Wednesday Bible Study: H is for Hannah

So this week was a lot like this.

Me:  "Who shall I do for H?  There's Herod, Haman..."

GOD: "Hannah."

Me:  Well, there's been a lot done with Hannah, so..."

GOD:  "HANNAH."

And not being totally stupid, I said, "Well, I better open up 1 Samuel and get refreshed on Hannah."


Thumbnail on Hannah:  Married to a guy with two wives.  He loves Hannah, the other girl keeps putting out babies while Hannah is barren.  Other girl lords it over Hannah, because you know what a symbol of esteem having kids- especially boys- was back then.  So she prays when they go up to the yearly sacrifice at the Tabernacle in Shiloh, and High Priest and general fat blob Eli overhears.  He thinks she's drunk at first, but when he hears her story, he says, "Go in peace, and the God of Israel grant your petition that you have made to him."

She conceives soon later, and gives birth to the child we will know as Samuel.  And she made a promise to God in regards to this child:

1Sa 1:11  And she vowed a vow and said, "O LORD of hosts, if you will indeed look on the affliction of your servant and remember me and not forget your servant, but will give to your servant a son, then I will give him to the LORD all the days of his life, and no razor shall touch his head." 

So then when the child is old enough, she hands him over to Eli, and then sings a song praising God.  And with that, Hannah drops off the Biblical radar.  Or does she?

Now I gave a beautiful story terribly short shrift here, but I have a reason.  Or rather, God had a reason, because he led me to Hannah- and a particular part of her story- to put something in all our minds.

Now, those of you into Bible study know that in Luke's Gospel, Mary sings a prayer song like Hannah's, right after her cousin Elizabeth's baby (the future John the Baptist) leapt in her womb upon "seeing Jesus " across the bellies, so to speak.  In fact, they are SO similar- well, here, let's compare:

1Sa 2:1  And Hannah prayed and said, "My heart exults in the LORD; my strength is exalted in the LORD. My mouth derides my enemies, because I rejoice in your salvation. 

Luk 1:46  And Mary said, "My soul magnifies the Lord, 

Luk 1:47  and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, 

Luk 1:48  for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant. For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed; 

(Note #1- the word Hannah uses for salvation is Yeshua- which of course is Jesus's name.  Mary's "savior" according to the concordance can be used interchangeably with Christ.)

1Sa 2:2  "There is none holy like the LORD; there is none besides you; there is no rock like our God. 

1Sa 2:3  Talk no more so very proudly, let not arrogance come from your mouth; for the LORD is a God of knowledge, and by him actions are weighed. 

1Sa 2:4  The bows of the mighty are broken, but the feeble bind on strength. 

Luk 1:49  for he who is mighty has done great things for me, and holy is his name. 

Luk 1:50  And his mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation. 

Luk 1:51  He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts; 

Luk 1:52  he has brought down the mighty from their thrones and exalted those of humble estate; 

Are you getting goosebumps with this?

1Sa 2:5  Those who were full have hired themselves out for bread, but those who were hungry have ceased to hunger. The barren has borne seven, but she who has many children is forlorn. 

1Sa 2:6  The LORD kills and brings to life; he brings down to Sheol and raises up. 

1Sa 2:7  The LORD makes poor and makes rich; he brings low and he exalts. 

Luk 1:53  he has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent away empty. 

Even the hungry and full analogy- in the SAME order...

Now this next, pay particular attention to the passages I bolden...

1Sa 2:8  He raises up the poor from the dust; he lifts the needy from the ash heap to make them sit with princes and inherit a seat of honor. For the pillars of the earth are the LORD's, and on them he has set the world. 

1Sa 2:9  "He will guard the feet of his faithful ones, but the wicked shall be cut off in darkness, for not by might shall a man prevail. 

1Sa 2:10  The adversaries of the LORD shall be broken to pieces; against them he will thunder in heaven. The LORD will judge the ends of the earth; he will give strength to his king and exalt the power of his anointed." 

Luk 1:54  He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy, 

Luk 1:55  as he spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to his offspring forever." 

Do you get that the last part of Hannah's song is a prophecy of Jesus, and the last part of Mary's is an acknowledgement of the FULFILLMENT of the prophecy?

I was blown away.  But there's more that ties these two women together.

They each had a child who came to bring Israel back to God- and in the end, both were rejected, as the people rejected God...

1Sa 8:4  Then all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah 

1Sa 8:5  and said to him, "Behold, you are old and your sons do not walk in your ways. Now appoint for us a king to judge us like all the nations." 

1Sa 8:6  But the thing displeased Samuel when they said, "Give us a king to judge us." And Samuel prayed to the LORD. 

1Sa 8:7  And the LORD said to Samuel, "Obey the voice of the people in all that they say to you, for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me from being king over them. 

Mat 23:37  "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you would not! 

Mat 23:38  See, your house is left to you desolate. 

Mat 23:39  For I tell you, you will not see me again, until you say, 'Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.'" 

And how about their husbands?  We all know about Joseph....

Mat 1:18  Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. 

Mat 1:19  And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. 

Mat 1:20  But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 

Mat 1:21  She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins." 

Mat 1:22  All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: 

Mat 1:23  "Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel" (which means, God with us). 

Mat 1:24  When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him: he took his wife, 

Mat 1:25  but knew her not until she had given birth to a son. And he called his name Jesus. 

But what about Hannah's hubby, Elkanah?  You can read the story and miss the significance...

1Sa 1:20  And in due time Hannah conceived and bore a son, and she called his name Samuel, for she said, "I have asked for him from the LORD." 

1Sa 1:21  The man Elkanah and all his house went up to offer to the LORD the yearly sacrifice and to pay his vow. 

1Sa 1:22  But Hannah did not go up, for she said to her husband, "As soon as the child is weaned, I will bring him, so that he may appear in the presence of the LORD and dwell there forever." 

1Sa 1:23  Elkanah her husband said to her, "Do what seems best to you; wait until you have weaned him; only, may the LORD establish his word." So the woman remained and nursed her son until she weaned him. 

And when I went to find out what he meant by that, I learned that by the Law given to Moses, a husband could invalidate any vow a wife made, if he thought it was foolish.  But when he heard why she wanted to wait- just like Joseph, once he heard from Gabriel- he agreed to it.

Now all of this has an eerie feel to it- you KNOW God is telling us something.  But to learn what, we have to think about the one BIG difference between Hannah and Mary.

Hannah was humbling herself before God, desperate for a child.

Mary not only had a pregnancy out of the blue, it was the out-of-the-blue-est pregnancy of all time!

But I didn't know what that meant until this morning (keeping in mind that as I write this, "F is for..." doesn't post until tomorrow).  

Hannah wanted a child with all her heart.

Mary had no idea that she was about to become a mother.

And BOTH of them started out by saying what?

 And Hannah prayed and said, "My heart exults in the LORD...

 And Mary said, "My soul magnifies the Lord...

They BOTH came to God in exultation- He had given them the GREATEST VICTORY a woman could have.

And now?  A baby is symbolic of a woman's 'greatest defeat.'  She would rather murder a life than have HER life plan interrupted.

Last week, God asked, "Why did they so soon turn away?"   This week, He asked, "Why do they give up the greatest victory outside of salvation I gave to them?"

I'll be honest with you, I don't know how to end this.  I know that having trusted God to ask His question the last two weeks is starting to scare me.  I know how Peter felt...

Luk 5:8  The fishermen were all amazed at the many fish they caught. When Simon Peter saw this, he bowed down before Jesus and said, "Go away from me, Lord. I am a sinful man!"