5. Hannahs First Prayer and Vow
Hannah’s First Prayer and Vow
"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. And she was in bitterness of soul, and prayed unto the Lord, and wept sore. 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." (1 Samuel 1:9-11)
She did a remarkable thing, she made a specific request. It was not a general prayer, it was a specific request. She said, ’Lord, I want a man child, and if I get him I will give him back to you, he will be yours forever’. She was prepared to receive what her heart yearned for and then to give it back to the Lord. What a remarkable woman! What earnestness of desire! What insight to see what would please the Lord, and she made this definite decision, which means, as far as we are concerned, that our prayers are not self-centred; we are praying for the Lord’s interests.
What a man Samuel was! He was the product of prayer; he was the product of care on the part of his mother, and no doubt by his father, and what a man he became, a man of God, the prophet in Israel, the last of the judges, instrumental in presenting God’s king to Israel, David, the son of Jesse. That dear woman did not know what she was praying for in the full sense when she prayed for a man child and God gave her her desire, and it might be the same with us if we are really concerned about the Lord’s interests, to pray for them in the spirit of self sacrifice, in the spirit of desire to do something for the Lord that will stand the test of time and promote His interests in a deeper and fuller way.
If we analysed our prayers, and if it were possible for them to be played back to us on a recorder, I think we would be astounded to see how we ourselves are the centre of our prayers, our interests, our desires, and so small a portion of them centred on the interests of our God and Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! I think I am saying the truth, at least I will speak for myself, oh how we need to get orientated into the desires of God, the interests of God and pray earnestly in relation to them!
Having made this tremendous vow, and not only would she have a man child, and return him to the One who gave him to her, but she would bring him up in such a way that he would be thoroughly and absolutely devoted to the Lord; she would bring him up as a Nazarite. I wonder how many parents have received children from the Lord and perhaps made a reservation that they would bring them up in the fear of Him and then, in the course of time, that desire perhaps had faded away and perhaps the teaching was not given as it should have been? But Hannah was true to her vow, and she brought up Samuel so that when he was presented to the Lord he had been brought up properly and was a fit instrument His hand, he was a true Nazarite indeed.
I have never had children, I do not know the problems involved in bringing them up, so I cannot speak with experience, I can only state what the Scriptures state, and it seems to me that here was a woman who was thoroughly devoted to the interests of the Lord and the thing that was nearest to her heart, this man child that she longed for so much, would willingly be given back to Him, and not in a haphazard way, but a fit present to give to Him, brought up as a Nazarite and brought up to serve Him. Is it not one of the saddest things in the history of the testimony as we know it, what God has given to us to defend, the truth of the assembly, the free action of the Headship of Christ and the Holy Spirit and all the truths connected with this, how few of the children of the saints continue in this pathway? Theoretically it should be the reservoir that should be drawn upon to fill up the ranks. I cannot make any accusation against any of the parents as to why this should be so, I can only observe the fact and see that it is so. Oh, what a sad thing it is. I can only grieve with the parents over this kind of thing.