Hannah: Mother of a Prophet by H. B. Moore

Author:H. B. Moore
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Covenant Communications, Inc.
Published: 2022-05-09T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Seventeen

City of Shiloh

Samuel checked more than once on Abigail and Noa where they rested in the alcove, but the final hours of the afternoon until sundown were busy, as most festival days were. He rotated through duties and performed sacrifices and oversaw others. When he returned to the post at the gate, he felt easier since he could see the women where they were sitting in the shaded alcove.

As the lines formed to be allowed inside the temple grounds, Samuel always used the opportunity to teach the gathered people. Ironically, after his words, some patrons left. Currently, there were two families, complete with young children, an older woman, and two men who could pass for brothers.

“Welcome to the temple,” Samuel began. “The grounds are sacred and have been dedicated for worship, prayer, song, and offering up sacrifices unto the Lord.”

The people in line turned their attention to him.

“I am Samuel, priest of the temple,” he continued, spreading his hands. “As you prepare yourself to make your offerings, think of that person you want to become. You will enter the temple as a sinner but walk out clean and pure. Will you promise to remain in your purity and forsake your former sins?”

One of the women nodded.

“God is ever watchful, and God expects His children to keep the commandments and devote themselves to good lives.”

Thankfully, this group of people were mellow and calm. Once in a while, Samuel would encounter someone who wanted to argue with him. After he let the current group of people through the gates, a beggar approached.

From time to time, when a beggar approached, Samuel offered something—a piece of flat bread, a tied cloth containing dates, or a parcel of nuts. He kept a basket at his feet with items he’d brought from home in order to offer sustenance.

He’d been witness to beggars his entire life in Shiloh. When he’d first started trading the meat he earned from the sacrifices for things like silver or incense, Eli had caught Samuel handing that out to beggars.

“They are in need of immediate nourishment,” Eli had told Samuel. “If you give them a piece of silver, they will spend it wastefully and still be hungry. Give them food and drink if you must, but not something they can lose or squander.”

So, a food basket it was.

His gaze strayed to the alcove. He couldn’t see Abigail’s face right now, since she had her back turned as she faced Noa. He’d always thought of his youngest sister as a child, but today, she was proving to be a wonderful friend to another person in need. He was proud of the woman she’d become, and he knew her friendship was valuable to Abigail.

Which was somehow very important to him right now.

He would have to tell her the complete truth tonight. It wasn’t something he could withhold much longer, because Abigail had a right to know and a right to share the news with her mother.

“I do not have an offering, Priest,” a woman said.

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