God's new start (2) Elkanah's devotion

There was a certain man from Ramathaim, a Zuphite from the hill country of Ephraim, whose name was Elkanah son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the son of Zuph, an Ephraimite. He had two wives; one was called Hannah and the other Peninnah. Peninnah had children, but Hannah had none.

Year after year this man went up from his town to worship and sacrifice to the Lord Almighty at Shiloh, where Hophni and Phinehas, the two sons of Eli, were priests of the Lord. 1 Samuel 1:1-3

Elkanah may not have been the kind of person you would particularly notice. In the story of God’s new start for Israel which came about through the birth of Samuel he occupies a fairly minor place – the husband of Hannah, the woman whose faith and determination set everything going, and whose personality dominates the story.

But, as is often the case with minor Bible characters, he has his place and his importance, and once you focus on him for a few minutes there’s a lot you can learn – and a lot you can admire. I personally find myself warming to this obscure man. Skimming through 1 Samuel 1 there are various things worth noticing…

First, he is a devout worshipper: “Year after year he went up from his town to worship and sacrifice to the Lord Almighty at Shiloh…” (verse 3) - rather like Joseph and Mary and their family going up to Jerusalem. Elkanah was a man who took his faith seriously, so straight away he reminds us of the need for spiritual discipline.

Second, he treats his family well – and especially the grieving Hannah, his first wife, who had failed to produce a child. He made sure everyone was well fed during the ceremonial feasting, but “to Hannah he gave a double portion because he loved her, and the Lord had closed her womb” (verse 5). When Peninnah, the second wife, behaves spitefully toward her, he does his best to comfort her: “Her husband Elkanah would say to her, ‘Hannah, why are you weeping? Why don’t you eat? Why are you down-hearted? Don’t I mean more to you than ten sons?’” (verse 8).

A bit clumsy? Perhaps (typical man!). But I don’t think we need doubt that he meant well and that his love for Hannah was genuine.

Third, when the miracle happens and Hannah becomes pregnant, Elkanah supports her as best he can, falling in with her wishes, and even going along with her determination to dedicate Samuel as a servant of the Lord at Shiloh: “‘Do what seems best to you’” he tells her (verses 21-24). I wonder how many husbands would have been as sensitive and kind? All that matters to him is that God’s plan should work out – and that the wife he loved should at last be happy.

You see what I mean about warming to Elkanah?

Of course, a question might be asked: If Elkanah was basically a good, honest, solid man, a true Israelite, how come he has two wives?

A good question. The answer is simple: by this time in Israel’s history, bigamy and even polygamy were accepted practices (think, above all, of the great kings David and Solomon – the latter renowned for his massive harem). This, of course, was never God’s intention: Adam and Eve in Eden was the divine blue-print. But just as we read about the first murder as early as Genesis 4, so also we read about the first bigamist immediately afterwards (Lamech in 4:19).

It may come as a surprise to us that monogamy – marriage as strictly one-man-one-woman – is never commanded in the law books of the Old Testament. (Indeed, in Deuteronomy 21:15-18 the idea of a man having two wives seems not to raise an eyebrow.)

In short, Elkanah and Hannah lived in a society where, rightly or wrongly, polygamy was quite normal practice. I wonder if they even knew the Adam and Eve story? Not till we get to Jesus and the apostles (eg, Matthew 19:3-12) do we find a reinforcing of the ideal of the Garden of Eden.

Sadly, even though we today have all the scriptures of the Bible, the fact is that even within the church there may be woeful ignorance of things which a previous generation took for granted. This may not excuse disobedience, but perhaps it at least makes it understandable.

So… I for one will persist in my liking for Elkanah! And simply say, thank God that any judging that needs to be done is done by him, not by us.

But hang on a minute! Isn’t there someone I have overlooked in outlining this very human story?

Yes! What about Peninnah? Surely she too is worthy of a mention?

You could say that Peninnah is just a name – a woman with a catty tongue (she “kept provoking Hannah in order to irritate her” (verse 6)). But isn’t she too a person, a human being? What must it have been like to be wife number two? Possibly that position represented a step-up in a world where women had very few opportunities, giving a certain status and security. Or was it in fact a humiliation? Could a deep-down sense of failure and inferiority explain the way she treated Hannah?

We don’t know. But what we can be sure of is that she was flesh and blood, a person with feelings. Like you and me, in fact.

In our world millions of women and girls are treated like slaves, sometimes forced into marriages they don’t want. So here’s my suggestion: when we focus for a moment on Peninnah, it can at least encourage us to think about all people today who live their lives under the thumb of bullies and who have no control over their own destinies.

Think about them. Yes - and perhaps even act to help them and bring them justice.

Thank you, Father, for the Elkanahs of our world – the men and women who seek to walk with you day by day, quietly getting on with doing your will, and doing what they see as right. Amen.