Hannah struggled with infertility which caused her great sorrow, as her rival wife Peninnah provoked her yearly. She prayed earnestly to God at the temple for a son, vowing to dedicate him to God. Though the priest Eli initially mistook her for being drunk, he affirmed God would grant her request. Hannah soon became pregnant with Samuel, who would grow up to become a great prophet of Israel. Her story demonstrates that petitioning God sincerely through prayer can overcome life's difficulties.

1. Hannah’s Road to
Rejoicing
1Sam 2:1
1 And Hannah prayed, and said, My heart rejoiceth
in the LORD, mine horn is exalted in the LORD: my
mouth is enlarged over mine enemies; because I
rejoice in thy salvation.
1Sam 1:1-18
1 Now there was a certain man of
Ramathaimzophim, of mount Ephraim,
and his name was Elkanah,
the son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu,
the son of Tohu, the son of Zuph,
an Ephrathite:
2 And he had two wives;
the name of the one was Hannah,
and the name of the other Peninnah:
and Peninnah had children,
but Hannah had no children.
3 And this man went up out of his city yearly to
worship

2. and to sacrifice unto the LORD of hosts in Shiloh.
And the two sons of Eli,
Hophni and Phinehas,
the priests of the LORD, were there.
4 And when the time was
that Elkanah offered,
he gave to Peninnah his wife,
and to all her sons
and her daughters, portions:
5 But unto Hannah
he gave a worthy portion;
for he loved Hannah:
but the LORD had shut up her womb.
6 And her adversary also provoked her sore,
for to make her fret,
because the LORD had shut up her womb.
7 And as he did so year by year,
when she went up to the house of the LORD,
so she provoked her;
therefore she wept,
and did not eat.
8 Then said Elkanah her husband to her,
Hannah,
why weepest thou?

3. and why eatest thou not?
and why is thy heart grieved?
am not I better to thee than ten sons?
9 So Hannah rose up after they had eaten in Shiloh,
and after they had drunk.
Now Eli the priest
sat upon a seat by a post of the temple of the LORD.
10 And she was in bitterness of soul,
and prayed unto the LORD,
and wept sore.
11 And she vowed a vow,
and said,
O LORD of hosts,
if thou wilt indeed look on the affliction of thine
handmaid,
and remember me,
and not forget thine handmaid,
but wilt give unto thine handmaid
a man child,
then I will give him unto the LORD
all the days of his life,
and there shall no razor come upon his head.
12 And it came to pass,
as she continued praying before the LORD,
that Eli marked her mouth.

4. 13 Now Hannah,
she spake in her heart;
only her lips moved,
but her voice was not heard:
therefore Eli thought she had been drunken.
14 And Eli said unto her,
How long wilt thou be drunken?
put away thy wine from thee.
15 And Hannah answered and said,
No, my lord,
I am a woman of a sorrowful spirit:
I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink,
but have poured out my soul before the LORD.
16 Count not thine handmaid
for a daughter of Belial:
for out of the abundance of my complaint
and grief have I spoken hitherto.
17 Then Eli answered and said,
Go in peace:
and the God of Israel grant thee
thy petition that thou hast asked of him.
18 And she said,
Let thine handmaid find grace in thy sight.

5. So the woman went her way,
and did eat,
and her countenance was no more sad.
I. Perceived Problems.
A. 2 Wives.
2 And he had two wives
Gen 2:24 Therefore shall a man leave his father
and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife
not wives
: and they shall be one flesh. KJV
Deut 17:17 Neither shall he multiply wives to
himself, that his heart turn not away: neither
shall he greatly multiply to himself silver and
gold. KJV
Eph 4:4 There is one body, and one Spirit, even
as ye are called in one hope of your calling; KJV
Eph 5:23 For the husband is the head of the
wife, even as Christ is the head of the church:
and he is the saviour of the body. KJV
1Tim 3:2 A bishop then must be blameless, the
husband of one wife, vigilant, sober, of good
behaviour, given to hospitality, apt to teach; KJV

6. B. Yearly Worship.
3 And this man went up out of his city yearly to
worship… 7 And as he did so year by year,
Exod 23:14 Three times thou shalt keep a feast
unto me in the year. KJV
Exod 23:17 Three times in the year all thy
males shall appear before the Lord GOD. KJV
Exod 34:23 Thrice in the year shall all your
men children appear before the Lord GOD, the
God of Israel. KJV
Deut 16:16 Three times in a year shall all thy
males appear before the LORD thy God in the
place which he shall choose; in the feast of
unleavened bread, and in the feast of weeks,
and in the feast of tabernacles: and they shall
not appear before the LORD empty: KJV
C. Eli Sat.
3 …Hophni and Phinehas,
the priests of the LORD, were there.
9 …Now Eli the priest
sat upon a seat by a post of the temple of the
LORD.

