Hannah's Prayer Psalm

Well, take your Bibles tonight. 1 Samuel, where we're going to be tonight, of course, 1 Samuel chapter 2.

And so go ahead and find that. I'm going to read verses 1 through 10. Verses 1 through 10 is our text for tonight. A familiar part of Samuel. And yet I would dare say a part that many of us have not read very often.

We kind of like other portions of 1 Samuel, other stories in 1 Samuel and 2 Samuel. Some of the more thrilling stories, exciting stories, some of them even gory stories. We kind of like those.

You know, but Hannah's prayer is one that possibly we don't read as often, but it's rich. It's wonderful.

So we really should. So I'm going to go ahead and read it and then we'll just kind of walk our way through it. And Hannah prayed and said, my heart rejoices in the Lord.

My horn, my strength is exalted in the Lord. I smile at my enemies. You can just kind of read between the lines there.

Remembering what we studied last week. And then Anna and her ridiculing of Hannah because she was barren and so forth. And yet, really, Hannah is not talking so much about that.

This prayer is so forward looking. So 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. Think no more or talk no more so very proudly. Let no arrogance come from your mouth.

The Lord is the God of knowledge. By him actions are weighed. The bows of the mighty men are broken. Those who stumble are girded with strength.

Those who were full have hired themselves out for bread. They're hungry now. And the hungry have ceased to hunger. Even the barren has born seven.

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. He sets them among princes. And makes them inherit the throne of glory.

For the pillars of the earth are the Lord's. The very foundation. Earth, this life, everything. They are the Lord's. He has set the world upon them.

He who guard, 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 horn of his anointed. All right. So there you have it. Hannah's prayer psalm. Really what I want to call it.

Hannah's prayer psalm. Or prayer psalm. Same thing. And that's what this is. Now, before we look at, I think, some of the significant features of this prayer.

This prayer psalm. Then let's just make a few observations. Really already mentioned this. And it really doesn't really need to be mentioned. But this is a prayer.

All right. It is a prayer. It is Hannah's prayer. Verse 1 says, then Hannah prayed. And we know what preceded this, of course. Remember, she'd been praying.

Pretty much all the way through chapter 1. Praying that God would give her a son. And God did give her a son. And so now she, once again, is praying. So Hannah prayed.

So this is a prayer. Number two, this is a psalm. All right. So it is a prayer song. I don't know that she sang it. There's nothing there to suggest that.

But it is a psalm or song. And, of course, in the Old Testament, in those days, not all the psalms were sung. I think many of them were.

Some of them were written for congregational singing. Some of those in the book of Psalms. But this is a psalm. And, you know, if for no other reason we can tell this, by the way, the translators of the Bible have formatted it.

We can tell that it's in the form of a psalm. And it's the same format that you'll find, of course, used in the book of Psalms. But we can also tell that this is a psalm because of the various kind of devices.

They're called literary devices that are used here. We have parallelism. We have symbolism. We even have somewhat of a kind of cadence. Difficult for us to see it in the English because it was written originally in English, written in Hebrew.

But it's a classic example of Hebrew poetry. And so it is a psalm. It has a rhythm to it, even if we can't tell it or distinguish it.

All right. So this is a prayer psalm. A prayer psalm. And I think and many think that it was one that Hannah, well, actually, we don't have to think about it. We know this is true.

She wrote it down. How do we know she wrote it down? Because we have it in our Bible. I don't think somebody was there listening, recording it. I think she wrote it down beforehand.

She gave it a lot of thought. It's coming from her heart. But she recorded it. She wrote it down. And so that leads us to the third observation. And really, too, it doesn't need to be mentioned.

Though I'm not sure that we really always think of it, of these things in these terms. But this is Scripture. All right. Well, I know it's Scripture.

It's right there in the Bible. But, you know, even though you and I would agree that everything in this book, cover to cover, excluding the maps, and like I said this morning, excluding the chapter and verse divisions, other titles that might be like.

And if you have a reference Bible, excluding that, too. Study Bible. Well, the notes aren't part of the inspired text. I'm sorry to tell you. MacArthur is a pretty smart guy. But if you've got one of his study Bibles, his notes are not inspired.

Okay. Sometimes he's wrong. Woo. Boy, that's a serious accusation. But sometimes I'm wrong, too.

