“Only Her Lips Moved”

You may have heard the often repeated phrase, God is good all the time, all the time God is good. But what happens when the circumstances of your life seem to tell a different story?

Well, if that's the case, you're not alone. And today on Truth for Life, Alistair Begg reminds us that every situation is under God's sovereign control. We're in 1 Samuel, chapter 1. Well, we live in a world of huge advances in technology, not least of all in the realm of medicine. And in the midst of all of that, there is something quaint and wonderfully reassuring when my doctor actually says to me, And how is your appetite?

It just seems sort of old-fashioned, and yet it is a not uncommon question. Because being off our food, as we might put it, is often a sign that something else is going on. And that is certainly true here in the record of 1 Samuel 1 and our introduction to the circumstances of Hannah. The conclusion of Judges was a time not dissimilar to our own in this respect, that it was marked by social and political and religious chaos. Now, what is quite striking is the fact that in the midst of all of this—if you like, in that big macro picture—the spotlight of Scripture is fixed upon the domestic circumstances of this man of Ramathim-zophim, whose name is Elkanah.

He's introduced to us as a certain man. We're told that he has two wives, one of whom is childless—her name is Hannah, presumably his first wife—and then a second wife, who has sons and daughters. The fact that Hannah is childless is a big part of the opening of this story.

Because if there was going to be a king that would be provided for the people at this time, then since Hannah was in this situation, there was no possibility that she would have any part in the answering of that question. And the story is unfolded for us in such a way as to cause us, as the readers, to view these sad circumstances, to see Hannah's position as hopeless, to see her in a position of helplessness, to prepare us, if you like, for the discovery that God is once again going to do what he's been doing throughout all of the history of his people. And that is, he's going to reach into the humdrum life, the ordinary life, of a family, and through his intervention, he is not only going to impact that family, but he is going to redirect the course of human history. Now, I encourage you to think along these lines, because you may be here this morning, and you're actually saying to yourself, I don't really know where I fit in the big scheme of things at all. You may actually not even believe there is a big scheme of things.

You may be the product of a view of the world which regards it all as haphazard, that chaos is what you should expect, because chaos is all that is there. Now, Hannah's not like that. The Hannah that we focus on this morning is a believer, inasmuch as she believed that God is responsible for the existence of the world.

She believed that it was he who gives to all men life and breath, as Paul would later say in Acts 17. And it is because she believes that that she's in difficulty, because she's childless. And instead of time, as people often suggest, proving to be the great healer, in actual fact, the longer it goes, the worse it gets. And there in verse 3, this man used to go up year by year, and the passage of time made the events of her life all the more painful. And again, you may be here this morning, and that is exactly your testimony as well. If only this could have been curtailed, if only this could have been rectified.

But it seems that again and again and again. Now, the way in which this is provided for us can be viewed, if you like, in a couple of scenes. Scene 1, from verse 3 through to verse 8. I just call this in my notes, back off to Shiloh again. Because you see here that this man Elkanah, who was not only marked by obscurity, he was marked also by consistency, and his consistency was an expression of his piety. Because Shiloh was an important place historically and religiously. And clearly, Elkanah was concerned to go there and to sacrifice to the Lord of Hosts. You will notice that in verse 3. And he would go there to sacrifice to the Lord of Hosts at Shiloh, or to Lord Sabaoth. Now, you might think—or we might be tempted to think—that since he took his family there and since he took Hannah there, it would be a good occasion, then, for Hannah, quote, to get herself sorted out. You know, a visit to the place of sacrifice. And there may well have been some who would have been prepared to say to her, You know, Hannah, don't you think that for a little while in your life you could stop thinking about yourself and about your own problem, and since we're here for this very express purpose, to give your attention to God? Well, I have found in life there's no shortage to Job's comforters, the people who are able to point out to us when we're in the midst of difficulty that it's really just a problem for ourselves and that we would be better off if we looked outside of ourselves.

It may well be true, but it doesn't actually help. Now, Elkanah, who was responsible for this little journey on an annual basis, had, in taking Peninnah as his wife, got something that he wanted— namely, children. But he also got what he didn't want—namely, a divided household. And in the routine distribution of the portions from the sacrifice, which you will see are there in verse 4, his giving of portions actually heightened the tension. Because, as you will see the text in front of you, he would give portions to Peninnah, his wife, and to all her sons and daughters.

