Parents of the Bible Podcast

From Adam & Eve to Mary & Joseph
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Parents of the Bible: From Adam & Eve to Mary & Joseph is a series of prayer journals focused on biblical characters as parents. If you are a parent looking for encouragement, this series might be for you. parentsofthebible.substack.com

  1. 5d ago

    David - Part 1 of 5

    2 Samuel 3:2-5 (NLT) 2 These are the sons who were born to David in Hebron: The oldest was Amnon, whose mother was Ahinoam from Jezreel.3 The second was Daniel, whose mother was Abigail, the widow of Nabal from Carmel.The third was Absalom, whose mother was Maacah, the daughter of Talmai, king of Geshur.4 The fourth was Adonijah, whose mother was Haggith.The fifth was Shephatiah, whose mother was Abital.5 The sixth was Ithream, whose mother was Eglah, David’s wife. 2 Samuel 5:13-16 (NLT) 13 After moving from Hebron to Jerusalem, David married more concubines and wives, and they had more sons and daughters. 14 These are the names of David’s sons who were born in Jerusalem: Shammua, Shobab, Nathan, Solomon, 15 Ibhar, Elishua, Nepheg, Japhia, 16 Elishama, Eliada, and Eliphelet. Dear God, For a long time now, David has been one of my “great man, bad father” examples. One of the interesting things to note is that, of the first six boys born to him, they all had different mothers. Another interesting thing: Right before Solomon, it lists Nathan. Is this Bathsheba’s first child that died? Did they name him after the prophet that confronted David with his sin? If so, that’s interesting. You know I started wondering about whether David would have made an even better judge for Israel than a king. What if the Israelites had not asked for a king and they had just transitioned from Samuel to David? Was it the power of being king that corrupted his heart and distracted him? (Not that Samuel was that great of a father.) We will see some fascinating stories coming up about David’s parenting. Amnon will do something reprehensible. What will David do? Absalom will respond to Amnon’s action. What will David do? Even when Bathsheba’s baby dies, David’s response is peculiar. He didn’t seem to care about this child the way I would think a father would care. He did not mourn the loss of spending the rest of his life with this child. He treated it more as a random life for which he had responsibility. He cared whether you would save the boy, but when you didn’t, he moved on. I wonder if this story by itself gives us the insight we need into how David felt as a father. Is this how all fathers felt back then? Was this the cultural norm? Father, you know how I feel about my children. It fascinates me how much of my thoughts throughout the day they consume, even now that they are in their 20s. I hope for them. I pray for them every day. I reach out to them. I try to show them love. But now that they are older, I also try to back off enough so that they can have the space they need to develop their own lives and, hopefully, their own relationship with you. Help me to find that line. Help me to be exactly what you need me to be for them. I am sorry for how I failed them and failed you in the past. I know I have let my own ego get wrapped up in my responses to them. I am doing my best to not let that happen anymore. I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit, Amen Get full access to Parents of the Bible at parentsofthebible.substack.com/subscribe

    David - Part 1 of 5

  2. Oct 17

    Saul (Part 2 of 2)

