1. 1 Samuel – Friday Night Genesis Friday, Oct 5, 2012
Intro to the Book
This month we are looking at the book of 1 Samuel, and with it we are getting into the
thick of the historical accounts of the nation of Israel. The books that we are now coming
to have a pretty interesting history. In the original Hebrew Bible (Old Testament) the
books of Samuel were one book, as were the books of Kings. However, in the time of
Alexander the Great, in 4th century BC, scattered across the vast Greek empire the Jews
began to translate their Bible into Greek, and this translation is called the Septuagint. In
the Septuagint both Samuel and Kings got lumped together and called the Book of
Kingdoms. In 4th century AD, when Rome ruled a good chunk of the world, a fella by the
name of Jerome was commissioned to translate the Bible into Latin, a translation known
today as the Latin Vulgate. In it, these books were split into four parts – Kings 1 thru 4.
Consequently in some older English translations, like the King James or the Douay-
Rheims you may find notes referring to 1. Samuel as 1. Kings and going clear through to
4. Kings. The contents of our next four books in the series is still the same, but it is worth
noting that they had been divided up in different ways over the course of history.
Historically we are looking at 11th century BC. We are not entirely sure when Samuel
was born and died, but we know that Saul became king somewhere around 1050 BC
and died around 1007 BC, which is where the book of 1. Samuel ends. Samuel himself
is described as the last of the judges of Israel. So in this book we are moving from the
era where judges led Israel to the era when kings started ruling over Israel.
God cares about the things we care about
It was difficult choosing what to talk about this evening. There is so much good and well
known material in the book of 1. Samuel! From the boy Samuel at the Temple, the loss
of the Ark of the Covenant to the Philistines and its subsequent return, anointing of Saul
and David as kings of Israel and their games of cat and mouse, the heartwarming story
of David and Jonathan and their friendship, and of course, probably the best known story
from the Bible – whether you grew up in a church or not – the story of David and Goliath.
The little boy going against the giant in armor and winning with nothing but a stone and a
sling, then cutting off the giants head and walking around with it for the rest of the day….
I bet they didn’t tell you that part of the story when you were a kid!
One of the biggest and most consequential stories in this book is the move to establish a
king. This wasn’t God’s idea. The people asked for it. What is more astonishing is that
God grants the request. It was a somewhat odd request. Samuel, a well respected judge
and leader was getting on in years and had appointed his sons as judges. But his sons
were corrupt in the way they carried out their duties, and so the natural solution was to
establish a hereditary monarchy instead. Hadn’t they just learned that sons do not
necessarily follow in the footsteps of their fathers?! I suspect that the more telling line
was: “so that we can be like all the other nations” (1. Samuel 8:5,20).
You may wonder what the big deal is. Whether the person leading the nation is a judge
or a king – you still have a leading figurehead. As you ponder that, it may be of some
help to consider that Americans made George Washington their first president and not
their first king. What it meant in the case of Israel was that God was no longer their
ultimate King. God had already given them the laws of the land. God was already

2. leading them in battles. God was already collecting tithe, and God already had the whole
tribe of Levi essentially in the capacity of public servants, and had put aside towns and
land for their use among the other tribes. Judges were there to merely apply the laws
that God had already given, and Levites to educate about the laws. The bottom line is
that the nation would still look to God for leadership and legislature. By establishing a
king of their own they were electing to look to a human for leadership instead. It meant
that now there would be new laws established by the king, laws which may or may not
conflict with the law God gave them.
God is fully aware of this when He tells Samuel: “Listen to all that the people are saying
to you; it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected me as their king.” (1.
Samuel 8:7).
This also meant that now in addition to tithe and the tribe of Levi that belonged to God,
there would be taxes, servants and property taken in order to also support the kings
household. God, through Samuel, warns them of all this in plain Hebrew, but the people
agree to take on the additional burdens because they want to have a king real bad. This
was evidently very important to them and so God gave them what they want – instructing
Samuel to search for a king. Eventually God led him to Saul, a man who was everything
they thought they would want in a king. He was an “impressive young man”, the Bible
tells us, “without equal among the Israelites – a head taller than any other.” (1. Samuel
9:2). There might have been a minor flaw with the guy, he did after all try and hide in the
luggage during his own coronation, but he looked good and the people loved it. It was
important to them that they have a king like the other nations and God had granted them
their wish.
