Abstract: Most biblical students are familiar with the story of Hannah, who after years of barrenness, finally gave birth to the prophet Samuel. Some will remember her adversary, Peninnah, who allegedly tormented Hannah to tears. My objective in this article is to reclaim Peninnah’s good name by reinterpreting the passage found in 1 Samuel 1:6.

table {border: 1px solid #dddddd; margin: auto !important; width: unset !important; margin-bottom: 1em !important;} td, th {border: 1px solid #dddddd; padding: 5px !important; text-align: left; vertical-align: top;} th {background-color: #eeeeee; color: #373737 !important; font-size: 100% !important; font-weight: 700 !important; text-transform: none !important; line-height: 1.5 !important} .centered td, .centered th {text-align: center !important;} .right td, .right th {text-align: right !important;} td.left, th.left {text-align: left !important;} td.centered, th.centered {text-align: center !important;} td.right, th.right {text-align: right !important;} table.noborder, table.noborder td{border: 0px solid #ffffff; padding: 0 5px !important} p.caption-text {text-align: center !important; margin-top: 1em !important; font-weight: 700;} .chiasm-b {padding-left: 2em;} .chiasm-c {padding-left: 4em;} .chiasm-d {padding-left: 6em;} .chiasm-e {padding-left: 8em;} .chiasm-f {padding-left: 10em;} .chiasm-g {padding-left: 12em;} p.caption {margin-top: 1em !important; text-align: center !important; font-weight: 700 !important;}

Imagine you are scrolling through Netflix and spot a movie that looks interesting, so you decide to watch it. When it ends you feel moved by its message. Interested in how others reacted, you get on your laptop and go to the movie’s website. While reading comments left by other viewers, you notice that almost everyone is talking about one particular scene. The odd thing is that you don’t remember that scene at all. Here is how one viewer summarized the scene:

Ken and Anna are sitting at a booth in a local diner. A young waitress, Pearl, approaches, hands them menus, and says something offensive to Anna, but Ken doesn’t seem to notice. Anna, however, heard it and internalized it. When Pearl comes back to take their orders, she also takes the opportunity to get in another jab at Anna. When she brings the food to the table, she piles on yet more insults. Ken seems oblivious, but Anna is deeply hurt. She abruptly gets up from the booth and runs toward the front door, with Ken close behind. They both stop just outside the door of the diner and Ken embraces her. Unaware, he asks: “Anna, what’s wrong? Why are you crying, and why won’t you eat the meal we just ordered? Just then the door of the diner opens and out steps Pearl. She glances at the couple, gives Anna a nasty look, and then walks away.

[Page 38]When you finish reading this comment, the scene sounds even less familiar. You remember Ken and Anna standing outside of a building and hugging while she cried — it could have been a diner, you guess — but that is all you remember. So, you go back to Netflix, reload the movie, and skip to that scene. But, in your version of the movie, nothing comes before their embrace at the front door; Ken and Anna don’t sit at a booth inside the building, and Pearl never talks to them. As you keep watching, a woman walks through the front door, glances at the couple, and walks off screen. Did she throw a “nasty” look at Anna? You don’t think she did, but maybe you missed something. You rewind the scene and watch it again. This time you pause as the other woman looks over at Anna, and you notice that she is wearing a restaurant uniform, and she has a badge with the name Pearl on it. Those are details you never would have seen had you not paused the film. But does her glance appear mean-spirited? Not that you can tell. It seems more like just a curious look.