The Song of Hannah is a
poem
Poetry (derived from the Greek '' poiesis'', "making"), also called verse, is a form of literature that uses aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language − such as phonaesthetics, sound symbolism, and metre − to evoke meanings ...
interpreting the
prose
Prose is a form of written or spoken language that follows the natural flow of speech, uses a language's ordinary grammatical structures, or follows the conventions of formal academic writing. It differs from most traditional poetry, where the f ...
text of the
Books of Samuel
The Book of Samuel (, ''Sefer Shmuel'') is a book in the Hebrew Bible, found as two books (1–2 Samuel) in the Old Testament. The book is part of the narrative history of Ancient Israel called the Deuteronomistic history, a series of books ( J ...
. According to the surrounding narrative, the poem () was a prayer delivered by
Hannah
Hannah or Hanna may refer to:
People, biblical figures, and fictional characters
* Hannah (name), a female given name of Hebrew origin
* Hanna (Arabic name), a family and a male given name of Christian Arab origin
* Hanna (Irish surname), a famil ...
, to give thanks to
God
In monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Oxford Companion to Philosophy'', Oxford University Press, 1995. God is typically ...
for the birth of her son,
Samuel
Samuel ''Šəmūʾēl'', Tiberian: ''Šămūʾēl''; ar, شموئيل or صموئيل '; el, Σαμουήλ ''Samouḗl''; la, Samūēl is a figure who, in the narratives of the Hebrew Bible, plays a key role in the transition from the bi ...
. It is similar to
Psalm 113 and the
Magnificat
The Magnificat (Latin for " y soulmagnifies he Lord) is a canticle, also known as the Song of Mary, the Canticle of Mary and, in the Byzantine tradition, the Ode of the Theotokos (). It is traditionally incorporated into the liturgical service ...
.
Contents and themes
Hannah praises
Yahweh
Yahweh *''Yahwe'', was the national god of ancient Israel and Judah. The origins of his worship reach at least to the early Iron Age, and likely to the Late Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately fr ...
, reflects on the reversals he accomplishes, and looks forward to his king.
There is a movement in this song from the particular to the general. It opens with Hannah's own gratitude for a local reversal, and closes with God's defeat of his enemies – a cosmic reversal.
Through the theme of reversal, the Song of Hannah functions as an introduction to the whole book.
Keil and
Delitzsch
Delitzsch (; Slavic: ''delč'' or ''delcz'' for hill) is a town in Saxony in Germany, 20 km north of Leipzig and 30 km east of Halle (Saale). With 24,850 inhabitants at the end of 2015, it is the largest town in the district of Nordsach ...
argue that Hannah's experience of reversal was a pledge of how God "would also lift up and glorify his whole nation, which was at that time so deeply bowed down and oppressed by its foes."
The reference to a king in verse 10 has provoked considerable discussion. Biblical commentator
A. F. Kirkpatrick argues that this does not imply a late date for the song, since "the idea of a king was not altogether novel to the Israelite mind" and "amid the prevalent anarchy and growing disintegration of the nation, amid internal corruption and external attack, the desire for a king was probably taking definite shape in the popular mind."
Walter Brueggemann suggests that the Song of Hannah paves the way for a major theme of the
Book of Samuel
The Book of Samuel (, ''Sefer Shmuel'') is a book in the Hebrew Bible, found as two books (1–2 Samuel) in the Old Testament. The book is part of the narrative history of Ancient Israel called the Deuteronomistic history, a series of books (Josh ...
, the "power and willingness of Yahweh to intrude, intervene and invert."
Text
English
And Hannah prayed and said:
“My heart rejoices in the Lord;
my strength is exalted in the Lord.
I smile at my enemies,
because I rejoice in Your salvation.
“No one is holy like the Lord,
for there is none besides You,
nor is there any rock like our God.
“Talk no more so very proudly;
let no arrogance come from your mouth,
for the Lord is the God of knowledge;
and by Him actions are weighed.
