(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)
1 Samuel 1:9–18, “So Hannah rose up after they had eaten in Shiloh, and after they had drunk. Now Eli the priest sat upon a seat by a post of the temple of the LORD. And she was in bitterness of soul, and prayed unto the LORD, and wept sore. And she vowed a vow, and said, O LORD of hosts, if thou wilt indeed look on the affliction of thine handmaid, and remember me, and not forget thine handmaid, but wilt give unto thine handmaid a man child, then I will give him unto the LORD all the days of his life, and there shall no razor come upon his head. And it came to pass, as she continued praying before the LORD, that Eli marked her mouth. Now Hannah, she spake in her heart; only her lips moved, but her voice was not heard: therefore Eli thought she had been drunken. And Eli said unto her, How long wilt thou be drunken? put away thy wine from thee. And Hannah answered and said, No, my lord, I am a woman of a sorrowful spirit: I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but have poured out my soul before the LORD. Count not thine handmaid for a daughter of Belial: for out of the abundance of my complaint and grief have I spoken hitherto. Then Eli answered and said, Go in peace: and the God of Israel grant thee thy petition that thou hast asked of him. And she said, Let thine handmaid find grace in thy sight. So the woman went her way, and did eat, and her countenance was no more sad.”
Hannah was a deeply troubled woman so she took the pathway that everyone who believes in the Lord God should take. She went to pray and since she was close to the Tabernacle she prayed there. Eli, the aged priest had seen a deterioration in the spiritual atmosphere of the nation. He presided over the time when there was no king in Israel and every man did what was right in his own eyes. The vast majority of the people in the nation ignored the Lord and His Law in their everyday lives. We also discover that drunkenness and sexual abuse were rife in the Tabernacle precinct, later in this history. Hannah was deeply grieved and was intensely praying to the Lord. She was moving her lips but wasn’t making any sound. Eli assumed she was drunk and castigated her for this folly. She told that she wasn’t drunk but was suffering grief and was pouring her heart out to the Lord. Eli realised his mistake and blessed and encouraged her by calling on the Lord to answer her request.
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