1 Samuel 1:21

21 Then Elkanah and all his house went up to make the annual sacrifice to the LORD and to fulfill his vow,

1 Samuel 1:21 Meaning and Commentary

1 Samuel 1:21

And the man Elkanah, and all his house
All his family, excepting Hannah, and her son Samuel; or all the men of his house, as the Targum; for only the males were obliged to appear at the three festivals:

went up to Shiloh;
to the house of God there:

to offer unto the Lord the yearly sacrifice;
either the passover, to which men commonly went up with their families: see ( Luke 2:41 Luke 2:42 ) , or rather it may be what was offered at the feast of tabernacles, as Abarbinel thinks, the time of the ingathering the fruits of the earth, when men went up with their families to offer sacrifice, and express their joy on that account, ( Deuteronomy 16:10-15 )

and his vow:
which he had made between feast and feast; for whatever vows men made at home, on any account, they paid them at the yearly festivals; and this vow might be on the account of the birth of his son, by way of thanksgiving for that.

1 Samuel 1:21 In-Context

19 The next morning they got up early to bow in worship before the LORD, and then they returned home to Ramah. And Elkanah had relations with his wife Hannah, and the LORD remembered her.

20 So in the course of time, Hannah conceived and gave birth to a son. She named him Samuel, saying, “Because I have asked for him from the LORD.”

21 Then Elkanah and all his house went up to make the annual sacrifice to the LORD and to fulfill his vow,

22 but Hannah did not go. “After the boy is weaned,” she said to her husband, “I will take him to appear before the LORD and to stay there permanently.”

23 “Do what you think is best,” her husband Elkanah replied, “and stay here until you have weaned him. Only may the LORD confirm His word.” So Hannah stayed and nursed her son until she had weaned him.