    1 Samuel 19:1-7 (New Living Translation) 19 Saul now urged his servants and his son Jonathan to assassinate David. But Jonathan, because of his strong affection for David, 2 told him what his father was planning. “Tomorrow morning,” he warned him, “you must find a hiding place out in the fields. 3 I’ll ask my father to go out there with me, and I’ll talk to him about you. Then I’ll tell you everything I can find out.” 4 The next morning Jonathan spoke with his father about David, saying many good things about him. “The king must not sin against his servant David,” Jonathan said. “He’s never done anything to harm you. He has always helped you in any way he could. 5 Have you forgotten about the time he risked his life to kill the Philistine giant and how the Lord brought a great victory to all Israel as a result? You were certainly happy about it then. Why should you murder an innocent man like David? There is no reason for it at all!” 6 So Saul listened to Jonathan and vowed, “As surely as the Lord lives, David will not be killed.” 7 Afterward Jonathan called David and told him what had happened. Then he brought David to Saul, and David served in the court as before. 1 Samuel 19:11-17 (New Living Translation) 11 Then Saul sent troops to watch David’s house. They were told to kill David when he came out the next morning. But Michal, David’s wife, warned him, “If you don’t escape tonight, you will be dead by morning.” 12 So she helped him climb out through a window, and he fled and escaped. 13 Then she took an idol and put it in his bed, covered it with blankets, and put a cushion of goat’s hair at its head. 14 When the troops came to arrest David, she told them he was sick and couldn’t get out of bed. 15 But Saul sent the troops back to get David. He ordered, “Bring him to me in his bed so I can kill him!” 16 But when they came to carry David out, they discovered that it was only an idol in the bed with a cushion of goat’s hair at its head. 17 “Why have you betrayed me like this and let my enemy escape?” Saul demanded of Michal. “I had to,” Michal replied. “He threatened to kill me if I didn’t help him.” 1 Samuel 20 (New Living Translation) 20 David now fled from Naioth in Ramah and found Jonathan. “What have I done?” he exclaimed. “What is my crime? How have I offended your father that he is so determined to kill me?” 2 “That’s not true!” Jonathan protested. “You’re not going to die. He always tells me everything he’s going to do, even the little things. I know my father wouldn’t hide something like this from me. It just isn’t so!” 3 Then David took an oath before Jonathan and said, “Your father knows perfectly well about our friendship, so he has said to himself, ‘I won’t tell Jonathan—why should I hurt him?’ But I swear to you that I am only a step away from death! I swear it by the Lord and by your own soul!” 4 “Tell me what I can do to help you,” Jonathan exclaimed. 5 David replied, “Tomorrow we celebrate the new moon festival. I’ve always eaten with the king on this occasion, but tomorrow I’ll hide in the field and stay there until the evening of the third day. 6 If your father asks where I am, tell him I asked permission to go home to Bethlehem for an annual family sacrifice. 7 If he says, ‘Fine!’ you will know all is well. But if he is angry and loses his temper, you will know he is determined to kill me. 8 Show me this loyalty as my sworn friend—for we made a solemn pact before the Lord—or kill me yourself if I have sinned against your father. But please don’t betray me to him!” 9 “Never!” Jonathan exclaimed. “You know that if I had the slightest notion my father was planning to kill you, I would tell you at once.” 10 Then David asked, “How will I know whether or not your father is angry?” 11 “Come out to the field with me,” Jonathan replied. And they went out there together. 12 Then Jonathan told David, “I promise by the Lord, the God of Israel, that by this time tomorrow, or the next day at the latest, I will talk to my father and let you know at once how he feels about you. If he speaks favorably about you, I will let you know. 13 But if he is angry and wants you killed, may the Lord strike me and even kill me if I don’t warn you so you can escape and live. May the Lord be with you as he used to be with my father. 14 And may you treat me with the faithful love of the Lord as long as I live. But if I die, 15 treat my family with this faithful love, even when the Lord destroys all your enemies from the face of the earth.” 16 So Jonathan made a solemn pact with David, saying, “May the Lord destroy all your enemies!” 17 And Jonathan made David reaffirm his vow of friendship again, for Jonathan loved David as he loved himself. 18 Then Jonathan said, “Tomorrow we celebrate the new moon festival. You will be missed when your place at the table is empty. 19 The day after tomorrow, toward evening, go to the place where you hid before, and wait there by the stone pile. 20 I will come out and shoot three arrows to the side of the stone pile as though I were shooting at a target. 21 Then I will send a boy to bring the arrows back. If you hear me tell him, ‘They’re on this side,’ then you will know, as surely as the Lord lives, that all is well, and there is no trouble. 22 But if I tell him, ‘Go farther—the arrows are still ahead of you,’ then it will mean that you must leave immediately, for the Lord is sending you away. 23 And may the Lord make us keep our promises to each other, for he has witnessed them.” 24 So David hid himself in the field, and when the new moon festival began, the king sat down to eat. 25 He sat at his usual place against the wall, with Jonathan sitting opposite him and Abner beside him. But David’s place was empty. 26 Saul didn’t say anything about it that day, for he said to himself, “Something must have made David ceremonially unclean.” 27 But when David’s place was empty again the next day, Saul asked Jonathan, “Why hasn’t the son of Jesse been here for the meal either yesterday or today?” 28 Jonathan replied, “David earnestly asked me if he could go to Bethlehem. 29 He said, ‘Please let me go, for we are having a family sacrifice. My brother demanded that I be there. So please let me get away to see my brothers.’ That’s why he isn’t here at the king’s table.” 30 Saul boiled with rage at Jonathan. “You stupid son of a w***e!” he swore at him. “Do you think I don’t know that you want him to be king in your place, shaming yourself and your mother? 31 As long as that son of Jesse is alive, you’ll never be king. Now go and get him so I can kill him!” 32 “But why should he be put to death?” Jonathan asked his father. “What has he done?” 33 Then Saul hurled his spear at Jonathan, intending to kill him. So at last Jonathan realized that his father was really determined to kill David. 34 Jonathan left the table in fierce anger and refused to eat on that second day of the festival, for he was crushed by his father’s shameful behavior toward David. 35 The next morning, as agreed, Jonathan went out into the field and took a young boy with him to gather his arrows. 36 “Start running,” he told the boy, “so you can find the arrows as I shoot them.” So the boy ran, and Jonathan shot an arrow beyond him. 37 When the boy had almost reached the arrow, Jonathan shouted, “The arrow is still ahead of you. 38 Hurry, hurry, don’t wait.” So the boy quickly gathered up the arrows and ran back to his master. 39 He, of course, suspected nothing; only Jonathan and David understood the signal. 40 Then Jonathan gave his bow and arrows to the boy and told him to take them back to town. 41 As soon as the boy was gone, David came out from where he had been hiding near the stone pile. Then David bowed three times to Jonathan with his face to the ground. Both of them were in tears as they embraced each other and said good-bye, especially David. 42 At last Jonathan said to David, “Go in peace, for we have sworn loyalty to each other in the Lord’s name. The Lord is the witness of a bond between us and our children forever.” Then David left, and Jonathan returned to the town. Dear God, I do not know if these stories are as much about Saul’s parenting as they are about a deranged king, but Jonathan and Michal have to deal with him as a dad, so I guess they are fair game for this series. I guess the thing I have always admired about Jonathan is that he was not threatened by David. He was okay with not being king. Saul, on the other hand, was consumed with the thought of David replacing his family as king. I am sure that at some point after Samuel’s anointing and before David’s arrival, Saul had dreams of his lineage being the king of Israel forever. He probably looked at his boys and their boys and already had their succession order figured out. It is part of our vanity. Part of our sinful nature seems to be to want our legacy to live on. If we live a quiet faithful life, we consider it a waste. We must leave our mark! I suppose Saul could have responded differently to Samuel’s speech about you taking the kingdom from him (1 Samuel 15:28). He could have submitted to it. He could have asked Samuel, “Okay, what do I do now?” But there is no way he could voluntarily let go of that power. Then we look at how his children were forced to respond to him. They had to lie. They had to hide and scheme. How would their lives have been different, or better, if they had been able to yield to David’s throne. If David had not been on the run from Saul and living in exile, would Jonathan have lived longer? Would Saul? Father, as I parent my children, help me to do it in the moment. As I express love and support for them, help me to detach my ego from it. I do not want anything to get in the

