When Hannah bears her son, she names him Samuel, which means "he who is from God". When she brings him to the temple, it is natural for Hannah to let Eli know that her prayer has been answered. After all, it was Eli who had blessed her many years before when she came to the temple to pray for a child. Then, Hannah sings a hymn to express her gratefulness to God. The words in the hymn, such as "ask", "give", and "pray", demonstrate a divine answer to a prayer.

The hymn, popularly known as "Hannah's song", is found in today's responsorial psalm. In this hymn, God is seen as holy, all-powerful, all-present and in control of all life events of all creatures. The hymn of Hannah finds a counterpart in the New Testament in Mary's Magnificat. Declaring the greatness of the Lord and rejoicing in God as her Saviour, Mary contrasts her humble condition with the distinction of what God has done.

Both hymns express joy at the birth of a child and praise God's holiness and salvation. Both the hymns see the actions of God as part of a longstanding process of overthrowing proud human expectations and exalting the lowly where the proud rich are cast down, and the humble poor are raised up. Both hymns declare God's concern for the poor and the politically weak.

Christian leadership must not assume the ways of human power and the quality of Christian nourishment at the Lord's table is for the fulfilment of God's promise of blessing to Abraham and his faithful posterity forever.