regarded as probable if we had no revelation upon the subject. We might have concluded that He who at first “breathed into man the breath of life,” and thus made him a “living soul,” could at His pleasure reanimate the dust and bring life again out of death. If God could give life where there was no life, is it not highly probable that He can give it again where it has once existed? (b) That He has done so is a matter of history. We have it upon reliable authority that He has restored dead men to life—that He has reanimated the lifeless clay, (c) That He must do this for all mankind is certain. Those who make promises ought to perform them if they are able to do so. If a man promises to redeem a pledged garment of his poorer brother, and is able to fulfil his promise, ought he not to do it, knowing as he does that his needy brother is expecting anxiously the promised raiment to cover his scantily clothed body? The raiment of God’s children is held in pledge by death—He holds the garment until the time of the “redemption of the body” (Rom_8:23). God has promised to redeem that raiment, and He holds Himself bound to fulfil His promise, and we hold him bound also. Christ has given His word to bring from the grave both the just and the unjust—“The hour is coming when all that are in the graves shall hear His voice, and shall come forth; they that have done good unto the resurrection of life, and they that have done evil unto the resurrection of damnation” (Joh_5:28-29). The vision of the seer has pictured for us that great redemption day—that day of “bringing up from the grave” of the human race (Rev_20:12-13).
VII. In all the acts of His providence, in all the unlooked-for changes which He brings to pass, God has a special oversight of His own children. “He shall keep the feet of His saints.”
1. The character of the persons whose feet are kept—“Saints.” Sainthood implies a soul transition. A man that is known to have been born poor and is found in after life to be living in wealth is known to have experienced a great transition in his outward circumstances. By what means or at what time in his life this change took place may not be revealed, but that it has taken place is a certainty. So with a saint. Such a man is in a condition to which he was not born. Sainthood is “not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God” (Joh_1:13). Therefore every human saint has been the subject of a soul-change. He may have been suddenly raised from a state of spiritual poverty to wealth, or he may have acquired his riches by degrees—increasing little by little in his knowledge of God and in confidence in His character.
2. The change has taken place by the consent of his will. Change of will brings about a change of position. If a child who hated his lessons can be made willing to learn, his position in relation to knowledge is at once changed. A sinner passes into a saint by becoming willing to learn of the Holy One how to become holy. Willingness is the bridge by which the sinner passes from a state of opposition to God into a state of reconciliation to Him, and being thus reconciled to God is to be brought into that fellowship with Him which constitutes sainthood. The entire process of the transition is described by the Apostle in 1Jn_1:5-9. Fellowship with God based upon a knowledge of His character makes a man a saint, but before this knowledge can be attained there must be a willingness to learn.
3. The saint needs a keeper for his feet. The child who has but just learned to walk needs a steady and strong hand to guide his steps. The person who “keeps his feet” must possess a wisdom and strength superior to that of the child’s. God is a guide and an upholder of the steps of His saints. He alone is “able to keep them from falling” (Jud_1:24). They cannot see the dangers in the distance coming to meet them, or even those which are now about their path. Hence their need of an eye that can discern them, and a hand that can deliver from them, a “God of knowledge,” who is perfectly acquainted with every danger to which they can be exposed, and a God of such absolute power as to be able to deliver them. And His word of promise to each one is, “Fear thou not, for I am with thee. Be not dismayed, for I am thy God; I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness (Isa_41:10). Their weakness and their ignorance are both elements of danger, and both are fully met by their All wise and Omnipotent Keeper. The other part of the verse implies that they are surrounded by enemies, both seen and unseen, who do not fail to watch for their halting, and lose no opportunity they can lay hold of to trip them up; but “the wicked shall be silent in darkness, and by strength shall no man prevail” against the saints of God. They may, and often do, prevail against a saint’s earthly possessions, and even against his life. Jezebel by strength did “prevail” against Naboth’s vineyard, against his life. For the time she was paramount against a good man. Herodias did likewise prevail against the liberty and life of John the Baptist, and her strength was strong enough to silence the voice that had been lifted up against her crimes. And in many like cases the wicked have prevailed against the earthly prosperity and life of the saints of God by His permissive providence. But notwithstanding this permissive clause in the Divine code—notwithstanding the licence that God thus gives to the enemies of His saints—there is no relaxing of His hold, either of the saint or the sinner. The feet of the saint are still upheld, and when they pass through the waters and the fire of temptation and persecution they “shall not be burned, neither shall the flame kindle upon them (Isa_43:2), their character and all their real interests shall come through the trial without loss or injury.
4. The keeping of the saints’ feet arise from God’s special inheritance in them. They are “His saints.” The mother watches her child’s feet because the child is her own. She may have a general interest in all children, but the feet of her own child are the objects of her most watchful love. If she is a godly mother, she not only keeps the feet of her child’s body, but she cares unceasingly for the feet of the moral nature. She lays herself out to guide and to guard the spiritual as well as the natural life. All who are saints are God’s purchased possession, and His special relation to them, and theirs to Him, makes sure an unceasing care on His part for all their real interests.
VIII. The inference to be drawn from a contemplation of God’s character and government is, that contention against Him is vain.
1. He can overcome His adversaries by His physical omnipotence. “Out of heaven He shall thunder upon them.” God’s manifestations of power in the material world are sometimes of such a nature as to make men feel their utter powerlessness in His hands. When the seaman finds that all his efforts to guide his vessel are as useless as the dashing of the sea-spray against the rock, he becomes conscious of a power which is far beyond that of human skill and science. When the lightnings flash through the heavens and the thunder shakes the earth, we feel most deeply how passive we are in the hands of the Almighty Being, who can thus hold back and roll up the clouds of heaven. At such times we not only know how useless it is to contend with God, but we are made to feel it; we are conscious that to contend with One who has such powerful physical forces at His beck is as vain as it is wicked. The voice of God’s thunder made even the heart of the hardened Pharaoh to quake and to acknowledge himself defeated (Exo_9:27-28), and all God’s mighty manifestations in the natural world should lead His creatures to humble themselves before Him. 2 He can confound them by His superior wisdom and goodness. “The Lord shall judge the ends of the earth.” The opponent in military warfare who can use the movements of his adversary to work his defeat and can carry the battle into his very camp and overthrow him on his own ground, is not one whom an enemy cares to meet. Neither is the opponent in argument to be despised who can turn a man’s own reasonings against him and confound him by his own words. God has done this with His adversaries over and over again. He has made the plans of the wicked instrumental in carrying out His own purposes and in working out their own destruction. Men ought by this time to have learned how useless it is to contend with One who “taketh the wise in their own craftiness:” so that “the counsel of the froward is carried headlong” (Job_5:13). The imperfect knowledge of a human judge may enable men successfully to contend against him. The fact that he is ignorant of many things that he ought to know may defeat the ends of justice, and lead him to an erroneous decision. But God is a perfect judge—His decisions are always perfectly just and equitable, because he lacks neither the perfect knowledge nor the perfect righteousness, out of which must come a perfect ruler. When the final judgment comes—when the Son of man shall “sit upon the throne of His glory, and before Him shall be gathered all nations” (Mat_25:31-32), all men will feel that it is utterly useless to seek to evade His searching scrutiny—that His holiness and His omniscience make certain the overthrow of all that is opposed to Him. “The Lord cometh with ten thousand of his saints, to execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him” (Jud_1:14; Jud_1:15).