    Saul (Part 2 of 2)

  3. Oct 10

    Saul (Part 1 of 2)

    1 Samuel 14:24-46 (New Living Translation) 24 Now the men of Israel were pressed to exhaustion that day, because Saul had placed them under an oath, saying, “Let a curse fall on anyone who eats before evening—before I have full revenge on my enemies.” So no one ate anything all day, 25 even though they had all found honeycomb on the ground in the forest. 26 They didn’t dare touch the honey because they all feared the oath they had taken. 27 But Jonathan had not heard his father’s command, and he dipped the end of his stick into a piece of honeycomb and ate the honey. After he had eaten it, he felt refreshed. 28 But one of the men saw him and said, “Your father made the army take a strict oath that anyone who eats food today will be cursed. That is why everyone is weary and faint.” 29 “My father has made trouble for us all!” Jonathan exclaimed. “A command like that only hurts us. See how refreshed I am now that I have eaten this little bit of honey. 30 If the men had been allowed to eat freely from the food they found among our enemies, think how many more Philistines we could have killed!” 31 They chased and killed the Philistines all day from Micmash to Aijalon, growing more and more faint. 32 That evening they rushed for the battle plunder and butchered the sheep, goats, cattle, and calves, but they ate them without draining the blood. 33 Someone reported to Saul, “Look, the men are sinning against the Lord by eating meat that still has blood in it.” “That is very wrong,” Saul said. “Find a large stone and roll it over here. 34 Then go out among the troops and tell them, ‘Bring the cattle, sheep, and goats here to me. Kill them here, and drain the blood before you eat them. Do not sin against the Lord by eating meat with the blood still in it.’” So that night all the troops brought their animals and slaughtered them there. 35 Then Saul built an altar to the Lord; it was the first of the altars he built to the Lord. 36 Then Saul said, “Let’s chase the Philistines all night and plunder them until sunrise. Let’s destroy every last one of them.” His men replied, “We’ll do whatever you think is best.” But the priest said, “Let’s ask God first.” 37 So Saul asked God, “Should we go after the Philistines? Will you help us defeat them?” But God made no reply that day. 38 Then Saul said to the leaders, “Something’s wrong! I want all my army commanders to come here. We must find out what sin was committed today. 39 I vow by the name of the Lord who rescued Israel that the sinner will surely die, even if it is my own son Jonathan!” But no one would tell him what the trouble was. 40 Then Saul said, “Jonathan and I will stand over here, and all of you stand over there.” And the people responded to Saul, “Whatever you think is best.” 41 Then Saul prayed, “O Lord, God of Israel, please show us who is guilty and who is innocent.” Then they cast sacred lots, and Jonathan and Saul were chosen as the guilty ones, and the people were declared innocent. 42 Then Saul said, “Now cast lots again and choose between me and Jonathan.” And Jonathan was shown to be the guilty one. 43 “Tell me what you have done,” Saul demanded of Jonathan. “I tasted a little honey,” Jonathan admitted. “It was only a little bit on the end of my stick. Does that deserve death?” 44 “Yes, Jonathan,” Saul said, “you must die! May God strike me and even kill me if you do not die for this.” 45 But the people broke in and said to Saul, “Jonathan has won this great victory for Israel. Should he die? Far from it! As surely as the Lord lives, not one hair on his head will be touched, for God helped him do a great deed today.” So the people rescued Jonathan, and he was not put to death. 46 Then Saul called back the army from chasing the Philistines, and the Philistines returned home. Dear God, Saul’s relationship with Jonathan will come up several times in the rest of 1 Samuel. I will admit to you that I have always had a little bit of a soft spot for Saul. I know he grieved you by doing a pre-battle sacrifice and ceremony before Samuel arrived, but at least he was trying to keep worshiping you. In this instance, however, he was stupid to make this curse in the first place. As the text says, everyone was weak from hunger. That is not a great way to fight an enemy. And then Jonathan’s sin (is that the right word?) was revealed, so Saul felt compelled to fulfill his oath. I am still not sure where you stood on that whole thing. Did you want him to kill Jonathan? I do not think you did, but this story intimates that you were upset about the broken oath and expected some sort of punishment. Is there room for stupid people in your kingdom? Does the new covenant allow for a well-intentioned idiot? When the people asked Samuel for a king, did you really just pick Saul as a placeholder until David was old enough to be king? And what about Jonathan? Why take the kingdom away from him? He seemed to be pretty good and faithful. He was certainly faithful to David. In the next stories, we will see Jonathan trying to deal with his dad as a tyrant, and Saul getting exasperated with Jonathan. It is one of the more complicated sets of stories for me, and I am not sure I will know any more about what to make of them after talking with you about them than I do now. Father, speak to me as a dad. Help me, first and foremost, to love you well. Help me to give you all the glory for every good thing and point people to you when they are both celebrating and afraid. To paraphrase a Rich Mullins song, “If I Stand,” if I am in a good place, let me know that you brought me there. If I am in a bad place, let me fall on the grace that brought me to you in the first place. If I celebrate, let me celebrate all that you do for me and this world. And if I weep, let it be simply as someone who longs to be with you. I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit, Amen Get full access to Parents of the Bible at parentsofthebible.substack.com/subscribe

