Abram and Hagar

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Welcome! To Our Ancient Future Story: Navigating Scripture Through the Eyes of Family. Where I share with you, Biblical stories, as a family member would tell a story around the dinner table. As children of God, we are a part of God’s family, and His family story has a lot of history. Each week, we will take one story and talk about it, the cultural, historical, geographical, and sociological impacts. We will be looking at these stories from the perspective of our ancestors, through the lens of ancient times, in hopes of learning more about our family. This is Our Ancient Future Story.

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Welcome back to Our Ancient Future Story, I’m Vic, and I am so excited to share a new story with you today! When we left off last time, God had just established a covenant with Abram. Remember a covenant is a legally binding contract between two parties. It was very sacred because if the contract was broken, the one who broke the contract would be put to death. But then our story ended… very abruptly. And we get this side story of Abram and Hagar before the covenant story continues in Chapter 17. Today we are talking about this story of Hagar, Sarai’s Egyptian Servant, and how this story impacts the covenant God had just made with Abram.

So, grab your cup of coffee or something to drink, find a comfortable place to sit as we get ready to hear the story of Abram and Hagar. 

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Our Story today opens with Sarai. She still has had no children, but she has gotten this idea, of how she and Abram can have children. She would give her servant Hagar to her husband Abram, so that through her servant they could finally have a child. Abram and Hagar marry, and they do indeed conceive a child. Hagar, realizing what this means, begins to mistreat Sarai. Acting like, “I am the mother of the first-born son. Therefore, I have greater value than you.” Sarai, obviously hurt by this, complains to Abram about how Hagar is treating her. But Abram is seemingly indifferent. He responds by saying “She’s your servant. Do whatever you want with her.” So, Sarai starts to harshly mistreat Hagar. We don’t know if these was verbal or physical abuse or both. But whatever Sarai was doing forced Hagar to flee the camp. 

So, here is Hagar, pregnant, running from her master in the middle of the Wilderness. The angel of the LORD found her by a spring on the way to Shur. [Historical Fun Fact: The Wilderness of Shur is in the north western part of the Sinai Peninsula, backing up to Egypt’s Boarder] The angel asked Hagar, “Where are you coming from and where are you going?” Hagar replies, “I am fleeing my mistress Sarai” The angel then encouraged her to go back to Sarai saying, “Return to your mistress and submit to her. I will surely Multiply your offspring and your descendants will be very great! Behold you are pregnant with a son, whom you shall call Ishmael, because the Lord has seen you in your affliction. He will be an outsider, everyone will be against him even his own kinsmen.” So, Hagar named the well between Kedesh and Bered, Beer-lahai-roi which means the Well of the Living One who sees me. Then Hagar went back to her Mistress Sarai, and she bore a son to Abram who was now 86 years old. And on that day Abram named his son, Ishmael. 

And that brings us to the end of our story. We will find out next time how this story affects the next part of God’s covenant with Abram. 

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Alright! So, Let’s get into our story! The first thing we need to do to get the full picture of this passage, is to understand who Hagar is and how she plays apart in our story. IN order to do this, we must look back at the story of Abram and Sarai in Egypt. In Genesis 12. After they had followed the Lord and settled in the land that God promised to show them, there was a famine in the land of the Negev where they were living. So, Abram packed up his family and they moved temporarily to Egypt. 

Now you may be wondering why He decided to move to Egypt. This was a very practical move. Abram took his family to Egypt because Egypt was the bread winner for the known world. Everyone went to Egypt because they had the Nile River. Therefore, they almost always had a descent food supply. So, when a famine would hit other countries of the known world, those people would flee to Egypt to survive. 

            Pharaoh, the ruler of Egypt, was the most powerful man in the world at this point in history. Think about the power of the United States President in modern day. This man could do anything he wanted. Whatever he said became law. [Historical Fun Fact: Depending on how you date the Old Testament this Pharaoh could have been Intef II (Who ruled Egypt 2108-2059 BC) or Amenemhat II (Who ruled Egypt 1919-1985 BC).] 

