For This Child I Prayed 18.5"x23.5"

Celebrating the joy of motherhood, this exquisite portrait depicts Hannah in the life-renewing role of nurturer, with her son, Samuel. From the artist’s acclaimed “Women in Scriptures” series, the painting first appeared in the bestselling book Women of the Old Testament.

THE STORY IN THE PAINTING: (from 1 Samuel 1:11, 19-20, 24-28) This painting celebrates the joy of motherhood, depicting Hannah in the life-renewing role of nurturer. Grieved because she was childless, Hannah went to the Lord with her petition for a child, promising that she would give the child to the Lord to be His servant. Her request was blessed by the High Priest, Eli, and Hannah brought forth a child named Samuel. In the few years between the infant's birth and his presentation at the Tabernacle, Hannah cared for him and planted seeds of faith and devotion through her nurturing influence. Hannah's expression of happiness is a reflection of the joy she feels at the blessings of the Lord. In addition to granting Hannah's request, the Lord promises her and her husband more children, showing us that, indeed, the Lord "crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies..." (see Psalms 103:4).

SYMBOLISM OR SIGNIFICANT ELEMENTS IN THE PAINTING: Hannah and Samuel are depicted with a stone building visible behind the figures. The dwelling symbolizes the words in Hannah's prayer of thanksgiving: "There is none holy as the Lord: for there is none beside thee: neither is there any rock like our God" (1 Samuel 2).

The fabric directly behind Hannah recalls many artists' depictions of Old Testament prophets, commonly shown in striped clothing, and is meant to symbolize Samuel's prophetic mission and the Priesthood power given to the tribe of Levi (see 1 Chronicles 23).

Samuel wears a white tunic trimmed in gold. This symbolizes the "linen ephod" he would later wear while he "ministered before the Lord, being a child" (1 Samuel 2:18). The details of the lovingly-crafted garment symbolize the central importance of purity in the life of both mother and child. The whiteness of his clothing symbolizes what one Bible Dictionary refers to as Samuel's "faith, patience, integrity, and self-sacrifice" (BD, 768). Hannah also wears white, symbolic of her faith and purity. Her brightly colored wrap warmly enfolds her and visually "touches" the child, symbolizing the influence of a righteous mother in the life of her child.