    Saul (Part 1 of 2)

  4. Oct 3

    Samuel

    1 Samuel 3:1-14 (New Living Translation) 3 Meanwhile, the boy Samuel served the Lord by assisting Eli. Now in those days messages from the Lord were very rare, and visions were quite uncommon. 2 One night Eli, who was almost blind by now, had gone to bed. 3 The lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was sleeping in the Tabernacle near the Ark of God. 4 Suddenly the Lord called out, “Samuel!” “Yes?” Samuel replied. “What is it?” 5 He got up and ran to Eli. “Here I am. Did you call me?” “I didn’t call you,” Eli replied. “Go back to bed.” So he did. 6 Then the Lord called out again, “Samuel!” Again Samuel got up and went to Eli. “Here I am. Did you call me?” “I didn’t call you, my son,” Eli said. “Go back to bed.” 7 Samuel did not yet know the Lord because he had never had a message from the Lord before. 8 So the Lord called a third time, and once more Samuel got up and went to Eli. “Here I am. Did you call me?” Then Eli realized it was the Lord who was calling the boy. 9 So he said to Samuel, “Go and lie down again, and if someone calls again, say, ‘Speak, Lord, your servant is listening.’” So Samuel went back to bed. 10 And the Lord came and called as before, “Samuel! Samuel!” And Samuel replied, “Speak, your servant is listening.” 11 Then the Lord said to Samuel, “I am about to do a shocking thing in Israel. 12 I am going to carry out all my threats against Eli and his family, from beginning to end. 13 I have warned him that judgment is coming upon his family forever, because his sons are blaspheming God and he hasn’t disciplined them. 14 So I have vowed that the sins of Eli and his sons will never be forgiven by sacrifices or offerings.” 1 Samuel 8:1-9 (New Living Translation) 8 As Samuel grew old, he appointed his sons to be judges over Israel. 2 Joel and Abijah, his oldest sons, held court in Beersheba. 3 But they were not like their father, for they were greedy for money. They accepted bribes and perverted justice. 4 Finally, all the elders of Israel met at Ramah to discuss the matter with Samuel. 5 “Look,” they told him, “you are now old, and your sons are not like you. Give us a king to judge us like all the other nations have.” 6 Samuel was displeased with their request and went to the Lord for guidance. 7 “Do everything they say to you,” the Lord replied, “for they are rejecting me, not you. They don’t want me to be their king any longer. 8 Ever since I brought them from Egypt they have continually abandoned me and followed other gods. And now they are giving you the same treatment. 9 Do as they ask, but solemnly warn them about the way a king will reign over them.” Dear God, Samuel is such a complicated figure. Sure, at first glance he looks noble, but this story reveals a pretty critical flaw. He allowed his sons to do exactly what he saw Eli allow his sons to do. Yet, for some reason, you seem to have given Samuel a pass you did not give to Eli. In fact, when Samuel comes to you, you told him that they had rejected you and not Samuel. That is interesting because in my reading of this story it looks like they were rejecting Samuel. Once again, we come across a flawed man in the Bible. Thank you for preserving these stories because it is a reminder that we are all flawed. I am hugely flawed. And now that my children are grown and making their way in the world, my relationships with them have materially changed. The big difference between my life and Samuel’s (and his culture probably dictated many of his actions) is that he chose to bring his two oldest sons in to the family business. I will likely end up avoiding a lot of those pitfalls with my children because I am 99.9% certain that we will never be in business together. We certainly will not be in a position of judging others and settling disputes together. I will not be in a position of having to defend their professional behavior. I can just be a dad who loves them. Even if they were to do something that I disapprove of, I can still love them and give of myself to them. Hmm. Thinking about it in that way, is that not what you do with us? Father, again, thank you for these stories. Thank you for giving us vignettes like this that make Samuel, Eli, Naomi, Jacob, Abraham, and countless other Bible characters relatable. Next, I am going to be looking at kings as fathers. We are going to see Saul and David and see what they were like as dads. True to form, we will see a lot of flaws. What an interesting God you are to build your plan this way. I do not understand you. I do not understand your ways. But I am grateful for your grace and mercy. I am grateful that you love and hold me, even after I have done something that disappoints you. Thank you. I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit, Amen Get full access to Parents of the Bible at parentsofthebible.substack.com/subscribe