So equal treatment. But other than those things, this is all Scripture. And you would agree with me that it is all inspired by the Holy Spirit.

And so, therefore, it's without error. And it comes with complete authority. The authority of the one who spoke it. One whose word it is. And that's God himself, though he used men.

And here in this case, in 1 Samuel, a woman. We have other examples of that. To actually do the writing. But it is Scripture. And so it's just as much Scripture. This prayer song is just as much inspired Scripture as any other part of the Bible.

And so that kind of, I think, gives it its worth. And so everything that is said in the prayer is inspired of the Holy Spirit and carries a lot of weight.

Now, how did it come to be a part of God's Word? Well, I don't know. I don't have any idea about that. Someone has asked, does that mean that Hannah's words are beyond her own natural capacity to articulate?

That's quite a question. Well, the answer to that is, yes. The words of all the inspired writers of Scripture, authors of Scripture, those words are beyond their natural capacity to articulate themselves.

So it applies to Hannah. It applies to all of the other authors of Scripture. And so the Holy Spirit just simply enabled her to pray this psalm.

And led her to write it down as her prayer song. And then God, the Holy Spirit, put these words of praise in her heart.

She wrote them down. And the author of 1 Samuel, whoever he was, he was inspired by the Holy Spirit to include it in his book, the book of 1 Samuel.

And I've said all of that. And this is important. But this is Scripture. So it's not just somebody's prayer that we're reading and like someone might pick up a copy of your journal or maybe a prayer that you wrote out.

It's not just something like that. This is inspired Scripture that we have here. And so, therefore, we can make a fourth observation. And that is that Hannah's prayer, this is what we'll be seeing here tonight as we kind of walk our way through it.

Hannah's prayer goes beyond her own experience. That's the amazing part about this prayer. It goes beyond her personal experience, the experience that we've already read about and studied in chapter 1.

We know about her story. But it goes beyond that. And it focuses on the character of God. The God that she is worshiping.

The God she is giving praise to. It goes beyond her. And you've surely noticed, even as I read it a moment ago, that Hannah's prayer does not focus at all upon her sorrows.

There's not even a bare mention of it. The sorrows that she has experienced. And her suffering. And really, even her blessings.

The blessing of God giving her a son. Hannah's prayer focuses on God. On God. And really this, if you think about it, perfectly explainable.

Because of her sufferings. You know, the ridicule that she endured. Even from those within her own family.

Because of those sufferings. But also because of her blessings. She then is able to see God more clear. That is the supreme benefit of afflictions that God allows to come into our lives.

At least the benefit that we can partake in. Unless we rebel and we turn away from it. It is in those times of affliction.

And even times of blessing. Just really in general. As we experience God's hand. In our lives. That's when we can see him more clearly.

Not only that. She's able to see beyond. Her past and present. Her past sufferings and present blessings. She's able to see into the future.

That too is a part of this prayer. It goes beyond her. Really beyond her times. Goes out into the future. Some might say.

You know, to the coming of Israel's first king. There might be a mention of that there. Though really I think her mention of the king. There toward the end of the psalm.

Is a reference to the eventual coming. Of the king. The king of kings. And so it looks way beyond.

Her life. And the life of Israel. Looks way beyond. Even what is recorded in the Old Testament. And on. It takes us on into the New Testament.

How she knew all of that. Well, I don't know. But she wrote about it. And because God inspired her. To write in that way. And she had drawn so close to the Lord.

During this time in her life. That she could see him. So clearly. All right. So let's move to the text itself. And. And. You know. We kind of walk through this.

This prayer. This prayer song. I think it's good for us. To try to put ourselves. In her place. In her shoes. And.

You know. We. We understand. How she could be rejoiced. Rejoicing. That's how she begins the psalm. She's rejoicing. All right. But. But let's. Put. Put. Put ourselves in her place.

God. Has heard her prayers. And. God. Did for her. Perhaps. What. She. Really never thought. He would do. A lot of times.

God. We pray for things. And we don't really. Think God's going to do it. And. And I'm sure those thoughts. Crossed her mind. And God gave her a son. Answered prayers. Gave her a son. But. Put yourself.

In her shoes now. At this point. Rather. In her life. Samuel is now. Four years old. So she has had him. Four years. And now.