In any case, Pharaoh could get whatever or whoever he wanted at any time. All he had to do was say the word and his servants would let nothing and no one stand in their way. They were ordered to kill if necessary. This applied to women also, since they were considered property at this time. Knowing this culture, Abram was scared, because he knew Sarai was beautiful. So, he came up with a plan. He told Sarai, “Say you are my sister, so he does not kill me” (Genesis 12:13). She did as he said, and Abram received gifts of sheep, oxen, donkeys, camels, male and female servants, in exchange for his wife Sarai. Sarai was then taken away to the palace. Presumably to Pharaoh’s chambers to consummate and welcome Pharaoh’s new bride. 

            But Yahweh, afflicted Pharaoh’s house with plagues “because of Sarai, Abram’s wife” (Genesis 12:17). Now, to an Ancient Egyptian, any natural disaster was problematic, economically, and spiritually. Remember Egypt was the bread winner for the known world because they had the Nile, but it became especially spiritually problematic when plagues entered their country. An Ancient Egyptian would have seen the plagues and immediately thought, “What have I done to offend or anger the gods.” They would have thought back through everything they had done, and if they found something that could have angered the gods, then tried to fix it. Because there was nothing worse than having the gods angry with you. Remember, the gods and goddess, had a hand in every part of the culture. 

The Pharaoh’s connection to the gods affected the entire country, so his actions mattered the most. In Ancient Egypt it was believed that Pharaoh was the reincarnate of the supreme god Ra. And so, if Pharaoh did something to anger the gods, it would be an insult to all of Egypt. 

            So, Pharaoh thinking through all he had done, to see what could’ve angered the gods, and he realizes it’s Sarai. So, he approaches Abram to ask, “What is this you have done to me? Why did you not tell me that she was your wife? Why did you say, ‘she is my sister,’ so that I took her for my wife?” (Genesis 12:18-19). Then Pharaoh sent Abram and Sarai away with all their possessions. And they moved back to their home in the Negev. 

            Abram and Sarai left Egypt with many possessions. Pharaoh had given Abram sheep, oxen, donkeys, camels, male and female servants, in exchange for his wife Sarai. And one of the servants given to them was HAGAR. 

            It has now been ten years since God first called them to follow him and they settled in the Canaan. Sarai is still baren and she is a little frustrated. It has been 10 years since God promised them descendants and yet they have not had a child. So, Sarai decides to take matters into her own hands. She encourages Abram to take Hagar, here Egyptian servant, as his wife so that he can have children through her. Sarai was so desperate for a child that she not only let Abram sleep with her servant, but it was her idea. 

            This concept is not new, and it really wasn’t new in the Ancient Near East. In Egypt, Pharaoh would often have multiple wives and concubines to ensure a blood heir to the throne. A son born to the first wife was first in line and the preferred way of passing the throne. But if the first wife was unable to bare a son, then the right to the throne would pass to the next wife and son. We still see this concept in our world today. Not so much with polygamy but with the royal linage of who has claim to the throne. 

            Also, I think it is important to note that Abram agrees to this arrangement. “And Sarai said to Abram, “Behold now, the Lord has prevented me from bearing children. Go into my servant; it may be that I shall obtain children by her.” And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai.” (Genesis 16:2 ESV) Abram could have said “No.” But instead for a single moment he believed Sarai’s words over God’s. And this one decision changes the world forever. 

            Abram sleeps with Hagar, and she becomes pregnant. Hagar now knows that she has a leg up on Sarai, because she was able to conceive and Sarai could not. So, she is walking around with pride in herself and contempt for Sarai. Sarai, on the other hand is jealous and angry. Thinking to herself, “How could she have a son and not me?” Even though the whole thing was her idea. Sarai comes to Abram to complain about how Hagar is treating her. Now, Abram is in between a rock and a hard place because on one hand Hagar is carrying his long-awaited son, but on the other Sarai is upset and being treated poorly. So, Abram tells Sarai to do with Hagar whatever she wishes. Basically, he wants to stay out of it. Sarai then takes the opportunity to mistreat Hagar, so much so that Hagar runs away from her. 

