Introduction

Hannah is introuduced to us in 1 Samuel 1:2 as one of Elkanah's wives (the other is named Peninnah). Like Rachel, she experiences anguish over the fact that the other wife is providing her husband with children while she cannot. Also like Rachel, Elkanah loves Hannah more than his other wife despite her inability to have children. Hannah weeps and fasts, then uses her time at the Temple to pray in earnest for a child. She prays so hard the priest thinks she is drunk! After giving all her desires to the Most High, she releases her anguish and goes on with life. God answers her prayers and she gives birth to Samuel, whom she gives back to God by sending him to live/study at the Temple. Samuel becomes the only priest we know of that might not have been a Levite. Most focus on Hannah's miracle birth of Samuel, but after Samuel, Hannah has more children. 1 Samuel 2:21 tells us she had three sons and two daughters.

Origin

Genealogy

We are not given Hannah's family tree, but we are given extensive knowledge of her husband's lineage. This is likely because Samuel's identiity would have been based on his patriarchal lineage, not his matriarchal one. Elkanah is said to be from land that belonged to Ephraim which implies that he was from that tribe (though the fact that Samuel becomes a preist, which is a position reserved for the Tribe of Levi, has people arguing that he was only from a territory of Ephraim and not from the tribe). There is nothing suggesting Hannah had to be from the same tribe as her husband, nor is there anything to suggest that they were not from the same tribe. Considering how much more difficult it would have been back then to travel and move around, I would lean toward it being more likely that she was from the tribe of Ephraim. The lack of detail concerning what tribe she was from reminds us, however, that in the grand scheme of life, it didn't/doesn't matter.

Name and Etymology

The original Hebrew name for Hannah is חַנָּה, which means "grace" or "favored."[1] Unlike many Biblical names (re: John), Hannah doesn't seem to be a popular name; this Hannah is the only one ever mentioned.

Questions

About the Passage

1. How old was Hannah?
   • How long had she been married to Elkanah?
   • Was there a skew in time spent that disadvantages Hannah?
2. Did she and Peninnah get along before Peninnah had children?
3. Was Hannah the first wife?
4. What did Peninnah say to Hannah to get under her skin?
5. How did Hannah receive her husband not caring about having children?
6. What is "bitterness of soul"?
   • Had she given up hope?
   • Was she angry? Depressed?
7. Why did she want a male child specifically and not just a child?
8. Was the vow she took Nazarite vow?
9. Why wasn't her voice heard when praying?
   • Was she speaking fast?
   • Had she lost her voice?
   • Pray ing tongues?
   • What about this made Eli think she was drunk?
10. Did anyone in the household notice Hannah's peace after fasting and praying?
11. Did Eli's intercession have an effect or was God's answer due to Hannah's fasting and praying? Both?
12. Why did Hannah wait until the baby was weaned to take him back to the tabernacle?
    • How long did it take to wean the baby?
    • How did she feel when it was time to say goodbye?
    • How did Samuel feel about his parents leaving him there?
13. How did Hannah make a vow without Elkanah's conset? Did he consent later?
14. Was there jealousy/resentment between siblings once Hannah had more children?
15. How did the children effect her relationship with Elkanah and Peninnah?
16. Was the coat given to Samuel like Joseph's coat?
17. Why did she make him a coat specifically?
18. Did Samuel have a relationship with his siblings?
19. Was he ever jealous they got to stay home with their parents?
20. Did Hannah live to see Samuel become a priest?
    • Did Samuel become a priest without being a Levite?

If I Could Talk to Hannah

I don't share Hannah's desire for children, but I understand her frustration with desiring something but not receiving it. Hannah fasts and prays to get her son, but did she have weak moments? How long did she wrestle with not having children before taking the matter to God? How did she get through the hurst and jealousy—especially with Peninnah actually throwing it in her face? The text says she wept, but it doesn't tell us how long she wept. How did she maintainfaith and her relationship with God? Did she have friends who comforted her? Was all of a society against her? Mostly I would want to talk to her about how she coped before the miracle.

Phototheology

Phototheology is a way of learning the Bible taught by Ivor Myers.[2] I am employing this technique in my weekly Woman of God study journal. The following three prompts are the ones I drew from the card deck while studying Hannah.

How does this text relate to Messiah?

The birth of Christ is also a miracle birth, and is in fact a series of miracle births!

• Sarah gives birth to Isaac at the age of 90
• Rebekah (Isaac's wife) gives birth to Jacob (and Esau) after experiencing barrenness
• Tamar (daughter-in-law of Judah) also struggles to conceive before giving birth to twins

Christ is Lord over life and death, so He appears at every birth but shines when it comes to miracle births. These births sepcifically testify to the divinity of God.

Another connection, which is a bit humorous to me, is that Messiah is accused of being a wino (Luke 7:33-34) the same way Hannah is accused of being dunk.

Connect a personal life experience with the text.

It used to be taboo to talk about "barrenness", but many of my friends have opened up about their struggles. I have at least three friends who have struggled with miscarriages and many more who've struggled to conceinve at all. Then there are those of us who are married and still waiting on the husband, let alone a child. Of the people I know who struggle(d) with fertility, only one couple I know has wnated a child and never had one. Struggling in this area is actually pretty common.

As someone who doesn't desire children, I have to dig deep and reframe the story to really understand her anguish, but once I did that, I feel like I understand her so much better. She's frustrated because she asked God for something that she probably thought would just happen naturally, and yet its not happening. Sometimes we ask God for things and we do all we know how to, but we still don't have what we asked for. This is frustrating. Hannah was frustrated and sad and embarrassed&mdahs;I can understand that.

Study the text against the backdrop of the gospel.

The gospel (or good news) is that Messiah died and rose to give us eternal salvation and there's nothing we can, should, or have to do to earn this gift. Society puts a lot of pressure on women to be the perfect wife and mother, but we don't have to be either to be saved. God gave Hannah the desire of her heart not because she was incomplete or lacking without children, but because He cared about her. Hannah not having children didn't change Elkanah's love for her, because that's not where her value came from. Elkanah loved Hannah the way Messiah loves the church. Hannah's desire to have children despite being loved anyway, is like use wanted to obey the commandments to please God. Neither of these acts are meant to earn love, but are a symptom of us wanting to reciprocate that love.

Journal Pages

Journal pages on Hannah from April 30 - May 6, 2025

References & Footnotes

1. "Strong's H2584. חַנָּה". Blue Letter Bible; visited July 2025
2. Pastor Ivor Myers' Phototheology Game Deck