“See what happens when you take things in your own hands” Genesis 21:9-21

Words of Wisdom - Plain and Simple - Hosted by Dianne Adams, a servant of God - September 4, 2019 @ 8:30 PM

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“See what happens when you take things in your own hands”   Genesis 21:9-21

Ishmael was the firstborn son of Abraham. God had appeared to Abraham and promised that he would have a son and that he would be the father of many nations. However, as time went on, Abraham had no children. His wife, Sarah, had been unable to conceive, and they began to question just how the promise would be fulfilled. Sarah suggests that Abraham should have a child with her slave Hagar, an Egyptian. Apparently, this was a somewhat common practice at the time, perhaps an ancient version of surrogacy. While this may have seemed like a workable solution for Abraham and Sarah, in actuality it caused more problems than it solved. “See what happens when you take things in your own hands”, Hagar did conceive a child with Abraham, when she knew she was pregnant, she began to “despise” Sarah, and Sarah appealed to Abraham for help. Abraham told Sarah to do as she saw fit, so she began to mistreat Hagar, and Hagar ran away. The angel of the Lord found Hagar in the desert and told her to return to Sarah. He then told her about her yet unborn son: “You are now pregnant and you will give birth to a son. You shall name him Ishmael, for the Lord has heard of your misery. [Ishmael means “God hears.”]