IX. The end of confounding the wicked and the end of all God’s dealings with men is the establishment of a kingdom of righteousness. “He shall give strength unto His King, and exalt the horn of His Anointed.” In nature all change tends to the development of perfection. The blade and the green ear are but stepping-stones to the fully ripened grain. The bud unfolds into the perfect flower, the flower is followed by the fruit. So is it in God’s kingdom. All the overturnings and changes, all the judgments upon the ungodly, are but stepping-stones to the establishment of the kingdom of righteousness. All the kings who have ever sat upon the thrones of the world have been preparing the way for the rule of “His King,” who is one day to rule all the nations. Looking away into the future under the influence of the Spirit of God, Hannah foretells the advent of a king who should reign in righteousness, and anticipates the Psalmist King of Israel when he sang of Him who should “judge the poor of the people” and “save the children of the needy, and break in pieces the oppressor;” who shall “have dominion also from sea and to sea, and from the river unto the ends of the earth;” whose “name shall endure for ever, and be continued as long as the sun;” and whom “all nations shall call blessed.” (Psalms 76) To the undisputed reign of this King all the present dealings of God with men and nations are tending.
OUTLINES AND SUGGESTIVE COMMENTS
1Sa_2:1. The repetition of “in the Lord” emphasises the fact that the joyous frame of mind and lofty consciousness of power has its root in the Lord, and pre-supposes the most intimate communion with the living God. The mouth “opened wide over mine enemies” intimates that the joy and courage that filled her soul had found utterance.—Lange’s Commentary.
Hannah’s song of praise compared with her former prayer.
1. She was then in “bitterness of soul” (1Sa_1:10); now her “heart rejoiceth.”
2. Then she was “humiliated” (1Sa_1:5; 1Sa_1:8; 1Sa_1:11); now she is “exalted.”
3. Then her adversary “provoked her” (1Sa_1:6); now her “mouth is opened wide over her enemies.”
4. Then she “poured out her soul before the Lord” (1Sa_1:15); now she “rejoices in His salvation.” Often we remember to pray, and then forget to praise.—Translator of Lange’s Commentary.
There is not one petition in all this holy hymn, but thanksgiving is a principal part of prayer; it is also an artificial begging.—Trapp.
How has Hannah’s glory been exalted? “In the Lord,” saith she. The elevation is no more dangerous, for it has a solid foundation, a root that cannot be shaken. The glory that comes from men is accompanied by the feebleness of those who give it, so that it is easily overthrown, but it is not so with the glory which comes from God. It is the glory of which the prophet speaks (Isa_40:6-8). Hannah is a remarkable example of this truth. Kings, generals, great men, are forgotten, notwithstanding all their efforts to make their names immortal, notwithstanding the magnificent tombs that they build, the statues that they erect, the monuments they leave as tokens of their success, their very names are forgotten. But Hannah is celebrated to-day throughout all the world, her glory is celebrated wherever the sun sheds its light.… For, when God glorifies anyone, death comes in vain, time passes on in vain, the glory of the mortal survives, and its flowers are kept unfading: nothing can throw a shadow upon that brightness.—Chrysostom.
1Sa_2:2. God manifests Himself as holy in the government of the kingdom of His grace by His guidance of the righteous to salvation.—Keil.
Two characteristics of the life of God’s children in their relation to the living God:
1. The humble reverence before Him, in view of His holiness.
2. The heartiest confidence in Him, in view of His unchangeable faithfulness.—Lange’s Commentary.
Holiness is a chief and super-eminent perfection of God, that wherein the Divine excellence doth chiefly consist. Therefore it is the most frequent epithet given to His name in Scripture. We never read mighty name or wise name, but frequently holy name. The holiness of God is His glory and beauty. Therefore He is said to be “glorious in holiness.” He is mighty in power, and rich in grace, and glorious in holiness.—Wisheart.
1Sa_2:3. The manner of God’s weighing actions.
1. With perfect knowledge.
2. With absolute rectitude (1Sa_2:2).
3. With immutable justice (1Sa_2:2).—Lange’s Commentary.
The weighed or righteous acts of God (see Keil’s rendering in Critical Notes) are described in 1Sa_2:4-8 in great and general traits, as displayed in the government of His kingdom, through the marvellous changes which occur in the circumstances connected with the lives of the righteous and the wicked.—Keil.
I. The perfection of God’s knowledge.
1. It is present and actual; His eye is always open, and everything is in the view of it. The knowledge of the creature is more power than act; it is not much that we are capable of knowing, but there is very little that we actually know, and’ tis but one thing that we can fix our thoughts upon at once. But the knowledge of God is an actual and steady comprehension of things, all objects are at once in the view of the Divine understanding.
2. It is intimate and thorough. Our knowledge glides upon the superficies of things; we do not know things in their realities, but as they appear and are represented to us in all their masks and disguises: but God knows things throughout, all that can be known of them.
3. It is clear and distinct. We are often deceived with the near likeness and resemblance of things, and mistake one thing for another; our knowledge is but a twilight, we see things many times together and in a heap, and do but know them in gross. But those things which are of the least consideration, and have the greatest likeness to one another, the very hairs of your head, are severally and distinctly known to God.
4. It is certain and infallible. Everything almost imposes upon our understandings, and tinctures our minds; our temper and complexion, our education and prejudice, our interest and advantage, our humours and distempers, these all misrepresent things and betray us into error: but the Divine understanding is a clear, fixed, constant, and undisturbed light, a pure mirror that receives no stain from affection, or interest, or any such thing.
5. It is easy and without difficulty. We must dig deep for knowledge and take a great deal of pains to know a little; we strive to comprehend some things, but they are so vast that we cannot; other things are at such a distance, that our understanding is too weak to discern them; others so little, so small and nice, that our understanding cannot lay hold of them; but God’s understanding being infinite, it is a vast comprehension of all things without difficulty or pain.
II. God’s knowledge of the heart teaches—
1. The folly of hypocrisy. If we deal with men this is not a very wise way, for there is danger of discovery even from them, therefore the best way for a man to seem to be anything is really to be what he would appear; but having to deal with God, to whom all our disguises are apparent, ʼtis a madness to hide our iniquity in our bosoms.
