Hannah's Song

1 Samuel 2:1-10 as interpreted by Deborah

Hannah prayed,

My heart leaps for joy,
for God has given me a victory.
So much for my enemies!
I delight in Your saving grace, my Lord!

No one is like God,
truly, my Redeemer, you are the One:
the rock, the fortress, the King of kings.

Give up your conceit,
Don’t scorn or sneer!
For God knows everything
and judges accordingly.

Might doesn’t make right,
power is no guarantee of success,
wealth cannot buy happiness,
and beauty is often only skin-deep.

The robber-barons of yesteryear
now moulder in the grave;
Once-mighty warriors
feed pigeons in the park.

The headline-makers of yesterday
have already been forgotten:
their 15 minutes of fame is over.

But God remembers the heroes;
the faithful and persistent
of every age and time —
and raises them up in glory divine.

He has established the Kingdom
upon their shoulders,
and watches over them lovingly —
these pillars of hope and courage.

The wicked slink into the shadows,
but God is not to be fooled —
their evil deeds shall not prevail,
but will perish in obscurity.

The voice of God thunders against them,
The Just One condemns the hateful,
the greedy, and the vicious.

God’s will shall triumph:
abundant love and mercy will endure.