There is another, more personal story in 1. Samuel, where God cared about the things
that were important to people. In the very first chapter we read a story of 2 ladies both of
whom had something, but wanted what the other had. Hannah and Peninnah were both
married to a fella named Elkanah. Hannah was Elkanah’s sweetheart, and most scholars
speculate that it was likely that he married her first, since his love and affection for her
are obvious. Whenever they went to the temple, Elkanah would give Hannah a double
portion of the food. I know in today’s diet crazed world that doesn’t make too much
sense, but back then this was significant. Hannah, unfortunately, was unable to have
children. This too was a big deal in Israel. Each tribe, clan and family had their allotted
inheritance in the promised land, and so it was of utmost importance to continue the
family line. If you don’t believe me, just consider how many genealogies we have already
read up until now, and we haven’t even got to Chronicles yet! And there were also the
laws about the duty of brothers or close relatives to continue the family line of a
deceased relative which we discussed last month in the story of Naomi, Boaz and Ruth.
Offspring was important, and Hannah was unable to produce any. Which is where
Peninnah comes in. Peninnah was evidently a regular baby-factory, lavishing Elkanah
with sons and daughters – plural.
And this is where things get complicated. Hannah had Elkanah’s love and affection, but
she wanted kids. Peninnah had the children, but wanted Elkanah’s love and affection.
Each woman wanted what the other one had, and they were driving each other crazy.
This pressure cooker always seemed to blow during their annual pilgrimage to the
temple. Jealous at the sight of Hannah receiving the double portion from Elkanah,
Peninnah would start taunting Hannah about her inability to have children until Hannah
was reduced to tears and lost all appetite. She was so distraught that Eli the priest

3. thought Hannah was drunk when he saw her. But Hannah was not drunk. She had
reached the end of her rope and was crying out to God for help.
Of course, the first thing God could have done is to tap Elkanah on the shoulder and say
“Hey, dude, you got a wife too many! Just a hunch, but it might have something to do
with the drama in your household.” But God didn’t go down that route, which puzzles
many saints today. It seems the practice was all too common in the day, and as the
saying goes: all babies need to crawl before they walk. Much later apostle Paul would
instruct those choosing elders and deacons in their local churches to look for men who
are a husband to but one wife. But for now, we only have stories like this one as
cautionary tales as to why polygamy may not be such a good idea.
Another tack God could have taken is to say “Be grateful for what you do have. Isn’t the
love of your husband worth to you more than 10 sons?” But God didn’t do that either.
Having children was important to Hannah, and because God cared about her and what
was important to her He gave her the son that she craved. In fact, God cared about both
Hannah and Peninnah and answered both their prayers.
Yes, I know that we are not told anything further about Peninnah, but read between the
lines. "When the man Elkanah went up with all his family to offer the annual
sacrifice to the Lord and to fulfill his vow, Hannah did not go. She said to her husband,
'After the boy is weaned, I will take him and present him before the Lord, and he will live
there always.'" (1. Samuel 1:21, 22) So Hannah remained at home with Samuel until he
was weaned. Here's the thing: in Biblical times, babies were not commonly weaned until
after the age of three. Until then, they were totally dependent upon their mother's
breastfeeding. That means, then, that for at least three years, Hannah stayed home with
Samuel while the rest of the family journeyed to the temple. Peninnah now had Elkanah
all to herself for at least three years when they made these special trips to the temple,
the sole object of his love and affection. For Peninnah these trips that brought so much
tension and jealousy were now something to look forward to.
And Hannah? The Bible tells us that after Samuel she had another 3 sons and 2
daughters. In the end, both women received what they wanted. Hannah had children
and Peninnah had special time with Elkanah. God found a way to give both of them what
mattered to them, because they mattered to Him. And God is no different today. He
cares about what we care about. Big things, small things, it doesn't matter. He cares
about the things that matter to us because we matter to Him.