_And he had two wives._ THE FOLLY OF POLYGAMY Abraham’s domestic peace was embittered, so that he was at length compelled to dismiss Hagar; and Jacob saw much strife arise amongst his household whose interest polygamy had divided. It is probable that the same feeling which operated with Abraham fo... [ Continue Reading ]
_And this man went up out of his city yearly to worship._ THE PILGRIMAGE TO SHILOH Great personages are prepared for before they arrive. Our blessed Lord, the greatest of all personages who seer appeared on earth, was prepared for long before He came. In the first nineteen verses of this chapter we... [ Continue Reading ]
_And as he did so year by year, when she went up to the House of the Lord, so she provoked her._ THE HOUSE OF GOD You must remember, that at the time when Elkanah was living, there was but one temple or church for all the worshippers of the true God; and those who lived at a great distance from thi... [ Continue Reading ]
_And she was in bitterness of soul and prayed unto the Lord._ THE SUCCESS OF HANNAH’S PRAYER, AND THE REASONS FOR IT 1_._Both Jacob’s prayer and Hannah’s prayer are very short. Hannah’s consists of a single verse. It is quite clear that the much speaking has nothing to do with being heard. 2. Both... [ Continue Reading ]
_And she vowed a vow._ ABOUT SETTING OUR HEARTS UPON THINGS And Hannah,--what shall we say of her passionate longing and prayer for a child? Was this sinful, like the longing of the Israelites for gross and stimulating food? or was it foolish, and wanting in judgment, like good King Hezekiah’s pray... [ Continue Reading ]
_Now Hannah, she spake in her heart._ HANNAH AS A WORSHIPPER The strength of Hannah’s moral character is manifested in her temple service. She possessed a force of soul which lifted her above trouble. Many in her circumstances would have hid the tears of their graceful nature in attic solitude; bu... [ Continue Reading ]
_Therefore Eli thought she was drunken._ OF THE SINFULNESS OF RASH JUDGMENTS This was not the first time, nor will it be the last that God’s true servants have been mocked and falsely accused for actions which have been really pious and devout. They are “a peculiar people”--peculiar, that is, to th... [ Continue Reading ]
_Hannah answered and said, No, my Lord, I am a woman of a sorrowful spirit._ A WOMAN OF A SORROWFUL SPIRIT The special cause of Hannah’s sorrow arose from the institution of polygamy, which, although it was tolerated under the old law, is always exhibited to us in practical action as a most fruitfu... [ Continue Reading ]
_Thy petition that thou hast asked of him._ SPECIFIC OBJECTS IN PRAYER To make prayer of any value there should be definite objects for which to plead. We often ramble in our prayers, we chatter about many subjects, but the soul does not concentrate itself upon any object. Imagine an archer shooti... [ Continue Reading ]
_And they rose up in the morning early, and worshipped before the Lord._ EARLY MORNING PRAYER The fragrance of the morning prayer lingers with us throughout the day. A man cannot free himself from the farewell kiss of his wife and little one throughout his day of toil. They urge him to his best en... [ Continue Reading ]
_And Elkanah her husband said unto her._ THE FATHER MUST TAKE HIS PART IN THE SPIRITUAL CULTURE OF CHILDREN It is a poor manhood and a dishonourable, neglectful fatherhood that leaves all the religious life and devotion of children to the mother or to others, and it must be disreputable before the... [ Continue Reading ]
_And when she had weaned him, she took him up with her, with three bullocks._ THE DUTY OF PRESENTING CHILDREN TO GOD IN THE WAY OF RELIGIOUS EDUCATION There is nothing more characteristic of Christianity than the tenderness and sympathy which it inspires. The Bible delights in domestic scenes; and... [ Continue Reading ]
_For this child I prayed; and the Lord hath given me my petition._ PARENTAGE AND PIETY “The Hand of God in History” might be the appropriate title of many of the hooks of Scripture, for the sacred records largely illustrate the agency of God in the affairs of men. As an engineer adjusts all the par... [ Continue Reading ]
_I have lent him to the Lord._ SAMUEL, THE CHILD-CHRISTIAN There is no child explicable apart from his parentage. The foundations of one generation are in all respects laid in the antecedent generation. In an important sense the boy begins to live when his father begins to live. The child is the pa... [ Continue Reading ]