Gen 16 | LSB | STEP | Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had borne him no children , and she had an Egyptian servant-woman whose name was Hagar.

Genesis 16

Sarai and Hagar

1 Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had borne him no children, and she had an Egyptian servant-woman whose name was Hagar. 2 So Sarai said to Abram, “Now behold, Yahweh has shut my womb from bearing children. Please go in to my servant-woman; perhaps I will ^{▼▼Lit be built from her}obtain children through her.” And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai. 3 And after Abram had ^{▼▼Lit dwelt}lived ten years in the land of Canaan, Abram’s wife Sarai took Hagar the Egyptian, her servant-woman, and gave her to her husband Abram as his wife. 4 So he went in to Hagar, and she conceived. Then she saw that she had conceived, so her mistress became ^{▼▼Or cursed, cf. 12:3}contemptible in her sight. 5 And Sarai said to Abram, “May the violence done to me be upon you. I gave my servant-woman into your ^{▼▼Lit bosom}embrace, but she saw that she had conceived, so I became ^{▼▼Or cursed, cf. 12:3}contemptible in her ^{▼▼Lit eyes}sight. May Yahweh judge between ^{▼▼Lit me and you}you and me.” 6 But Abram said to Sarai, “Behold, your servant-woman is in your ^{▼▼Or power}hand; do to her what is good in your ^{▼▼Lit eyes}sight.” So Sarai afflicted her, and she fled from her presence.

7 Now the angel of Yahweh 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 servant-woman, where have you come from and where are you going?” And she said, “I am fleeing from the presence of my mistress Sarai.” 9 Then the angel of Yahweh said to her, “Return to your mistress and ^{▼▼Lit afflict, cf. 16:6}humble yourself under her hands.” 10 Moreover, the angel of Yahweh said to her, “I will greatly multiply your seed so that ^{▼▼Or it shall not be counted for multitude}they will be too many to be counted.” 11 And the angel of Yahweh said to her further,

“Behold, you ^{▼▼Or have conceived, cf. 3:16; 21:2; 25:21; Ex 2:2; 1 Sam 1:20; Luke 1:31, 36}are with child,
And you will bear a son;
And you shall call his name ^{▼▼Lit God hears}Ishmael,
Because Yahweh has heard your affliction.
12 “And he will be a wild donkey of a man,
His hand will be against everyone,
And everyone’s hand will be against him;
And he will dwell ^{▼▼Or to the east of, in defiance of}in the face of all his brothers.”
13 Then she called the name of Yahweh who spoke to her, “ ^{▼▼Or You, O God, see me}You are ^{▼▼Heb El roi}a God who sees”; for she said, “Have I even ^{▼▼Lit seen here after the one who saw me}remained alive here after seeing Him?” 14 Therefore the well was called ^{▼▼Lit the well of the living one who sees me}Beer-lahai-roi; behold, it is between Kadesh and Bered.

15 So Hagar bore Abram a son; and Abram called the name of his son, whom Hagar bore, Ishmael. 16 Now Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore Ishmael to ^{▼▼Lit Abram}him.