Genesis 16:1-16
THE SCHEMES OF IMPATIENCE
This chapter tells the story of the birth of Ishmael. But the emphasis falls not so much on the birth of the child as on the conflict between Sarah — who at that time was still called Sarai — and her slave Hagar, the mother of Ishmael. Sarai commands her servant to become her husband’s wife (v.3) in order to bear him a child; and when the child is born and it is only natural for Abram to grow more attentive toward Hagar, the immediate mother of his child, Sarai is offended by the change in the way both her husband and her slave now treat her.
1 Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had borne him no children. But she had an Egyptian slave named Hagar; 2 so she said to Abram, “The Lord has kept me from having children. Go, sleep with my slave; perhaps I can build a family through her.” (Genesis 16:1-2)
Despite God’s promises of countless descendants, Abram and Sarai had already been childless for ten years. Abram was seventy-five years old when he left Harran on the way to Canaan (Genesis 12:4). Ten years had passed since then, and now he was eighty-five (Genesis 16:3), yet Abram and Sarai still had no children. Why was God delaying in giving an heir? So that it would become more than clear to everyone that the child who was to be born would be the fruit of God’s power alone, and not of chance, human strength, ability, or skill.
Waiting for a child, however, is the most painful thing in the world. Attempts to obtain an heir by some roundabout means were characteristic not only of Sarai, but of Abram as well. In the previous chapter, chapter 15, we read how Abram planned for his servant Eliezer of Damascus to become his heir. This corresponds to the laws written on the cuneiform tablets discovered by American archaeologists in 1930 in the ancient city of Nuzi (Nuzu) in northern Mesopotamia. The city of Nuzi flourished in Abraham’s day, around 2000 years before Christ. According to the laws of that time, a childless family could adopt a child of its own choosing to become its full and rightful heir in exchange for constant care and a proper burial for the parents. The marriage laws of Nuzi, as well as the Code of Hammurabi, provided another option. If the wife in a household could not have children, then the son of her slave could be accepted as a lawful heir. So the relationships between Sarah, Hagar, and Abram that we read about in this chapter are typical of the customs that prevailed in Mesopotamia at that time. Abram’s concern for Hagar and her welfare also fits the laws of the day, for according to them it was forbidden to sell a slave who had borne a child to her masters. In such a case she became, in a sense, part of the family, even though she did not enjoy the rights of a lawful wife.
I say all this to explain that Sarai’s words to Abram may sound unacceptable to us, but they were in keeping with the laws of the time. She simply wanted to take advantage of the “loopholes” the law allowed and to “help” God fulfill His promise.
The problem is that whenever we try to replace God’s supernatural power with human schemes and tactics, the result of our inadequate faith is nothing but pride, strife, and trouble in God’s family.
Abram agreed to what Sarai said. (Genesis 16:2)
It is striking that Abram listened to Sarai. In this chapter he is a silent figure. He confirms the old saying that “the man is the head of the family, but the woman is the neck” — he turns wherever she wishes.
The text explicitly says that Hagar was an Egyptian, but this did not stop him. Later, however, we see that God forbids marriage to foreign women (Deuteronomy 7:3-4), not only to prevent family conflicts, but also to avoid idolatry. The name Hagar actually means “foreigner.” This whole conflict and its consequences show that God’s original and perfect plan is for a man to have only one wife and a woman only one husband.
Moreover, using Hagar in order to obtain an heir was a total violation of her human rights and an abuse of her person. She was treated not as a human being with feelings and dignity, but as an object, merely as an instrument for achieving certain goals, as a creature without desires or emotions.
3 So after Abram had been living in Canaan ten years, Sarai his wife took her Egyptian slave Hagar and gave her to her husband to be his wife. 4 He slept with Hagar, and she conceived. When she knew she was pregnant, she began to despise her mistress. (Genesis 16:3-4)
THE UNFORESEEN CONSEQUENCES
At first Sarai’s plan went smoothly. Abram slept with Hagar and she became pregnant. But then another problem arose. Because she had been intimate with her master and carried his child in her womb, Hagar’s “stock” went up, and she seems to have turned up her nose. Perhaps before this she had served her mistress more diligently, but now she was pregnant and had to “take care of herself.” We do not know exactly how, but her attitude offended Sarai. Yet Sarai could do nothing to her as long as Hagar was under her husband’s protection.