2. Charge yourselves with inward purity and holiness, because of the pure eyes which behold the most secret motions of your souls. Fear and shame from men lay a great restraint upon our outward actions, but what a strange freedom do we take within our own breasts! This is an argument of the secret atheism that lies at the bottom of our hearts.
3. This is a matter of encouragement to us in many cases—“When my heart is overwhelmed within me, then Thou knowest my path” (Psa_143:3)—in cases of difficulty which depend upon the hearts of other men, which, though we do not know, yet God knows them. But especially is this a matter of comfort to us when we suffer by the calumnies and reproaches of men, when the world chargeth us with crimes, then to be able to appeal to the Searcher of hearts.
4. This renders all deep and profound policies of the wicked a vain thing. God sees those cobwebs which they are spinning, and can blow them away at a breath.
5. If God only knows the hearts of men, then what art thou, O man, that judgest another’s heart? Will thou assume to thyself the prerogative of God?—Tillotson.
1Sa_2:4-5. Every power which will be something in itself is destroyed by the Lord; every weakness, which despairs of itself, is transformed into power.—Von Gerlach.
1Sa_2:4-8. The unity amid change of the opposite ways which the pious and the ungodly must go.
1. One starting point, the Lord’s inscrutable will, which determines them.
2. One hand, the Almighty hand of the Lord which leads them.
3. One goal at which they end, humble submission under that hand. The wonderful guidance of the children of men in quite opposite ways.
1. The opposite direction in which they go, (a) from the height to the depth, (b) from the depth to the height.
2. The opposite design which the Lord has therein with men, (a) to lead them from the heights of pride and haughty self-complacency to humble submission under His unlimited power, (b) to exalt them from the depths of humble self-renunciation to a blessed life in the enjoyment of His free grace.
3. The opposite end, according as men cause the divine design to be fulfilled or defeated in them: (a) everlasting destruction without God, (b) everlasting salvation and life in, and with God.—Lange’s Commentary.
1Sa_2:3-10. The contrasts which the change in the relations of human life presents to us in the light of Divine truth.
1. God’s holiness and man’s sin.
2. God’s almightiness and man’s powerlessness.
3. God’s gracious design and man’s destruction.—Lange’s Commentary.
1Sa_2:5. The view held by some, that in Hannah’s barrenness and subsequent fruitfulness there is a mystical or typical meaning, deserves consideration. Hannah is said to be the type of the Christian Church, at first barren and reviled, afterwards fruitful and rejoicing. As to such typical character we must be guided, not by outward resemblances, but by fixed principles of Biblical interpretation. These facts may guide us to a decision—
1. God’s relation to His people is set forth under the figure of marriage (Isaiah 54; Jeremiah 3; Hosea 1-3.)
2. Isaiah (Isa_54:1) describes God’s spiritual people as barren, yet with the promise of many children.
3. Paul (Gal_4:27) quotes this passage of Isaiah, refers it to the Church of Christ as distinguished from the Jewish dispensation, and declares that this antithesis is given in Sarah and Hagar.… What he declares is that Sarah is the mother of the child of promise, while Hagar’s child is the product of natural fruitfulness.… Throughout his argument it is the spiritual element of promise and faith on which Sarah’s typical position is based. Only, therefore, where we can show such spiritual element are we justified in supposing a typical character. There must be involved the truth that the origination and maintenance of God’s people depend on His promise, and not on human strength. This is not necessarily involved in the history of every barren woman who becomes fruitful.… Hannah seems to be simply a pious mother, whose prayer for a son, contrary to human probabilities, is granted.—Translator of Lange’s Commentary.
1Sa_2:6. He layeth men for dead, and then reviveth them, as 2Co_1:9-10. That great apostle was “in death’s often;” and those ancient confessors cry out, “for Thy sake are we killed all the day long” (Rom_8:36).—Trapp.
Hannah asserts that supreme sovereignty of God, of which the boasting, arrogant spirit, whether found in Peninnah’s pride of fecundity, or in Sennacherib’s pride of conquest, or in Nebuchadnezzar’s pride of empire, or in Antichrist’s pride of rebellion, is a blasphemous denial.—Biblical Commentary.
The word sheol signifieth—
(1) The grave, the place of dead bodies;
(2) by a metaphor, a state of adversity in this world;
(3) the forlorn estate of those who are deprived of God’s favour and inward comfort, whether for a time and when they are utterly cast off.—Willet.
The Lord bringeth down to the grave by the terror which He awakens in the soul of justly merited punishment, and He bringeth up by humble faith that He grants in His infinite mercy and in the merits of the blood of His Son.—De Sacy.
1Sa_2:8. These words contain the reason of all that precedes in the five foregoing verses: for the very earth being founded, upheld, and supported by the Lord, no wonder that all the inhabiters of it are in His power, to dispose of them as He thinks good.—Patrick.
The plans of the Most High are very different from men’s expectations. In order to execute them He rejects the great. While He allowed kings upon the throne to ignore His greatest miracle, He drew from the dust twelve disciples, and made them the masters of the nations, the judges of the world, the instruments of the greatest event which has ever taken place, the pillars of His Church, and partakers of His eternal empire. And He takes from the obscurity of a peasant’s home a poor, unknown girl, and makes her the mother of the Highest.—Duguet.
1Sa_2:9. This is a lower love and courtesy than to keep their hands (Joh_13:5-6). He keepeth them from utter prolapsion, from devoratory evils, as Tertullian saith, so as that either they fall not at all—stumble they may, but they get ground by their stumbling—or if they fall, they shall arise; for the Lord putteth under His hand (Psa_37:24). There is still a supporting grace, below which they cannot possibly fall.… Augustine, striving against his headstrong corruptions in his own strength, heard a voice saying, “Thou would’st stand by thyself, and therefore fallest.”—Trapp.
As Jehovah, the God of Israel, the Holy One governs the world with His almighty power, the righteous have nothing to fear. But the wicked will perish in darkness—i.e., in adversity, when God withdraws the light of His grace, so that they fall into distress and calamity. For no man can be strong through his own power so as to meet the storms of life.—Keil.
God keeps the feet of His people.
1. By the prevention of sinful and evil occasions, so in that He does not so easily suffer them to come within the compass of ruin and spiritual destruction.
2. By fortifying and strengthening the heart and mind against closing with them, so that though occasions be administered, yet they shall have no power or efficacy upon them. He does this both by the grace of fear and by the grace of faith. God, by stirring up in His servants a holy tenderness and jealousy over themselves, does by this means very much scare them, who, by fearing lest they should sin, do come to avoid sinning itself. And faith is another supporter likewise. It lays hold upon all the promises of assistance and strengthening which God has made to His servants, such as this now here in the text, therefore it is said, “We are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation” (1Pe_1:5). By the power of God as the principal. And by faith as the instrumental. We may likewise take the words in reference to temporal things.
