seekeroftruth
Well-Known Member
1 Samuel 1:1 21 When her husband Elkanah went up with all his family to offer the annual sacrifice to the Lord and to fulfill his vow, 22 Hannah did not go. She said to her husband, “After the boy is weaned, I will take him and present him before the Lord, and he will live there always.”[c]
23 “Do what seems best to you,” her husband Elkanah told her. “Stay here until you have weaned him; only may the Lord make good his[d] word.” So the woman stayed at home and nursed her son until she had weaned him.
24 After he was weaned, she took the boy with her, young as he was, along with a three-year-old bull,[e] an ephah[f] of flour and a skin of wine, and brought him to the house of the Lord at Shiloh. 25 When the bull had been sacrificed, they brought the boy to Eli, 26 and she said to him, “Pardon me, my lord. As surely as you live, I am the woman who stood here beside you praying to the Lord. 27 I prayed for this child, and the Lord has granted me what I asked of him. 28 So now I give him to the Lord. For his whole life he will be given over to the Lord.” And he worshiped the Lord there.
23 “Do what seems best to you,” her husband Elkanah told her. “Stay here until you have weaned him; only may the Lord make good his[d] word.” So the woman stayed at home and nursed her son until she had weaned him.
24 After he was weaned, she took the boy with her, young as he was, along with a three-year-old bull,[e] an ephah[f] of flour and a skin of wine, and brought him to the house of the Lord at Shiloh. 25 When the bull had been sacrificed, they brought the boy to Eli, 26 and she said to him, “Pardon me, my lord. As surely as you live, I am the woman who stood here beside you praying to the Lord. 27 I prayed for this child, and the Lord has granted me what I asked of him. 28 So now I give him to the Lord. For his whole life he will be given over to the Lord.” And he worshiped the Lord there.
c. 1 Samuel 1:22 Masoretic Text; Dead Sea Scrolls always. I have dedicated him as a Nazirite—all the days of his life.”
d. 1 Samuel 1:23 Masoretic Text; Dead Sea Scrolls, Septuagint and Syriac your
e. 1 Samuel 1:24 Dead Sea Scrolls, Septuagint and Syriac; Masoretic Text with three bulls
f. 1 Samuel 1:24 That is, probably about 36 pounds or about 16 kilograms
This is from the easy English commentary.
We do not know what promise Elkanah made to God. But he kept his promise. Hannah did not return to the house of the Lord in Shiloh until she took Samuel there. A woman fed her baby with milk from her breast for about three years. The baby depended on her completely during this time. Samuel could eat proper food when he was old enough. Then the priests would be able to look after him. Hannah stayed at home with Samuel until this time. Elkanah knew that this was wise. Samuel was still young when Hannah took him to Shiloh. She kept her promise to God. She did not try to delay it for a long time. The male cow was for a sacrifice to God. The bag of flour was about 22 litres. Hannah may have made bread from the flour. Then she gave the bread to God. Leviticus 1-7 describes the sacrifices and gifts that people had to give to God. They carried wine in leather bags. They did not have bottles in those days. Jesus referred to this in Matthew 9:17. They made the leather bag from the stomach of a sheep. Many people went to the house of the Lord. Eli may not have remembered Hannah. So, she explained why she was giving her young son to God.
Yep, I'm willing to bet that Eli didn't remember Hannah the next day.... let alone two or three years later.
This baby, Samuel, will be an integral part of the story. So we need to remember that he was born to Hannah and Elkanah. We need to remember that his mother "returned him" to the Temple. Hannah prayed so fervently for a son that the priest thought she was drunk. She was moving her lips but no sound was coming out.... she was in silent prayer. Now, because God gave her the son she begged for, she would hold up what she considered her part of the bargain. She returned her only son to the Temple where her only son could dedicate his life to serving the Lord.