“The bows of the mighty men are broken,
and those who stumbled are girded with strength.
Those who were full have hired themselves out for bread,
and the hungry have ceased to hunger.
Even the barren has borne seven,
and she who has many children has become feeble.
“The Lord kills and makes alive;
He brings down to the grave and brings up.
The Lord makes poor and makes rich;
He brings low and lifts up.
He raises the poor from the dust
and lifts the beggar from the ash heap,
to set them among princes
and make them inherit the throne of glory.
“For the pillars of the earth are the Lord’s,
and He has set the world upon them.
He will guard the feet of His saints,
but the wicked shall be silent in darkness.
“For by strength no man shall prevail.
The adversaries of the Lord shall be broken in pieces;
from heaven He will thunder against them.
The Lord will judge the ends of the earth.
“He will give strength to His king,
and exalt the strength of His anointed.”
(
New King James Version)
Identity of persons referred to in the song
The first 10 verses of 1 Samuel 2 record her song of praise to the Lord for answering her petition. The attribution of this song to Hannah distinguishes her among biblical personages. Her song is essentially a hymn of praise to God for good fortune, and includes many themes of Israel's national culture. Fertility and childbirth are thus included as equal in importance to other motifs and worthy of Israel's singers.
[Klein, Lillian. "Hannah: Bible", Jewish Women's Archive]
/ref>
Samuel
According to some contributors to the Classical Rabbinical literature
Rabbinic literature, in its broadest sense, is the entire spectrum of rabbinic writings throughout Jewish history. However, the term often refers specifically to literature from the Talmudic era, as opposed to medieval and modern rabbinic writ ...
, the first half of the poem was a prophecy, predicting Samuel's later role as a prophet, that her great grandson would be a musician in the Jerusalem Temple, that Sennacherib
Sennacherib (Neo-Assyrian cuneiform: or , meaning "Sin (mythology), Sîn has replaced the brothers") was the king of the Neo-Assyrian Empire from the death of his father Sargon II in 705BC to his own death in 681BC. The second king of the ...
would destroy the Kingdom of Israel
The Kingdom of Israel may refer to any of the historical kingdoms of ancient Israel, including:
Fully independent (c. 564 years)
* Kingdom of Israel (united monarchy) (1047–931 BCE), the legendary kingdom established by the Israelites and uniti ...
, that Nebuchadnezzar
Nebuchadnezzar II ( Babylonian cuneiform: ''Nabû-kudurri-uṣur'', meaning "Nabu, watch over my heir"; Biblical Hebrew: ''Nəḇūḵaḏneʾṣṣar''), also spelled Nebuchadrezzar II, was the second king of the Neo-Babylonian Empire, rulin ...
would fall from power, and that the Babylonian Captivity
The Babylonian captivity or Babylonian exile is the period in Jewish history during which a large number of Judeans from the ancient Kingdom of Judah were captives in Babylon, the capital city of the Neo-Babylonian Empire, following their def ...
would come to an end.
David
Although the "king" of verse 10 is left unspecified, the blessing to the king and to the anointed forms a clear parallel with , which finishes with Yahweh
Yahweh *''Yahwe'', was the national god of ancient Israel and Judah. The origins of his worship reach at least to the early Iron Age, and likely to the Late Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately fr ...
being a tower of salvation to his king, and showing mercy to his anointed ().
Use
Judaism
In Judaism
Judaism ( he, ''Yahăḏūṯ'') is an Abrahamic, monotheistic, and ethnic religion comprising the collective religious, cultural, and legal tradition and civilization of the Jewish people. It has its roots as an organized religion in the ...
the song of Hannah is regarded as the prime role model for how to pray
Prayer is an invocation or act that seeks to activate a rapport with an object of worship through deliberate communication. In the narrow sense, the term refers to an act of supplication or intercession directed towards a deity or a deifie ...
