Hannah answered, “No, my lord, I am a woman of a sorrowful spirit. I have not been drinking wine or strong drink, but I poured out my soul before Yahweh.
Parallel translations
- KJV 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.
- BSB “No, my lord,” Hannah replied. “I am a woman oppressed in spirit. I have not had any wine or strong drink, but I have poured out my soul before the LORD.
- NKJV But Hannah answered and said, “No, my lord, I am a woman of sorrowful spirit. I have drunk neither wine nor intoxicating drink, but have poured out my soul before the Lord.
- NASB But Hannah answered and said, “No, my lord, I am a woman despairing in spirit; I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but I have poured out my soul before the Lord.
- NLT “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.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Hannah humbly corrected Eli, explaining she was sorrowful and had poured out her soul to the Lord, not drunk. She answered a false charge with gentle honesty.
Overview
Hannah's reply is a model of respectful self-defense without bitterness, even toward one who wronged her. Her phrase 'poured out my soul before Yahweh' beautifully describes wholehearted prayer. Her grace under unjust accusation reflects the meekness Scripture commends and contrasts with the harshness around her.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 8
- Ps 62:8Trust in him at all times, you people. Pour out your heart before him. God is a refuge for us. Selah.
- Lam 2:19Arise, cry out in the night, at the beginning of the watches; Pour out your heart like water before the face of the Lord: Lift up your hands toward him for the life of your young children, that faint for hunger at the head of every street.
- Ps 42:4These things I remember, and pour out my soul within me, how I used to go with the crowd, and led them to God’s house, with the voice of joy and praise, a multitude keeping a holy day.
- Ps 143:6I spread out my hands to you. My soul thirsts for you, like a parched land. Selah.
- Ps 142:2–3I pour out my complaint before him. I tell him my troubles.
- Job 30:16“Now my soul is poured out within me. Days of affliction have taken hold on me.
- Prov 15:1A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.
- Prov 25:15By patience a ruler is persuaded. A soft tongue breaks the bone.
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Christ at the center
The rise of the anointed king after Israel's failed first choice points to the true Anointed One (Messiah means 'anointed'), the shepherd-king after God's own heart from Bethlehem.
How 1 Samuel 1:15 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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