“2 Then Hannah prayed and said:
“My heart rejoices in the Lord;
in the Lord my horn[a] is lifted high.
My mouth boasts over my enemies,
for I delight in your deliverance.
2 “There is no one holy like the Lord;
there is no one besides you;
there is no Rock like our God.
3 “Do not keep talking so proudly
or let your mouth speak such arrogance,
for the Lord is a God who knows,
and by him deeds are weighed.
4 “The bows of the warriors are broken,
but those who stumbled are armed with strength.
5 Those who were full hire themselves out for food,
but those who were hungry are hungry no more.
She who was barren has borne seven children,
but she who has had many sons pines away.
6 “The Lord brings death and makes alive;
he brings down to the grave and raises up.
7 The Lord sends poverty and wealth;
he humbles and he exalts.
8 He raises the poor from the dust
and lifts the needy from the ash heap;
he seats them with princes
and has them inherit a throne of honor.
“For the foundations of the earth are the Lord’s;
on them he has set the world.
9 He will guard the feet of his faithful servants,
but the wicked will be silenced in the place of darkness.
“It is not by strength that one prevails;
10 those who oppose the Lord will be broken.
The Most High will thunder from heaven;
the Lord will judge the ends of the earth.
“He will give strength to his king
and exalt the horn of his anointed.”
11 Then Elkanah went home to Ramah, but the boy ministered before the Lord under Eli the priest.” 1 Samuel 2.1-11
Hannah could have reneged on her arrangement with God. Initially, she said, “God, if you give me a son, I will give him back to you in ministry.” But what if, after receiving the son, she had said, “God, I know what I promised, but I am retracting my vow and keeping the boy for myself!”
Thankfully, that is not what she did. If she had, we might not be reading an entire historical book in the Old Testament about Samuel! God would have likely raised someone else up.
But Hannah was not only true to her word; she was true to her God. Her prayer in the second chapter is so God-honoring. According to our summary, she thanks God, praises Him, acknowledges His holiness, His ultimate authority, His mercy upon the lowly, His protection of the faithful, His opposition to the wicked, and His sovereignty over all the earth.
Hannah sides with God. She made a deal with Him, and it benefited both of them, the nation of Israel, and brought glory to God. If you are going to side with someone, why not choose the Lord?
And speaking of that, why don’t more people reach out to God? For those who have yet to believe, don’t they see the evidence of thousands of years of God’s faithfulness? Don’t they wonder, “There might be something here!”? When I look at the churches people have built over thousands of years, the impact Christianity has had on the world, and the two billion believers, why wouldn’t you want to side with the Almighty? Wouldn’t you at some point ask, “Who is behind all this inspiration and love?”
Hannah certainly did by siding with God, committing her son to the Lord’s ministry in the house of the Lord, and the rest is literally amazing Jewish history.
“O Lord God, I proclaim you as my Lord. You are my rock and my salvation, my refuge and my retreat. You are the one to whom I give all honor and praise. Each day I breathe on this earth is one more gift from your hand. Come now, Lord, use me as you will. Flow through me and keep me close to your heart. Protect me from the enemy and from sin and evil. I love you Lord and praise your name. For you are good and your love endures forever.” Amen