So here you are, one for you and one for you and one for you and one for you. And the picture there is of the fullness, if you like, of Peninnah's experience. She has all these children. And then now to Hannah.

And what did we discover? Well, he gave to Hannah a double portion for two reasons—because he loved her and because she didn't have any children. Now, presumably, he was trying to be a good guy.

But I think he compounded the problem. What is she supposed to do with all of this stuff? Nobody's eating. She has no mouths to feed. She's got no children to give it to.

And I can't help myself, but I see it in pictorial terms, you know, that here's one and another and another, and there she leaves, and he leaves her. She's not even eating. Remember? How's your appetite? She's not eating. Peninnah, looking on, says to her husband Elkanah, I know you love her more than me. I know you do.

That's why you give her that stuff. And then turning to her rival, to Hannah, what do you have to thank God for, Hannah? You've got nothing. You've got no children. God has closed your womb.

Surely he's forgotten you. So she becomes the catalyst for all this disruption, marked by provocation and aggravation and irritation. And verse 7, So it went on year by year. You see, Elkanah, the husband, knew that all things that come our way or do not come our way, we need to take as from a father's hand. Hannah knew that as well. But, you see, she was having a hard time allowing her heart or her emotions to catch up with her head. You see, the dilemma was that she had a theology, that she had an understanding of God and his purposes, that she knew that he was a God who was interested in the affliction of his people, that she knew that he was a God who wouldn't forget his own. She knew this, and yet at the same time she was having a real difficulty in reconciling what was an apparent contradiction. You may be here today, and that's exactly where you are in your spiritual pilgrimage—that you're waiting for your emotions, as it were, to be brought under the jurisdiction of what you know to be true of God.

Conversely, some of us, actually, may have emotionally got there, and we're waiting for our heads to catch up. Now, notice how Elkanah, true to form as her husband, makes an attempt at fixing things. And Elkanah her husband, verse 8, said to her, "'Hannah, why do you weep? Why do you not eat? And why is your heart sad?'" To which she might have said, "'Why don't you go on a long donkey ride?'"

Fair? I mean, are you honestly asking me these questions, Elkanah? You want to know why I'm sad? Matias says, when he says, "'Am I not more to you than ten sons?'" You know, in other words, I'm sufficient.

Am I not sufficient? He should have said, "'Are you not more to me than ten sons?'" That would have been the right answer, or the right question. Because her grief was compounded by the fact that she knew that Elkanah loved her in every dimension of their relationship, and along with her longed to have a child, to have an heir. And so he should have said, "'Are you not more to me than whether you give me a son?'"

As opposed to, "'Am I not more to you than ten sons?'" Scene 2, beginning in verse 9, is a scene of silent prayer in the sanctuary. Verse 9, after they had eaten and drunk in Shiloh, this question, whether Hannah was at that point part of the they—it's unclear.

For me, it's unlikely. But what we have that is clear is that she has now removed herself from the realm of Elkanah's questions, and she's placed herself in the presence of the one who holds the answers. She goes into the sanctuary. And you will notice, if your Bible is in front of you, that the description of her can be summarized just in these phrases—deep distress and bitter tears, earnest prayer, affliction, great anxiety, and vexation. You imagine that she is saying in her heart, "'O God, I thank you for my husband. I love him, but he doesn't get it. He doesn't understand me. To you, O LORD, I cry.'"

But the chances are that Elkanah was in his bedroom praying something similar. "'O LORD, I love Hannah, and we don't get it. But to you we cry.'" You see, what we should be struck with at this point is this—that the response of Hannah to this is not vengeance. Nor is there any sense of her becoming resentful towards God—which would have been an understandable reaction. Nor is she fatalistic.

No, none of that. What she's doing is she's bringing her tears, her sighs, her longings—she's bringing them, if you like, into the presence of God. She's seeking to bring her life underneath God's jurisdiction—a God who is too wise to make mistakes and who is too kind ever to be cruel. Now, loved ones, that is the story of Christian pilgrimage. One can't be involved in congregational life over a long period of time without being aware of the fact that in the pews, in the seats in front of you on a regular basis, is life after life after life that is dealing with these very same issues. There was no simple solution to this.

There was no immediate eradication of the problem. And many of us will go through all of our days dealing with circumstances like this. So it is remarkable what she does. O LORD of hosts, verse 11, if you will indeed look on the affliction of your servant—and I know you looked on the affliction of your people. You looked on Noah in his circumstances. You looked on Abraham.

