What Does God Think About Bitter Women?

On social media, it's common to find "bitter" and "women" slammed together.

It's so prevalent that I wondered, "What does God think about bitter women?"

You might expect that the Bible doesn't mention this kind of woman very often — unless it's to criticize her and tell her to shape up. 

So consider the story of Hannah, found in 1 Samuel 1-2.

Hannah is undoubtedly a bitter woman.

She's described as deeply hurt, weeping with many tears, afflicted, broken-hearted, and full of anguish and resentment.

Why?

Let's consider the many reasons Hannah has to be bitter. 

The introduction shows that she is the first of Elkanah's two wives. But though she is the first, she is childless. Various commentators note that one motivation for polygamy in this era was the barrenness of one's first wife. Elkanah naturally wanted an heir and gained multiple children by marrying his second wife, Peninnah. 

So now Hannah must share her husband's affection with another woman. Can you imagine her sadness as she witnesses her husband marry another woman? It's a moment of painful rejection. 

Then, as Peninnah repeatedly gives birth, Hannah is increasingly pushed to the margins of family life. Each delivery must remind Hannah of the nights she went to sleep alone. She watches from the shadows as Elkanah and Peninnah celebrate the birth of each child and spend time together as a family.

The future undoubtedly belongs to Peninnah and her offspring; Hannah lacks hope. Who will take care of her when Elkanah is no more?

But Hannah's situation is worse than this because her rival wife, Peninnah, mercilessly taunts her for failing to give birth to a son.

Cruel? Yes, but Peninnah only gives voice to a shared cultural understanding of the day: God curses a childless woman.

And the narrator tells us that God had closed Hannah's womb (1:5). Peninnah is mean, but she's right.

Aren't the most painful insults the ones that ring true?

Still, Hannah is a faithful woman. Every year, when the family worships God at Shiloh, she asks God for help. 

But for many years, she only gets silence from God and taunts from Peninnah. 

Even as her husband, Elkanah, tries to comfort her with a double portion of the annual sacrifice, he appears clueless. He asks, "Why are you troubled? Am I not better to you than ten sons?"

Effectively, he's saying, "Why are you bitter? You have me!" Today, we might say that Elkanah thinks he’s God’s gift to Hannah.

Instead of grieving Hannah's heartache, Elkanah tries to fix her with a second plate of food. Elkanah loves her, but his confused perspective limits his capacity to help her. Despite his protestation of love, as Hannah knows, she doesn't have Elkanah. She has to share him with Peninnah, a woman who despises her.

And when Hannah goes to the Lord's house, does she find help? 

No.

The regular priests on duty are Eli's sons, Hophni and Phinehas. We learn in chapter two that they "were wicked men; they did not respect the LORD or the priests' share of the sacrifices from the people." To treat themselves, they stole from God's offerings (2:13-15). And if anyone objected, they threatened violence (2:16). Not only this, but they also sexually exploited the women who served at the entrance to the tent of meeting (2:22).

In Hannah's community, God's priests are obsessed with the good life, sexual abuse, and unjust power. They have no concern for God or God's people. And these wicked priests guard the only sanctuary where Hannah can meet with God.

On one occasion, as Hannah is praying in the Lord's presence, the older priest, Eli, notices her. He appears to have so little knowledge of prayer that he misunderstands what she's doing and accuses her of being drunk (1:13-14). 

So Hannah appears to have no hope at either her or God’s home.

Her husband is obtuse, her rival wife is cruel, the priests are wicked, her future is bleak, and God is silent.

Why wouldn't Hannah be bitter?

Wouldn't you?

But unlike Elkanah, the narrator empathetically explains the circumstances that caused Hannah so much pain instead of blaming her for her bitterness. 

So instead of policing people's angry outbursts, perhaps we should consider what causes them to be so upset. 

But I want to explore what God thinks about bitter women. 

Hannah tells us she comes to God with a broken heart. She's praying from "the depth of her anguish and resentment" (1:16). She's so animated and upset that Eli —confused as he is — thinks she's drunk. 

How does God respond to a wild, angry prayer from a bitter woman?

A few verses later, we hear that "the Lord remembered her. After some time, Hannah conceived and gave birth to a son" (1:19-20).

God intervenes in Hannah's life to demonstrate that she is not cursed but blessed. God's response to Hannah's prayer restores what she's lost.