    Samuel

  5. Sep 26

    Eli

    1 Samuel 2:11-18 (New Living Translation) 11 Then Elkanah returned home to Ramah without Samuel. And the boy served the Lord by assisting Eli the priest. 12 Now the sons of Eli were scoundrels who had no respect for the Lord 13 or for their duties as priests. Whenever anyone offered a sacrifice, Eli’s sons would send over a servant with a three-pronged fork. While the meat of the sacrificed animal was still boiling, 14 the servant would stick the fork into the pot and demand that whatever it brought up be given to Eli’s sons. All the Israelites who came to worship at Shiloh were treated this way. 15 Sometimes the servant would come even before the animal’s fat had been burned on the altar. He would demand raw meat before it had been boiled so that it could be used for roasting. 16 The man offering the sacrifice might reply, “Take as much as you want, but the fat must be burned first.” Then the servant would demand, “No, give it to me now, or I’ll take it by force.” 17 So the sin of these young men was very serious in the Lord’s sight, for they treated the Lord’s offerings with contempt. 18 But Samuel, though he was only a boy, served the Lord. He wore a linen garment like that of a priest. 1 Samuel 2:22-36 (New Living Translation) 22 Now Eli was very old, but he was aware of what his sons were doing to the people of Israel. He knew, for instance, that his sons were seducing the young women who assisted at the entrance of the Tabernacle. 23 Eli said to them, “I have been hearing reports from all the people about the wicked things you are doing. Why do you keep sinning? 24 You must stop, my sons! The reports I hear among the Lord’s people are not good. 25 If someone sins against another person, God can mediate for the guilty party. But if someone sins against the Lord, who can intercede?” But Eli’s sons wouldn’t listen to their father, for the Lord was already planning to put them to death. 26 Meanwhile, the boy Samuel grew taller and grew in favor with the Lord and with the people. 27 One day a man of God came to Eli and gave him this message from the Lord: “I revealed myself to your ancestors when they were Pharaoh’s slaves in Egypt. 28 I chose your ancestor Aaron from among all the tribes of Israel to be my priest, to offer sacrifices on my altar, to burn incense, and to wear the priestly vest as he served me. And I assigned the sacrificial offerings to you priests. 29 So why do you scorn my sacrifices and offerings? Why do you give your sons more honor than you give me—for you and they have become fat from the best offerings of my people Israel! 30 “Therefore, the Lord, the God of Israel, says: I promised that your branch of the tribe of Levi would always be my priests. But I will honor those who honor me, and I will despise those who think lightly of me. 31 The time is coming when I will put an end to your family, so it will no longer serve as my priests. All the members of your family will die before their time. None will reach old age. 32 You will watch with envy as I pour out prosperity on the people of Israel. But no members of your family will ever live out their days. 33 The few not cut off from serving at my altar will survive, but only so their eyes can go blind and their hearts break, and their children will die a violent death. 34 And to prove that what I have said will come true, I will cause your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, to die on the same day! 35 “Then I will raise up a faithful priest who will serve me and do what I desire. I will establish his family, and they will be priests to my anointed kings forever. 36 Then all of your surviving family will bow before him, begging for money and food. ‘Please,’ they will say, ‘give us jobs among the priests so we will have enough to eat.’” Dear God, Eli is one of those complicated people we come across in the Bible. He seems to genuinely love you and admonishes others when he thinks they are acting inappropriately (see 1 Samuel 1:12-14 when he rebukes Hannah), but he is weak when it comes to leading his sons as his successors in the temple. I wonder how much of this was the problem of nepotism and how much of it was Eli just not being strong with his sons. He does rebuke them at one point, but he does not do anything about it. And apparently this weakness played out not only in his life and the lives of his two sons, but also throughout his lineage. One of the problems of nepotism is the respect you lose from others around you. How did the people feel about going to the temple when they saw what Eli was allowing his sons to do? I am sure they grumbled and gossiped about it. It was obviously a poor witness to everyone else involved, including young Samuel. I believe that is why, in chapter 3, you showed up to warn Samuel that you saw what Eli and the boys were doing and you were not going to tolerate it. I think you were warning Samuel not to follow their example. Father, give me the strength to stand up for you, to care for those you have put around me for whom you need me to care, and not take the easier path for my own sake. Guide me in shrewdness and wisdom. Help me to be strong and yet as gentle as possible so that I might reflect you and your dealings with us. I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit, Amen Get full access to Parents of the Bible at parentsofthebible.substack.com/subscribe

