Chapter 4: The Priest Who Misjudged Her

Eli kept watching her. As she went on praying before the Lord, he saw her mouth move, but no sound came from her lips. Hannah was speaking only in her heart, pouring out her grief in silence.

That silence was the kind of prayer Eli had never seen. In those days, worshipers prayed aloud, and at the festivals wine flowed freely. A woman near the doorpost of the Lord's house with her lips moving and no voice coming out, her face wet with tears, looked to him like a woman who had drunk too much. He drew the wrong conclusion, and he drew it out loud.

ELI“How long will you go on being drunk? Put your wine away from you.”— 1 Samuel 1:14

Hannah did not flinch. She lifted her face and answered the priest with a dignity no drunken woman could have summoned.

HANNAH“No, my lord, I am a woman troubled in spirit. I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but I have been pouring out my soul before the Lord. Do not regard your servant as a worthless woman, for all along I have been speaking out of my great anxiety and vexation.”— 1 Samuel 1:15-16

Something in her voice stopped Eli completely. He did not apologize. He blessed her.

ELI“Go in peace, and the God of Israel grant your petition that you have made to Him.”— 1 Samuel 1:17

HANNAH“Let your servant find favor in your eyes.”— 1 Samuel 1:18

She walked back to the tent. She ate. And her face was no longer sad.