Read 1 Samuel 1 here (text coming …) or at Bible Gateway.
The Hebrew paragraph:
1 Sam 1:1-28 {s} Hannah’s prayer and vow/ Samuel born and weaned
1 Samuel 1:1-28 Chiastic Structure:
Hannah undergoes a transformation in this chapter. She began in bitterness of soul, but ended as a joyful mother of children, and the structure shows us, that her turning point was her prayer to YHVH.
Bitterness is in Hebrew Strong’s H4751, mar, an adjective meaning “bitterness,” from Strong’s H4843 מרר marar, a primitive root meaning, “to be bitter.” The ancient pictographs are mem + resh + resh.
mem מ, ם = the water, thus chaos, mighty, blood
resh ר = the head of man, thus head, first, top, beginning, man
resh ר = the head of man, thus head, first, top, beginning, man
The parapble being told by the Hebrew Root Word is of water (mem) at its head (resh) which is the river’s beginning (resh), i.e., the headwaters of a river. According to the Ancient Hebrew Lexicon:
The headwaters of a river are only a trickle and have stagnant pools causing the water to be bitter.
The concrete noun is bitter, a thing which is of a bitter taste; but the abstract concept is weakness, because when someone endures a bitter sickness, weakness results. Other cognate words are lamb, as a weak animal; rebellion, as someone with a bitter attitude; irritation, as a disease can cause a bitter irritation; pit, as a place where waters stagnate, becoming bitter; bile, as the stomach fluid is bitter; and venom, as the bitter poisonous fluid produced by a serpent.
This is the same Hebrew word as the bitter waters of Marah. Following their great victory over the Egyptians who were drowned in the Red Sea, Moses led the people to a place which happened to have bitter water.
So Moses brought Israel from the Red Sea; then they went out into the Wilderness of Shur. And they went three days in the wilderness and found no water. Now when they came to Marah, they could not drink the waters of Marah, for they were bitter. Therefore the name of it was called Marah. And the people complained against Moses, saying, “What shall we drink?” So he cried out to YHVH, and YHVH showed him a tree. When he cast it into the waters, the waters were made sweet. Exo 15:22-25
And we see the turning point from bitterness to sweetness for Moses was the same as for Hannah, his cry to YHVH.
Behold, instead of peace I had great bitterness; but You have, because of love for my soul, delivered it from the pit of corruption; for You have cast all my sins behind Your back. Isa 38:17
If there are questions, this is a good resource:
Exodus 15:22-16:24, Finding Messiah in the bitter waters of Marah – Christine Miller
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