What? She must give him up. She must turn him over. To Eli the priest. Remember she made a vow. Right. It's the Nazarite vow. No razor.

Shall touch his head. That's what she said. But. You know. The implication is. Not only that. But he would not touch. Any dead thing. And nor drink. The fruit of the vine.

Or even touch it. This was part of the Nazarite vow. It was a. Complete and total. Dedication. Of. One's. Person.

One's life. To the Lord. Word. And this is. Now I think. The second example. In scripture. Where the mother. Did that for herself. Samson. Was another one. Of those.

All right. So she made that vow. And. It was serious. She was not just making. A deal with God. Okay. Have you ever made a deal with God? Or tried anyway.

I'll do such and such. Or I'll stop doing such and such. If you just answer this prayer. Or. You know. Whatever. So we make deals with God. This was no deal. She was not making a deal with God. She made a vow.

And she. Meant. That vow. And she. It made that vow. By the way. In the presence of Eli. The high priest. But even if that had not happened.

In those days. If you made a vow. You. Lived up to it. You were bound. To keep it. And so. Think about that. A mother. Her. Only son.

Son that she had prayed for. For so long. And then God. Gives her that son. And now. After four years. She has to give him up. Imagine how hard that would be.

To do. For a mother. Who had been barren. And then finally has a son. And then has to give it up. Essentially giving it up. For someone else to raise. All right. So you remember.

As we studied. Chapter one. Hannah had gone. From barrenness. To a. Total brokenness. Before the Lord. To blessedness.

That's what we studied. Last week. And all of this. Had made her. Acutely aware. Of the person. And greatness. Of almighty God.

In her life. That's what we need to get. From this. From this. Prayer song. Or prayer song. And so. In the psalm itself. We're going to discover. Four things.

That she learned. She had learned. Not learned. In the course of her psalm. What she had learned. That was the impetus. For her writing. The psalm. And praying. The psalm.

Four things. That she learned. First one. Really. Is the. Kind of the capstone. Of it all. In fact. Everything else. That she learned. Is connected. In one way.

To this. Very first. And supreme thing. That she learned. And that is. That she learned. To rejoice. In the providence. Of God. That's number one. That she learned.

To rejoice. In the providence. Of God. Now it sounds. Like an easy thing. To do. But remember.

The providence. Of God. Quite often. Entails. Things that. We don't really like. Things that are hard.

But she learned. To rejoice. In the providence. Of God. Without exception. Without limit. Without qualification. Look. Verse one. And Hannah prayed.

And said. My heart rejoices. In the Lord. My horn. Or strength. Or power. Horn. Another way.

Of saying power. Is exalted. So my strength. Is exalted. In the Lord. I smile. At my enemies. Because I rejoice.

In your salvation. Now. You can. Clearly see. How that. Connects. With. The things. That Hannah. Had experienced.

We're not given. Really a sense. Of. How long. She had. And. Had to endure. The barrenness. Of her life. And. Therefore.

How long. She had to. Put up. With the ridicule. And. You know. The little jabs. And. Even the accusations. That she was barren. Because she. You know.

That God was judging her. And all. All of those things. And. The sadness. Of that. And. The. Just the grief. That she received. From it. She was so burdened.

You know. We don't have a sense. Of just how long. She had to endure. That. But now. God has brought her. Through that. And given her a blessing. A blessing.

Now that she's going to have to. Really effectively. Give up. She's rejoicing. And so. She can laugh. At her enemies. Because.

She rejoices. In. Her salvation. Her salvation. Her. Deliverance. In this sense. Not salvation. In the sense. Of. Of being saved.

Of becoming a child of God. But her salvation. In the sense. In the sense. She could rejoice. Now. Again. We might expect. That Hannah. Hannah. Would have feelings. Of regret. And maybe she did.

I. No indication. Of it. In scripture. You know. Like. What possessed me. To make such a vow. Why. Why did I do that.

But no. We don't have that. Remember. This. Prayer. Comes out. Of. This time. When God. Delivered her. Or rather. Answered her prayer.

Gave her a son. And. A time. When she's. Must fulfill her vow. But there's no regret. About. Any of that. Only rejoicing.

Only rejoicing. Now. Here's the point. The only way. That you can feel. The way Hannah. Was feeling. In. In. In. In. The midst. Of these kind of things. Is to see yourself.