1. God will bless His saints in their ways, not only for the preserving of their souls from sin, but the preserving of their bodies from destruction. He that will keep the feet certainly will not be wanting to the breast and head. He names the feet, that from them we might rise higher to all the rest.
2. He will bless them in regard to their works. There is a blessing upon a righteous hand whatsoever it be that he undertakes. As a blessing of protection upon his person, so a blessing of success upon his labour and constant employment.… As there is a difference between the wicked and the godly, in regard of their disposition, so is there likewise in regard of their condition.
1. It is a state of darkness. (a). In the ignorance of their minds, (b). In the inordinancy of their affections—malice shades the mind, and so any other unruly passion. (c). In the practice of all other sins whatsoever, forasmuch as they seek the dark for the commission of them. (d). In that spiritual blindness to which they are delivered and given up. This is the darkness of the way, there is also the darkness of the end—the darkness of death, which is common to all, and the darkness of judgment.
2. It is a state of silence. (a). Grief, horror, and perplexity shall seize upon them. Silence is an attendant upon grief and astonishment in their extremities. (b). It is a note of conviction, they shall have nothing to say for themselves. (c). It is a note of abode and continuance. It does denote the immovableness and irrecoverableness of their miserable condition.—Horton.
The title, saints, is of all names the most honourable. It literally signifies the holy ones. It associates the servant of God with his Maker, “whose name is holy,” with his Redeemer, “the Holy One of Israel,” and with “the Holy Ghost,” not to mention those holy ones who veil their faces before His throne.—Jowett.
1Sa_2:10. Here Hannah casts a prophetic glance at the consummation of the kingdom of God. As certainly as the Lord God keeps the righteous at all times, and casts down the wicked, so certainly will He judge the whole world, to hurl down all His foes and perfect His kingdom which He has founded in Israel. And as every kingdom culminates in its throne, or in the full might and government of a king, so the kingdom of God can only attain its full perfection in the king whom the Lord will give to His people and endow with His might. The Anointed of the Lord, of whom Hannah prophesies in the spirit, is not one single king of Israel, either David or Christ, but an ideal king, though not a mere personification of the throne about to be established, but the actual king whom Israel received in David and his race, which culminated in the Messiah. The exaltation of the horn of the Anointed of Jehovah commenced with the victorious and splendid expansion of the power of David, was repeated with every victory over the enemies of God and His kingdom gained by the successive kings of David’s house, goes on in the advancing spread of the kingdom of Christ, and will eventually attain to its eternal consummation in the judgment of the last day, through which all the enemies of Christ will be made His footstool.—Keil.
Hannah’s devout acknowledgment that God only is the Rock, and that it is the sole prerogative of God to raise up princes and to give them strength, stands in striking contrast to the people of Israel, who impatiently asked for a king to judge them like the nations, and to go out before them, and to fight their battles (1Sa_8:5-20), instead of waiting patiently God’s time, and instead of rejoicing in their privilege in not being like the nations, but in being the special people of God, and instead of relying upon His Almighty arm to save them from their enemies. She is the first who addresses God as the “Lord of Hosts” (see 1Sa_1:11), a title which emphatically declares the sovereignty of the Unseen Ruler of the world; and in this also, by her faith in Him, she stands in contrast with the faithless impatience of the people of Israel who asked Samuel to make them a visible head. The king of whom Hannah prophesies is “His king,” a king by whom the Lord shall judge the ends of the earth, not the king craved by the people on mere worldly considerations, but the King to be appointed by God, in His own time, and a figure of Christ of whom Jehovah speaks by David (Psa_2:6; Psa_72:1) to whom all judgment is given, and who will put all enemies under His feet (Joh_5:22-27; 1Co_15:25-28).—Wordsworth.
The judgment of God’s primitive justice.
1. Whom it threatens—the ungodly, “adversaries.”
2. How God makes it approach with warning signs, “out of heaven shall He thunder.”
3. How it discharges itself against all the world that is opposed to God. “The Lord shall judge the ends of the earth.”
4. How it promotes the perfecting of His kingdom. “He shall give strength unto His king.”—Lange’s Commentary.
1Sa_2:1-10. The Magnificat of Hannah is an evangelical song, chanted by the spirit of prophecy under the Levitical Law. It is a prelude and overture to the Gospel. It is a connection of sweet and sacred melody between the Magnificat of Miriam after the passage of the Red Sea—symbolising the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ,—and the Magnificat of Mary after the annunciation of His birth. Let this song of Hannah be read in the Septuagint, and then the Magnificat in St. Luke’s original, and the connection of the two will be more clearly recognised.… The true characteristic of sacred poetry is that it is not egotistical. It merges the individual in the nation and in the Church universal. It looks forward from the special occasion that prompts the utterance of thanksgiving, and extends and expands itself, with a loving power and holy energy, into a large and sympathetic outburst of praise to God for His love to all mankind in Christ.… The Magnificat of Hannah is conceived in this spirit. It is not only a song of thanksgiving, it is also a prophecy. It is an utterance of the Holy Ghost moving within her, and making her maternal joy on the birth of Samuel to overflow in outpourings of thankfulness to God for those greater blessings in Christ, of which that birth was an earnest and a pledge. In this respect it may be compared to the Song of Moses (Deuteronomy 32) and the Song of David (2 Samuel 22)—Wordsworth.
