| CALL OF SAMUEL |

I find Samuel to be one of the more likable characters in scripture. He was a truly righteous man, even from birth. There are many similarities between Samuel and Jesus. If you want to learn more about Samuel, I would encourage you to read 1 Samuel 1-3. Samuel is the last of the judges, and we will see how God uses Samuel to anoint Israel’s first king.

Extraordinary Birth

The circumstances of Samuel’s birth were extraordinary. We have seen this pattern a few times in the story of scripture. You may recall how Sarah was barren until the birth of Isaac. Here again, God hears the prayer of a woman who felt the suffering of barrenness.

A Mother and Son

The relationship between Hannah and her first son is precious. She gives birth to this child, the answer to her desperate prayers. She nurtures him through the first years of life and weans him. She then takes him to the house of the Lord in Shiloh to be raised by the priest there and to be dedicated to the Lord’s service. But her relationship with Samuel does not end there. It struck me deeply that each year, she would visit when her husband would come to the house of the Lord to make sacrifices and give this precious son of hers a “little robe (1 Samuel 2:17)” that she had made for him.

Jesus is the Greater Samuel

In 1 Samuel 2:26, it says that Samuel was growing in “stature and in favor with the Lord and also with man.” This same thing is said of Jesus during his early years. Samuel serves in the roles of prophet, priest, and judge. These resemble the three-fold offices of Jesus: prophet, priest, and king. We will see this often, that Jesus shows himself to be a greater fulfillment of the great men of the Old Testament.