Totally. Completely. Under. The providence. Of God. Or. To put it another way. The control. The sovereign. Mastery. And control.

Of God. The only way. That you can rejoice. In the darker side. Of what is happening. In your life. And it happens. To all of us. The only way. That you can rejoice.

In that. Rather than. Be discouraged. And depressed. Even angry. The only way. That you can rejoice. In the darker side. Of life.

Is to understand. That you're living. Under the. The umbrella. Of God's providence. To see. That you are. Your life. Is under. The sovereign. Control of God.

Every part of it. All the details. Of it. For Hannah. That would be. Her family life. Her marriage. Her barrenness. Her conflict. With the other woman. In the family. Her societal woes.

Because of the. Jabs. And the criticisms. And the. Looking down. The nose. At. At her. And now. Her child. Her. Her little Samuel.

And her vow. And her. Giving him up. All of it. She sees. Is under the umbrella. Of God's. Sovereign providence. So she can rejoice. Even.

In the darker side. It's a lesson. That's taught. Throughout scripture. It's one. That we have. A problem getting. Actually. And especially. When we're. Kind of in the midst.

Of some of those. Darker times. You know. I thought about Paul. The apostle Paul. Is a good example. Of this. In a number of places. But especially. In Philippians chapter one. And just to relate.

The story. You know. Paul's in prison. Writing this letter. And. And for all he knows. Now he is going to be. Delivered out of this prison. He's not going to die there. But he didn't know it at the time.

So for all he knows. He's going to die at any moment. Death's just around the corner. And I think that would be enough. For most of us. To have. An all out pity party. For ourselves.

That'd be a dark time. You're in prison. And for all you know. You're going to die. You're going to be executed. And so in the midst of that. He writes. These words.

In Philippians one. Twelve. He says. But I know. I said. But I want you to know. He says. Brethren. That the things which happen to me. Have actually turned out. For the furtherance of the gospel.

See. This is coming from a man. Who understands. That his life. All of it. Every part of it. Even the darker side of it. Tough times. The hard times. The affliction.

That all of it. Is under the umbrella. Of God's providence. So he says. I know. That what has happened to me. Has actually turned out. For the furtherance of the gospel. It's part of God's plan. Part of God's providence.

So that it has become evident. To the whole palace guard. And to all the rest. That my chains. Are in Christ. I'm not really. In prison here.

You know. Under the authority. Of the Romans. I'm in prison. To Christ. And they know that. And most of the brethren. In the Lord. Having become confident. By my chains. Are much more bold.

To speak the word. Without fear. That's how Paul. That was his take. On his current circumstances. In prison. And we could just insert.

Any. Any kind of circumstance. That we might face. Even hard things. In fact. Paul goes on. To mention some. Who. You know. Didn't like Paul. And some.

Who were taking advantage. Of the fact. That he was in prison. And some. Were even criticizing him. And saying. Well he deserved. To be there. He's. Not right with God. They had all kinds. Of accusations.

And. And yet. They were. Preaching the gospel. And so. Paul said. Even so. Praise the Lord. They're preaching the gospel. Even if it's at my expense. That's. That is.

A. A. The right view. Of. Of the things. That happen. In life. That. We could actually. Rejoice. In. Providence.

Of God. And so. Paul rejoiced. The providence of God. Over his life. And Hannah. Too. Hannah's situation. Had been so dark. And now. She must honor.

Her oath. Give up her son. But she has learned. That despite the darkness. Despite the trials. Despite the difficulties. And problems. There is this. Overarching.

Plan. Purpose. Of almighty God. And she rejoices. So Hannah. Rejoices. In the providence of God. Now. Hannah is not rejoicing.

Because. Of. The trial. She's not just saying. You know. I just. I just love this trial. Love this. I just rejoice. In the trial.

And she's not. She's no masochist. She is rejoicing. Because her eyes. Have now been open. To the workings. Of God's providence. In her life. She's able to see that.

Now. Better than she's ever seen it before. And many of us. Could. Give. Give a testimony. To. That as well. Sometimes it takes. A little time. Get on down the road.

Be able to see the bigger picture. We begin. To see. The. The providence. Of God. Kind of. Kind of. Coming into view. Coming into focus.

For us. I think most of the time. We won't see it. Until we get to glory. So we just. Should. Assume it. Even if we can't see it. And. There was a whole lot. That Hannah. Could not see.