The history leaves us no room to doubt that the immediate occasion of this song was the birth of Samuel; yet, if viewed in reference to this occasion alone, how comparatively trifling is the theme! How strained and magniloquent the expressions! Hannah speaks of her “mouth being enlarged over her enemies,” of “the bows of the mighty men being broken,” of “the barren bearing seven,” of “the full hiring themselves for bread,” and other things of a like nature,—all how far exceeding, and we might even say caricaturing the occasion, if it has respect merely to the fact of a woman, hitherto reputed barren, becoming at length the joyful mother of a child. Were the song an example of the inflated style not uncommon in Eastern poetry, we might not be greatly startled at such grotesque exaggerations; but being a portion of that Word which is all given by inspiration of God, and is as silver tried in a furnace, we must banish from our mind any idea of extravagance and conceit. Indeed, from the whole strain and character of the song, it is evident that, though occasioned by the birth of Samuel, it was so far from having exclusive reference to that event, that the things concerning it formed one only of a numerous and important class pervading the providence of God, and closely connected with His highest purposes. In a spiritual respect it was a time of mournful barrenness and desolation in Israel: “the word of the Lord was precious, there was no open vision,” and iniquity was so rampant as even to be lifting up its insolent front, and practising its foul abominations in the very precincts of the sanctuary. How natural, then, for Hannah, when she had got that child of desire and hope, which she had devoted from his birth as a Nazarite to the Lord’s service, and feeling her soul moved by a prophetic impulse to regard herself as specially raised up to be “a sign and a wonder” in Israel, and to do so particularly in respect to that principle in the Divine government which had so strikingly developed itself in her experience, but which was destined to receive its grandest manifestation in the work and kingdom which were to be more peculiarly the Lord’s. Hence, instead of looking exclusively at her individual case, and marking the operation of the Lord’s hand in what simply concerned her personal history, she wings her flight aloft, and takes a comprehensive survey of the general scheme of God; noting especially, as she proceeds, the workings of that pure and gracious sovereignty which delights to exalt a humble piety, while it pours contempt on the proud and rebellious. And as every exercise of this principle is but part of a grand series which culminates in the dispensation of Christ, her song runs out at the close into the sublime and glowing delineation of the final results to be achieved by it in connection with His righteous administration. This song, then, plainly consists of two parts, in the one of which only—the concluding portion—it is properly prophetical. The preceding stanzas are taken up with unfolding from past and current events, the grand spiritual idea; the closing ones carry it forward in beautiful and striking application to the affairs of Messiah’s kingdom.—Fairbairn.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary (gen. ed. Joseph S. Exell; Funk & Wagnalls, c. 1892) — public domain (pre-1929). A full-Bible homiletical/sermon-outline anthology covering 65 of 66 books (2 John is absent from the source module). Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Sermon Bible 1900 · Public Domain On v1 1Sa 2:3
1Sa 2:3
In all God’s dealings with us there is one thing of which we may be perfectly sure,—they will be done deliberately; delicately, by measurement, with accuracy, in proportion. We are quite safe there from all hastiness and inconsideration—those two banes of human judgment. Job’s prayer is always answered, "Let me be weighed in the balance." Alike the greatest and the least—from those giants of nature, the everlasting hills, down to the dust of the earth, and to the smallest thought which ever flashed through a man’s mind—all are weighed.
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I. Let us be sure that we give actions their proper place in the plan of our salvation. Actions never save a man. Actions have, strictly speaking, nothing to do with our salvation. But actions occupy four parts in the great scheme of our redemption. (1) They are the tests of life—"He that abideth in Me, the same bringeth forth much fruit." (2) They are the language of love—"If ye love Me, keep My commandments." (3) They glorify God before men—"Let your light so shine before men that they, seeing your good works, may glorify your Father which is in Heaven." (4) And although they are not the meritorious causes of our final rewards, yet they determine the degrees and proportions of our final state—"He will reward every man according as his work shall be."
II. It would be the greatest presumption on our part to say how God weighs our actions. It is sufficient to know that He does weigh them. That hand cannot err. But we may carry out God’s own metaphor a little way and conceive it thus: (1) On the one hand is the action; on the other, what that action might have been, and ought to have been, and, but for our sin, would have been. (2) On the one side the action we did; on the other, the action we meant to do, and promised to do. (3) On the one side, what we have received; on the other, what we have rendered.
III. When God holds the scales of His children’s actions. He puts in something of His own over and above, and when He puts that in, the beam that had preponderated against us, turns the other way, and "mercy rejoiceth against judgment." We should be careful not to usurp an office which only Omniscience can rightly exercise.
IV We must all feel that when we are weighed in these holy scales the verdict can only be, "Tekel; thou art weighed in the balances and found wanting." But the Lord Jesus Christ died upon the cross. That death is on the one side, and the whole world’s guilt is on the other. God is "weighing them"—the blood of Christ and the sins of all mankind. God has balanced you and your substitute, and God is satisfied for His sake for ever and ever.
J. Vaughan, Sermons, 15th series, p. 189.
References: 1Sa 2:3.—Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. xxix., No. 1736. 1Sa 2:6.—Ibid., vol. ix., No. 523. 1Sa 2:8.—J. H. Evans, Thursday Penny Pulpit, vol. iii., p. 387. 1Sa 2:9.—G. Brooks, Outlines of Sermons, p. 176.
1Sa 2:12, 1Sa 2:26
The sacred historian dwells with evident pleasure on the beautiful, holy boyhood of the child who served before the Lord, wearing a linen ephod, and who in the visitations of the night, thrilling to the Divine voice which called him by his name, answered fearlessly, "Speak, Lord; for Thy servant heareth." Yet from the same tabernacle, from the same tutelage, from the same influences, came forth also the sons of Eli; and the sons of Eli were men of Belial; they knew not the Lord.
I. The training the same, the product how different; the school the same, the boys whom it educated so fearfully contrasted. Such contrasts seem strange, but they are in reality matters of daily experience. Daily from the same home we see boys go forth, some to live noble, self-denying lives, others to live lives that come to nothing, and do deeds as well undone. So too, often, from happy conditions come base characters, from degraded environments strong, sweet natures struggle into the light.
II. Our inference from this is, that the personal devotion of the heart, the personal surrender of the individual will, can alone save a man or make him holy A man’s life may be influenced, but it is not determined by his circumstances. No aid, save that which comes from above to every man, can help him to climb the mountain-path of life, or enter the wicket-gate of righteousness. Nor, on the other hand, can any will or power except his own retard his ascent or forbid his ingress. On ourselves, on the conscious exercise of our own free will, depends our eternal salvation or ruin.
F. W. Farrar, In the Days of the Youth, p. 99.
References: 1Sa 2:12.—Parker, vol. vii., p. 57. 1Sa 2:17.—Ibid., vol. vi., p. 228, and vol. vii., p. 58,
1Sa 2:18
Samuel was a child-prophet, and that fact is pregnant with the deepest signification. That a child should have any interest in God’s temple, and especially that a child should hold office in that temple, is a circumstance which should arrest our attention.
I. God’s interest in human life begins at the earliest possible period. This is an argument for infant baptism which I have never known to be touched, much less shaken.
II. In Hannah’s making Samuel a coat every year, we see how age must work for childhood, strength must toil lovingly and helpfully for weakness. The resources of life must be expended on the children of need.
III. Looking at the call of Samuel we see: (1) Almighty God calling man at an unlikely time. In the pomp of mid-day He comes to us, blazing with all effulgence of glory, and addresses us with majesty and overwhelming force; in the hour of midnight He approaches His sleeping ones, and by dream or vision or still small voice, would hold intercourse with His saints. (2) We see Almighty God calling an unlikely person. We should have thought it more probable that God would call the aged prophet, rather than the ministering child. But the first shall be last and the last first. We may enlarge this incident so as to find in it a great principle of exquisite beauty and of worldwide application; that principle is that Almighty God is constantly sending messages by children. (3) In this scene we have also the revelation of the true state of man for receiving God’s message—"Speak, Lord; for Thy servant heareth." It is the place of the creature to listen to the Creator. Good listening is one condition of progress.
