Sarai
From Monday’s reading this week, we read the beginning of the story of Sarai, Abram, and Hagar. You don’t need a soap opera for love triangles - just read the OT!
It all begins because Sarai is childless. She believes God’s promise about Abram having countless descendants, but she doesn’t trust God to bring about the promise. As a result, Sarai intervenes:
Genesis 16:2 KJV
And Sarai said unto Abram, Behold now, the Lord hath restrained me from bearing: I pray thee, go in unto my maid; it may be that I may obtain children by her. And Abram hearkened to the voice of Sarai.
Normally, I would be all for a husband listening to his wife, but in this case, it wasn’t a wise decision. It didn’t take long for Sarai to regret it either:
Genesis 16:4 KJV
And he went in unto Hagar, and she conceived: and when she saw that she had conceived, her mistress was despised in her eyes.
Despised is such a strong word. Sarai is clearly in the wrong here. She concocted this plan, and now she dislikes its outcome. The thing I like best about the Bible is it doesn’t hold back on telling the failings of its heroes and heroines. Sarai and Abram then proceed into some “intense fellowship,” where he responds:
Genesis 16:6 KJV
But Abram said unto Sarai, Behold, thy maid is in thy hand; do to her as it pleaseth thee. And when Sarai dealt hardly with her, she fled from her face.
Again with revealing the faults. The Bible doesn’t give us any indication on Hagar’s behavior here. Maybe she was being a jerk to Sarai too, or maybe conviction for wrong actions was just making Sarai mean. Regardless, it’s too much for Hagar and she runs away. Sarai and Abram may not have cared as they should, but God did:
Genesis 16:7 KJV
And the angel of the Lord found her by a fountain of water in the wilderness, by the fountain in the way to Shur.
God sent an angel to comfort Hagar and chase after her. I find it no coincidence we read Psalm 9 with these chapters. David’s second line of what we call verse 12 describes Hagar here (I like the verbage better in the ESV for this one, it lines up better with the Hebrew meaning):
Psalm 9:12b ESV
He does not ignore the cries of the afflicted.
That was Hagar! She was afflicted by Sarai and rejected by Abram, but God heard her cries! He encourages her to return and gives her promises to hold onto in the future. Those promises carried Hagar through many (likely hard) years. God’s promises can do the same for us.
What has He promised you?
It all begins because Sarai is childless. She believes God’s promise about Abram having countless descendants, but she doesn’t trust God to bring about the promise. As a result, Sarai intervenes:
Genesis 16:2 KJV
And Sarai said unto Abram, Behold now, the Lord hath restrained me from bearing: I pray thee, go in unto my maid; it may be that I may obtain children by her. And Abram hearkened to the voice of Sarai.
Normally, I would be all for a husband listening to his wife, but in this case, it wasn’t a wise decision. It didn’t take long for Sarai to regret it either:
Genesis 16:4 KJV
And he went in unto Hagar, and she conceived: and when she saw that she had conceived, her mistress was despised in her eyes.
Despised is such a strong word. Sarai is clearly in the wrong here. She concocted this plan, and now she dislikes its outcome. The thing I like best about the Bible is it doesn’t hold back on telling the failings of its heroes and heroines. Sarai and Abram then proceed into some “intense fellowship,” where he responds:
Genesis 16:6 KJV
But Abram said unto Sarai, Behold, thy maid is in thy hand; do to her as it pleaseth thee. And when Sarai dealt hardly with her, she fled from her face.
Again with revealing the faults. The Bible doesn’t give us any indication on Hagar’s behavior here. Maybe she was being a jerk to Sarai too, or maybe conviction for wrong actions was just making Sarai mean. Regardless, it’s too much for Hagar and she runs away. Sarai and Abram may not have cared as they should, but God did:
Genesis 16:7 KJV
And the angel of the Lord found her by a fountain of water in the wilderness, by the fountain in the way to Shur.
God sent an angel to comfort Hagar and chase after her. I find it no coincidence we read Psalm 9 with these chapters. David’s second line of what we call verse 12 describes Hagar here (I like the verbage better in the ESV for this one, it lines up better with the Hebrew meaning):
Psalm 9:12b ESV
He does not ignore the cries of the afflicted.
That was Hagar! She was afflicted by Sarai and rejected by Abram, but God heard her cries! He encourages her to return and gives her promises to hold onto in the future. Those promises carried Hagar through many (likely hard) years. God’s promises can do the same for us.
What has He promised you?
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