Genesis 16

The story about Hagar and Ishmael

1-3Abram and Sarai lived in that Canaan country, and after they were there for 10 years, they still had no kids. Sarai had a woman from Egypt working for her, called Hagar. She was Sarai’s slave. That means Sarai owned Hagar, and Hagar had to do everything that Sarai told her to do.

Sarai was sad because she had no kids, but she got an idea about how to get a baby for herself. So she said to Abram, “God has stopped me from having my own kids. But listen. I want you to sleep with Hagar, like she is your wife. You see, she belongs to me, so if she has a baby, that baby will really belong to me.” So Abram did that, just like Sarai said. 4He slept with Hagar like she was his wife.

Then Hagar found out that she was going to have a baby, so she started rubbishing Sarai all the time, because Sarai didn’t have any kids. 5So Sarai said to Abram, “I blame you for this trouble. I gave Hagar to you, and now she is going to have a baby, and she is rubbishing me all the time. I reckon God knows that I am right, and you are wrong.”

6But Abram said to Sarai, “Hagar belongs to you. You are her boss, so do whatever you want with her.” Then Sarai started to treat Hagar in a really bad way. So Hagar left Abram and Sarai’s camp and ran away.

7Hagar started walking through the desert, along the road that went to a town called Shur, near Egypt. She sat down next to a water-hole there in the desert. God’s angel messenger went to her there. 8He said, “Hagar, you belong to Sarai, so why are you sitting out here in the desert? Where are you going?”

Hagar said, “I’m running away from my boss, Sarai. She is too hard on me.”

9God’s angel messenger said to her, “Don’t do that. Go back to your boss, and do what she says.” 10And the angel also said, “God is going to give you a really big family. You will have a son, and later on lots of people will be born into his family, and they will be a real big family, so that nobody will be able to count all those people.” 11The angel said, “You are going to have a baby boy, and you will name him Ishmael, because that name means God listens. You see, God listened to you. He heard about your trouble, and he will help you. 12And Ishmael, your son, he will live like a wild donkey. He will go anywhere he wants to, and he will fight against everybody, and everybody will fight against him. He will not live close to his relatives.”

13Then Hagar said to herself, “I have seen the God that sees me, and he looks after me.” So she gave God a name, she called him the God that sees me. 14So that’s why people call that water-hole the water-hole that belongs to the one that is alive and sees me. That water-hole is between a place called Kadesh and a place called Bered.

15Soon after that, Hagar had a baby boy, and Abram named him Ishmael.#Galatians 4:22 16Abram was 86 years old at the time when Ishmael was born.

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Genesis 16

Hagar and Ishmael

1Abram’s wife, Sarai, had not borne any children for him, but she owned an Egyptian slave named Hagar. 2Sarai#Gn 3:17 said to Abram, “Since the Lord has prevented me from bearing children, go to my slave; perhaps through her I can build a family.” And Abram agreed to what Sarai said. 3So Abram’s wife, Sarai, took Hagar, her Egyptian slave, and gave her to her husband, Abram, as a wife for him. This happened after Abram had lived in the land of Canaan ten years. 4He slept with#16:4 Lit He came to Hagar, and she became pregnant. When she saw that she was pregnant, her mistress became contemptible to her. 5Then Sarai said to Abram, “You are responsible for my suffering!#16:5 Or “May my suffering be on you! I put my slave in your arms,#16:5 Lit bosom and when she saw that she was pregnant, I became contemptible to her. May the Lord judge between me and you.”#Gn 31:49; Jos 22:25; 1Sm 24:12

6Abram replied to Sarai, “Here, your slave is in your power; do whatever you want with her.” Then Sarai mistreated her so much that she ran away from her.

7The angel of the Lord#Gn 22:11; Ex 3:2; Nm 22:22; Jdg 2:1; 2Sm 24:16; 1Kg 19:7; 2Kg 19:35; Ps 34:7 found her by a spring in the wilderness, the spring on the way to Shur. 8He said, “Hagar, slave of Sarai, where have you come from and where are you going?”

She replied, “I’m running away from my mistress Sarai.”

9The angel of the Lord said to her, “Go back to your mistress and submit to her authority.” 10The angel of the Lord said to her, “I will greatly multiply your offspring,#Gn 15:5; 17:2; 26:24; Lv 26:9; Dt 7:13; 30:5; Ps 107:38 and they will be too many to count.”

11The angel of the Lord said to her, “You have conceived and will have a son. You will name him Ishmael,#16:11 = God Hears for the Lord has heard your cry of affliction. 12This man will be like a wild donkey. His hand will be against everyone, and everyone’s hand will be against him; he will settle near all his relatives.”#Gn 25:18

13So she named the Lord who spoke to her: “You are El-roi,”#16:13 = God Sees Me for she said, “In this place, have I actually seen#Gn 32:30; Ex 33:23; Ps 139:1–12 the one who sees me?” #16:13 Hb obscure 14That is why the well is called Beer-lahai-roi.#16:14 = Well of the Living One Who Sees Me It is between Kadesh and Bered.

15So Hagar gave birth to Abram’s son, and Abram named his son (whom Hagar bore) Ishmael. 16Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore Ishmael to him.

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