    Eli

  6. Sep 19

    Hannah

    1 Samuel 1:9-2:11 (New Living Translation) 9 Once after a sacrificial meal at Shiloh, Hannah got up and went to pray. Eli the priest was sitting at his customary place beside the entrance of the Tabernacle. 10 Hannah was in deep anguish, crying bitterly as she prayed to the Lord. 11 And she made this vow: “O Lord of Heaven’s Armies, if you will look upon my sorrow and answer my prayer and give me a son, then I will give him back to you. He will be yours for his entire lifetime, and as a sign that he has been dedicated to the Lord, his hair will never be cut.” 12 As she was praying to the Lord, Eli watched her. 13 Seeing her lips moving but hearing no sound, he thought she had been drinking. 14 “Must you come here drunk?” he demanded. “Throw away your wine!” 15 “Oh no, sir!” she replied. “I haven’t been drinking wine or anything stronger. But I am very discouraged, and I was pouring out my heart to the Lord. 16 Don’t think I am a wicked woman! For I have been praying out of great anguish and sorrow.” 17 “In that case,” Eli said, “go in peace! May the God of Israel grant the request you have asked of him.” 18 “Oh, thank you, sir!” she exclaimed. Then she went back and began to eat again, and she was no longer sad. 19 The entire family got up early the next morning and went to worship the Lord once more. Then they returned home to Ramah. When Elkanah slept with Hannah, the Lord remembered her plea, 20 and in due time she gave birth to a son. She named him Samuel, for she said, “I asked the Lord for him.” 21 The next year Elkanah and his family went on their annual trip to offer a sacrifice to the Lord and to keep his vow. 22 But Hannah did not go. She told her husband, “Wait until the boy is weaned. Then I will take him to the Tabernacle and leave him there with the Lord permanently.” 23 “Whatever you think is best,” Elkanah agreed. “Stay here for now, and may the Lord help you keep your promise.” So she stayed home and nursed the boy until he was weaned. 24 When the child was weaned, Hannah took him to the Tabernacle in Shiloh. They brought along a three-year-old bull for the sacrifice and a basket of flour and some wine. 25 After sacrificing the bull, they brought the boy to Eli. 26 “Sir, do you remember me?” Hannah asked. “I am the very woman who stood here several years ago praying to the Lord. 27 I asked the Lord to give me this boy, and he has granted my request. 28 Now I am giving him to the Lord, and he will belong to the Lord his whole life.” And they worshiped the Lord there. 2 Then Hannah prayed: “My heart rejoices in the Lord! The Lord has made me strong.Now I have an answer for my enemies; I rejoice because you rescued me.2 No one is holy like the Lord! There is no one besides you; there is no Rock like our God. 3 “Stop acting so proud and haughty! Don’t speak with such arrogance!For the Lord is a God who knows what you have done; he will judge your actions.4 The bow of the mighty is now broken, and those who stumbled are now strong.5 Those who were well fed are now starving, and those who were starving are now full.The childless woman now has seven children, and the woman with many children wastes away.6 The Lord gives both death and life; he brings some down to the grave but raises others up.7 The Lord makes some poor and others rich; he brings some down and lifts others up.8 He lifts the poor from the dust and the needy from the garbage dump.He sets them among princes, placing them in seats of honor.For all the earth is the Lord’s, and he has set the world in order. 9 “He will protect his faithful ones, but the wicked will disappear in darkness.No one will succeed by strength alone.10 Those who fight against the Lord will be shattered.He thunders against them from heaven; the Lord judges throughout the earth.He gives power to his king; he increases the strength of his anointed one.” 11 Then Elkanah returned home to Ramah without Samuel. And the boy served the Lord by assisting Eli the priest. Dear God, Hannah is a fascinating woman. She really wanted a child, she got her child, she lived up to her end of the bargain with you, and then she prayed a prayer of vindication pretty much directed at Peninnah. We will learn later that you blessed her with more children, but I cannot imagine how much she must have loved Samuel. Life is so different for women than men, and, frankly, I am foolish to even try to put myself in Hannah’s place. She endured a lot of hurt and sorrow. She was childless. I remember the stress my wife and I went through when it took us a few months to get pregnant the first time we started trying. I cannot imagine the strain of years and years. I also cannot even begin to understand the complication of having another woman in the home who is having children with your husband. I know it was the culture, but that is just messed up, although it seems to be a repeated theme for those you use (Isaac, Joseph, Samuel, etc.). I really like the picture that the author paints later in 1 Samuel 2:18-21: 18 But Samuel, though he was only a boy, served the Lord. He wore a linen garment like that of a priest. 19 Each year his mother made a small coat for him and brought it to him when she came with her husband for the sacrifice. 20 Before they returned home, Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife and say, “May the Lord give you other children to take the place of this one she gave to the Lord.” 21 And the Lord blessed Hannah, and she conceived and gave birth to three sons and two daughters. Meanwhile, Samuel grew up in the presence of the Lord. I love the image of Hannah working on Samuel’s robes. I do not know how ornate they were allowed to be, but I will bet she made them as beautiful as possible. And I will bet Samuel loved getting a new one each year—at least until he was older and was probably embarrassed by it. I picture her running to him and hugging him. I picture his stoic father looking at him with pride. I picture her bringing the five new babies over the years. I wonder if Samuel was a little jealous of the first one or two, but, like all older children, learned to deal with it and love his younger siblings. Father, Hannah was not a perfect person, and she was not a perfect parent. It is obvious she was still bitter towards Peninnah, and I am sure Peninnah did not care much for her either. Their children probably did not get along much better than did Isaac and Ishmael. But that is what you use. You use imperfect people, parents, and children. You work through us all. As we saw with Samson, you sometimes work through us even when we have no relationship or regard for you. So I offer my life to you. It is broken. It can be messy. It is most certainly flawed and even sometimes sinful. But it is what I have to bring to your cross. I give it to you and ask that you use it as you will. I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit, Amen Get full access to Parents of the Bible at parentsofthebible.substack.com/subscribe

