1 Samuel 2:10 - Printer Friendly

ESV: The adversaries of the LORD shall be broken to pieces; against them he will thunder in heaven. The LORD will judge the ends of the earth; he will give strength to his king and exalt the horn of his anointed.”

NIV: those who oppose the LORD will be broken. The Most High will thunder from heaven; the LORD will judge the ends of the earth. 'He will give strength to his king and exalt the horn of his anointed.'

NASB: Those who contend with the Lord will be terrified; Against them He will thunder in the heavens, The Lord will judge the ends of the earth; And He will give strength to His king, And will exalt the horn of His anointed.'

CSB: Those who oppose the Lord will be shattered; he will thunder in the heavens against them. The Lord will judge the ends of the earth. He will give power to his king; he will lift up the horn of his anointed.

NLT: 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.'

KJV: The adversaries of the LORD shall be broken to pieces; out of heaven shall he thunder upon them: the LORD shall judge the ends of the earth; and he shall give strength unto his king, and exalt the horn of his anointed.

NKJV: The adversaries of the Lord shall be broken in pieces; From heaven He will thunder against them. The Lord will judge the ends of the earth. “He will give strength to His king, And exalt the horn of His anointed.”

Hannah's song ends with a bit of prophecy that sets up the story of Samuel and the kings of Israel whom he will help bring to power. She declares that God's enemies will be broken to pieces. God will thunder against them from heaven. The one who controls all things and can reverse any circumstance can easily defeat His enemies.

There is nowhere anyone can hide from God's judgment of their actions. He will judge everyone to the ends of the earth (Hebrews 4:13). All who oppose Him will be defeated (Revelation 20:7–15).

Finally, Hannah says that the Lord will give strength to His king and exalt His anointed one. References to a "horn" in these contexts imply strength and dignity. The word for an anointed one, mashiyach, can also mean Messiah. Hannah's song may be pointing forward to the ultimate King who will one day judge the earth and bring salvation to God's people. It more likely points forward to the kings of Israel Samuel, Hannah's son, will anoint into power over God's people in his lifetime (1 Samuel 9; 16).

First Samuel 2:1–11 contains Hannah's poetic prayer of praise to the Lord in response to His gift of a son, Samuel. She offers the prayer after delivering Samuel into Eli's care at the sanctuary in keeping with her vow to the Lord (1 Samuel 1:11, 24–28). The main emphasis of the prayer is that God is holy and sovereign. He can reverse life situations, bringing the rich and powerful down and lifting the poor, hungry, and barren. The one who controls life and death guards those faithful to Him.

After delivering Samuel to the Lord, Hannah offers a poetic prayer of praise. The sons of Eli the priest are evil, depraved men who abuse their power as priests. They coerce worshippers to give them additional meat. They sleep with women who serve at the sanctuary. In contrast, Samuel grows in favor with God and others as he grows up physically. Hannah and Elkanah continue to go to Shiloh yearly; they also have more children. Eli rebukes his sons, but they don't repent. The Lord tells Eli that all his descendants will die young and his two rebellious sons will die on the same day. The Lord will raise up a faithful priest to do His will.

The prior chapter explained how Hannah cried out to God for a son, and that her request was granted. First Samuel 2 begins with Hannah's praise to the Lord in response. Samuel remains in Shiloh where he ministers and matures. By contrast, Eli's sons are wicked and abuse their power as priests. A prophet reveals that God will cause all Eli's descendants to die young and his two sons to die on the same day. The Lord will raise up a faithful priest from another part of the family line. This provides background for Samuel's call from God in chapter 3.

First Samuel introduces the key figures who led Israel after the era of the judges. The books of 1 and 2 Samuel were originally part of a single text, split in certain translations shortly before the birth of Christ. Some of the Bible’s most famous characters are depicted in this book. These including the prophet Samuel, Israel’s first king, Saul, her greatest king, David, and other famous names such as Goliath and Jonathan. By the end of this book, Saul has fallen; the book of 2 Samuel begins with David’s ascension to the throne.