Genesis 16
16
Abram, Hagar, and Ishmael
1Abram's wife Sarai had not been able to have any children. But she owned a young Egyptian slave woman named Hagar, 2and Sarai said to Abram, “The LORD has not given me any children. Sleep with my slave, and if she has a child, it will be mine.”#16.2 Sleep…mine: It was the custom for a wife who could not have children to let her husband sleep with one of her slave women. The children of the slave would belong to the wife. Abram agreed, 3and Sarai gave him Hagar to be his wife. This happened after Abram had lived in the land of Canaan for ten years. 4Later, when Hagar knew she was going to have a baby, she became proud and was hateful to Sarai.
5Then Sarai said to Abram, “It's all your fault!#16.5 It's…fault: Or “I hope you'll be punished for what you did to me!” I gave you my slave woman, but she has been hateful to me ever since she found out she was pregnant. You have done me wrong, and you will have to answer to the LORD for this.”
6Abram said, “All right! She's your slave, and you can do whatever you want with her.” But Sarai began treating Hagar so harshly that she finally ran away.
7Hagar stopped to rest at a spring in the desert on the road to Shur. While she was there, the angel of the LORD came to her 8and asked, “Hagar, where have you come from, and where are you going?”
She answered, “I'm running away from Sarai, my owner.”
9The angel said, “Go back to Sarai and be her slave. 10-11I will give you a son, who will be called Ishmael,#16.10,11 Ishmael: In Hebrew “Ishmael” sounds like “God hears”. because I have heard your cry for help. And later I will give you so many descendants that no one will be able to count them all. 12But your son will live far from his relatives; he will be like a wild donkey, fighting everyone, and everyone fighting him.”
13Hagar thought, “Have I really seen God and lived to tell about it?”#16.13 Have…it: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text. So from then on she called him, “The God who Sees Me”.#16.13 The God who Sees Me: Or “The God I have Seen”. 14That's why people call the well between Kadesh and Bered, “The Well of the Living One who Sees Me”.#16.14 The Well…Me: Or “Beer-Lahai-Roi” (see 25.11).
15-16Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar gave birth to their son, and he named him Ishmael.#Ga 4.22.
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© British and Foreign Bible Society 2012
Genesis 16
16
Hagar the Servant Girl
1Sarai was Abram’s wife, but she did not have any children. She had an Egyptian slave named Hagar. 2Sarai told Abram, “The Lord has not allowed me to have children, so sleep with my slave. Maybe she can have a son, and I will accept him as my own.” Abram did what Sarai said.
3So after living ten years in the land of Canaan, Sarai gave her Egyptian slave to Abram as a second wife. 4Abram slept with Hagar, and she became pregnant. When Hagar realized this, she became very proud and began to feel that she was better than Sarai her owner. 5Then Sarai said to Abram, “My slave girl now hates me, and I blame you for this. I gave her to you, and she became pregnant. Then she began to feel that she is better than I am. I want the Lord to judge which of us is right.”
6But Abram said to Sarai, “She is your slave. You can do anything you want to her.” So Sarai was cruel to Hagar, and Hagar ran away.
Hagar’s Son Ishmael
7The angel of the Lord found Hagar near a spring of water in the desert. The spring was by the road to Shur. 8The angel said, “Hagar, Sarai’s slave girl, why are you here? Where are you going?”
Hagar said, “I am running away from Sarai.”
9The angel of the Lord said to her, “Sarai is your owner. Go home to her and obey her.” 10The angel of the Lord also said, “From you will come many people—too many people to count.”
11Then the angel of the Lord said,
“Hagar, you are now pregnant,
and you will have a son.
You will name him Ishmael,#16:11 Ishmael This name means “God hears.”
because the Lord has heard that you were treated badly.
12Ishmael will be wild and free
like a wild donkey.
He will be against everyone,
and everyone will be against him.
He will move from place to place
and camp near his brothers.”
13The Lord talked to Hagar. She began to use a new name for God. She said to him, “You are ‘God Who Sees Me.’” She said this because she thought, “I see that even in this place God sees me and cares for me!” 14So the well there was called Beer Lahai Roi.#16:14 Beer Lahai Roi This means “The well of the Living One who sees me.” It is between Kadesh and Bered.
15Hagar gave birth to Abram’s son, and Abram named the son Ishmael. 16Abram was 86 years old when Ishmael was born from Hagar.
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© 1987, 2004 Bible League International