She rejoiced. In the providence. Of God. Second. Hannah learned. Not only to rejoice. In the providence. Of God. She. Remembered.

The person. Of God. And really. Seeing. The providence. Of God. And then seeing. The person. Of God. Really. Really. Those two things.

Go hand in hand. In fact. You can't. Learn. To trust. The providence. Of God. Until. You understand. Fully.

The character. Of God. The very. Person. Of God. Look at what Hannah says. In her prayer. Verse two. No one. Is holy. Like the Lord. For there is none.

Besides you. Nor is there. Any rock. Like our God. And then she goes on. From there. Read some of it. Here in a minute. As you kind of. Look at those. Actually.

What you have here. Is kind of a. Kind of a. Mini. Systematic. Theology. Of the doctrine. Of God. She's naming. Some. Some very. Key. Elements.

Of the nature. And character. Of God. First place. He's holy. Holy. He says. He's holy. No one. Is holy. Like the Lord. That means. He is completely.

Absolutely. Utterly. Separated. From. Anything. That is. Impure. Imperfect. Separated. Completely. From sin. Isaiah.

Remember. In Isaiah. Chapter six. He said. That God. Is. Holy. Holy. Holy. Thrice. Holy. That is. So. Separated.

From us. That to come. Near. To his presence. Reveals. To us. Our absolute. Total. Sinfulness. And. You just ask.

Isaiah. About that. What did Isaiah. Do. Say. He said. What was me. I'm. Ruined. I'm. Destroyed. I'm a man. Of unclean lips.

You know. You think about that. For a moment. Who was Isaiah. He was a prophet. What. What. What. What. What. Came off his lips. The word of God. And.

In reality. You know. As a prophet. He had the cleanest lips. Of anyone else. In Israel. And yes. When he came. Into the presence. Of God. Himself. The thrice holy God. His lips.

Were unclean. What. Seemed clean. One moment. The next moment. Next to God's. Perfection. And holiness. Was. Unquiet.

He said. Woe is me. So God. Is holy. That's what. And. Remembered. About the person. God. And. That God. Is unique. He's one of a kind. There is none.

Besides. That is. There is no other God. Not that he's just. The best. Of all the other gods. Or the king. Of all gods. Supreme. Of all gods.

He is the only God. And so. There is. No other God. All others are. Fake. All others are. Man's.

Creation. Man's. Imagination. They're not gods. And we speak. Gods. In the little g. Gods. But. Really. That's just a designation.

For. An idol. Something that was created. By the hands of God. Of man. But God. Is unique. There's none. Beside you. And so. What's the point.

Of looking for a different God. And a lot of people. Are just. Kind of taste testing. Gods. You know. Well. Is this one going to work. Or that one of them. And in some countries. They have so many gods. They can't even keep them straight.

You know. And every day. They make new ones. If they can't remember the old one. They make up another one. You know. It's just. It's ridiculous. On the face of it. All right. So God is unique. God is holy. She said God is a firm foundation.

That's a quality. The nature. The nature of God. Nor is there any rock like our Lord. That speaks of something solid.

Firm. Unchanging. It doesn't shift. It's reliable. God is completely reliable. You can trust him.

He's the firm foundation. And then Hannah goes on. To the next verse. Verse 3. Take no more. 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. And so God knows everything. It's a basic statement about it.

Do you think that. In relation to. The context here. Do you think God. Does not know. About your trials. You know. You didn't know about them. Of course he does.

Does he know. About your temptation. Struggles. Of course he does. Do you think that. Somehow you know. These things better. Than he knows. You understand.

What I'm saying. Now we might not. Ever bring ourselves. To. This conclusion. That God just doesn't know. About my trial. But we might think. He doesn't know. Them like.

We know them. And so God. Would you just see this. Through my eyes. And see just how bad this is. Well God knows. What you don't know. He knows everything. So don't speak so proudly.

I mean. That's actually proud speech. To have this thought. That God doesn't know. Just how hard it is. And how much I'm suffering. And he doesn't know.

It the way I know it. That's proud speech. He said. Don't be. Don't. Don't. Don't. Don't. Don't do any of this. Proud speaking. Don't let any arrogance. He says. Come from your mouth. For the Lord is the Lord of knowledge.

