Hannah's song in thankfulness, 1-11. The sin of Eli's sons, 12-17. Samuel's ministry, 18, 19. By Eli's blessing Hannah is more fruitful, 20, 21. Eli reproves his sons, 22-26. A prophecy against Eli's house, 27-36.
1 And Hannah prayed and said,
"My heart rejoices in the LORD./
My horn is exalted in the LORD./
My mouth is enlarged over my enemies/
because I rejoice in your salvation.
2 "There is no one holy as the LORD,/
for there is no one besides you,/
neither is there any rock like our God.
3 No longer talk so very proudly./
Do not let arrogance come out of your mouth./
For the LORD is a God of knowledge,/
and by him actions are weighed.
4 The bows of the mighty men are broken,/
and those who stumbled are girded with strength.
5 Those who were full have hired out themselves for bread,/
and those who were hungry ceased./
Even the barren has borne seven,/
and she who has many children has become feeble.
6 The LORD kills and makes alive./
He brings down to the grave and brings up.
7 The LORD makes poor and makes rich./
He brings low and lifts up.
8 He raises the poor out of the dust/
and lifts 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 has set the world upon them.
9 "He will keep the feet of his saints,/
and the wicked shall be silent in darkness./
For by strength no man shall prevail.
10 The adversaries of the LORD shall be broken to pieces./
Out of heaven he shall thunder upon them./
The LORD shall judge the ends of the earth,/
and he shall give strength to his king/
and exalt the horn of his anointed."
11 And Elkanah went to his house in Ramah. And the child ministered to the LORD before Eli the priest.
12 Now the sons of Eli were sons of Belial. They did not know the LORD. 13 And the priest's custom with the people was this: when any man offered sacrifice, the priest's servant came with a flesh-hook of three teeth in his hand while the flesh was boiling, 14 And he struck it into the pan, kettle, cauldron, or pot, and all that the flesh-hook brought up the priest took for himself. They did so in Shiloh to all the Israelites who came there. 15 Also before they burnt the fat, the priest's servant came and said to the man who sacrificed, "Give flesh to roast for the priest, for he will not have boiled flesh from you, only raw." 16 And if any man said to him, "Do not let them fail to burn the fat presently, and then take as much as your soul desires," then he would answer him, "No, but you shall give it to me now. And if not, I will take it by force." 17 Therefore, the sin of the young men was very great before the LORD, for men abhorred the offering of the LORD.
18 But Samuel ministered before the LORD, being a child, girded with a linen ephod. 19 Moreover, 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. 20 And Eli blessed Elkanah and his wife and said, "May the LORD give you children from this woman for the loan which is lent to the LORD." And they went to their own home.
21 And the LORD visited Hannah so that she conceived and bore three sons and two daughters. And the child Samuel grew before the LORD.
22 Now Eli was very old and heard all that his sons did to all Israel and how they lay with the women who assembled at the door of the Tabernacle of the Congregation. 23 And he said to them, "Why do you do such things? For I hear of your evil dealings by all this people. 24 No, my sons. For it is no good report that I hear. You cause the LORD'S people to transgress. 25 If one man sins against another, the judge shall judge him, but if a man sins against the LORD, who shall entreat for him?" Nevertheless, they did not listen to the voice of their father because the LORD was inclined to slay them.
26 And the child Samuel continued to grow and was in favor both with the LORD and also with men.
27 And there came a man of God to Eli and said to him, "Thus says the LORD: 'Did I plainly appear to the house of your father when they were in Egypt in Pharaoh's house? 28 And did I choose him out of all the tribes of Israel to be my priest, to offer upon my altar, to burn incense, to wear an ephod before me? And did I give to the house of your father all the offerings made by fire of the children of Israel? 29 Why do you kick at my sacrifice and at my offering, which I have commanded in my habitation, and honor your sons above me to make yourselves fat with the chiefest of all the offerings of Israel my people?' 30 Therefore, the LORD God of Israel says, 'I said indeed that your house and the house of your father should walk before me forever.' But now the LORD says, 'Be it far from me, for those who honor me I will honor and those who despise me shall be lightly esteemed. 31 Behold, the days come that I will cut off your arm and the arm of your father's house so that there shall not be an old man in your house. 32 And you shall see an enemy in my habitation in all the wealth which God shall give Israel. And there shall not be an old man in your house forever. 33 And the man of yours, whom I shall not cut off from my altar, is to consume your eyes and to grieve your heart. And all the increase of your house shall die in the flower of their age. 34 And this shall be a sign to you that shall come upon your two sons, on Hophni and Phinehas: in one day both of them shall die. 35 And I will raise up for myself a faithful priest who shall do according to that which is in my heart and in my mind. And I will build him a sure house, and he shall walk before my Anointed forever. 36 And it shall come to pass, that everyone who is left in your house shall come and crouch to him for a piece of silver and a morsel of bread, and shall say, "Put me, I pray you, into one of the priest's offices so that I may eat a piece of bread."'"
Matthew Henry Commentary - 1st Samuel, Chapter 2[➚]
[v.1] - Reference, Exodus 15:1, 21; Judges 5:2; Psalm 9:14, 13:5, 18:2, 20:5, 35:9, 51:15, 71:8, 89:17, 92:10, 112:8-9, 118:14; Isaiah 12:2-3; Habakkuk 3:18; Luke 1:46-47, 69; Philippians 4:4, 6; 1st Peter 1:8; Revelation 18:20.
[v.2] - "rock" - Reference, Deuteronomy 32:4, 15, 18, 30-31; 2nd Samuel 22:2, 3, 32, 47, 23:3; Psalm 18:2, 31, 46, 61:2-4, 92:15; Isaiah 28:16, 32:2; 1st Corinthians 10:4; 1st Peter 2:6.
[v.6-7] - Reference, Job 1:21.
[v.10] - This prophecy will come to pass later in this text. Reference, 1st Samuel 7:10.
[v.26] - "was in favor both with the LORD, and also with men" - A very similar thing was said about Christ in Luke 2:52. There, Luke wrote that Jesus, "increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man." Samuel was to become a great prophet; therefore, God's favor must have been upon him. Samuel gained favor with men probably because of the way Eli's sons were abusing the priest's office (verses 12-17). Christ, in a similar fashion, likely gained favor with men because the Pharisees were being hypocritical and using God's law to their advantage.
[v.35] - This verse is ultimately a pointer to Christ. The high priest is a type and shadow of Christ, in that Christ was the High Priest forever (Hebrews 5:1-10). In that this verse says, "Anointed," we see the essence of Jesus' title, for "Christ" is a transliterated Greek word, which means, "the Anointed One." This is also supported in the Hebrew language, which uses the word, מָשִׁ֫יחַ, mashiach, which means, "the Messiah; anointed."