The book of XNUMX Samuel opens with the story of Hannah who had difficulty conceiving and after her prayers and pleas to God, it was granted to her and she indeed gave birth to a son and named him Shmuel.
The book of 21 Samuel opens with the story of Hannah who had difficulty conceiving and after her prayers and pleas to God, it was granted to her and she indeed gave birth to a son and named him Samuel. Following the birth of Samuel she gave birth to three sons and two daughters (11 Samuel 11:XNUMX). Before the birth of Samuel Hannah She made a vow that if she does give birth to a son, she will give him to Jehovah "all the days of his life, and a teacher shall not come upon his head" (XNUMX Samuel XNUMX:XNUMX). The sacrifice she is willing to give is very great. This is not a blood sacrifice, but a willingness to give up the son and instead of being An ordinary child he will serve in the sanctuary. And that is what she does. She transferred Shmuel to the protection of Ali the priest "and the boy serves Jehovah in the presence of Ali the priest" (Samuel XNUMX:XNUMX). Hannah had to tell her husband about this vow, otherwise how will she explain to him that the child will no longer grow up at home, but in the home of a stranger even if it is the husband of the priest. For this reason it was impossible to hide from Shmuel as they grew up that his birth father was someone else and not the priest in whose house he grew up.
Shmuel spent his childhood outside of the normal framework. He did not grow up in his parents' house. It is hard to say that Elkanah his father felt comfortable with that. It was not he who raised his son but someone else. Shmuel himself, from the time he moved to Beit Ali, was cut off from his natural upbringing and was completely immersed in the sacred atmosphere, inside the home of the spiritual leader of the people . His behavior was much more mature than his age in terms of the binding status. From the moment his brothers and sisters were born, did he continue to associate with them, some of the childhood experiences related to acts of revenge between brothers and sisters? The only connection he had with his parents' house was with his mother, as hinted at in chapter 18:19-XNUMX: "And Shmuel ministered before Jehovah, a young man girded with a cloth vest." And his mother will make him a short coat, and from day to day she raised for him a woman to sacrifice the sacrifice of the days." With the clothes she sewed for him, she also mentally prepared him for a high position in the future. Did she act wisely? As a child he felt obligated to this. He probably asked himself more than once if he really lived up to the expectations that were expected of him.
Who actually played the role of the father? It was Ali the priest. Since his sons were exalted in their faith in God (12 Samuel XNUMX:XNUMX), Ali adopted Samuel and saw him as his successor, in whom he could place all his love. It is most likely that even with this his biological father did not feel at ease. Samuel had to slowly detach himself from his father The biological and lean on Ali and Ali was no longer a young man. It is likely that Shmuel, despite the status to which he was drawn and the love that his mother and Ali gave him placed a very heavy burden on him. He had to deal with the question over time who would he love more, his birth father or Ali?
How did Shmuel deal with this problematic childhood? A hint of this is found in chapter 26 20: "And the boy Shmuel grew and grew and was good both with Jehovah and with people." It seems that Shmuel was a mentally healthy and intelligent boy. He knew how to deal with his unusual puberty problems. Although he grew up among the priestly elite, he did not feel himself elevated from the people. At the same time as the holy work which he performed faithfully, his attitude towards the people around him was warm and not condescending. His relationship with you was at eye level. In chapter XNUMX XNUMX it is said: "And all Israel from Dan to Beersheba knew that Samuel was faithful to the prophet Jehovah." Shmuel also had the beneficial qualities of a leader and his name went before him in all of Israel as a loyal and balanced person, which indicates that apart from his intelligence and integrity he also possessed the qualities of a leader.
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