, and is read on the first day of Rosh Hashanah
Rosh HaShanah ( he, רֹאשׁ הַשָּׁנָה, , literally "head of the year") is the Jewish New Year. The biblical name for this holiday is Yom Teruah (, , lit. "day of shouting/blasting") It is the first of the Jewish High Holy Days (, , ...
as the haftarah
The ''haftara'' or (in Ashkenazic pronunciation) ''haftorah'' (alt. ''haftarah, haphtara'', he, הפטרה) "parting," "taking leave", (plural form: ''haftarot'' or ''haftoros'') is a series of selections from the books of ''Nevi'im'' ("Prop ...
.
Christianity
Magnificat
The poem has several features in common with the Magnificat
The Magnificat (Latin for " y soulmagnifies he Lord) is a canticle, also known as the Song of Mary, the Canticle of Mary and, in the Byzantine tradition, the Ode of the Theotokos (). It is traditionally incorporated into the liturgical service ...
, which was sung in early Christian circles and continues to be regularly sung or said in many Christian denominations. These common features include the themes, and the order in which they appear. A number of scholars believe that Luke used the song of Hannah for the basis of the Magnificat. Charles Anang and others see Hannah as a "type" of Mary. Both "handmaids" of God bore sons through divine intervention who were uniquely dedicated to God.
Church practice
The Song of Hannah is also known as the "Canticle of Anna", and is one of seven Old Testament canticle
A canticle (from the Latin ''canticulum'', a diminutive of ''canticum'', "song") is a hymn, psalm or other Christian song of praise with lyrics usually taken from biblical or holy texts. Canticles are used in Christian liturgy.
Catholic Church
...
s in the Roman Breviary
The Roman Breviary (Latin: ''Breviarium Romanum'') is a breviary of the Roman Rite in the Catholic Church. A liturgical book, it contains public or canonical prayers, hymns, the Psalms, readings, and notations for everyday use, especially by bis ...
. It is used for Lauds
Lauds is a canonical hour of the Divine office. In the Roman Rite Liturgy of the Hours it is one of the major hours, usually held after Matins, in the early morning hours.
Name
The name is derived from the three last psalms of the psalter (148, ...
on Wednesdays.Lauds
Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company. 1913.
In the
Revised Common Lectionary
The Revised Common Lectionary is a lectionary of readings or pericopes from the Bible for use in Christian worship, making provision for the liturgical year with its pattern of observances of festivals and seasons. It was preceded by the Common ...
, which provides the appointed Scripture readings used by most
mainline Protestant
The mainline Protestant churches (also called mainstream Protestant and sometimes oldline Protestant) are a group of Protestant denominations in the United States that contrast in history and practice with evangelical, fundamentalist, and chari ...
denominations, the song of Hannah is recited or sung as the response to the First Lesson () for
Proper 28 in Year B, for those churches following Track 1.
See also
*
1 Samuel 2
1 Samuel 2 is the second chapter of the Books of Samuel in the Hebrew Bible (or the "First Book of Samuel" in the Christian Bible). It recounts the Song of Hannah, the corruption of the priests descended from Eli, Samuel's ministry to God 'ev ...
*
Luke 1
Luke 1 is the first chapter of the Gospel of Luke in the New Testament of the Christian Bible. With 80 verses, it is one of the longest chapters in the New Testament. This chapter describes the birth of John the Baptist and the events leading up ...
*
Magnificat
The Magnificat (Latin for " y soulmagnifies he Lord) is a canticle, also known as the Song of Mary, the Canticle of Mary and, in the Byzantine tradition, the Ode of the Theotokos (). It is traditionally incorporated into the liturgical service ...
- Mary's Magnificat echoes the Song of Hannah
References
*{{JewishEncyclopedia, title=Prayer
Jewish prayer and ritual texts
Books of Samuel
Canticles
Women in the Hebrew Bible
Samuel