Elkanah

Elkanah was the husband of Hannah and Peninnah, an Ephraimite from Ramathaim-Zophim who is significant primarily as the father of Samuel (1 Samuel 1:1–2). He was a devout man who made regular annual pilgrimages to Shiloh to worship and offer sacrifices to the Lord. He treated his barren wife Hannah tenderly, giving her a double portion of the sacrificial meal and asking 'Am I not more to you than ten sons?' (1 Samuel 1:8). After Hannah's prayer was answered and she bore Samuel, Elkanah respected her vow to dedicate the boy to God's service at Shiloh (1 Samuel 1:21–28). He is listed in a genealogy in 1 Chronicles 6:23–28 that connects him to the Kohathite branch of the Levites, a detail that may explain the family's deep commitment to the Tabernacle.