1 Samuel 2:3

Talk no more so exceeding proudly; let not arrogancy come out of your mouth: for the LORD is a God of knowledge, and by him actions are weighed.

EXPOSITORY (ENGLISH BIBLE)

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(3) A God of knowledge.—The Hebrew words are placed thus: A God of knowledge is the Lord, The Talmud quaintly comments here as follows:—Rabbi Ami says: “Knowledge is of great price, for it is placed between two Divine names; as it is written (1Samuel 2:3), ‘A God of knowledge is the Lord,’ and therefore mercy is to be denied to him who has no knowledge; for it is written (Isaiah 27:11), ‘It is a people of no understanding, therefore He that made them will not have mercy on them.’”—Treatise Berachoth, fol. 33, Colossians 1.

And by him actions are weighed.—This is one of the fifteen places reckoned by the Masorites where in the original Hebrew text, instead of “lo” with an aleph, signifying not, “lo” with a vaw, signifying to, or by him, must be substituted. The amended reading has been followed by the English Version. The meaning is that all men’s actions are weighed by God according to their essential worth, all the motives which led to them are by Him, the All-knowing, taken into account before He weighs them.

Benson Commentary

1 Samuel 2:3. Talk no more — Thou Peninnah, boast no more of thy numerous offspring, and speak no more insolently and scornfully of me. She speaks of her in the plural number, because she would not expose her name to censure. A God of knowledge — He knoweth thy heart, and all that pride, and envy, and contempt of me, which thy own conscience knows: and all thy perverse carriage toward me. By him actions are weighed — That is, he trieth all men’s thoughts and actions, (for the Hebrew word signifies both,) as a just judge, to give to every one according to his works.

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary

2:1-10 Hannah's heart rejoiced, not in Samuel, but in the Lord. She looks beyond the gift, and praises the Giver. She rejoiced in the salvation of the Lord, and in expectation of His coming, who is the whole salvation of his people. The strong are soon weakened, and the weak are soon strengthened, when God pleases. Are we poor? God made us poor, which is a good reason why we should be content, and make up our minds to our condition. Are we rich? God made us rich, which is a good reason why we should be thankful, and serve him cheerfully, and do good with the abundance he gives us. He respects not man's wisdom or fancied excellences, but chooses those whom the world accounts foolish, teaching them to feel their guilt, and to value his free and precious salvation. This prophecy looks to the kingdom of Christ, that kingdom of grace, of which Hannah speaks, after having spoken largely of the kingdom of providence. And here is the first time that we meet with the name MESSIAH, or his Anointed. The subjects of Christ's kingdom will be safe, and the enemies of it will be ruined; for the Anointed, the Lord Christ, is able to save, and to destroy.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Any rock ... - The term rock as applied to God is first found in the song of Moses (see Deuteronomy 32:4 note), where the juxtaposition of rock and salvation in 1 Samuel 2:15, "he lightly esteemed the rock of his salvation," seems to indicate that Hannah was acquainted with the song of Moses.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

CHAPTER 2

1Sa 2:1-11. Hannah's Song in Thankfulness to God.

1. Hannah prayed, and said—Praise and prayer are inseparably conjoined in Scripture (Col 4:2; 1Ti 2:1). This beautiful song was her tribute of thanks for the divine goodness in answering her petition.

mine horn is exalted in the Lord—Allusion is here made to a peculiarity in the dress of Eastern women about Lebanon, which seems to have obtained anciently among the Israelite women, that of wearing a tin or silver horn on the forehead, on which their veil is suspended. Wives, who have no children, wear it projecting in an oblique direction, while those who become mothers forthwith raise it a few inches higher, inclining towards the perpendicular, and by this slight but observable change in their headdress, make known, wherever they go, the maternal character which they now bear.

Matthew Poole's Commentary

Talk no more so exceeding proudly; thou Peninnah, boast no more of thy numerous offspring, and speak no more insolently and scornfully of me, as thou hast done. She speaks of her in the plural number, brings many because she would not expose her name to censure, but only instruct and reprove her for her good.