Parker, Wednesday Evenings in Cavendish Chapel, p. 28.
I. The first notice we have of Samuel’s ministering before the Lord reminds us of the decency and gravity necessary at all times and in all persons, in approaching Him. As Samuel is an example of reverence in worship, so in Saul we have an example of irreverence. There have ever been these two kinds of Christians—those who belonged to the Church, and those who did not. And while, on the one hand, reverence for sacred things has been a characteristic of Church Christians on the whole, so want of reverence has been characteristic of Christians not of the Church. The one have prophesied after the figure of Samuel, the other after the figure of Saul.
II. So natural is the connection between reverence and faith that the only wonder is, how any one can for a moment imagine he has faith in God, and yet allow himself to be irreverent towards Him. Hence even heathen religions have considered faith and reverence identical. Those who have separated from the Church of Christ have in this respect fallen into greater than pagan error. They have learned to be familiar and free with sacred things, as it were, on principle. They have considered awe to be superstition and reverence to be slavery.
III. Those who worship in a humble and reverent way will find the effect of it, through God’s mercy, in their heavenly walk. If we honestly strive to obey God, then our outward manner will be reverent also. This is the true way of doing devotional service, not to have feelings without acts, or acts without feelings, but both to do and to feel—to see that our hearts and bodies are both sanctified together and become one.
Plain Sermons by Contributors to "Tracts for the Times" vol. v., p. 167 (see also J. H. Newman, Parochial and Plain Sermons, vol. viii., p. 1).
References: 1Sa 2:18.—M. G. Pearse, Sermons for Children, p. 56; Outline Sermons for Children, p. 28; J. Reid Howatt, The Churchette, p. 120; R. D. B. Rawnsley, Village Sermons, 1st series, p. 299.
1Sa 2:21
(with 1Sa 2:26)
Early growth in grace and knowledge, the training up of a child in the fear and nurture of the Lord and in the praise of His holy name; this is the great lesson which is exemplified in the early life of Samuel.
I. Let us first recall who Samuel was. (1) He was the child of Hannah, given in answer to her fervent prayer. (2) His very name "Samuel," which means "asked of God," reminds us of his mother’s piety and his own. (3) From his birth he was dedicated to God’s service.
II. Observe further, how God communicated with Samuel. Three several times did the Lord call Samuel by name. It was a terrible message that God gave the young child to deliver, but he told it, every whit. Those who have the care of children should early impress them with the thought that God sees them, that He is about their bed and about their path. Teach them to hear God’s voice betimes, and to obey His movement in their souls.
R. D. B. Rawnsley, Village Sermons, 3rd series, p. 130.
One of the most beautiful things that God has made in the world is growth, and the world is full of it. God did not make a great Samuel at once, but a little child Samuel, who grew before Him. I will speak of four thoughts as included in growing before the Lord.
I. Samuel grew at the Lord’s House. At this time there was no temple. There was the tabernacle, with the court round about, where the burnt offerings were consumed on the altar. But, also, there must have been chambers for the priests, and their servants, the Levites. In one of these Samuel lived. Eli’s dwelling must have been close beside the sacred court with its altar and holy places of the Lord’s tabernacle.
II. Samuel grew in the Lord’s sight. This means that the Lord was pleased to see Samuel grow as he did. "Grow in grace" is the Apostle’s word. Growth in love is the true progress; for love is holiness, and holiness is light, and light is God.
III. Samuel grew by the Lord’s grace. His mother had lent him to the Lord, and the Lord saw to his growing.
IV. Samuel grew for the Lord’s service. (1) Little services from little people are acceptable to God. (2) The little grows by and by to the great.
J. Edmond, Sermons Preached at the Dedication of Union Chapel, Islington, p. 68 (C.S.)
Reference: 1Sa 2:22.—J. Bainton, Christian World Pulpit, vol. xxii., p. 150.
1Sa 2:25
I. The lesson of the text is that there were some on whom advice was wasted, for the law of God’s providence was that they must perish; that they had neglected such great means of grace so long and so obstinately, as to have hardened their hearts beyond repentance. There was a time, even with Hophni and Phinehas, there was a time with all the souls who who may since have been equally lost, when God willed not to slay them; when His words to them were thus recorded by the prophet Ezekiel: "Why will ye die? Turn yourselves and live ye." God does speak to us now in the words of Ezekiel; He may and will, if we are obstinately careless, speak to us hereafter in the words of Samuel; we shall not listen to the voice of God’s word, because we have sinned beyond repentance.
II. Nor will it avail to complain that we should not have been so fatally hardened had the means of good been more sparingly given us; that we should have loved the service of the tabernacle more had we been less familiar with it. The same page of Scripture which tells us of the sons of Eli tells us of Samuel also; not born indeed, but brought by his mother, at his earliest years, to be in that same place, and to draw grace and strength from those very ministrations which, to the sons of Eli, had been the savour of death unto death. It is for us to determine whether we will be as Samuel or as Hophni and Phinehas; whether we will gain the habit of profiting by holy things or of despising them.
T. Arnold, Sermons, vol. iii., p. 218.
References: 1Sa 2:26.—F W Farrar, In the Days of thy Youth, p. 99; J. Edmunds, Sermons in a Village Church, p. 178; R. D. B. Rawnsley, Village Sermons, 3rd series, p. 130. 1Sa 2:30.—W. Landels, Christian World Pulpit, vol xxi., p. 2; Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. xxx., No. 1811; A. W. Hare, Sermons to a Country Congregation, vol. ii., p. 35; C. J. Vaughan, Lessons of Life and Godliness, p. 131; H. Alford, Quebec Chapel Sermons, vol. iii., p. 357; J. Burns, Sketches of Sermons on Special Occasions, p. 157; Homiletic Magazine, vol. xii., p. 75 1Sa 2:33.—Parker, vol. vi., p. 238. 1Sa 2:1.—F. W. Robertson, Sermons, 4th series, p. 1; G. Brooks, Outlines of Sermons, p. 194; Parker, vol. vii., p. 58.
The Sermon Bible, ed. William Robertson Nicoll (1888–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
J. R. Dummelow 1909 · Public Domain On v1 Hannah's Song of Thanksgiving. The Sin of Eli's Sons
Hannah's Song of Thanksgiving. The Sin of Eli's Sons
1-10. The Song of Hannah.
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This beautiful poem has been well called the 'Magnificat of the Old Testament.' The song of the Virgin Mary (Luk_1:46-55) is clearly modelled on it very closely. In each case there is the rejoicing over the exaltation of the poor and despised and the humiliation of the rich. But there is a world of difference between Mary's quiet and restrained gratitude and calm confidence in God's mercy, on the one hand, and the exultant and almost fierce triumph of this song. 1Sa_2:5 has doubtless led to the attribution of the song to Hannah; but in its general tone it seems more suitable to some public person, and 1Sa_2:10 (unless it be an interpolation) suggests a later date in Israel's history. Compare the expressions of national triumph in the songs of Moses (Exo_15:1-18) and Deborah (Judges 5).