The birth of a son renews her relationship with her husband, silences her rival, and assures her heart that God answered her desperate prayer. 

In an act of incredible faith, Hannah then gives her only son back to God. What she vowed to God (1:11), she fulfills to God (1:26-28). Hannah is not only a woman of faith but a faithful woman. Yet God is not done blessing Hannah; he gives her three more sons and two daughters (2:21).

But I still need to get to the good part!

At the heart of Hannah's story is one of the most remarkable prayers in the Bible (1 Samuel 2:1-10). It’s worth quoting in full (this is from the CSB):

1    Hannah prayed:

My heart rejoices in the LORD;

my horn is lifted up by the LORD.

My mouth boasts over my enemies,

because I rejoice in your salvation.

2  There is no one holy like the LORD.

There is no one besides you!

And there is no rock like our God.

3  Do not boast so proudly,

or let arrogant words come out of your mouth,

for the LORD is a God of knowledge,

and actions are weighed by him.

4  The bows of the warriors are broken,

but the feeble are clothed with strength.

5  Those who are full hire themselves out for food,

but those who are starving hunger no more.

The woman who is childless gives birth to seven,

but the woman with many sons pines away.

6  The LORD brings death and gives life;

he sends some down to Sheol, and he raises others up.

7  The LORD brings poverty and gives wealth;

he humbles and he exalts.

8  He raises the poor from the dust

and lifts the needy from the trash heap.

He seats them with noblemen

and gives them a throne of honor.

For the foundations of the earth are the LORD’s;

he has set the world on them.

9  He guards the steps of his faithful ones,

but the wicked perish in darkness,

for a person does not prevail by his own strength.

10  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.

It’s an awesome prayer in its own right.

But the placement of the prayer is significant too. The commentator Mary Evans argues:

It was not unusual for women to reflect theologically on their circumstances and to present that reflection in the form of a song.

Miriam and Deborah are well-known examples of other women psalmists (Exod. 15; Judg. 5), and, later on, Mary perhaps used Hannah's song as the basis for her own reflections (Luke 1:46–55).

However, the fact remains that the privilege of providing the main theological introduction to the whole account of the history of the Israelite monarchy is given to Hannah.

...

The books of Samuel and Kings go on to describe the often rather sorry history of the power struggles within Israel as kings and potential kings battled for supremacy; sometimes taking account of God's purposes, but often not.

However, the story begins here, with this reflection on power and powerlessness and on God's attitude to human views of status. It is presented via the lips of an apparently insignificant woman. Hannah tells us of the power of God and the unsupported arrogance of human beings who are essentially powerless.

She was very much aware of her own weakness, but nevertheless saw herself as empowered by God; given power, not to control the lives of others, but to live in the light of strength provided by God (The Message of Samuel, pp. 18-19, emphasis added).

Can you imagine a weaker, lower-status person than Hannah? The barren, discarded first wife of Elkanah, displaced by the superior fertility and sharp words of his second wife, and demeaned by the temple priests?

Yet God selects this bitter woman to author the poetic and theological foundation for evaluating the kings of Israel!

And let’s pause to note the connections between Hannah’s prayer and Mary’s Magnificat in Luke 1:46-55: they both worship God for what he does and who he is. They celebrate that God empowers the poor and humbles the mighty, and they both praise God as holy, great, and merciful.

The shared themes and intertextual connections between these prayers are extensive.

Further, Hannah knows that God will "give power to his king; he will lift up the horn of his anointed" (2:10). In the book of 1 Samuel, we see God do this for David.

And then, centuries later, an angel tells Mary that she will give birth to a king who will inherit "the throne of his father David" (Luke 1:32).

In other words, Hannah's prayer finds its immediate fulfillment in David and its ultimate fulfillment in Jesus.

From one barren woman to another, God demonstrates his goodness, power, and providence.

So what does God think of bitter women? 

If how he treated Hannah is any indication, we have good news:

• He heard her angry prayers and responded with a blessing.

• He honored her poetic theology, including it in the Bible and holding it up as a standard so the readers of 1 Samuel could evaluate the kings of Israel.

• He gave her six children; many more than she even dreamed to ask for.

And ultimately?

God himself became one of us, fulfilling Hannah's hopes and dreams — and ours.

---

Photo by engin akyurt on Unsplash