Arrogancy, Heb. hard speeches, as those are called, Judges 1:15, harsh, heavy, and not to be borne. Or, the old sayings; either the old proverbs concerning barren women, which thou appliedst to me; or the old reproaches, to which for a long time thou hast accustomed thyself.

The Lord is a God of knowledge; he knoweth thy heart, and all that pride, and envy, and contempt of me which thy own conscience knows, and all thy perverse carriages towards me.

By him actions are weighed, i.e. he pondereth or trieth all men’s thoughts and actions, (for the Hebrew word signifies both,) as a just Judge, to give to every one according to their works; and therefore he hath pitied my oppressed innocency, and rebuked her arrogancy. Or, by him counsels, or actions, or events are disposed or ordered, and not by ourselves; and therefore he things to pass contrary to men’s expectations, as now he hath done; he maketh one barren, and another fruitful, when and how it pleaseth him. In the Hebrew text it is lo the adverb; and so the words may be rendered thus, His actions are not, or cannot, be directed, or rectified, or corrected by any others; none can mend his work; he doth every thing best, and in the best season, as now he hath done: or weighed, or numbered; his ways are unsearchable. Or thus, Are not his works right and straight? who can blame his actions? So lo is for halo, as it is 2 Samuel 13:26 2 Kings 5:26 Job 2:10.

Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

Talk no more so exceeding proudly,.... At such an high rate, in such an overbearing manner, as if above everyone; this may have respect to Peninnah, and all that joined with her to provoke Hannah to anger, and make her fret, insulting and triumphing over her, because she had not children, as they had; but now their mouths would be stopped, and their talk over, and not give themselves the haughty airs they had done, at least there would be no occasion for them:

let not arrogancy come out of your mouth; arrogating to themselves, and to their merits, what they enjoyed, as children, riches, &c. when all come from the Lord; or what is "hard" (i), intolerable, which bears so hard on those to whom it is said, that it cannot be bore with; or what is "old" (k), and trite, old sayings concerning barren women, as if of no use in the world, and disagreeable to God, and as having no share in his favour. The Targum renders the word by reproaches, or blasphemies:

for the Lord is a God of knowledge; or knowledges (l): of perfect knowledge; he knows all persons and things; he knows himself, his perfections, purposes, thoughts, words and works; he knows all his creatures, animate and inanimate, rational and irrational, angels and men; the hearts of all men; all that they say, all their hard sayings, all their proud, haughty, overbearing expressions, calumnies, and reproaches, as well as all they think and all they do, good or bad; and God will sooner or later convince them of and punish them for their hard speeches against his people: and he is the author of all knowledge, natural, civil, spiritual, and evangelical:

and by him actions are weighed: his own actions; his works "ad intra"; his purposes and decrees, the counsels of his will, and the thoughts of his heart, the things his mind is set upon; all his appointments and designs, his whole will and pleasure; all are pondered by him, and are formed with the utmost wisdom, and for the best ends and purposes: and all, his actions and works without, whether of creation, providence, and grace, all are weighed and done according to infinite wisdom, unerring justice and truth; all respecting things temporal or spiritual, what relate to the outward estate of men, or to their everlasting happiness: all the actions of men, as they are known unto him, they are weighed and examined by him, whether they proceed from a right principle to a right end or not; upon which, many actions, thought to be good, are not found to be so, and others, though good, yet not found perfect before God; so that there is no justification nor salvation by the best: or the sense is, such actions as are done well, they are "directed to him" (m); as they are ordained by him that men should walk in them, they are for his use, and are done with a view to his glory. There is a double reading of these words; the marginal, which we follow, is "to" or "by him" actions are directed or weighed; but the textual reading is a negative, "actions are not weighed" (n), or numbered; the works of God cannot be comprehended, or the actions of men are not disposed and ordered without his will and pleasure, or cannot be performed unless he wills or permits; and all are disposed of, overruled, and directed, to answer his own ends and purposes.

