1 SAMUEL 1

In 1 Samuel chapter 1, there is an interesting story of a man with two unhappy wives. Both were blessed in different ways, but neither was happy with their blessings. Instead, they wanted what they didn’t have. Hannah, the eventual star of the story, had her husband’s heart and affections. Whenever the family was dining together at the temple, Elkanah gave Hannah "a double portion because he loved her." (vs 5) He showed this affection to her even though she was barren. Of course, Hannah was distraught over the fact that she had no children. For women of that time, a childless existence was usually accompanied with feelings of shame and guilt.

Peninnah, on the other hand, was the baby-maker. The description of the family meals at the temple included this little detail: "He would give portions of the meat to his wife Peninnah and to all her sons and daughters." (vs 4) Peninnah hadn’t just managed to give Elkanah one or two children. She had lavished an entire future family line on him. In the eyes of society, she would have been seen as the greater of the two women. And many scholars agree that Elkanah likely married Hannah first (because he loved her so much)... and subsequently married Peninnah in order to have a family.

From the perspective of Old Testament Israel, with all the priority it placed on children and family, Peninnah had it made. She had given her husband what Hannah couldn’t. She was the superstar. But she sure wasn’t acting like a superstar. Every year, when the family went to the temple to worship and sacrifice, an awful thing happened: "Because the Lord had closed [Hannah's] womb, her rival kept provoking her in order to irritate her. This went on year after year. Whenever Hannah went up to the house of the Lord, her rival provoked her till she wept and would not eat." (vs 6-7)

Wasn’t it bad enough that Hannah was unable to bear children? Why would Peninnah—who had given her husband plenty of children—feel the need to rub it in Hannah’s face so horribly? The obvious answer is that Hannah had something Peninnah wanted and didn’t have.

That’s rather ironic, isn’t it? Peninnah had something Hannah wanted and didn’t have—children. And Hannah had something Peninnah wanted and didn’t have—Elkanah’s love and affection. Remember, these taunting episodes happened during the family’s yearly trip to the temple. It was there that Peninnah witnessed Hannah being given double portions of the best meat, a tender gesture that wasn’t given to either her or her children. That must have been painful for her. So, here are two women who are finding it hard to live with their lot in life. They are both blessed, but neither seems to be content with their blessing. They both want something else.

And that’s when we see something wonderful about God! That He cares about the things that matter to us. Big things, little things, trivial things, significant things. He cares about them all. He cares about them because He cares about us.

I suppose God could have approached Hannah the way her husband did. When she got so upset that she "wept and would not eat," Elkanah said to her, "Hannah, why are you weeping? Why don’t you eat? Why are you downhearted? Don’t I mean more to you than ten sons?" (vs 8) These were reasonable questions, and I’m sure Elkanah asked them in a kind way. Let’s face it. He was a man, and I’m sure he really wanted to "fix" Hannah’s problem. He didn’t want her to feel awful. But, as reasonable a response as that might have been, God didn’t come to Hannah and say, "Hey, why can’t you just be grateful for what you have in life? Your husband loves you. He showers affection on you even in the presence of his other wife and your step-children. Can’t you just be thankful for his love and not want what you don’t have?"

Likewise, He didn’t approach Peninnah and say, "Hey, why can’t you just be grateful for what you have in life? You may want the attention Hannah’s getting, but look at all the kids you have. She would die to have that many children! Can’t you just be thankful and proud of the family you’ve built with Elkanah?" No, God didn’t approach either woman that way. Instead, He cared about the things that mattered to them. And He remembered them and answered both their prayers.

Have you ever thought about that? Of course, we know He answered Hannah’s prayer. It wasn’t very long before she was pregnant with Samuel. Having a child was very important to her. It mattered to her, and so it mattered to God, too. But what about Peninnah? After the verses that describe how she taunted and tormented Hannah, she’s never mentioned again. It’s easy to think that she never found satisfaction. But we can glean a little clue about how God answered her prayer by reading between the Biblical lines just a bit.

Verses 21-22 say this: "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.'" So Hannah remained at home with Samuel until he was weaned. Here’s the thing: in Biblical times, babies were not considered weaned until they had received their foundational education in the Scriptures (usually from their mothers) and were ready to go to the temple to study with the rabbis or enter the family business. This usually occurred around the age of seven. That means, then, that for seven years, Hannah stayed home with Samuel while the rest of Elkanah’s family journeyed to the temple.

Thus, for seven years, Peninnah had Elkanah all to herself during those special trips. Before, this had been the trip that caused all the angst between the women. For Peninnah saw Elkanah treating Hannah with special attention and affection at the temple meals, and it irritated her. It was a constant reminder to her that Elkanah loved Hannah more than her. But, for the seven years Hannah remained at home with Samuel, Peninnah enjoyed time at the temple with Elkanah and their children. All of them together, without Hannah.

In the end, both women received what they wanted for seven years. Hannah had a son and Peninnah had special time with Elkanah. God found a way to give 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.