1. Samuel 1:3

I. History of the People of Israel Under the Prophet Samuel - 1 Samuel 1-7 The call of Samuel to be the prophet and judge of Israel formed a turning-point in the history of the Old Testament kingdom of God. As the prophet of Jehovah, Samuel was to lead the people of Israel out of the times of the judges into those of the kings, and lay the foundation for a prosperous development of the monarchy. Consecrated like Samson as a Nazarite from his mother's womb, Samuel accomplished the deliverance of Israel out of the power of the Philistines, which had been only commenced by Samson; and that not by the physical might of his arm, but by the spiritual power of his word and prayer, with which he led Israel back from the worship of dead idols to the Lord its God. And whilst as one of the judges, among whom he classes himself in Sa1 12:11, he brought the office of judge to a close, and introduced the monarchy; as a prophet, he laid the foundation of the prophetic office, inasmuch as he was the fist to naturalize it, so to speak, in Israel, and develope it into a power that continued henceforth to exert the strongest influence, side by side with the priesthood and monarchy, upon the development of the covenant nation and kingdom of God. For even if there were prophets before the time of Samuel, who revealed the will of the Lord at times to the nation, they only appeared sporadically, without exerting any lasting influence upon the national life; whereas, from the time of Samuel onwards, the prophets sustained and fostered the spiritual life of the congregation, and were the instruments through whom the Lord made known His purposes to the nation and its rulers. To exhibit in its origin and growth the new order of things which Samuel introduced, or rather the deliverance which the L…

The history of Samuel here begins as early as that of Samson did, even before he was born, as afterwards the history of John the Baptist and our blessed Saviour. Some of the scripture-worthies drop out of the clouds, as it were, and their first appearance is in their full growth and lustre. But others are accounted for from the birth, and from the womb, and from the conception. What God says of the prophet Jeremiah is true of all: "Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee," Jer 1:5. But some great men were brought into the world with more observation than others, and were more early distinguished from common persons, as Samuel for one. God, in this matter, acts as a free agent. The story of Samson introduces him as a child of promise, Jdg. 13. But the story of Samuel introduces him as a child of prayer. Samson's birth was foretold by an angel to his mother; Samuel was asked of God by his mother. Both together intimate what wonders are produced by the word and prayer. Samuel's mother was Hannah, the principal person concerned in the story of this chapter. I. Here is her affliction - she was childless, and this affliction aggravated by her rival's insolence, but in some measure balanced by her husband's kindness (Sa1 1:1-8). II. The prayer and vow she made to God under this affliction, in which Eli the high priest at first censured her, but afterwards encouraged her (Sa1 1:9-18). III. The birth and nursing of Samuel (Sa1 1:19-23) IV. The presenting of him to the Lord (Sa1 1:24-28).

1:3 Elkanah made this trip each year; the law required that people attend three annual festivals (Exod 23:14-17). • According to God’s law, Israelites were to sacrifice at God’s chosen sanctuary (Deut 12:1-28). From the days of Joshua (Josh 18:1) through Samuel’s era, God’s sanctuary—the Tabernacle—was at Shiloh, a town in Ephraim some 8.5 miles north of Bethel en route to Shechem. King David eventually moved it to Jerusalem (2 Sam 6). • the Lord of Heaven’s Armies: Throughout the Hebrew Old Testament, God is often referred to as Yahweh Tseba’oth or ’Elohim Tseba’oth. Traditionally, these titles have been translated “Lord of hosts” and “God of hosts.” The term “hosts” (Hebrew tseba’oth, traditionally “sabaoth”) usually means “armies.” It can refer to human armies, such as the armies of Israel (e.g., 1 Sam 17:45), or foreign armies sent to fulfill the Lord’s purposes (e.g., Isa 9:11-13). However, most often it refers to God’s angelic armies sent from heaven to do his bidding and wage war on earth (e.g., 2 Kgs 6:17). This designation anticipates God’s role as a mighty warrior in the episode involving the Ark of the Covenant and the Philistines (1 Sam 4–6).