1. Mine horn is exalted] The figure is that of an animal carrying its head high: cp. Psa_112:9. My mouth is enlarged] The idea is that of speaking with confidence and derision: cp. Isa_57:4. Salvation] In the Bible this word denotes help or deliverance of any kind.
2. Holy] The Holiness of God in the OT. denotes positively the completeness of the divine nature and negatively God's unlikeness to anything else. Rock] This is a frequent metaphor to express the strength and unchangingness of Jehovah. The name also conveys the idea that the strength of God is a refuge for His people (Psa_91:2). Rocks, as capable of easy defence, were often used as places of refuge.
3. Weighed] i.e. estimated. The idea is the same as in Pro_21:2.
5. Seven] the number of completeness, perfection.
6. Grave] Heb. Sheol, the place where departed spirits were believed to be gathered at death. Bringeth up] restores to life those who were at the point of death.
8. Pillars] the great men of the state on whom it depended for its stability: cp. Gal_2:9; Rev_3:12.
9. Saints] RV 'holy ones': rather, 'pious ones, those who love God.'
10. His anointed] a common name for the Jewish king.
12. Knew] This verb in the Bible has of ten the added idea of appreciation, recognition of character, affection.
13-17. The sons of Eli were guilty of a twofold sin. (a) Instead of being content with their allotted portion (Lev_7:31.) they took all they could get of the offerer's portion. (b) They dishonoured God by making their claims take precedence of His. The blood and the fat were to be consumed on the altar immediately after slaughtering (Exo_23:18), but they claimed their share before this had been done. After the fat had been conveyed to God the sacrificial flesh was boiled, but Eli's sons demanded their portion raw with a view to its being roasted: see HDB. art. 'Sacrifice.'
16. If any man] RV 'if the man,' i.e. the offerer. Presently] i.e. immediately, at once.
17. For men abhorred] rather, 'for the men (i.e. the sons of Eli) despised.'
18. But Samuel] Throughout this section Samuel is contrasted with the profligate sons of Eli. Linen ephod] the usual priestly garment (1Sa_22:18).
20. For the loan which is lent] rather, 'in return for the petition which was made for (i.e. for the benefit of) the Lord,' i.e. in place of Samuel, the man-child who, if born, was to be given to the Lord.
22. Assembled at] RV 'did service at.' It is probable that these women were permanently connected with the Tabernacle: cp. Exo_38:8.
Lay with the women] There is no doubt that the surrender of their chastity was regarded by the women of Canaan and Syria as the highest sacrifice they could make in honour of their gods. The sons of Eli introduced these immoral rites into the worship of Jehovah, and hence the severity of their condemnation.
25. In the original, point is given to Eli's rebuke by the fact that the word here used for 'judge' (Elohim) also means 'God.' The judge was regarded as the representative of God: see Psa_82:6. If it is a case of men, God has appointed some one to settle the matter; but when God Himself is the offended party, no higher power exists to whom the case can be submitted. God is both adversary and judge.
Would slay them] lit. 'wished to slay them.' In the OT. the direct intervention of God is assumed, and His ever-present agency realised as a determining fact. We say that after a man has persisted for long years in sinful habits, he finds it impossible to alter. The Bible expresses the same truth by stating, first that the sinner (e.g. Pharaoh) hardens his own heart, and then that God hardens the sinner's heart. The punishment of the wicked is considered to be as much in accordance with God's will as the reward of the righteous.
27. A man of God] a common name for a prophet. With the books of Samuel we come to a period when God guides His people by human agency rather than by direct communication. Did I plainly appear?] RV 'Did I reveal myself?' It is an impassioned question, 'Did I or did I not?' Thy father] i.e. Aaron.
In Pharaoh's house] LXX reads 'In bondage to Pharaoh's house.'
28. Give.. all the offerings] see Leviticus 2, 6, 7.
29. Kick ye at] The figure is that of a pampered and intractable animal: cp. Deu_32:15. Sacrifice and.. offering] bloody and unbloody sacrifices. Honourest thy sons above me] Eli should have removed his sons from a position they disgraced. But he could not bring himself to humiliate them and lower his own position in the sight of the people.
30. When Abiathar, the descendant of Eli, fled to David (1Sa_22:20), Zadok, a descendant of Eleazar, may have been made chief priest by Saul. He appears soon after, and it is not known how or when the office was bestowed on him. David divided the dignity between the two (2Sa_8:17), but Abiathar was deposed by Solomon (1Ki_2:27), and the priesthood remained with Zadok and his descendants down to the time of the exile. Thus the prophet's threat was fulfilled.
31-35. It is keenly disputed to what events these vv refer. The simplest explanation is that 1Sa_2:31 refers to the massacre of the priests at Nob, 1Sa_2:32-33 to the deposition and consequent poverty of Abiathar, and 1Sa_2:35 to Zadok.
31. Cut off thine arm] destroy thy power, as Psa_10:15.
32. An enemy in my habitation] lit. 'affliction of habitation.' The context seems to show that the reference is to Eli's own dwelling. While Israel increased in wealth and prosperity in the reign of Solomon, Eli's family were to fall into poverty and obscurity.
33. Those who did not die young would pass their life in vexation and grief. Thine eyes.. thine heart] rather as LXX, 'his eyes.. his heart.' Shall die in the flower of their age] LXX reads 'shall die by the sword of men.'
35. I will build him a sure house] i.e. I will give him a continuous posterity: cp. 1Sa_25:28; 2Sa_7:16. Mine anointed] the king (singular), really referring to the long line of kings who were to follow David.
36. Put me into] rather, 'attach me to,' 'make me a hanger on.'
J. R. Dummelow, A Commentary on the Holy Bible (Macmillan, 1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
C. I. Scofield 1917 · Public Domain On vv6, 10 Heb. "Sheol," (See Scofield "Hab 2:5").
grave
Heb. "Sheol," (See Scofield "Hab 2:5").
The Scofield Reference Bible (1917 edition), notes by C. I. Scofield — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Arno C. Gaebelein 1922 · Public Domain On vv1, 11 2. Hannah’s Prophetic Song
2. Hannah’s Prophetic Song
CHAPTER 2:1 - 10
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1. The praise of Jehovah-God (1Sa 2:1-3)
2. Jehovah’s power and grace in deliverance (1Sa 2:4-8)
3. The prophetic outlook (1Sa 2:9-10)
Hannah’s heart filled with the Holy Spirit overflows with a marvellous utterance. Higher criticism claims “that this beautiful sacred lyric could not have been sung by Hannah in the circumstances as described. The words of verse 5 alone approach her situation, and doubtless led to the insertion of the psalm in its present context.” They also say “that the Virgin’s song (Luk 1:46-55) is largely modeled on the song of Hannah” (Prof. A.R.S. Kennedy). Such statements deny inspiration. Hannah’s and Mary’s songs are so much alike because the same Spirit spoke through both. Why should it be thought impossible for pious Hannah to give forth such sublime and far reaching words which stand so closely related to all subsequent prophecy, if we believe that the Holy Spirit inspired her as He did Isaiah and other prophets?
