1 Samuel 1:1-8
A Household That Went Up to Worship
Read the passage
1Now there was a man named Elkanah who was from Ramathaim-zophim in the hill country of Ephraim. He was the son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the son of Zuph, an Ephraimite.
2He had two wives, one named Hannah and the other Peninnah. And Peninnah had children, but Hannah had none.
3Year after year Elkanah would go up from his city to worship and sacrifice to the LORD of Hosts at Shiloh, where Eli’s two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, were priests to the LORD.
4And whenever the day came for Elkanah to present his sacrifice, he would give portions to his wife Peninnah and to all her sons and daughters.
5But to Hannah he would give a double portion, for he loved her even though the LORD had closed her womb.
6Because the LORD had closed Hannah’s womb, her rival would provoke her viciously to taunt her.
7And this went on year after year. Whenever Hannah went up to the house of the LORD, her rival taunted her until she wept and would not eat.
8“Hannah, why are you crying?” her husband Elkanah asked. “Why won’t you eat? Why is your heart so grieved? Am I not better to you than ten sons?”
Berean Standard Bible
Read aloud
Elkanah's family travels to Shiloh each year to worship and sacrifice to the LORD of Hosts. His two wives share the journey but have very different experiences. Peninnah has sons and daughters. Hannah has no children, and the passage says the LORD has closed her womb without telling us why.
Elkanah loves Hannah and gives her a double portion of the sacrifice. Peninnah, however, turns her childlessness into a weapon. Year after year, even at the LORD's house, she taunts Hannah until she weeps and cannot eat.
Elkanah asks why Hannah is so grieved and whether he is better to her than ten sons. He offers the love he has, but being loved by a husband does not remove the longing for a child. One good gift does not make every other sorrow disappear.
Worship and wounded relationships stand side by side in this opening scene. Going to Shiloh does not make Peninnah's cruelty less serious. Nor does Hannah's sorrow place her outside the household that comes before God. We meet her first as someone suffering, before we learn how the LORD will answer her prayer.
Questions
1 Who went up to Shiloh year after year, and why?
AnswerElkanah and his household went to worship and sacrifice to the LORD of Hosts. Their journey brought the family’s unresolved pain into the place of worship.
2 What was different about Hannah’s portion?
AnswerElkanah gave Hannah a double portion because he loved her, even though the LORD had closed her womb.
3 How did Peninnah treat Hannah?
AnswerShe provoked and taunted her viciously, year after year, until Hannah wept and would not eat.
4 Why does pointing to one blessing not necessarily help someone who is grieving?
AnswerLove and other good gifts matter, but they do not cancel a particular loss or longing. We can be grateful and still need someone to listen to our sorrow.
What This Means for Us
Being part of a worshiping family does not excuse humiliating speech. Notice whether someone at home is being teased about a painful subject or expected to stop hurting because others mean well. Listen without comparing their sorrow to the blessings they have. The God we worship sees the person whose pain we may be overlooking.
Prayer
Holy God, You see grief that other people cannot solve. Make us gentle with vulnerable places and honest about the harm our words can cause. Teach us to listen with love and to bring unanswered longing to You without pretending it is small. Amen.