And there came a man of God unto Eli, and said unto him, Thus saith the Lord, Did I plainly appear unto the house of thy father, when they were in Egypt in Pharaohs house? So the woman abode, and gave her son suck until she weaned him. And the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, the priests of the Lord, were there. The narrative, as crafted, implies that Elkanah is either unaware or dismissive of Hannahs emotional needs and performs little or no nurturing role vis--vis their firstborn or any of their other children. Samuel, the son of Elkanah (of Ephraim) and Hannah, was born in answer to the prayer of his previously childless mother. . By contrast, the text implies that Hannah herself worships at the temple only once and in bitterness of soul. The story implies that both types of devotion are effective. Of particular interest is the sequence of events that culminates in Gods initial fulfillment of Hannahs vow: 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.35 In these thirty-three English words, and appears six times. This verb connotes not just physical intimacy but also sexual relations between legitimate partners.37 In the Hebrew Bible, yada frequently connotes a special kind of covenant relationship, not just a familiar one, especially where the knowledge of God is concerned.38 Thus, the union that produces Samuel is doubly blessed: by the enduring bond between worthy and faithful partners and by the sacred vow between a devoted Hebrew woman and the Lord. Alternatively, McCarter, I Samuel, 60 n.9, suggests that the details of Elis first appearance may imply his watchful care over all temple matters. This study claims that the significance of the story cannot be fully apprehended without an in-depth understanding of the expressive qualities of the text. And Samuel lay until the morning, and opened the doors of the house of the Lord. 9. Gender: Female. It also serves the broader narrative as the renewal of an ancient and sacred covenant with God, with Samuel serving as its object and agent.71 Such a perspective allows readers to see 1 Samuel 13 as an integrated, focused, and crucial contribution to Gods perpetual effort to fulfill sacred promises and renew an enduring relationship with his covenant people. 31. And he answered, I called not, my son; lie down again. The exposition also identifies the ritual officials at the temple of the Lord at Shiloh but in a casual, even offhand manner: And the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, the priests of the Lord, were there. While this simple declarative sentence names the personnel with the greatest spiritual status at Shiloh, its specific language implies two concerns. From the simplest and most direct perspective, the story of Samuels birth and calling can be best understood in covenant terms. And he answered, Here am I. His greatest distinction was his role in the establishment of the monarchy in Israel. However, Sternberg, Poetics, 32528, eloquently qualifies Alters perspective. When Hannah subsequently bears three sons and two daughters, the phrase announcing the births uses the verb paqad, translated visited. The story is also at the root of the priestly role imposed on Samuel at a later date in 1 Chronicles 6; but this is an effort to explain in terms of the later priesthood the sacred functions performed by Samuel. And he worshipped the Lord there. Leitwrter: know and lie with. Consider, however, the use of paqad in the promised and miraculous birth of Isaac in Genesis 21:12. Provo, UT 84602, USA | 2022 Brigham Young University, Birth and Calling of the Prophet Samuel: A Literary Reading of the BiblicalText, The Little Head Stones Became Monuments: Death in the EarlySamoanMission and theCreation of the FagaliiCemetery, Margaret Barkers The Lord Is Onea Response, Response to Margaret Barkers The Lord Is One, An Improvisation on Margaret Barkers The Lord Is One, An Angel or Rather the Savior at the Kirtland Temple Dedication: The Vision of FrederickG.Williams, What Is It about This Place?: Truman Madsen, ReligiousEducation, and theMissionofBYU, Catholic and Mormon: A Theological Conversation, The Mapmakers of New Zion: A CartographicHistory ofMormonism, The Polygamous Wives Writing Club: From the Diaries of MormonPioneerWomen. Characterization: Husband and Wife. On the one hand, Phinehas and Hophni are named as priests, in contrast with the next segment of the story, which specifically identifies Eli as the priest at Shiloh (see 1:9). 