(i) "durum", Vatablus, Drusius, Piscator; so R. Isaiah. (k) "Vetera", V. L. "vetus", Pagninus, Montanus. (l) "Deus scientiarum", V. L. Pagninus, Montanus, Tigurine version, Drusius. (m) "ipsi directa sunt", Pagninus. (n) "Non disponuntur", Junius & Tremellius; "non numerantur", so some in Vatablus; "non perficiuntur", so some in Munster.

Geneva Study Bible

Talk {d} no more so exceeding proudly; let not arrogancy come out of your mouth: for the LORD is a God of knowledge, and by him actions are weighed.

(d) In that you condemn my barrenness, you show your pride against God.

EXEGETICAL (ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)

Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

3. arrogancy] The old form of the word arrogance (cp. innocency for innocence) from the Lat. arrogantia. It signifies “claiming more than one’s due,” “assumption,” “pride.”

knowledge] The Heb. word is plural, denoting varied and extensive knowledge.

by him actions are weighed] Jehovah knows the hearts of men and estimates men’s actions at their true value. See Proverbs 16:2; Proverbs 24:12. This explanation is probably right, but the Heb. may also be rendered, “His (i.e. God’s) actions are weighed,” or, “measured:” i.e. are just and right. Cp. the use of the same word in Ezekiel 18:25, “Is not my way equal?” “By him” is the Qrî or traditional read text. (See p. 14.) The Kthîbh or written text has “not” instead of “by him,” the words being similar in pronunciation though differently spelt. This may be rendered either, “though actions be not weighed,” or interrogatively, “and are not actions weighed?”

1 Samuel 2:3

Keil and Delitzsch Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament

2 None is holy as the Lord; for there is none beside Thee;

And no rock is as our God.

3 Speak ye not much lofty, lofty;

Let (not) insolence go out of thy mouth!

For the Lord is an omniscient God,

And with Him deeds are weighed.

God manifests himself as holy in the government of the kingdom of His grace by His guidance of the righteous to salvation (see at Exodus 19:6). But holiness is simply the moral reflection of the glory of the one absolute God. This explains the reason given for His holiness, viz., "there is not one (a God) beside thee" (cf. 2 Samuel 22:32). As the holy and only One, God is the rock (vid., Deuteronomy 32:4, Deuteronomy 32:15; Psalm 18:3) in which the righteous can always trust. The wicked therefore should tremble before His holiness, and not talk in their pride of the lofty things which they have accomplished or intend to perform. גּבהה is defined more precisely in the following clause, which is also dependent upon אל by the word עתק, as insolent words spoken by the wicked against the righteous (see Psalm 31:19). For Jehovah hears such words; He is "a God of knowledge" (Deus scientiarum), a God who sees and knows every single thing. The plural דּעות has an intensive signification. עללות נתכּנוּ לא might be rendered "deeds are not weighed, or equal" (cf. Ezekiel 18:25-26; Ezekiel 33:17). But this would only apply to the actions of men; for the acts of God are always just, or weighed. But an assertion respecting the actions of men does not suit the context. Hence this clause is reckoned in the Masora as one of the passages in which לא stands for לו (see at Exodus 21:8). "To Him (with Him) deeds are weighed:" that is to say, the acts of God are weighed, i.e., equal or just. This is the real meaning according to the passages in Ezekiel, and not "the actions of men are weighed by Him" (De Wette, Maurer, Ewald, etc.): for God weighs the minds and hearts of men (Proverbs 16:2; Proverbs 21:2; Proverbs 24:12), not their actions. This expression never occurs. The weighed or righteous acts of God are described in 1 Samuel 2:4-8 in great and general traits, as displayed in the government of His kingdom through the marvellous changes which occur in the circumstances connected with the lives of the righteous and the wicked.