IMITATE THEIR FAITH-"Why Does Your Heart Feel Bad?"

The Bible reveals two big problems in Hannah's life. She had little control over the first and none at all over the second. In the first place, she was in a polygamous marriage, with a rival wife who hated her.  In the second place, she was barren; but in Hannah's time and culture, it was a source of intense grief. Each family counted on offspring to carry on the family name.  Barrenness seemed a bitter reproach and shame. 

Hannah might have borne her burden with fortitude had it not been for               Peninnah.  Polygamy was never an ideal situation. Rivalry, strife, and heartache were all too common.  The practice was far from the standard of monogamy that God had set in the garden of Eden." (Genesis 2:24) The Bible thus paints a grim portrait of polygamy, and the poignant depiction of life within Elkanah's household is one of the telling brushstrokes in that picture.

You see, Elkanah loved Hannah the most. Jewish tradition has it that he married Hannah first and that Peninnah came along some years later. At any rate, Peninnah, who was deeply jealous of Hannah, found many ways to make her rival suffer. Peninnah's great advantage over Hannah had to do with  fertility. Peninnah produced one offspring after another, and her self-importance grew with each new child. Instead of feeling sorry for Hannah and comforting her in her disappointment, Peninnah played on that  sensitive point. The Bible says that Peninnah vexed Hannah sorely "for the sake of making her feel disconcerted." (1 Samuel 1:6) Peninnah's actions were deliberate.  She wanted to hurt Hannahy, and she succeeded.  Peninnah's favorite opportunity, it seems, came at  the time of the annual pilgrimage to Shiloh. To each of Peninnah's many children-"all her sons and daughters" -Elkanah gave portions of the sacrifices offered to Jehovah.  Childless, though, Hannah recived  only her own portion. Peninnah then so lorded it over Hannah and reminded her of her barrenness that the poor woman gavein to weeping and even lost her appetite. Elkanah could not help but notice that his beloved Hannah was distressed and was not eating, so he attempted to comfort her.  "Hannah," he asked, "why do you weep, and why do you not eat, and why does your heart feel bad?  Am I not better to you than ten sons?" -1 Samuel 1:4-8. 

To his credit, Elkanah discerned that Hannah's distress had to do with her barrenness. And Hannah surely treasured his kind assurances of love.  But Elkanah did not mention Peninnah's malice, nor does the record suggest that Hannah told him of it. Perhaps she saw that exposing Peninnah would only make her own situation worse.  Would Elkanah really change things?  Might not Peninnah's spite for Hannah only deepen, and would not the children and servants of that spiteful woman follow suit?  Hannah would only more and more like an outcast in her own household. 

Whether Elkanah knew the full scope of Peninnah's petty meanness or not, Jehovah God saw it all. His Words reveals the whole picture, thus providing a solemn warning to any who indulge in seemingly minor jealous and hateful acts. On the other hand, the innocent and the peaceable, like Hannah, can find comfort in knowing that the God of justice sets all matters right in his own time and in his own way. (Deuteronomy 32:4) Perhaps Hannah knew as much, for it was to Jehovah that she turned  for help. 

Next time: IMITATE THEIR FAITH-"Self-Concerned No More"

From the Watchtower magazine, 2010