1. 1 Samuel 2:10 (ESV)
  2. Exposition

Why does Hannah pray about a king when there was no king in Israel at the time?

1 Samuel 2:10 (ESV)

10 The adversaries of the LORD shall be broken to pieces; against them he will thunder in heaven. The LORD will judge the ends of the earth; he will give strength to his king and exalt the horn of his anointed.”

Hannah expects the Lord to establish his rule through his king.1 In this we see that her hopes were consistent with those of the people living at the time. Amongst the Israelites, there was the general expectation that it would be good for them to have one king who can rule over them and fight their battles (cf. Judges 8:21–22; Judges 9:6).2