HANNAH: The Woman Who Kept Her Promise To God

By Grace Adebayo

Hiiii guyssss! How are we doing? Today well be looking into the story of Hannah, the woman who kept her promise. And as you read, may the eyes of your understanding be opened.

HANNAH was the mother of Samuel, one of the outstanding prophets of the Old Testament. He was also the last of Israel’s judges, his service in this capacity bringing to a close the period of the judges

The story of Hannah is found in 1 Samuel 1 and 2. She was loved by her husband, Elkanah, but she was barren and this caused her great discomfort . Being childless, she vowed to God that if He would give her a son, she would give him to the Lord all the days of his life.

Hannah’s name means “grace, mercy”. We are told, “Hannah had no children”.

Hannah’s husband Elkanah loved her, and tried to encourage her. “Hannah, why do you weep? Why do you not eat? And why is your heart grieved? Am I not better to you than ten sons?” (verse 8).

But Elkanah also had another wife, Peninnah. Every year Hannah would accompany her husband in worshipping and sacrificing to God in Shiloh.

And every year, the other wife of Elkanah, Peninnah, would provoke Hannah to the point of tears by reminding her that she was childless. Peninnah had children and was making life miserable for her.

So one year at Shiloh, Hannah prayed to the Lord while in great anguish. As she was praying, Eli, the priest in the tabernacle, observed her. He supposed by her behavior that she was drunk and chided her to quit drinking.

She respectfully explained, “No, my lord, I am a woman of sorrowful spirit” (1 Samuel 1:15). She then explained to him that she had poured out her soul to God in prayer

The Bible does not mention that she gave details of her prayer to Eli, but she had actually prayed to God in faith and asked Him to give her a son. She vowed in her prayer that if God would give her a son, she would give the child to be God’s servant.

“O LORD of hosts, if You will indeed look on the affliction of Your maidservant and remember me, and not forget Your maidservant, but will give Your maidservant a male child, then I will give him to the LORD all the days of his life, and no razor shall come upon his head” (1 Samuel 1:11)

She was promising to give her firstborn son to God, as a person set apart to the Lord for special service. Hannah intended to keep her vow to God and devote her son to God and to His service all his life.

Eli the priest perceived that she had asked a petition of God, and he said, “Go in peace, and the God of Israel grant your petition which you have asked of Him” (1 Samuel 1:17).

In the process of time, God answered Hannah’s prayer and she conceived and had a son. Because she had asked for him from the Lord, she named him Samuel, which means “asked or heard of God” (Unger’s Bible Dictionary, p. 962). Hannah kept her word as she had vowed. After Samuel was weaned, she presented him to Eli the priest.

Hannah told Eli, “For this child I prayed, and the LORD has granted me my petition which I asked of Him. Therefore I also have lent him to the LORD; as long as he lives he shall be lent to the LORD” (1 Samuel 1:27-28).

Samuel continued to minister to the Lord before Eli the priest. Year by year Hannah would bring Samuel a little robe when she came to Shiloh to worship God. This yearly action demonstrated a continued faithful love for her son, and Eli would then bless Elkanah and Hannah, saying: “The LORD give you descendants from this woman for the loan that was given to the LORD” (1 Samuel 2:20).

Something i think is really peculiar in this story is Hannah's faith. Immediately, Eli told her God would answer her prayer, she went home and was no longer sad. It takes a level of faith to be able to forget the pain and just wait on God.

During trying times, remembering God’s faithfulness will strengthen, encourage, and remind us that He has not abandoned us.

When Hannah prayed, she did not hold back. She poured all her emotions before the Lord. 1 Samuel 1:16 states “I have been praying here out of great anguish and grief.” Although God already knew Hannah’s plight, she surrendered every raw emotion she was feeling. Sometimes, we forget that we have the Holy Spirit and we can always address him as a friend too. He is ready to hear us.

As we continue to grow in our relationship with God and spiritual maturity, God does not want us to sugarcoat where we are. At times, we may believe that God cannot handle the weight of our situation. However, in our greatest seasons of strife or despair, God desires for us to draw close to Him. God can handle every weight, burden, uncertainty, or fear we have.

And to the main point of the story, naturally it was easier for her to promise God a baby she did not have than give him one she held in her arms. The promise could have been made from a place of hope but not sincerity.

We do not know, of course, how she may have struggled in her heart, but so far as the record goes there was not a moment of hesitation in carrying out her promise to the Lord. Our Golden Text seems to express well her viewpoint in the matter. She had made a vow, a vow which grew out of her deep sorrow in being childless. Yet now that she had the child she was willing and ready to give him up as she had promised to do.

It would have been so easy for Hannah to “forget” her promise to God, to hold Samuel tight and raise him to adulthood herself. Like any mother, she was likely deeply attached to her son. Yet Hannah kept her word. Rather than pretending she never said it, she affirmed her commitment and acknowledged God’s faithfulness: since he had granted her petition, as long as Samuel lived, he would be “lent to the Lord” (v. 28).

After weaning him, She took young Samuel to the temple and presented him to Eli, the high priest, who would continue to look after and train up the child to minister in the temple. Samuel grew in competence, found favor with the Lord, and was eventually confirmed as a prophet of God and judge who would anoint Israel’s first and second kings: Saul and David. And God would honor Hannah’s faithfulness by blessing her with three more sons and two daughters (v. 21)

Most of the time, we can’t always see what God is doing behind the scenes when we surrender our lives to him. So, today I'd lole to encourage us to give our lives fully to God, to surrender fully to him. You'll never regret it.

Thank youuuuuu for reading! See you guys on Friday! 💕