A-N-A

A-N-A Ana Who was Ana? She was Elkana's wife and Samuel's mother. Samuel became a well-known prophet in ancient Israel. - 1 Samuel 1: 1, 2, 4-7. What did she do? As Ana was unable to have children, she sought God for comfort. Ana's husband had two wives. His other wife, Penina, had children, but Ana had no children for a long time after she got married. Penina cruelly humiliated Ana. But Hannah prayed to God for comfort. She made a vow to God: she said that if he allowed her to have a child, she would dedicate that child to him. Hannah was going to hand over her son to serve Jehovah in the tabernacle, a portable tent that the nation of Israel used to worship God. - 1 Samuel 1:11. God answered Ana's prayer and she had a son named Samuel. Hannah fulfilled her promise and took Samuel to serve in the tabernacle when he was very young. (1 Samuel 1:27, 28) Every year, she made a sleeveless tunic and took it to him. Then God blessed Hannah with three more sons and two daughters. - 1 Samuel 2: 18-21. What can we learn from Ana? Ana's heartfelt prayers helped her to face difficult situations. The prayer of thanks she gave, recorded in 1 Samuel 2: 1-10, shows how great her faith in God was. ▸To learn more about Ana, see the article “She opened her heart to God”. ▸To find out why God tolerated polygamy among his people in the past, see the article “Does God Approve Polygamy?”