Genesis 16

1-2Sarai, Abram’s wife, hadn’t yet produced a child.

She had an Egyptian maid named Hagar. Sarai said to Abram, “God has not seen fit to let me have a child. Sleep with my maid. Maybe I can get a family from her.” Abram agreed to do what Sarai said.

3-4So Sarai, Abram’s wife, took her Egyptian maid Hagar and gave her to her husband Abram as a wife. Abram had been living ten years in Canaan when this took place. He slept with Hagar and she got pregnant. When Hagar learned she was pregnant, she looked down on her mistress.

5Sarai told Abram, “It’s all your fault that I’m suffering this abuse. I put my maid in bed with you and the minute she knows she’s pregnant, she treats me like I’m nothing. May God decide which of us is right.”

6“You decide,” said Abram. “Your maid is your business.”

Sarai was abusive to Hagar and Hagar ran away.

7-8An angel of God found her beside a spring in the desert; it was the spring on the road to Shur. He said, “Hagar, maid of Sarai, what are you doing here?”

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

9-12The angel of God said, “Go back to your mistress. Put up with her abuse.” He continued, “I’m going to give you a big family, children past counting.

From this pregnancy, you’ll get a son: Name him Ishmael;

for God heard you, God answered you.

He’ll be a bucking bronco of a man,

a real fighter, fighting and being fought,

Always stirring up trouble,

always at odds with his family.”

13She answered God by name, praying to the God who spoke to her, “You’re the God who sees me!

“Yes! He saw me; and then I saw him!”

14That’s how that desert spring got named “God-Alive-Sees-Me Spring.” That spring is still there, between Kadesh and Bered.

15-16Hagar gave Abram a son. Abram named him Ishmael. Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar gave him his son, Ishmael.

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Genesis 16

Sarai and Hagar

1 # ch. 15:2, 3 Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had borne him no children. She had a female Egyptian servant whose name was #ch. 21:9; Gal. 4:24Hagar. 2And Sarai said to Abram, “Behold now, the Lord has prevented me from bearing children. Go in to my servant; it may be that I shall obtain children#16:2 Hebrew be built up, which sounds like the Hebrew for children by her.” And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai. 3So, after Abram #ch. 12:5had lived ten years in the land of Canaan, Sarai, Abram’s wife, took Hagar the Egyptian, her servant, and gave her to Abram her husband as a wife. 4And he went in to Hagar, and she conceived. And when she saw that she had conceived, #[1 Sam. 1:6, 7]she looked with contempt on her mistress.#16:4 Hebrew her mistress was dishonorable in her eyes; similarly in verse 5 5And Sarai said to Abram, “May the wrong done to me be on you! I gave my servant to your embrace, and when she saw that she had conceived, she looked on me with contempt. May #ch. 31:53; 1 Sam. 24:12the Lord judge between you and me!” 6But Abram said to Sarai, “Behold, your servant is in your power; do to her as you please.” Then Sarai dealt harshly with her, and she fled from her.

7The angel of the Lord found her by a spring of water in the wilderness, the spring on the way to #ch. 25:18; Ex. 15:22Shur. 8And he said, “Hagar, servant of Sarai, where have you come from and where are you going?” She said, “I am fleeing from my mistress Sarai.” 9The angel of the Lord said to her, “Return to your mistress and submit to her.” 10The angel of the Lord also said to her, #ch. 17:20; 21:18; See ch. 25:12-18“I will surely multiply your offspring so that they cannot be numbered for multitude.” 11And the angel of the Lord said to her,

“Behold, you are pregnant

and shall bear a son.

You shall call his name Ishmael,#16:11 Ishmael means God hears

# [ch. 29:32] because the Lord has listened to your affliction.

12He shall be #Job 39:5-8; [ch. 21:20] a wild donkey of a man,

his hand against everyone

and everyone’s hand against him,

and he shall dwell #ch. 25:18over against all his kinsmen.”

13So she called the name of the Lord who spoke to her, “You are a God of seeing,”#16:13 Or You are a God who sees me for she said, #[ch. 32:30; Ex. 19:21; 33:20; Judg. 13:22]“Truly here I have seen him who looks after me.”#16:13 Hebrew Have I really seen him here who sees me? or Would I have looked here for the one who sees me? 14Therefore the well was called #ch. 24:62; 25:11 Beer-lahai-roi;#16:14 Beer-lahai-roi means the well of the Living One who sees me it lies between #ch. 14:7; 20:1; Num. 13:26Kadesh and Bered.

15And Hagar bore Abram a son, and Abram called the name of his son, whom Hagar bore, Ishmael. 16Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore Ishmael to Abram.

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