1 Samuel 2:1-191And 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. 2There is none holy as the Lord: for there is none beside thee: neither is there any rock like our God. 3Talk no more so exceeding proudly; let not arrogancy come out of your mouth: for the Lord is a God of knowledge, and by him actions are weighed. 4The bows of the mighty men are broken, and they that stumbled are girded with strength. 5They that were full have hired out themselves for bread; and they that were hungry ceased: so that the barren hath born seven; and she that hath many children is waxed feeble. 6The Lord killeth, and maketh alive: he bringeth down to the grave, and bringeth up. 7The Lord maketh poor, and maketh rich: he bringeth low, and lifteth up. 8He 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. 9He will keep the feet of his saints, and the wicked shall be silent in darkness; for by strength shall no man prevail. 10The adversaries of the Lord shall be broken to pieces; out of heaven shall he thunder upon them: the Lord shall judge the ends of the earth; and he shall give strength unto his king, and exalt the horn of his anointed. 11And Elkanah went to Ramah to his house. And the child did minister unto the Lord before Eli the priest. 12Now the sons of Eli were sons of Belial; they knew not the Lord. 13And the priests' custom with the people was, that, when any man offered sacrifice, the priest's servant came, while the flesh was in seething, with a fleshhook of three teeth in his hand; 14And he struck it into the pan, or kettle, or caldron, or pot; all that the fleshhook brought up the priest took for himself. So they did in Shiloh unto all the Israelites that came thither. 15Also before they burnt the fat, the priest's servant came, and said to the man that sacrificed, Give flesh to roast for the priest; for he will not have sodden flesh of thee, but raw. 16And if any man said unto him, Let them not fail to burn the fat presently, and then take as much as thy soul desireth; then he would answer him, Nay; but thou shalt give it me now: and if not, I will take it by force. 17Wherefore the sin of the young men was very great before the Lord: for men abhorred the offering of the Lord. 18But Samuel ministered before the Lord, being a child, girded with a linen ephod. 19Moreover his mother made him a little coat, and brought it to him from year to year, when she came up with her husband to offer the yearly sacrifice. (1 Samuel 2:1‑19).
Hannah’s prayer recorded here is most beautiful. Her whole confidence and boast was in the Lord alone, and she, by her prayer, rebuked the proud, and spoke of how the Lord knows all. She said, “The Lord is a God of knowledge, and ‘w Him actions are weighed.” We are inclined to forget this at times. Hannah might have been discouraged by the condition of things in the house of God at Shiloh, but she knew that the Lord is a God of knowledge. It may seem as though Christians “get by” with things at times, but they do not, for the Lord knows all, and He deals with them in His own time.
Hannah also acknowledged that life is in the hands of God, and she rejoiced in this. This is particularly interesting when we consider how long she had waited before the Lord gave her a son.
She spoke of how the Lord lifted up the poor from the dunghill and set them among princes, and made them to inherit the throne of glory. Truly this was our position in our sins, and how high we have been lifted by His grace. We are now risen with Christ and seated in heavenly places in Him, soon to be glorified together with Him (Ephesians 1). May we be found praising Him more!
Hannah then spoke of God’s keeping grace, and how precious this is! “He will keep the feet of His saints.” Surely we need this in this dark scene, “for by strength shall no man prevail.”
We now come to the prophecy of a coming king, though as yet there was none. Truly “the secret of the Lord is with them that fear Him,” Psalm 25:1414The secret of the Lord is with them that fear him; and he will show them his covenant. (Psalm 25:14), and it is to the humble and weak instruments He makes known His mind, while the wise and mighty of earth cannot understand His Word, or see the purposes of God. May we learn to walk in humility before the Lord, thus growing “in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.” 2 Peter 3:1818But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen. (2 Peter 3:18).
Little Samuel then started to serve the Lord. If there is a child reading this, may it be an encouragement to you, for even a child, if saved, can do little things to please the Lord, as Samuel did. This is not the way of salvation, which is only by faith in the Lord Jesus who bore our sins upon the cross, but those of us who are saved always want to please the Lord, according to the measure we are enjoying His love in our souls.
It was not long, however, until Samuel found out about the careless and evil ways of Eli’s sons, Hophni and Phinehas, but apparently he did not follow them at all. It is a great thing for even children to learn to serve the Lord, and not to copy the sins of others, not even those of their friends from Christian homes. We are told to be followers of God as dear children.” Ephesians 5:11Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children; (Ephesians 5:1). Let us all remember this, both young and old. There is too much of copying others today, and when some Christian does a wrong thing, then others make it an excuse to do the same. It is nice to see the faithfulness of little Samuel, though brought up in such surroundings.
Each year Samuel’s mother brought up a little coat to Shiloh for him. She made provision for his growth. It is nice when we see spiritual, as well as physical, growth with our children each year. Let us look for it!
ML 04/11/1954