2:6 maketh alive. This is a striking statement of faith in the resurrection on the part of Hannah. At this time, no record shows a dead person being revived, nor had there been any explicit revelation given as yet concerning a future bodily resurrection. Yet Hannah, like Abraham and Job, believed that God could and would do this (note Genesis 22:5; Hebrews 11:17-19; Job 19:25-27).

2:8 pillars of the earth. The “pillars of the earth” is a unique term, used nowhere else in Scripture. The concept seems to be one of “firm summits,” subsurface geologic structures strong enough to maintain the general stability of the earth’s surface.

2:8 world. This is the first occurrence in the Bible of the word for “world” (Hebrew tebel), referring to the earth’s habitable lands, as created and controlled by God.

2:10 ends of the earth. This prayer of Hannah’s is a remarkable prophecy, looking forward to the final triumph of the Creator over all His adversaries. It is the first such prophecy in the Bible, revealing the future explosive return of the Lord from heaven to judge all nations and to enthrone His anointed king over the whole world. Hannah was surely praying under divine inspiration, and her prayer is similar in spirit to that of the virgin Mary over a thousand years later (Luke 1:46-55). The miraculous birth of Samuel thus becomes a type of the virgin birth of Christ.

2:10 his king. Hannah’s prayer refers to “His king” long before the people of Israel began requesting a king. The reference must be a prophetic forecast of the divine king that would some day rule all nations under God (e.g., Psalm 2:6-9).

2:10 his anointed. “His anointed” is actually “His Messiah.” This is the first explicit reference in Scripture to the coming Messiah (Hebrew equivalent of the Greek “Christ,” both meaning literally “the anointed one”). Hannah’s inspired prophecy anticipates in much detail the later Messianic prophecies (Psalm 2, Psalm 72, Psalm 110, Isaiah 11, etc.). Hannah’s son, the prophet Samuel, as the last of the judges (I Samuel 7:15), was also the one chosen by God to anoint King David, the most complete type of the ultimate anointed one.

2:15 sodden. That is, “boiled.”

2:16 give it me now. The priests at the tabernacle were entitled to receive the breast and right thigh of the animal being sacrificed (Leviticus 7:34), but only after the fat had been burned on the altar (Leviticus 3:3, 5). Eli’s sons ignored both requirements.

2:25 sin against the LORD. Eli here enunciated a most important principle, applicable in every age. Sinning against God and His Word are more dangerous than sins against other people.

2:26 with men. Note the parallel here with the testimony concerning the child Jesus: “And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man” (Luke 2:52).

2:30 God of Israel saith. See Exodus 29:9; Numbers 25:13.

2:30 lightly esteemed. This judgment (I Samuel 2:30-33) indicates that the priestly line descended from Eli would eventually be terminated. This prophecy was finally carried out when Solomon banished Abiathar and replaced him with Zadok (I Kings 2:27). See also I Samuel 3:12.

2:35 faithful priest. Although the priesthood had been promised to Aaron’s descendants in perpetuity (Exodus 29:9), this promise was conditioned on faithfulness, and Eli and his sons had forfeited this claim (I Samuel 2:30-31; 3:11-14). The promise of a faithful priest, with a sure house, is fulfilled only in Christ, “a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God” (Hebrews 2:17).