53. In Portugal, the pan-European report noted a decline in January-February 2022, compared to the trend in previous years. After Samuel is born but before he is weaned, Elkanah invites Hannah to accompany him to Shiloh for the annual observance. Alter, Ancient Israel, 244 n.21: Everything is different now that Hannah has borne a son, and she herself introduces a change in the repeated pattern.. The first seven verses of the introduction consist of what Alter calls narrativedescriptive details that locate the story within the broader temporal, spatial, social, and spiritual context of biblical Israel. Ancient Eli is almost a tragicomic figure. Type Scene: Female Spiritual Initiative. He spent his adolescence across the country, removed from all hed known as a child, raised by a stepfather who he felt no connection to. Following Samuels birth, Hannah nurses her baby until she weaned him, even though doing so means that she has to forego the annual pilgrimage to Shiloh and the (implied) customary worthy portion of the offering.40 When Hannah resumes the annual pilgrimage and prepares to lend her firstborn to the Lord, she takes three bullocks, and one ephah of flour, and a bottle of wine as her own alimentary offering, a portion of which would be customarily consumed by the priest and his family.41, Characterization: Husband and Wife. Therefore, while intended as an expression of generosity, the offering reveals Elkanahs insensitivity, at the very least, to the storys central crisis and may actually be insulting to Hannah. . PTSD symptoms can include: Frequent nightmares. (3:110, 1921; 4:1a). Examination discloses that this is still another account of Sauls rise without an anointing story; Saul is chosen king as the judgesthe leaders of the Israelites during their conquest of the land of Canaanwere chosen, by a charismatic display of military courage and leadership. . 1 Samuel 30. He was to warn them to repent and believe in the Savior. Nay, my sons; for it is no good report that I hear: ye make the Lords people to transgress.57, Leitwrter: know and lie with. WebBible verses related to Samuel from the King James Version (KJV) by Relevance - Sort By Book Order 1 Samuel 3:1-18 - And the child Samuel ministered unto the LORD before Eli. Went to the College Harvard Children's Literature Timeline. Characterization: Priest and Suppliant. WebWhat was significant about the birth and childhood of Samuel? Customary Behavior: Eating/Drinking and Fasting. He publishes widely in the fields of Mormon studies and museum studies and frequently presents at scholarly and professional conferences. David is anointed king of Judah with the help of his allies and he makes Hebron as the capital of his new administration. 2 Samuel 2:7. Samuel Adams Life Jan 1, 1736. And the word of the LORD was precious in those days; there was no open vision. Thus, the ambivalent and matter-of-fact introduction of the priests at Shiloh implies that while central to the story of Samuels beginnings, Eli and his sons will play roles that are marginal to or destructive of their high ritual status. Shakab implies that Samuel is simply lying prone in bed when the Lord first calls and eventually appears to him. Once Hannah becomes a mother in fact, her role vis--vis Samuel is considerably more profound. International Standard Version The LORD took note of Hannah, and she became pregnant and gave birth to three sons and two daughters. The present study relies on the LDS edition of the King James Translation of the Hebrew Bible. While widely appreciated by biblical scholars, a literary approach to the scriptures is not common among Latter-day Saints, who tend to prefer approaches that are more contextual than textual in nature. The second way that Hannah continues to nurture her firstborn is mentioned below in the discussion of 1 Samuel 2:19. In the Samuel story, the narrator uses the verb amen, translated establish, in order to prefigure Samuels auspicious priestly career in the voice of his faithful fatheronly the Lord establish his word (1:23)and to launch Samuels public ministry at the storys climax: And all Israel from Dan even to Beer-sheba knew that Samuel was established to be a prophet of the Lord. The Hebrew verb has strong ritual, symbolic, and covenantal connotations, suggesting that: Establish in these contexts provides a categorical contrast with verbs repeated by the man of God in his condemnation of the house of Eli. As part of her poignant vow, Hannah promises that if the Lord will give her a man child, then she will give him unto the Lord all the days of his life. In both instances, the verb give is translated from the Hebrew nathan. This narrative is the major piece in establishing the role of Samuel as a prophet, but it is questionable whether the prophet as a distinct religious figure had emerged among the Israelites at this early date. 3:21), it begins in virtual obscurity, making its outcome all the more miraculous. James Limburg, Psalms, Book of, in The Anchor Bible Dictionary, ed. In 1 Samuel 13 alone, the Hebrew conjunction waw, translated and, appears more than 160times.34 The pattern and frequency of use of this conjunction imply that the narrator consciously employs it to integrate a series of increasingly significant, forward-moving events. As a boy Samuel received a divine oracle in which the fall of the house of Eli was predicted (1 Samuel 13). 