You've looked on your people. If you will look on the affliction of your servant, if you will remember me, if you won't forget me, if you will give to your servant a son, I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life. She's not making a promise in an attempt to induce God's favor. She knows better than that.

All she is saying is this. God, you are the majestic God, your sovereign. I am your servant.

I am in this predicament. I regard this as a deep affliction. And therefore I am asking you to do for me, little Hannah, what you have done for your people in the past. You see, God's love in the past is what gives her the confidence to pray as audaciously as she does. See, she could never have known that in answering her prayer, God was actually addressing the problem of Israel. God, in answering her little prayer, was doing something that was vast in its ramifications.

That's why I said to you, when she asked the question, Why is this happening to me?, the answer to that question is not in the this, and it's not in the me. For the ways of God are vast beyond our ability to comprehend. And in many cases in our journey of life, it will be only in glory eventually that we will make sense of all the tangled threads, of all the black bits and pieces, all the patterns that have been destroyed. You see, she says, And I will give you this, boy, and no razor shall touch his head all the days of his life. The reference here is to a Nazarite vow. A Nazarite vow would have a time frame to it.

That's why you read, for example, in the Acts of how Paul had his hair cut, according to a Nazarite vow. It lasted for a while. She says, This, boy, will be yours forever. Now, all these words are put in her mouth, but you will notice that we haven't heard a peep from her mouth. Because in verse 12 it says that she continued praying before the Lord, and Eli observed her mouth. But she was speaking in her heart. Only her lips moved, and her voice wasn't heard. In other words, her prayers had been heartfelt. In some ways they were observable prayers, but they were inaudible prayers. But then, let's bring in the religious personnel.

They'll be sure to capture the event, I'm sure. But what does the pastor have to say? He's been watching from the corner, sitting there on his chair, looking, making his own assessments. And as he watches from the wings, Eli, who's the father of worthless sons, has concluded that this is a worthless woman. And with an embarrassing absence of spiritual insight, he concludes that she's inebriated. In much the same way as the crowd determined on the day of Pentecost what was happening to the people of God.

But they were pagans. They could never understand it. Eli should know. It's too bad, isn't it, when your pastor lets you down? You go and pour out your soul, and he doesn't get it. The best of men are men at best. Eli is there as a representative of the religious establishment.

Missing the point phenomenally well. She has to explain to him that she's not a worthless woman. She's been speaking out of anxiety and vexation. Eli then twigs it, verse 17, and he says, Well, in that case, go in peace. And the God of Israel, grant your petition that you have made to him. And she said, Well, then, let your servant find favor in your eyes.

And then here we go. And the woman went her way and ate, and her face was no longer sad. I call this final little section—I put a heading for myself—"You're looking more like yourself, Hannah." Isn't that what people say to you when you've been unwell? They say, I saw you a few weeks ago, but you're looking much more like yourself. It's a strange thing to say, isn't it? How can you look like anybody else?

Unless, I suppose, you dress up or something. You're looking more like yourself. Oh, you mean it wasn't myself when I was weeping and sick and sad?

No, it was yourself. But look at this. Now, she has brought her grief to the Lord, and before it is answered in one way or another, her appetite has returned and her countenance has changed. And the way in which this is written points to the fact that the point of resolution for Hannah was not in her pregnancy, not in the subsequent arrival of a child, but in the fact that she'd had, if you like, her own 1 Peter 5, 6 and 7 encounter, casting her burden upon the Lord. And it was there in the quiet place, in the sanctuary, in her own heart of hearts, that she was then settled in her heart and lightened in her step. Oh, Lord of hosts, I don't know what you're doing or why, but I take the absence or the presence of a child is from your hand. You see, that has to be it.

I don't know what you're doing or why, but all of us have stuff like that. When I answered yes, it was only then that peace began to flood my soul. Hannah answered yes, and in the challenging dilemmas of each of our lives, surely the only stabilizing answer is for each of us to answer yes. It's not always simple or easy, but it's true.

We can trust God even when our circumstances don't seem to make sense. You're listening to Alistair Begg on Truth for Life. If you've been encouraged and strengthened by the teaching you hear on this program, we'd like to invite you to join the team that makes Truth for Life possible. We call them Truth Partners, and when you become a Truth Partner, you're committing to praying for us and giving a donation each month.

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