5 Then Sarai said to Abram, “You are responsible for the wrong I am suffering. I put my slave in your arms, and now that she knows she is pregnant, she despises me. May the Lord judge between you and me.” (Genesis 16:5)
Sarai grew angry with her husband. Look how absurd this is. The idea of obtaining a child through her slave was her own. She was the one who gave Hagar to Abram. And now she is angry with him. Clearly, like most of us, Sarai was always inclined to shift the blame onto someone else. At first she blamed God for her childlessness. In verse 1 she says, “The Lord has kept me from having children…” In these words we can sense a reproach and an accusation against God for her condition. Then she blames Abram for the fact that she felt offended by the change in Hagar’s attitude toward her. And he, once again, is a silent figure:
6 “Your slave is in your hands,” Abram said. “Do with her whatever you think best.” (Genesis 16:6)
Here we clearly have a second transfer of ownership over the slave Hagar. Originally she was the property of Sarai. Then Sarai handed Hagar over to Abram, and she became his property. Now, however, Abram seems to officially return her to Sarai. Losing Abram’s protection, Hagar falls into a position where she can be treated in the worst possible way by Sarai. And Sarai was bitter, and she did not miss the chance to pay poor Hagar back to the fullest. Her treatment of her was so unbearable that in the end Hagar could not endure it and fled from her — she gathered her things and vanished off in an unknown direction.
Then Sarai mistreated Hagar; so she fled from her. (Genesis 16:6)
We are not told exactly what Sarai did to Hagar, but it is emphasized that she “mistreated” her. We can imagine for ourselves what that meant. In my opinion Sarai treated Hagar worse than a wicked mother-in-law treats her daughter-in-law. Imagine how many tears and how much bitterness piled up in the hearts of both of them. In the end Hagar could not endure Sarah, and she fled from her even at the risk of her own life and the life of the child she carried in her womb.
Who was to blame for this whole ugly situation? All three of them. When Hagar became pregnant, her pride rose up and she began to act foolishly. Who knows? Perhaps her new position allowed her to express her bitterness at the way Sarai had treated her as a slave. Either way, the self-willed spirit to which she had surrendered kept her from accepting reproof and correction. Abraham, on the other hand, seemed far too easily yielding and ready to do anything to avoid a quarrel with his wife. Instead of trying to reconcile his wives and improve the relationship between them, he preferred the easy way out of the situation — to shift the responsibility for Hagar onto Sarai. Sarai, in turn, was overly harsh and merciless in her treatment of Hagar. Such are the ways of people when they leave God’s path and begin to follow their own inventions.
THE ALL-SEEING GOD
Here the scene changes — from Abram’s home the author brings us to a spring out in the wilderness. Even though Abram, in order to please his wife, did not take care of Hagar, God did.
7 The angel of the Lord found Hagar near a spring in the desert; it was the spring that is beside the road to Shur. (Genesis 16:7)
We can run and hide from people, but not from the Lord. Wherever we go, He will find us. When the Bible speaks of “the Angel of the Lord,” this is not an ordinary angel created by God, but God Himself, appearing in the flesh before human beings. According to a number of church fathers and prominent theologians, this is Christ Himself in His pre-incarnate state. The fact that God appeared to Hagar in the wilderness and that He was concerned for her shows that with God there is no partiality. He has no favorites. He treats everyone as equals, regardless of their position or material condition. To Him a slave is just as important as a mistress.
8 And he said, “Hagar, slave of Sarai, where have you come from, and where are you going?” “I’m running away from my mistress Sarai,” she answered. (Genesis 16:8)
The Angel of the Lord called Hagar “slave of Sarai” — a title that underscores her belonging to Sarai in spite of Sarai’s unbearable treatment of her. Hagar was honest. She simply said, “I’m running away from my mistress.”
9 Then the angel of the Lord told her, “Go back to your mistress and submit to her.” (Genesis 16:9)
Here we see that God is against tyranny and oppression, but He is even more against rebellion. Sarai had abused her authority as a mistress, but she still remained Hagar’s mistress. Even Hagar acknowledged this when she said, “I’m running away from my mistress Sarai.” Therefore, Hagar now had to give up her self-will and return to her duties as Sarai’s servant.
Consider this: at that moment Hagar was pregnant, but she had not yet given birth to her child. If the child had been born outside Abraham’s household, it would hardly have been regarded as Abraham’s son or benefited from the protection and upbringing of its father. In fleeing from Sarai, Hagar was also losing Abraham. So it truly was not easy for her.
