Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of 1 Samuel 2:20
And Eli blessed Elkanah and his wife, and said, The LORD give thee seed of this woman for the loan which is lent to the LORD. And they went unto their own home.
20. for the loan which is lent ] Better as in the margin, in return for the petition which she asked for Jehovah: i.e. in place of Samuel, for whom she prayed in order to dedicate him to God. Cp. 1Sa 1:11; 1Sa 1:27-28, and note on 1Sa 2:28.
unto their own home ] Lit., “to his (Elkanah’s) place.” Cp. Gen 18:33.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Verse 20. Eli blessed Elkanah] The natural place of this verse seems to be before the 11th; after which the 21st should come in; after the 21st, perhaps the 26th should come in. 1Sa 2:11; 1Sa 2:21; 1Sa 2:26. The subjects in this chapter seem very much entangled and confused by the wrong position of the verses.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
As their superior, and Gods high priest, Eli blessed them in Gods name, and they received his blessing by faith, which made it effectual, 1Sa 2:21.
Seed, i.e. a child, or rather children, as the event showed.
For the loan which is lent to the Lord, or, for the petition, i.e. the thing desired, to wit, the child; which she, thy wife, asked of the Lord; or, for the Lord, as 1Sa 1:28, to whom accordingly she hath given them. And therefore as she asked him not so much for herself, for she seldom sees him, as for the Lord, to whose service she hath wholly devoted him; so now I pray that God would give you other children, for both your comfort and enjoyment.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
20. Eli blessed Elkanah and hiswifeThis blessing, like that which he had formerly pronounced,had a prophetic virtue; which, before long, appeared in the increaseof Hannah’s family (1Sa 2:21),and the growing qualifications of Samuel for the service of thesanctuary.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
And Eli blessed Elkanah and his wife,…. Not only the first time they brought Samuel to him, and left him with him; but every year they came to worship, as the Jewish commentators mostly interpret it:
and said, the Lord give thee seed of this woman; children by her, year after year:
for the loan which is lent to the Lord; instead of Samuel, who was asked of the Lord and given to him again; and as they were thereby in some measure deprived of him, and could not always enjoy him, and be delighted with him, Eli prayed for them, and gave them his benediction as a priest, that they might be favoured with other children, who might be of delight and service to them when in old age:
and they went unto their own home; at Ramah, as in 1Sa 2:11 or to his place r, Elkanah’s; hence Kimchi concludes that Hannah was of another city originally; but the Targum is,
“to their place;”
and indeed, what was now the place or home of the one, was of the other.
r “in locum suum”, V. L. Pagninus, Montanus, Drusius, &c.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
(20, 21) And Eli blessed Elkanah and his wife. . . . And the Lord visited Hannah.The blessing of Eli, a blessing which soon bore its fruit in the house of the pious couple,his training of Samuel, and unswerving kindness to the boy (see following chapter),his sorrow at his priestly sons wickedness,his passionate love for his country, all indicate that the influence of the weak but loving high priest was ever exerted to keep the faith of the people pure, and the life of Israel white before the Lord. There were evidently two parties at Shiloh, the head-quarters of the national religion: the reckless, unbelieving section, headed by Hophni and Phinehas; and the God-fearing, law-loving partisans of the old Divine law, under the influence of the weak, but religious, Eli. These latter kept the lamp of the loved faith burningthough but dimlyamong the covenant people until the days when the strong hand of Samuel took the helm of government in Israel.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
20. The Lord give thee seed for the loan Literally: May Jehovah establish unto thee a seed from this woman in the place of the one asked for, (that is, Samuel,) which was asked for of Jehovah, (by both Elkanah and Hannah.) Compare the note on 1Sa 1:28. Eli here prays that other children may be granted to these pious parents to compensate them for the one now dedicated to the Lord, and 1Sa 2:21 shows that this prayer of the high priest was answered as speedily as the one recorded in 1Sa 1:17.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
(20) And Eli blessed Elkanah and his wife, and said, The LORD give thee seed of this woman for the loan which is lent to the LORD. And they went unto their own home. (21) And the LORD visited Hannah, so that she conceived, and bare three sons and two daughters. And the child Samuel grew before the LORD.
How much those gain, who give unto the Lord! Solomon’s observation is well founded; He that hath pity upon the poor lendeth unto the Lord: and look what he hath given, he will pay him again. Pro 19:17 .
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
1Sa 2:20 And Eli blessed Elkanah and his wife, and said, The LORD give thee seed of this woman for the loan which is lent to the LORD. And they went unto their own home.
Ver. 20. And Eli blessed Elkanah and his wife. ] In the words of God, as being his high priest: and they took it so, and sped accordingly. 1Sa 2:21 Faith is effectual.
For the loan which is lent to the Lord.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
loan which is lent = the great gift. Figure of speech Polyptoton, for emphasis. App-6.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
The natural place for this verse seems to be before the 1Sa 2:11, after which the 1Sa 2:21, should probably come in; and after the 21st, perhaps the 1Sa 2:26, should follow.
blessed: Gen 14:19, Gen 27:27-29, Num 6:23-27, Rth 2:12, Rth 4:11
loan: or, petition which she asked, etc. 1Sa 1:27, 1Sa 1:28
Reciprocal: Gen 47:7 – And Jacob Gen 48:9 – my sons Jos 22:6 – General Rth 4:12 – of the seed 1Ki 14:17 – when she came Psa 127:3 – children Ecc 6:3 – a man
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
1Sa 2:20-21. Eli blessed Elkanah, &c. This benediction given in his character of high-priest, and that by a divine suggestion, was followed by the desired effect, and verified what Hannah had uttered in her prophetical song. The Lord visited Hannah None are losers by what they dedicate to the Lord, or employ in such a manner as is pleasing in his sight. The child Samuel grew Not only in age and stature, but especially in wisdom and goodness. Before the Lord Not only before men, who might easily be deceived, but in the presence and judgment of the all-seeing God. This will generally be the case with those children whose parents dedicate them early to the Lord, and endeavour to instil into their minds the true and genuine principles of piety and virtue.