Hannah and the Valleys Sing for Joy

 Psalms 65 is a wonderful song of thanksgiving praising God for the beauty of the earth. Even nature gets involved with this praise in verses 12 and 13 when it tells how the hills gird themselves with joy and the valleys sing for joy.


As we continue with the story of Hannah, she brings Samuel to live in the temple with Eli, and afterwards gives her own song of thanksgiving. She too sings for joy rejoicing in her deliverance. God blessed her, a barren woman, with a son, Samuel. She praises God for God’s holiness, steadfastness, all knowing, and power. She tells how God can turn things around. Those who were stumbling, now have power. Ones who were starving, are now fat with food. Barren women now give birth to seven children.


What a contrast from the “bitter of soul” woman we encountered last week. She realizes that the Lord who can bring death, can also raise up. God can bring low but can also lift high, raising the poor from the dust, and the needy from the garbage pile.


She, herself, has risen up from the despair of being barren, and she realizes that all this has come from the Lord. Her strength rose up in the Lord. God has dressed her in power. It is God alone who guards the feet - the paths of God’s faithful ones, giving light to their way. She tells how the wicked will die in darkness without God’s light depending only upon their own strength.


She ends asking God to give strength to the king and to raise high the strength of his anointed one. Could this anointed one be Samuel who will be a great high priest? Could it be David who Samuel will anoint as King? Or will it be Jesus the anointed Messiah who will take away our sins.


May God anoint us with God’s strength this Thanksgiving. May we along with the valleys and Hannah sing for joy for all God has given us.

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