    Hannah

  7. Sep 13

    Elkanah

    1 Samuel 1:1-8 (New Living Translation) 1 There was a man named Elkanah who lived in Ramah in the region of Zuph in the hill country of Ephraim. He was the son of Jeroham, son of Elihu, son of Tohu, son of Zuph, of Ephraim. 2 Elkanah had two wives, Hannah and Peninnah. Peninnah had children, but Hannah did not. 3 Each year Elkanah would travel to Shiloh to worship and sacrifice to the Lord of Heaven’s Armies at the Tabernacle. The priests of the Lord at that time were the two sons of Eli—Hophni and Phinehas. 4 On the days Elkanah presented his sacrifice, he would give portions of the meat to Peninnah and each of her children. 5 And though he loved Hannah, he would give her only one choice portion because the Lord had given her no children. 6 So Peninnah would taunt Hannah and make fun of her because the Lord had kept her from having children. 7 Year after year it was the same—Peninnah would taunt Hannah as they went to the Tabernacle. Each time, Hannah would be reduced to tears and would not even eat. 8 “Why are you crying, Hannah?” Elkanah would ask. “Why aren’t you eating? Why be downhearted just because you have no children? You have me—isn’t that better than having ten sons?” Dear God, When it comes to Samuel’s boyhood, it is easy to focus on Hannah and forget that Elkanah was part of his life as well. He was apparently a loving, if not very perceptive, husband to Hannah. He also seems to have been fairly insensitive to Peninnah. It appears his empathy was a bit lacking. Yes, he could tell that Hannah was suffering, so he would do nice things for her (hurting Peninnah in the process), but his last line in 1 Samuel 1:8 illustrates his obtuseness: “You have me—isn’t that better than having ten sons?” Yeah … no, it is not. I think one of the great things about parenthood is how it helps us to grow. It is great that in these stories, no one is painted with a perfect brush. Everyone is flawed. We do not know who wrote this story, but they wanted us to not only know something about Samuel’s origin story—why he grew up in the temple—but also that his parents were real people with real emotions, strength, and flaws. Father, I am still on this journey. You are shaping me every day. You are teaching me where I am insensitive and thoughtless. You humble me through my children, wife, and others. You are slowly filtering out the chaff and bringing me into alignment with your Holy Spirit. Maybe by the time I die I will be halfway there. Wouldn’t that be great? I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit, Amen Get full access to Parents of the Bible at parentsofthebible.substack.com/subscribe

    Elkanah

  8. Sep 5

    Naomi (Part 3 of 3)

