A Journey Through The Old Testament - Elmer Towns

from the presence of my mistress Sarai” (v. 8), demonstrates she understood her rightful
relationship to Sarai and is an implied confession of her crime of running away.
It was not God’s intent to condemn but rather restore the fallen. His advice to Hagar
emphasized two of the most important attitudes prerequisite to the blessing of God, repentance
and submission. Hagar was to “return” to Sarai and “submit yourself under her hand” (v. 9). The
biblical idea of submission is to get under another to support another. If Sarai had been wrong in
her treatment of Hagar, the maid had also been wrong in her attitude toward her mistress. The
key to the blessing of God in Hagar’s life required her to repent and submit to Sarai. Twenty
years later, God would arrange the circumstances of Hagar’s life so that she could leave the
camp of Abraham without forfeiting the blessing of God.
In this circumstance God revealed His attributes in three significant names. First, He
named the son of Hagar Ishmael, meaning “God hears.” Second, He revealed Himself to Hagar
as El Roi, meaning “God sees.” Third, He met her at a well named Be’er Lahai ro’i, meaning
“the well of life and vision.” God was reminding her that He heard her cry, He saw her situation,
and He was alive and active in resolving her problems. That trinity of divine attributes will
encourage Christians today if constantly remembered. For the next few years under the hand of
Sarai, Hagar would be reminded of these promises every time she called the name of her son.
HAGAR AND ISHMAEL (Gen. 16:15-16)
As instructed by the Lord, Hagar returned to the camp of Abram and gave birth to her
son. As prophesied by the Lord, Abram named the son Ishmael. The Scriptures note Abram was
eighty-six years old when Ishmael was born, and ninety-nine before he again heard directly from
the Lord (16:16; 17:1). For thirteen years, Abram raised Ishmael as his son and the promised
seed. For thirteen years, Abram enjoyed the fruit of the flesh. For thirteen years Abram assumed
he had adapted the plan of God by fathering a son by Hagar. Abram probably thought that
Ishmael was the seed promised by God. For thirteen years Abram was self-deceived. In biblical
numerology, thirteen is the number of rebellion. For thirteen years, Abram lived outside the
perfect will of God. His life was wrapped up in the fruit of his flesh, Ishmael. There is no
mention of a tent or an altar during that period.
But the birth of Ishmael had a more far-reaching affect than would be evident in the life
of Abram. Ishmael would become the father of a nomadic nation which has perpetually opposed
the physical heirs of Abraham, Israel. A later descendant of Ishmael named Mohammed would
be the father of Islam, a major world religion which has historically opposed the spiritual heirs of
Abraham, the church of Jesus Christ. All this because of the failure of the man of faith to wait
patiently for the Lord’s timing. There are no real shortcuts in the life of faith.
PERSPECTIVE: THE FRUIT OF THE FLESH
When one enters into a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, his sin nature is not
eradicated. He will still struggle with the influence of the flesh from time to time in his walk with
God. His experience may not be much unlike that of the Apostle Paul, who admitted, “For what I
am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I
do” (Rom. 7:15). The apostle confessed his growth in faith was characterized by a constant
struggle with an inner nature (the flesh) warring against his spiritual motives and goals for his
life.
The life of faith has both positive and negative ramifications. Positively, the life of faith
is an active response to the known will of God. Negatively, the life of faith is a struggle against