“And Hannah prayed, and said…There is none holy as the LORD, for there is
none beside You, neither is there any rock like our God.”
Hannah’s powerful prayer captures and memorializes an axiom in Jewish creed, as Abravanel will now
develop. Naturally, she acknowledged that her son’s conception and birth was miraculous, a first-rate
wonder. Hannah also acknowledged the source of her joyousness. “My heart exults in the LORD.”
But when she exclaims: “There is none holy as the LORD” what is she driving at? To be perfectly
unequivocal, Hannah seeks to disabuse impudent intellectuals and foolish philosophers, as her
immediate follow-up shows. “Let not [misplaced] exaltedness come out of your mouth, for the LORD is a
God of knowledge, and by Him actions are weighed.” Abravanel’s translation of that verse is
unconventional. It calls for clarification. Here it is.
Scoffers ascribe life’s events to ’nature taking its course.’ For them, it is a skewed understanding of how
the world operates, not to mention a farcical understanding of the nature of God. The discussion hinges
on the correct reading of verse concerning God’s “[misplaced] exaltedness.” Dithering dolts attribute
Hannah giving birth to nature, not to divine providence. For them, Hannah has choice words. Such a
mindset makes a grave mistake about God. While it is certainly true that “there is none holy as the
LORD” it does not follow that He stands aloof from the affairs of man. Just as patently false is that the
Maker cares not a fig about man.
Since providence represents a bedrock pillar and cornerstone of Judaism, it needs to be fleshed out,
which Hannah’s prayer does. On the one hand, “none is holy as the LORD.” Yet, that does not suggest
God as too sublime to care. He is not indifferent to man, let alone too transcendent to pay attention to
him. To the contrary. Hannah demands thinkers who would have us believe that God belongs to the
outer universe, to rethink posthaste. “Let not [misplaced] exaltedness come out of your mouth.” Dispel
highfalutin notions about an isolationist God being way out there somewhere. Holy yes, remote no. The
Creator takes great interest in things that transpire in the world. Furthermore, He judges man’s deeds.
“And by Him actions are weighed.”
Abravanel says that Hannah’s prayer conveys plain truths. God is most holy, none as holy as He.
Notwithstanding, theological bunkum about God being unwatchful or unmindful of man’s conduct could
not be further from the truth.
Hannah’s motherhood is a case in point. Her heartful prayer exalted in God, precisely because she knew
that He had heard and answered her, blessing her with a son. Hannah dismisses loose-lipped big talkers,
replacing lies with truth: “By Him, actions are weighed.” Thus, we present an indispensable Biblical
insight based upon Abravanel’s comments on Hannah’s prayer.