21. Wherefore the Lord God of Israel saith, I said indeed that thy house, and the house of thy father, should walk before me for ever: but now the Lord saith, Be it far from me; for them that honour me I will honour, and they that despise me shall be lightly esteemed. For example, Exodus 34; Isaiah 6; Jeremiah 1; Ezekiel 12. While this general biblical pattern exhibits innumerable complexities, variations, nuances, and ambiguities, its consistency spans centuries of the recorded dealings of JHWH with covenant Israel.76 A covenant focus thus seems to be essential to the pious tradition77 that occupied biblical writers and commanded their literary craftsmanship. This study claims that the significance of the story cannot be fully appre- Nevertheless, Hannah is not satisfied: she wants a son for herself, but not for selfish reasons. to recover the authors intentions and to set them up as governing all interpretationsuffers from the logical fallacy of the excluded middle. And he rose and went to Eli, and said, Here am I; for thou didst call me. . Hannah gave Samuel to the priest, Eli, so he could be taught to serve the Lord. We are present only for his encounter with the priest. McCarter, I Samuel, 6061 n.11, points out the poetic qualities of Hannahs prayer. 56. However, nearly every specific detail of introduction is marginal to the larger history of Israel in the Holy Land. Risking an overly simplistic introduction of this convention, the present study recognizes two general perspectives in the Hebrew Bible, contrasted by scope. Now Eli the priest sat upon a seat by a post of the temple of the Lord. 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. As a result, Elis extended family are cursed to beg for their sustenance in the future (2:1217, 36). While Samuel ministered to the Lord (1 Samuel 2:18). David had been shuffled off to his fathers fields to work as a shepherd boy. But Samuel ministered before the Lord, being a child, girded with a linen ephod. Collectively, the expressive elements of a text are called literary conventions, in part because they distinguish the writings of a given author, community, time period, or culture, and in part because they express the ways that groups of readers commonly interpret received texts. 50. While Elkanahs traditional devotion preserves the identity of an obscure nuclear family, Hannahs singular devotion eventually blesses all Israel. As crafted, the interpretive focus of the Samuel story is clearly the long-term effects of Hannahs spiritual initiative. 1 Chronicles 6:27 identifies Jeroham, Samuels paternal grandfather, as a Levite. Then Samuel answered, Speak; for thy servant heareth. Structuring Devices: Exposition.The first seven verses of the introduction consist of what Alter calls narrativedescriptive details that locate the story within the broader temporal, spatial, social, and spiritual context of biblical Israel. . WebSaul, along with three of his sons die in a battle with the Philistines. In his masterful study of The Iliad, the great classical scholar James M. Redfield offers an alternate perspective that is central to the present inquiry: Homer does not speak to us when we assign our meanings to his words or when we allow ourselves to be guided by our immediate response to his scenes. James M. Redfield, Nature and Culture in The Iliad: The Tragedy of Hector (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1975), x. Qualities of Hannahs spiritual initiative Samuel ministered before the Lord ( 1 2:18... The priests of the excluded middle Lord first calls and eventually appears to him,,. Calls and eventually appears to him verb paqad, translated visited obscurity, making its all... I ; for thou didst call me contrasted by scope traditional devotion preserves the of! To him the annual observance her firstborn is mentioned below in the fields of Mormon and... 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