1 Now Sarai Abram's wife bare him no children: and she had an handmaid, an Egyptian, whose name was Hagar.
2 And Sarai said unto Abram, “Behold now, the LORD has restrained me from bearing: I pray thee, go in unto my maid; it may be that I may obtain children by her.” And Abram hearkened to the voice of Sarai.
Today, a woman bears children until she has lived about 60% of her life. Sarai lived to be 127. 60% of her life would have been 76 years old. She would have been about 77 when this incident took place, or, very likely, just barely past menopause. Her human reasoning told her her time was up to have children, so God needed help in order to keep His promise.
We humans get into trouble when we don’t believe God, and when we try to help Him instead of just obeying.
This was actually a common custom when the woman of the house was barren. The child born to the slave would be called hers. If she ever did have a natural child, the slave’s child was to be given special gifts and a special place in the house, though he lost the place of “first son.” Later, in the Mosaic Law, God instructed Israel that the true first born was to retain the position of the first born even if his mother was “hated.”
“Abram hearkened to the voice of Sari.” He decided to follow his wife instead of holding fast to the promises of God. This not only caused problems to him and Sari, but is still causing problems today. Mohamed was a descendant of Hagar’s son Ishmael and the Muslims and the Israelis are still battling over who had the right of inheritance. We are always better off just waiting on God.
3 And Sarai, Abram's wife, took Hagar her maid the Egyptian, after Abram had dwelt ten years in the land of Canaan, and gave her to her husband Abram to be his wife.
Imagine being Hagar. Your owner tells you to go sleep with her husband. You don’t have a choice in the matter at all.
4 And he went in unto Hagar, and she conceived: and when she saw that she had conceived, her mistress was despised in her eyes.
Obviously, the fertility problems were not with Abram, but with Sarah. An infertile woman was viewed as less than a woman by others. Today, though we still look at an infertile woman as totally female, the heartbreak of infertility is just as painful.
5 And Sarai said unto Abram, “My wrong be upon thee: I have given my maid into thy bosom; and when she saw that she had conceived, I was despised in her eyes: the LORD judge between me and thee.”
“It’s all your fault! You shouldn’t have listened to me!” My husband would say “Typical female.”
6 But Abram said unto Sarai, “Behold, thy maid is in thine hand; do to her as it pleases thee.” And when Sarai dealt hardly with her, she fled from her face.
Sarai disciplined Hagar for her bad attitude. Hagar ran away.
7 And the angel of the LORD found her by a fountain of water in the wilderness, by the fountain in the way to Shur.
The wording goes back and forth from this being an angel to this being God Himself. Whether delivered through an angel or this “angel” was really God, they are the words of the All Mighty.
8 And He said, “Hagar, Sarai's maid, Where do thou come from? and where will thou go?” And she said, “I flee from the face of my mistress Sarai.”
9 And the angel of the LORD said unto her, “Return to thy mistress, and submit thyself under her hands.”
The angle tells Hagar to go home and resume her duties of “maid.” This is where she and her son will get the care they need.
10 And the angel of the LORD said unto her, “I will multiply thy seed exceedingly, that it shall not be numbered for multitude.”
This has certainly come true. The majority of people in the middle east today are descended from Ishmael.
11 And the angel of the LORD said unto her, “Behold, thou are with child and shall bear a son, and shall call his name Ishmael; because the LORD has heard thy affliction.
Ishmael means “God hears.”
12 “And he will be a wild man; his hand will be against every man, and every man's hand against him; and he shall dwell in the presence of all his brethren.”
Throughout history, the descendants of Ishmael have been at war, if not with others, than with themselves.
13 And she called the name of the LORD that spake unto her, “Thou God sees me:” for she said, “Have I also here looked after Him that sees me?”
14 Wherefore the well was called Beerlahairoi; behold, it is between Kadesh and Bered.
“Beerlahairoi” means “Well of the one who lives and sees me.”
15 And Hagar bare Abram a son: and Abram called his son's name, which Hagar bare, Ishmael.
16 And Abram was 86 years old, when Hagar bare Ishmael to Abram.
- Ishmael was born in 2094AH (1952BC).
- Abram was born 2008 (2038BC)
- He left Haran at 75- 2083 (1963BC)
- Ishmael was born 11 years later- 2094 (1952BC)