16
Sarai and Hagar
1Now#Or “And” Sarai, the wife of Abram, had borne him no children. And she had a female Egyptian servant, and her name was Hagar. 2And Sarai said to Abram, “Look, please, Yahweh has prevented me from bearing children. Please go in to my servant; perhaps I will have children by her.”#Literally “I will be built from her” And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai. 3Then#Or “And” Sarai, the wife of Abram, took Hagar, her Egyptian servant, after Abram had lived ten years in the land of Canaan, and gave her to Abram her husband as his wife. 4And he went in to Hagar, and she conceived. And when she#That is, Hagar saw that she had conceived, then her mistress grew small in her eyes. 5And Sarai said to Abram, “may my harm be upon you. I had my servant sleep with you,#Literally “I put my servant in your lap” and when she saw that she had conceived, she no longer respected me.#Literally “I grew small in her eyes” May Yahweh judge between me and you!” 6And Abram said to Sarai, “Look, your servant is under your authority.#Literally “in your hand” Do to her that which is good in your eyes.” And Sarai mistreated her, and she#That is, Hagar fled from her presence.
Hagar and the Angel of Yahweh
7And the angel of Yahweh found her at a spring of water in the wilderness, at the spring by the road of Shur. 8And he said to Hagar, the servant of Sarai, “From where#Literally “where from this” have you come, and where are you going?” And she said, “I am fleeing from the presence of Sarai my mistress.” 9Then#Or “And” the angel of Yahweh said to her, “Return to your mistress and submit yourself under her authority.”#Literally “her hand” 10And the angel of Yahweh said to her, “I will greatly multiply#Literally “multiplying I will multiply” your offspring, so that they cannot be counted for their abundance.” 11And the angel of Yahweh said to her:
“Behold, you are pregnant
and shall have a son.
And you shall call his name Ishmael,
for Yahweh has listened to your suffering.
12And he shall be a wild donkey of a man,
his hand will be against everyone,
and the hand of everyone will be against him,
and he will live in hostility with all his brothers.”#Literally “against the face of all his brothers”
13So#Or “And” she called the name of Yahweh who spoke to her, “You are El-Roi,”#“God of seeing” for she said, “Here I have seen after he who sees me.” 14Therefore the well was called Beer-Lahai-Roi; behold, it is between Kadesh and Bered. 15And Hagar had a child for Abram, a son. And Abram called the name of his son whom Hagar bore to him, Ishmael. 16And Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore Ishmael to Abram.