He's the God of knowledge. Complete knowledge. Perfect knowledge. And by him. Actions are weighed. That is. He can judge. All of our actions. All of our thoughts. All of our words.

He can judge and correct me. Because he knows everything. And it's just a kind of a systematic theology of God. He knows everything. And we could go on from there. God is the great giver of all that is good.

That's another thing that she said. So we must trust him. And not trust in our own abilities. Trusting in ourselves. Verse 4.

The bows of the mighty men are broken. I mean. The idea is the warrior that is trusting in his victory. Based upon his weaponry. And his own strength.

But that's broken. He said. And those who stumble. Are girded with strength. So. Those who think that they are strong. They're broken. But those who know they are weak.

They are supported. They're girded. With strength. Verse 5. Those who are full. Have hired themselves out for bread. So one minute they are full.

And they're proud of that. And glorying in their ability to be full all the time. Trusting in their own fullness and wealth. Then they will be hungry.

They hire themselves out for bread. The hungry have ceased to hunger. Even the barren has born seven children. And she who has many children has become feeble.

That is no longer able to bear children. So God is the giver of all. All that is good. He's the giver of food. He's the giver of children. It's just. She's just simply. Remembering the.

The person. The character of God. And really here's the lesson. In all of this. The way to contentment. Peace.

Is not by looking to ourselves. And what we have. What we can do. It is. It is not by. Finding some. Inner strength.

Within ourselves. There's so many who are teaching that. Look to yourself. Look inside. And find that inner strength. It doesn't come that way. The way to spiritual contentment.

And peace. Is to reflect upon. The being. And the character. And the attributes. Of God. All right.

So. So. All of this is tied together. Hannah's. Rejoiced. Hannah rejoiced. In the providence of God. Because. Hannah. Remembered the person of God. And therefore.

She relied upon the purposes. Of God. That's number three. To rely on the purposes. Of God. So. All of this. Comes out. In her prayer. Or prayer psalm.

Or prayer song. So. Look at verse eight. Verse six. The Lord kills. And makes alive. Yikes. I don't really like to read that.

He brings down to the grave. This is a parallelism. He brings up. So. He. Kills. He brings. He. He. He. Makes alive. He. Puts in the grave.

He. Brings up. Alive. The Lord. Makes. Poor. And makes. Rich. He brings. Low. And lifts up. You like.

Like all that. He raises. The poor. From the dust. And lifts. The beggar. From the ash heap. To set them. Among princes. And makes them. Inherit. The throne of glory.

For the pillars. Of the earth. Are the Lord's. He has set the world. Upon them. Verse nine. For my strength. No man shall. Prevail. And I.

Really. As you read through those. Just. Just. Admit it. It's. The darker things. That kind of stand out. Lord.

Kills. The Lord. Brings down to the grave. Lord. Makes. Poor. Lord. Brings. Low. That kind of stands out.

In. In the passage. Desire. No. You typically hear. All sorts of. Well. Biblical things.

Said at Christian funerals. You've been to a Christian funeral. Well. I know you have. Many of you. All of you. Been to many of them. And.

If you listen real close. You hear. Some things. That just aren't. Right. And. There's. Things that are said. That are. Basically. Unscriptural.

That. Maybe. We missed. Maybe. Maybe. We. We. We did not recognize. Or identify.

But there. There's. Unscriptural things. Like. You know. God. Is not in this tragedy. God is not in this. Right. So we. So we say things like.

That. That. That would separate God. Completely. Absolutely. So he's just absolutely. Innocent bystander. Is not involved in. This tragedy. Not even part of it.

Almost to the suggestion. He doesn't even know about it. It's not his wishes. Not what he wanted. You know. They don't put him in those kind of words. But if you listen to it. Sometimes that's what's said. You know. God didn't have any part in this.

Cancer. That led to death. Or. This murder. Been to a funeral. Where somebody was murdered. Or killed violently.

God wasn't part of that. Or in this car accident. Or this heart attack. Or whatever it was. And so forth. God's not part of anything. You just need to separate God.

From any of that. What does this passage say? It says the Lord gives. Makes a lot. He does both those things. He's involved in. All of those things. Does that mean that.

God murders people? No. God is sovereign. And God allows things. And does things. For a purpose. God's involved. In every single thing. Now how he's involved.

