what was significant about the birth and childhood of samuel

Samuels principal role is to realize his divine destiny for all Israel (3:14:1a). 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. The king is chosen not by divine election but by lot, implying that no special qualities were required, and the bashful candidate has to be summoned from a hiding place. Shes a mom! . 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. See Robert Alter, Ancient Israel: The Former Prophets: Joshua, Judges, Samuel, and Kings, A Translation with Commentary (New York: W.W. Norton, 2013), 257; Robert Polzin, Samuel and the Deuteronomist: A Literary Study of the Deuteronomic History, Part Two: 1Samuel (Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1993), 1954; Uriel Simon, Reading Prophetic Narratives, trans. He is Senior Curator of the LDS Church History Department, where he has worked his entire career creating museum exhibits, restoring historic sites, and leading initiatives. Thus, faithfulness to God seems to be more central to the Bibles theological interpretation of history75 than the particular political or social forms of human societies. Nevertheless, his casual observance of the priestly office is made apparent by his first appearance in the narrative: Now Eli the priest sat upon a seat by a post of the temple of the Lord.25 Adding to his position of spiritual ambivalence is Elis first specific actiona gross miscalculation of Hannahs spiritual motivationsand his first direct speech, a wildly false assessment of her character. On the contrary, Alter reflects on the sophistication of this convention in the Hebrew Bible: Nowhere else in ancient literature have the quirkiness and unpredictability of individual character and the frictions and tensions of family life . The story of Samuels birth and calling concludes with a general reference to his continuing growth in the knowledge of God (see 3:7, 21). That they were young and active gave Samuel a base of power that was physical as well as moral. Samuel, whose name means heard of God, was dedicated to God by his mother, Hannah, as part of a vow she made before he was born (1 Samuel 1:11). And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left in thine house shall come and crouch to him for a piece of silver and a morsel of bread, and shall say, Put me, I pray thee, into one of the priests offices, that I may eat a piece of bread. Therefore, it is important to utilize available data to further research and understand the risk factors for preterm death. They became so angry with Samuel that they threw him out of their city. And the child Samuel ministered unto the Lord before Eli. Commenting on Elis deficiencies, McCarter, I Samuel, 100, observes, It is time for the apprentice to replace the master. Role. It seems that there was a firm tradition of a split between the two men but an inexact memory of the details. Most commentators acknowledge that the account of the birth and calling of Samuel actually ends with the first sentence of the next chapter, And the word of Samuel came to all Israel (4:1a). WebHe is the fifth of nine children born to Major Samuel and Elizabeth (Paxton) Houston. Despite the similarity of their messages, the text structures the two encounters inversely. He appears at first as being hostile to the monarchy and then as being favourable to it. Nevertheless, everything that she says and doesindeed, everything that she is in the storymanifests supreme devotion to her sacred roles of wife and mother and to her covenant relationship with the Lord. And the word of Samuel came to allIsrael.. The story of Samuels birth and calling is one of many contributions to this core ideological focus of the Hebrew Bible. In biblical Hebrew, shael has a double meaning: to request and to lend. 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. The few defining details of characterbehavior, actions, qualities, dialogue, and physical appearance that flesh out proleptic portraits,74 whether individually or in pairsreveal individuals varied relationships with one another and with God, as mediated by their sacred covenants. Moreover his mother made him a little coat, and brought it to him from year to year, when she came up with her husband to offer the yearly sacrifice. Despite Hannahs concern for personal legitimacy, her familys status before the Lord is assured by Elkanahs annual devotionals at Shiloh and the resulting devotional lifestyle that is implied by his faithfulness to this ritual obligation. All other textual details and literary conventions of the account systematically support a covenant perspective in the following central ways. Theodore J. Lewis, Belial, in Freedman, Anchor Bible Dictionary, 1:65456; Bible Dictionary, LDS edition of the Bible (Salt Lake City: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1979), s.v. And she was in bitterness of soul, and prayed unto the Lord, and wept sore. are dependent on the manipulation of a fixed constellation of predetermined motifs. Prior to his call, Samuel did not yet know the Lord; neither was the word of the Lord yet revealed unto him.68 The knowledge of God bestowed on this occasion is personal, powerful, and covenant-based, not familiar and sexual. 1 Samuel 3:416; Genesis 22:1. 15. One of many studies of this genre in the Hebrew Bible is Steven Weitzman, Song and Story in Biblical Narrative: The History of a Literary Convention in Ancient Israel (Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1997); see also Alter, Moses, 397 n.1. Samuels rise to prominence was anticipated and guided by the Lord, Samuel would be sustained by God in his challenging but crucial ministry, and. Samuel was a major contributor, but much of the book takes place after his death in 1 Samuel 25. We learn of what God says to him only by what he, in turn, says to Eli. The present study focuses on several recurrent literary conventions that so thoroughly unite the biblical account of Samuels birth and divine calling that its craftsmanship aptly serves as a vehicle of its meaning. Suddenly, a priest Eli came to her doorstep The biblical preference for direct discourse is so pronounced that thought is almost invariably rendered as actual speech. Alter, Art, 67. Samuel thus appears as a leader in all Israel; his leadership is exercised in war and law, but his authority is basically religious, mostly prophetic, although with some features of priestly authority. My great indebtedness to these studies becomes very apparent in the following pages; however, I alone remain responsible for the perspective and conclusions of this study, including any errors or oversights. 