As every other song given by the Spirit of God, so her song begins with extolling the Lord, glorifying His name. The first four stanzas give her own experience. She knows Jehovah and rejoices in His salvation. Especially beautiful are the utterances the Spirit of God makes through her in describing Jehovah’s power and grace in deliverance. We must think here first of all of our Lord Jesus Christ. He went down into the dust of death and was raised from the dead. He was brought down to the grave and brought up; He became poor and is made rich; He was made low and is lifted up (verses 6-7). And therefore He reaches down to our misery and raiseth the poor out of the dust, and lifteth the beggar from the dunghill to set them among princes to inherit the throne of glory. What a glimpse she, whose name means “grace,” had of grace which stoops so low and lifts so high! Her words came nearest in the Old Testament to the gospel of grace as revealed in the New. With the middle of the eighth verse she speaks of the future. The day of the Lord with its judgment bursts into view. The feet of His Saints will be kept; the wicked will be in darkness; the adversaries broken to pieces. Then heaven is no longer silent. The Lord judges. The King, Israel’s true and once rejected King, our Lord Jesus Christ, will be exalted. In the beginning of the books of Kingdoms heaven’s true King is seen in prophetic vision.
The ministering child Samuel before the Lord is a most beautiful and sweet picture. Faithfully his little hands did whatever they could do, and Jehovah was well pleased with it.
Arno C. Gaebelein, The Annotated Bible (1913–1922) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Paul E. Kretzmann 1924 · Public Domain On v1 Hannah’s Song of Thankfulness
Hannah’s Song of Thankfulness
v. 1. And Hannah prayed and said, in an exaltation of spirit brought about by the Holy Ghost, My heart rejoiceth in the Lord, mine horn is exalted in the Lord, said of vigorous courage and consciousness of power; my mouth is enlarged over mine enemies, being opened widely to praise the salvation of the Lord; because I rejoice in Thy salvation, in the merciful kindness which Jehovah had shown her.
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v. 2. There is none holy as the Lord; for there is none beside Thee, His holiness being the reflection of His majesty; neither is there any rock like our God, in whom the believers may always place their trust with firm confidence, Deu 32:4-15.
v. 3. Talk no more so exceeding proudly, these words being addressed to the godless, to the enemies of Jehovah; let not arrogancy come out of your mouth, anything which savors of impertinence against Jehovah; for the Lord is a God of knowledge, an omniscient God, and by Him actions are weighed, or, all His doing is weighed by Him, is right and true.
v. 4. The bows of the mighty men are broken, all human power being helpless before Him, and they that stumbled are girded with strength, prepared for battle by virtue of their trust in Jehovah.
v. 5. They that were full have hired out themselves for bread, having been reduced to the most pitiful straits; and they that were hungry ceased, receiving the food which they need by the mercy of God, so that the barren hath born seven, Psa 113:9; and she that hath many children is waxed feeble, having been bereaved of her children in her old age, Jer 15:9.
v. 6. The Lord killeth and maketh alive, sending danger and distress, but also delivering those that trust in Him, Psa 30:3-4; He bringeth down to the grave and bringeth up, extricating His children from deadly sorrow, from extreme misfortune, and placing them in safety and joy.
v. 7. The Lord maketh poor and maketh rich, for in His hands are all the treasures of the world; He bringeth low and lifteth up.
v. 8. He raiseth up the poor out of the dust and lifteth up the beggar from the dunghill, from the deepest dishonor and disgrace, in which one is, as it were, trodden under foot, to set them among princes, on seats of honor, such as are occupied by the nobility, and to make them inherit the throne of glory, to hold the very opposite position of that which formerly was theirs; for the pillars of the earth are the Lord’s, having been erected by Him and being held in place by His almighty power, and He bath set the world upon them, as the Creator and Sustainer of the world.
v. 9. He will keep the feet of His saints, to guard them from tottering and falling, and the wicked shall be silent in darkness, deprived of the light of God’s mercy; for by strength shall no man prevail; it is impossible for man, in his own might, to defy the storms of life.
v. 10. The adversaries of the Lord shall be broken to pieces for Jehovah will destroy and annihilate those who lift up their voices to challenge Him; out of heaven shall He thunder upon them, as a warning of the nearness of His judgment; the Lord shall judge the ends of the earth; and He shall give strength unto His King, to His Anointed, the future Messiah of Israel. and exalt the horn of His Anointed. The kingdom of Christ extends to the ends of the earth, which He will judge on the Last Day. Then the unbelievers, the godless, will be condemned to everlasting damnation, but the power of the Christ of God will be established throughout eternity. Thus the inspired song reached its wonderful climax.
v. 11. And Elkanah, with his household, went to Ramah to his house. And the child, Samuel, did minister unto the Lord before Eli, the priest.
Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11 General Information:
General Information:
Hannah recites a song to Yahweh. (See: Parallelism)
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My heart exults
"I have great joy"
in Yahweh
"because of who Yahweh is" or "because Yahweh is so great"
My horn is exalted
A horn is a symbol of strength. AT: "I am now strong" (See: Metaphor)
translationWords
Hannah
pray
heart
exult
horn
Yahweh
exalt
adversary
joy
save
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 10 2:1-10 Hannah’s Prayer of Praise celebrates Samuel’s dedication to…
2:1-10 Hannah’s Prayer of Praise celebrates Samuel’s dedication to the Lord’s service by rejoicing in God’s uniqueness (2:1-2), his ability to reverse fortunes (2:3-9), and his ability to strengthen his chosen king (2:10). Like Mary’s Song of Praise (Luke 1:46-55), Hannah’s prayer emphasizes God bringing down the rich and powerful and exalting the poor and the downtrodden (1 Sam 2:7-8; Luke 1:52-53). David’s prayer in 2 Sam 22 is another beautiful proclamation of God’s saving power as it relates to his chosen king (1 Sam 2:10). The rich, unrighteous rulers of the land (Eli, Saul, Herod) will be brought down, while the leaders who fulfill God’s purposes (Samuel, David, Jesus) will be exalted.
2:1 made me strong: Literally has exalted my horn; cp. 2:10. The horn of a powerful animal, such as an ox or bull, was a symbol of strength that was held high in triumph after defeating an enemy (cp. 1 Kgs 22:11).
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.