That is sometimes. The mystery. But to say that God. Had nothing whatsoever to do. That somehow God's sovereignty. Was not.

In any way connected. To whatever this tragedy was. Is to contradict scripture. And what did Job say? I think Job's a pretty good expert. On this particular subject.

And he said. The Lord gives. And the Lord takes away. Blessed be the name of the Lord. God. And the Lord. Now. Now. We'll spend a lifetime. Understanding. In fact.

It takes most of our life. Even to accept. That God is sovereign. We trust his providence. God has a plan. God has a purpose.

One that we don't see. One that we don't understand. One that maybe we don't even like. But Hannah. Is saying. That all of it. All that happened to me. Part of God's. Purpose.

And I rely upon his. Purpose. And I trust him. Rely. On him. And he kind of closes that section. She closes that section.

By talking about. Pillars of the earth. It really is. The idea here. Is that. That life on this earth. Is the Lord's. All of it. Everyone's life.

All life. It belongs to him. He has set. It on his pillars. He. He's the foundation. He. He set it all in motion. Basically. What he said.

All right. But Hannah learned. Something else. One last thing. We'll be finished. She learned to recognize. The. Plan of God. The. Greater plan. Of God.

And this is really quite interesting. Hannah's prayer. Here. Her prayer psalm. Opens with her saying. I rejoice in your salvation. And.

That certainly is attached to. Her personal. Deliverance. From her suffering. And. Barrenness. But. As we continue. With the psalm.

We come to understand. That really. This is more forward looking. Than anything. So she starts with. Your salvation. And then. She ends. With. The anointing of the king. Let me just read.

Verse 10. Again. In chapter 2. 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. Does that sound like something that. She thought might happen. In her lifetime. Does that sound like anything.

That. She. Did experience. In her lifetime. Or. Anything that has been experienced. On this planet. Yet. This is forward. Israel. He will give strength.

To his king. Well. Israel didn't even have a king. Then. And. Exalt the horn. Or the. Power.

Or authority. Of his. Anointing. His anointing. Now. What is all this about? Well. Like I said.

There was no king in Israel. Then. Was she. Looking forward. To. The potentiality. That. You know. One day.

There would be a king. In Israel. Indeed there was. Pretty shortly. After. Hannah. The story about Hannah. Saul. Will be anointed king.

Which is. Long before that. Really. But. There was an expectation. Of it. And. Hope for it. All the people of Israel. Many of them. They were wanting a king.

Like every other nation. I don't think so. I think she's looking. Forward. Able to see. Forward to. The Messiah. The king.

But she's not. Referring to an earthly king. She spoke of the anointed. The anointed one. And. So. Perhaps. You've already noticed. The similarity.

Between. Hannah's. Prayer. And. A young lady. By the name of. Mary. Mother. Of Jesus. And her.

Prayer psalm. Call it. The Magnificat. In Luke chapter one. There are a lot of similarities. Between. Rather interesting. And the reason is.

Because same Holy Spirit. Inspired. Both of these ladies. But they both recognize. The plan of God. For Israel. And all the nations. The greater plan of God. That their experiences.

Their. Their. Personal experiences. Were simply a picture of. Or a mirror of. This greater plan of God. Bringing up his son. So Hannah.

Recognize this. That the strategy of God. In the personal. Personal affairs. Of her life. That these things. Pointed to something. Far greater. That was at work.

And it was salvation. Salvation. And so Hannah's. Experience of pain. Followed by the Lord's. Deliverance. Was just simply. Part.

Of a bigger picture. When God. Would ultimately. Work. His plan. Through. A king. The anointed one. A plan. Where God. Would. Would.

Send his own son. His own son. Would be born. His anointed one. His king. Now don't ask me. How she knew. I can only.

Default. To. The answer. The Holy Spirit. Don't even ask me. If she. Understood. Fully. All of these things.

I. I. I. I don't know. That it's necessary. That she understood. It. Fully. But she. Did know. She did. See. God. Allowed her to. Look into the future.

And see. His coming king. Who would bring salvation. So Hannah rejoiced. In the providence of God. She remembered. The person of God. She relied upon. The purposes of God.

Because she recognized. The greater plan. God. The glorious plan. Of salvation. So it's a tremendous. Prayer song. Prayer song. Thank you.