“Now there was a certain man of Ramathaim-Zophim, of mount Ephraim, and his name was Elkanah, the son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the son of Zuph, an Ephrathite” (1 Samuel 1:1).

This scripture requires some explanation because it might seem to indicate that Samuel was not a Levite, since he is called an Ephrathite. The following explanation is drawn from notes in the Soncino Commentary, a Jewish source, and sets things in order for 1 Samuel 1:1.

RAMATHAIM-ZOPHIM

Where is Ramathaim-Zophim, which was home to Elkanah, father of Samuel?

It is clear from 1 Samuel 1:19 that Ramah is meant. Ramathaim (dual of Ramah in Hebrew) is a form of the name which is found only here, and no satisfactory explanation of its use has been given. The Talmud suggests “two heights facing (tsophoth) each other.” The epithet Zophim distinguishes Samuel’s Ramah from other towns of the same name. Zuph is mentioned in 1 Samuel 9:5 as the name of the district in which Saul found Samuel’s home, and it is possible that both it and Zophim are connected with Elkanah’s ancestor, Zophai (compare 1 Chronicles 6:26 and 1 Chronicles 6:35).

Ramah (height) is a common Biblical place-name, but the site of Samuel’s Ramah is not definitely known. Four suggested identifications are: (1) Er-Ram, five miles due north of Jerusalem, (2) Ram-Allah, on the western slopes of Mount Ephraim, nine miles north of Jerusalem, (3) Beit-Rima, a village on a hill twelve miles north-west of Bethel, and (4) Rentis, a small village five miles west of Beit-Rima.

The Hill-Country of Ephraim is the central mountainous district of the Holy Land in which the tribe of Ephraim settled (Joshua 17:1O). The name may have extended southward to the territory of Benjamin, if Ramah lay there. This would explain how the Ramah of Samuel, Ramathaim-Zophim, could be described as “of mount Ephraim.” Which in turn would explain why Elkanah, father of Samuel, is termed an “Ephrathite.” It does not necessarily means he was descended from Ephraim.

ELKANAH’S GENEALOGY

Elkanah’s genealogy is given twice, with slight variations. (1) 1 Chronicles 6:26 and related texts, and (2) 1 Chronicles 6:33 and related texts. These show that Heman, one of Samuel’s grandsons, was appointed to lead the singing in the temple of Solomon. Elkanah’s ancestry is traced back to Kohath, the son of Levi.

Since Elkanah was a Levite, his description as an Ephrathite (1 Samuel 1:1) may mean that his family originally belonged to the Kohathite settlements in the territory of Ephraim (Joshua 21:2O). If Ramah lay within the borders of Benjamin, perhaps Zuph, Elkanah’s ancestor, moved from the territory assigned to his family in Ephraim.

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