Nevertheless, when Hagar heard God’s instruction to return and submit, she was evidently not especially inclined to obey it, so the Angel of the Lord added a promise to it:
10 The angel added, “I will increase your descendants so much that they will be too numerous to count.” 11 The angel of the Lord also said to her: “You are now pregnant and you will give birth to a son. You shall name him Ishmael, for the Lord has heard of your misery. 12 He will be a wild donkey of a man; his hand will be against everyone and everyone’s hand against him, and he will live in hostility toward all his brothers.” (Genesis 16:10-12)
The promise of countless descendants evidently made Hagar feel compensated by God for her suffering at Sarai’s hands. The birth of a son in particular, rather than a daughter, was considered an especially great blessing in that culture. The name of her son, “Ishmael,” would always remind her that God is always with her, that He knows everything she is going through and “hears her misery.” The prediction concerning the people whose forefather is Ishmael is fulfilled in a remarkable way. The Ishmaelites, or Arabs, are indeed such a people — freedom-loving, independent, wandering, and always at odds with their neighbors. In the Middle Ages they contributed in a distinctive way to the development of our civilization through their great discoveries in the fields of mathematics, astronomy, and physics. With their remarkable history, which corresponds to God’s promises, they are an undeniable proof of the truth of God’s revelation and the divine inspiration of the Holy Scriptures.
13 She gave this name to the Lord who spoke to her: “You are the God who sees me,” for she said, “I have now seen the One who sees me.” 14 That is why the well was called Beer Lahai Roi; it is still there, between Kadesh and Bered. (Genesis 16:13-14)
In this verse it says not only that an Angel spoke to Hagar, but that “the Lord” spoke to her. And indeed, in this encounter we see that the Angel of the Lord
- finds the runaway slave Hagar beside a well in the wilderness;
- calls her by name, knows who and what she is;
- tells her what to do — reminds her of her responsibility and commands her to submit to her mistress;
- gives her a promise;
- foretells what her child will be, gives him a name, and predicts the future of his descendants.
All these facts lead us to conclude that the “Angel” who met Hagar at the spring on the road to Shur was God Himself in the person of the pre-incarnate Lord Jesus Christ, the Second Person of the Trinity. Here we find one of the names of God — El Roi — “the God who sees.” Perhaps you too, like Hagar, are running away from some difficult situation in which you have been treated unjustly. And perhaps, like her, you too are part of the problem. But take comfort in the truth that El Roi, “the Lord who sees,” sees your problem and knows your pain and sorrow. He has heard the words that have been spoken against you and knows everything you have endured. But if you are in rebellion, then submit to the authority that is over you — not for the sake of people, but for the sake of the Lord. And you will not be disappointed, because God will bless you. He has no favorites. Just as He blessed Hagar in her distress, so He will bless you too, if you humble yourself and become obedient.
Hearing all these wonderful promises, Hagar submitted to God and returned to Sarai (vv.15-16).
15 So Hagar bore Abram a son, and Abram gave the name Ishmael to the son she had borne. 16 Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore him Ishmael. (Genesis 16:15-16)
Now Hagar was again living with Sarah, but she also enjoyed Abraham’s presence. Moreover, serving and submitting to Sarah no longer weighed on her so heavily, because she did it not for Sarah’s sake, but for the Lord’s. And He was faithful to His promises and continued to care for her. Twelve years later, when after the birth of Isaac a conflict arose again — and this time Hagar was driven out of their home together with her son Ishmael — God appeared to her once more (Genesis 21:8-21).
8 The child grew and was weaned, and on the day Isaac was weaned Abraham held a great feast. 9 But Sarah saw that the son whom Hagar the Egyptian had borne to Abraham was mocking, 10 and she said to Abraham, “Get rid of that slave woman and her son, for that woman’s son will never share in the inheritance with my son Isaac.” 11 The matter distressed Abraham greatly because it concerned his son. 12 But God said to him, “Do not be so distressed about the boy and your slave woman. Listen to whatever Sarah tells you, because it is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned. 13 I will make the son of the slave into a nation also, because he is your offspring.” 14 Early the next morning Abraham took some food and a skin of water and gave them to Hagar. He set them on her shoulders and then sent her off with the boy. She went on her way and wandered in the Desert of Beersheba. 15 When the water in the skin was gone, she put the boy under one of the bushes. 16 Then she went off and sat down about a bowshot away, for she thought, “I cannot watch the boy die.” And as she sat there, she began to sob. 17 God heard the boy crying, and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and said to her, “What is the matter, Hagar? Do not be afraid; God has heard the boy crying as he lies there. 18 Lift the boy up and take him by the hand, for I will make him into a great nation.” (Genesis 21:8-18)
19 Then God opened her eyes and she saw a well of water. So she went and filled the skin with water and gave the boy a drink. 20 God was with the boy as he grew up. He lived in the desert and became an archer. 21 While he was living in the Desert of Paran, his mother got a wife for him from Egypt. (Genesis 21:19-21)
In this case, too, we see that God remained faithful to His promises. He continues to be the One who hears, who sees, who provides, and who saves. He is El Roi, and He will never leave you or forget you. Just as He had a plan for Hagar, so He has a plan for you. The question is: will you humble yourself enough to submit to Him and do His will, even when it runs contrary to your own views and intentions?