            Hagar stops near a well/oasis, between Kedesh and Bered, on the way to Shur. The wilderness of the Shur is in the Northern most part of the Sinai Peninsula, on the way back to Egypt. It is interesting to think that in fleeing from Sarai, Hagar thought to go back home to Egypt. But she came across a well between Kedesh and Bered. Now this place is highly debated since there is a city of Kedesh in the Transjordan on the outskirts of Edom as well as a Kedesh-Barea a location in the North Eastern part of the Sinai Peninsula. So, it is likely that Kedesh-Barea, is the combination of Kedesh and Bered. Either way this place, is significant in Israel’s history. Kedesh-Barea in Hebrew literally means Holy place in the desert of wondering. This is the place where Israel most often camped while wondering in the desert. It is also the place where Moses sent out 12 spies to scout the Promise land. 

It is here in this holy place that the Angel of the Lord speaks to Hagar. He asks her what she is doing and where she is going. These are such basic questions to ask someone in obvious distress. But she answers, “Running from my mistress, Sarai” (Genesis 16:9 ESV). And the Angel of the Lord tells her to go back. Hagar had to be thinking, “Go back? Don’t you know how badly I am treated there?” But then the Angel of the Lord gives her the same promise God gave Abram about his son. 

“The angel of the Lord also said to her, “I will surely multiply your offspring so that they cannot be numbered for multitude. And the angel of the Lord said to her “Behold, you are pregnant and shall bear a son. You shall call his name Ishmael, because the Lord has listened to your affliction. He shall be a wild donkey of a man, his hand against everyone and everyone’s hand against him, and he shall dwell over against all his kinsmen.” (Genesis 16:10-12 ESV).

Hagar believed the Angel and she named the well where he had met her, Beer-lahai-roi which means the Well of the Living One who sees me. Then she got up and went back to Sarai. Hagar gave birth to a son and Abram named him Ishmael just as the Angel had said. Abram was 86 years old when Ishmael was born. It would be 13 years until God would speak to Abram again.

            When God does speak again, He comes with the same message that Sarai and Abram will have a son and their descendants will be many. But Abram laughs and begs God, "Oh that Ishmael might live before you!" (Genesis 17:17-18 ESV) But God, says, “No, Sarah your wife shall bear you a son, and you shall call his name Isaac. I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his offspring after him.” (Genesis 17:19 ESV). “As for Ishmael, I have heard you; behold, I have blessed him and will make him fruitful and multiply him greatly. He shall father twelve princes, and I will make him into a great nation.” (Genesis 17:20 ESV)

            And God did bless Ishmael, and he grew up to be a mighty nation. He had 12 sons, known as the Ishmaelites, and together they became the Arab people who began the religion of Islam. As, for Isaac, he also became a great nation. His son Jacob (Israel) also had 12 sons, known as the Israelites, our ancestors, who became the founders of Judaism.  

These two great nations lived at war with one another in Canaan. And even today, thousands of years later, these two nations are still at odds with one another. Abram’s one decision, to listen to Sarai, and jump the gun with God, changed the world forever. 

But God, still has a redemption story to tell! Come back next time as we dive into the 2nd half of God’s Covenant with Abram. 

But before we go, I want to close our time together by reading the scripture from which our story comes from today in Genesis 16. I hope that as you listen to this chapter being read that you will embrace all that we have learned, and that this passage will be illuminated for you. Let’s Read.

 Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had borne him no children. But she had an Egyptian slave named Hagar; 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.” Abram agreed to what Sarai said.  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. He slept with Hagar, and she conceived. When she knew she was pregnant, she began to despise her mistress. 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.” “Your slave is in your hands,” Abram said. “Do with her whatever you think best.” Then Sarai mistreated Hagar; so she fled from her. The angel of the LORD found Hagar near a spring in the desert; it was the spring that is beside the road to Shur. 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. Then the angel of the LORD told her, “Go back to your mistress and submit to her.” The angel added, “I will increase your descendants so much that they will be too numerous to count.” 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.  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.” 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.” That is why the well was called Beer Lahai Roi ; it is still there, between Kadesh and Bered. So Hagar bore Abram a son, and Abram gave the name Ishmael to the son she had borne. Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore him Ishmael.

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Thank you for listening to today’s episode of Our Ancient Future Story, I hope that you really enjoyed it! This episode was written and produced by Vic Harmon. Executive Produced by Amanda Gilliam. Music is Embarking on Adventure by Evan MacDonald. 

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See you next time! Bye!