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 was very probably intruded into this narrative. and did I give unto the house of thy father all the offerings made by fire of the children of Israel? Not in Heaven: Coherence and Complexity in Biblical Narrative (Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1991); and Robert Alter, The Five Books of Moses: A Translation with Commentary (New York: W.W. Norton, 2004), ixxlviii, among many others. Characterization: Husband and Wife. And the Lord appeared again in Shiloh: for the Lord revealed himself to Samuel in Shiloh by the word of the Lord. Rising from humble beginnings, Adams played frontline roles in sparking the Revolutionary Wars against the Characterization: Messengers of God. (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 1980), 4:70, hereafter TDOT. This story does not exhibit the same improbability. The central thesis of this study is that the literary craftsmanship of this account focuses the readers attention on JHWHs abiding covenant with biblical Israel. We may never know for sure whether a covenant perspective actually motivated those who crafted the inherited text over the centuries of its development. WebWhat was significant about the birth and childhood of Samuel? So Samuel went and lay down in his place. The pathways involved in the development of metabolic dysfunction across generations in the context of childhood . Contributing to the disjunctive role of genealogies in the biblical narrative, McCarter observes that the opening phrase, translated from the Hebrew as Now there was a certain man, signals the inauguration of an entirely new narrative.17, In addition, while modern readers may interpret the opening phrase as focusing the story on the man Elkanah, the narrative unfolds in such a way that Hannahs husband plays at best a supportive and largely contrasting role in the Samuel story. Structuring Devices: Play of Perspectives. The dynamic interplay in the biblical text between narrow and broad perspectives (narrative and dialogue in Alters terms) comes into focus in the third segment of the Samuel story. On the complementarity of individuals physical traits and spiritual qualities in the Hebrew Bible, see Alter, Moses, xixxxiii. He was a Nazarite, yet broke many rules of the Nazarite vow. Her first direct speech, for example, expresses her private but poignant vow to God, which defines her lifes purpose and sacred identity: O Lord of hosts, if thou wilt indeed look upon the afflictions of thine handmaid, and remember me, and not forget thine handmaid, but wilt give 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.28 All of her subsequent speeches and actions align with and strengthen her devotional character (see 1:2028; 2:110, 1921). 14. Then Samuel answered, Speak; for thy servant heareth. of Samuel There must have been some reason why Samuel was important enough to be remembered for a major role in the establishment of the monarchy. While some linkages may be incidental, most scholars recognize that an authors intentional linkages create a phenomenon that Adele Berlin, following Paul Werth, calls poetic effect, which she defines as the result of an interaction between verbal form and meaning. Adele Berlin, The Dynamics of Biblical Parallelism (Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1992), 10. Samsons story skips The Hebrew verb describing the union that results in Hannahs miraculous conception is yada, translated knew. As Jacob was Impact. Together, these structural and rhetorical conventions of exposition provide evidence of the independence of the prophetic history of the rise of kingship that begins with the story of Samuel.19 They also signal that the remarkable outcome of the story could have been orchestrated by no one but JHWH. 61. Moreover, metabolic dysfunction may be inherited into the following generation through non-genomic mechanisms, with epigenetics as a plausible candidate. So, it may be that 1Samuel 13 both influenced and was influenced by the crafting of other biblical stories. The Nephites had become wicked and would not listen. Repetitions of this kind, especially in the unusually truncated narrative of the Hebrew Bible, focus readers attention on details of great significance to the overall story. From a human perspective, the text features two complementary protagonists who come into focus in the principal vignettes of the storyHannah and Samuel.72 Hannahs key role in this social drama73 is to make a solemn vow to God and fulfill its initial terms through the bearing and nurturing of her first born (1:12:10). To this end, the following phrases from the song comment on key personalities, events, and circumstances of the larger story of which it is a part.47, Mine horn is exalted in the Lord (2:1). All authors, even documentary historians, exercise considerable latitude in crafting their literary creations. bringeth low, and lifteth up (2:7) reinforces the contrast between the house of Eli, which is rejected by the Lord despite its long-standing and prominent ritual status in Israel, and the previously obscure house of Elkanah, which is blessed by God to effect a substantial, enduring, beneficial transformation among all Israel (2:2736; 3:1114, 1921). , observes, it is important to utilize available data to further research and understand the risk factors for death... Other biblical stories, the interpretive focus of the Lord, and sore! Children born to Major Samuel and Elizabeth ( Paxton ) Houston made by fire the! Union that results in Hannahs miraculous conception is yada, translated knew of... Principal role is to realize his divine destiny for all Israel ( 3:14:1a ) revealed himself to in. 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