1
Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, bore him no children. She had an Egyptian maidservant whose name was Hagar.
2
And Sarai said to Abram, “See now, the LORD has kept me from bearing children. Please go in to my maidservant; perhaps I shall obtain children by her.” And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai.
3
So Sarai, Abram’s wife, took Hagar her maidservant, the Egyptian, after Abram had dwelt ten years in the land of Canaan, and gave her to Abram her husband as a wife.
4
He went in to Hagar, and she conceived. And when she saw that she had conceived, her mistress became despised in her eyes.
5
Then Sarai said to Abram, “My wrong be upon you! I gave my maidservant into your embrace; and when she saw that she had conceived, I became despised in her eyes. The LORD judge between you and me.”
6
So Abram said to Sarai, “Indeed your maidservant is in your hand; do to her as it pleases you.” And when Sarai dealt harshly with her, she fled from her presence.
7
Now the Angel of the LORD found her by a spring of water in the wilderness, by the spring on the way to Shur.
8
And He said, “Hagar, Sarai’s maidservant, where have you come from, and where are you going?” She said, “I am fleeing from the presence of Sarai, my mistress.”
9
The Angel of the LORD said to her, “Return to your mistress, and submit yourself under her hand.”
10
Then the Angel of the LORD said to her, “I will greatly multiply your descendants, so that they shall not be counted for multitude.”
11
And the Angel of the LORD said to her further, “Behold, you are with child, and you shall bear a son. You shall call his name Ishmael, because the LORD has heard your affliction.
12
He shall be a wild man; his hand shall be against every man, and every man’s hand against him. And he shall dwell in the presence of all his brethren.”
13
Then she called the name of the LORD who spoke to her, “You-Are-the-God-Who-Sees”; for she said, “Have I also here seen Him who sees me?”
14
Therefore the well was called Beer Lahai Roi; observe, it is between Kadesh and Bered.
15
So Hagar bore Abram a son; and Abram named his son, whom Hagar bore, Ishmael.
16
Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore Ishmael to Abram.
👶 Summary of Genesis 16
In Genesis 16, Sarai, Abram’s wife, was still without a child, though God had promised Abram descendants. Feeling that the delay had gone on too long, Sarai took matters into her own hands by giving Hagar, her Egyptian maidservant, to Abram as a surrogate mother.
Abram agreed, and Hagar became pregnant. After she conceived, Hagar became haughty toward Sarai, and Sarai felt dishonored. As a result, Sarai treated Hagar harshly, and Hagar fled into the wilderness.
There, the Angel of the LORD met Hagar beside a spring and told her to return and submit to Sarai. The Angel also gave a prophecy that her son would be named Ishmael, and that his descendants would be very many.
Hagar called the LORD “El-Roi” (the God who sees), because God had looked upon her in her distress. Hagar then returned and gave birth to Ishmael when Abram was 86 years old.
📖 Key Lessons
- Impatience can bring trouble into a life that should unfold according to God’s time.
- Relying on human schemes can lead to conflict and emotional hurt.
- God still cares and shows mercy to the rejected and the oppressed.
- Ishmael was not the child of the covenant, yet God still blessed him.
- God sees the suffering of every person — even a servant girl like Hagar.
✨ Spiritual Meaning
- El-Roi (the God who sees) shows that no tear escapes the notice of God.
- God speaks even in the wilderness, when people feel alone and cast aside.
- Hagar becomes a picture of God’s universal mercy, not limited only to those who are “official” or chosen.
- Hasty decisions in faith can complicate life, yet God remains merciful.