    Ruth 3 (New Living Translation) 3 One day Naomi said to Ruth, “My daughter, it’s time that I found a permanent home for you, so that you will be provided for. 2 Boaz is a close relative of ours, and he’s been very kind by letting you gather grain with his young women. Tonight he will be winnowing barley at the threshing floor. 3 Now do as I tell you—take a bath and put on perfume and dress in your nicest clothes. Then go to the threshing floor, but don’t let Boaz see you until he has finished eating and drinking. 4 Be sure to notice where he lies down; then go and uncover his feet and lie down there. He will tell you what to do.” 5 “I will do everything you say,” Ruth replied. 6 So she went down to the threshing floor that night and followed the instructions of her mother-in-law. 7 After Boaz had finished eating and drinking and was in good spirits, he lay down at the far end of the pile of grain and went to sleep. Then Ruth came quietly, uncovered his feet, and lay down. 8 Around midnight Boaz suddenly woke up and turned over. He was surprised to find a woman lying at his feet! 9 “Who are you?” he asked. “I am your servant Ruth,” she replied. “Spread the corner of your covering over me, for you are my family redeemer.” 10 “The Lord bless you, my daughter!” Boaz exclaimed. “You are showing even more family loyalty now than you did before, for you have not gone after a younger man, whether rich or poor. 11 Now don’t worry about a thing, my daughter. I will do what is necessary, for everyone in town knows you are a virtuous woman. 12 But while it’s true that I am one of your family redeemers, there is another man who is more closely related to you than I am. 13 Stay here tonight, and in the morning I will talk to him. If he is willing to redeem you, very well. Let him marry you. But if he is not willing, then as surely as the Lord lives, I will redeem you myself! Now lie down here until morning.” 14 So Ruth lay at Boaz’s feet until the morning, but she got up before it was light enough for people to recognize each other. For Boaz had said, “No one must know that a woman was here at the threshing floor.” 15 Then Boaz said to her, “Bring your cloak and spread it out.” He measured six scoops of barley into the cloak and placed it on her back. Then he returned to the town. 16 When Ruth went back to her mother-in-law, Naomi asked, “What happened, my daughter?” Ruth told Naomi everything Boaz had done for her, 17 and she added, “He gave me these six scoops of barley and said, ‘Don’t go back to your mother-in-law empty-handed.’” 18 Then Naomi said to her, “Just be patient, my daughter, until we hear what happens. The man won’t rest until he has settled things today.” Ruth 4:13-17 (New Living Translation) 13 So Boaz took Ruth into his home, and she became his wife. When he slept with her, the Lord enabled her to become pregnant, and she gave birth to a son. 14 Then the women of the town said to Naomi, “Praise the Lord, who has now provided a redeemer for your family! May this child be famous in Israel. 15 May he restore your youth and care for you in your old age. For he is the son of your daughter-in-law who loves you and has been better to you than seven sons!” 16 Naomi took the baby and cuddled him to her breast. And she cared for him as if he were her own. 17 The neighbor women said, “Now at last Naomi has a son again!” And they named him Obed. He became the father of Jesse and the grandfather of David. Dear God, As a widow back then, Naomi was really pushing water uphill. She had so few options for herself, and she knew that if Ruth did not act soon, she would be in the same boat. Did they manipulate Boaz? Yes. Did they use Boaz for his money and position? Sure. But in that system, did she have much choice? Here is something subtle I like about this story. The name “Mara” (Ruth 1:20) did not stick. You did not make her life bitter. In fact, through Ruth, you gave her hope. Through her son Kilion (presumably Kilion is the one who married Ruth), you brought this woman into her life who would look out for her. She did not know it. Had her husband not died and had her sons not died, they might have stayed in Moab forever. But those deaths forced her back to Judah and Bethlehem. They forced her back to what would become the City of David. And why did it become the City of David? Because her daughter-in-law, Ruth, would marry Boaz and have a son. And what did the women of Bethlehem (the future City of David) say to her? “Praise the Lord, who has now provided a redeemer for your family! May this child be famous in Israel. May he restore your youth and care for you in your old age. For he is the son of your daughter-in-law who loves you and has been better to you than seven sons!” Not all of us will get to see even the beginnings of what you are doing like Naomi did. We do not know if she ever saw David born, although I am certain she never saw him kill Goliath or be crowned as king. But she got to see Obed. She got to cuddle him and care for him. Nothing about the name “Mara” fit her any longer. Father, my prayer right now is for everyone who feels like their name is Mara because they feel like you have made their life bitter. I saw a man in church this morning who was sitting alone. I noticed some things about him that made me wonder if he was there seeking you from a desperate place. I spoke to him briefly, and he did not indicate anything was wrong, but I at least wanted him to know that someone noticed him this morning and cared. I have some family members who are currently struggling. They might feel like the name Mara fits them. Help them to let go of that label. Help them to embrace your love. Help them to look for ways to extend love to others. Help them to take their eyes off themselves and find ways to serve. And heal their wounds through your Holy Spirit and your presence. And help me to be there for them as well. I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit, Amen Get full access to Parents of the Bible at parentsofthebible.substack.com/subscribe

    Naomi (Part 3 of 3)
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About

Parents of the Bible: From Adam & Eve to Mary & Joseph is a series of prayer journals focused on biblical characters as parents. If you are a parent looking for encouragement, this series might be for you. parentsofthebible.substack.com

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  • Creator
    From Adam & Eve to Mary & Joseph
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2026
  • Episodes
    114
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Parents of the Bible
  • Show Website
    Parents of the Bible Podcast