7. Lev 1:7-9 7 And the sons of Aaron the priest
shall put fire upon the altar, and lay the wood in
order upon the fire: 8 And the priests, Aaron's
sons, shall lay the parts, the head, and the fat,
in order upon the wood that is on the fire which
is upon the altar: 9 But his inwards and his legs
shall he wash in water: and the priest shall
burn all on the altar, to be a burnt sacrifice, an
offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the
LORD. KJV
Lev 1:11 And he shall kill it on the side of the
altar northward before the LORD: and the
priests, Aaron's sons, shall sprinkle his blood
round about upon the altar. KJV
Lev 8:12-13 12 And he poured of the anointing
oil upon Aaron's head, and anointed him, to
sanctify him. 13 And Moses brought Aaron's
sons, and put coats upon them, and girded
them with girdles, and put bonnets upon them;
as the LORD commanded Moses. KJV
Deut 12:11-14 11 Then there shall be a place
which the LORD your God shall choose to cause
his name to dwell there; thither shall ye bring all
that I command you; your burnt offerings, and
your sacrifices, your tithes, and the heave
offering of your hand, and all your choice vows

8. which ye vow unto the LORD: 12 And ye shall
rejoice before the LORD your God, ye, and your
sons, and your daughters, and your
menservants, and your maidservants, and the
Levite that is within your gates; forasmuch as
he hath no part nor inheritance with you. 13
Take heed to thyself that thou offer not thy
burnt offerings in every place that thou seest:
14 But in the place which the LORD shall
choose in one of thy tribes, there thou shalt
offer thy burnt offerings, and there thou shalt do
all that I command thee. KJV
Luke 2:41 Now his parents went to Jerusalem
every year at the feast of the passover. KJV
D. …but Hannah had no children (v 2)
1)She had a legitimate grievance with Elkanah.
When he decided to get a second wife to produce
childred by; Hannah didn’t ask him “am not I
better to thee than ten sons?”
2)She had a legitimate grievance with Peninnah.
6 And her adversary also provoked her sore,

9. for to make her fret,
because the LORD had shut up her womb.
7 And as he did so year by year,
when she went up to the house of the LORD,
so she provoked her;
therefore she wept,
and did not eat.
3)She had a legitimate grievance with God.
6 And her adversary also provoked her sore,
for to make her fret,
because the LORD had shut up her womb.
II. Posterity Not Prosperity.
Posterity looks to the future; prosperity is the
ability to spend now.
The closed womb was a reservation for a future time
of need.
No one remembers the names of Peninnah’s
children; but all of Israel and Christendom knows
the name Samuel.

10. III. Petition not Pretense.
While Peninna was greedily spending the welfare of
the goodness of God Hannah was working overtime
for a better payday.
1Sam 1:10 And she was in bitterness of soul,
and prayed unto the LORD, and wept sore.
Prayed
1Sam 1:11 And she vowed a vow, and said, O
LORD of hosts, if thou wilt indeed look on the
affliction of thine handmaid, and remember me,
and not forget thine handmaid, but wilt give
unto thine handmaid a man child, then I will
give him unto the LORD all the days of his life,
and there shall no razor come upon his head.
Planning
1Sam 1:17 Then Eli answered and said, Go in
peace: and the God of Israel grant thee thy
petition that thou hast asked of him. KJV
1Sam 1:18 And she said, Let thine handmaid
find grace in thy sight. So the woman went her
way, and did eat, and her countenance was no
more sad. Praising

11. 1Sam 1:19 And they rose up in the
morning early, and worshipped before the
LORD, and returned, and came to their
house to Ramah: and Elkanah knew
Hannah his wife; and the LORD
remembered her. KJV
Conclusion:
1Sam 2:3-10
3 Talk no more so exceeding proudly; let not
arrogancy 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 they
that stumbled are girded with strength.
5 They that were full have hired out themselves for
bread; and they that were hungry ceased: so that
the barren hath born seven; and she that hath
many children is waxed feeble.
6 The LORD killeth, and maketh alive: he bringeth
down to the grave, and bringeth up.
7 The LORD maketh poor, and maketh rich: he
bringeth low, and lifteth up.

12. 8 He raiseth up the poor out of the dust, and lifteth
up 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 hath 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 shall no
man prevail.
10 The adversaries of the LORD shall be broken to
pieces; out of heaven shall he thunder upon them:
the LORD shall judge the ends of the earth; and he
shall give strength unto his king, and exalt the horn
of his anointed.
Hannah’s Road to Rejoicing
I. Perceived Problems.
A. 2 Wives.
B. Yearly Worship.
C. Eli Sat.
D. …but Hannah had no children (v 2)
1) She had a legitimate grievance with Elkanah.
2) She had a legitimate grievance with Peninnah.
3) She had a legitimate grievance with God.

13. II. Posterity Not Prosperity.
III. Petition not Pretense.
Conclusion: