Main Idea: God sees and cares even when we get impatient.
1. Sarah’s disastrous advice (vs. 1-6)
 a) “Sarah…borne him no children”- 11:35- barren (a crushing reality for a woman in that culture), yet the 
     Lord promised Abram would become a great nation (12:2,13:16,15:4-50), but they had no son. 
     “Egyptian maid/Hagar”- It was an acceptable social practice for a barren woman to obtain children 
     through a maid (surrogate motherhood, taking Hagar as a lesser wife).
 b) “Sarai said”- she is the active one in this episode. The wording recreates the garden scene with Eve 
     initiating and Adam passively responding. “Lord has prevented me”- He opens & closes the womb: 
     Ten years had elapsed in the promise land without Him opening her womb. Sarai was 75. 15:4 didn’t 
     indicate Sarai would be the mother. She reasoned the Lord would give this promise child in a 
     culturally acceptable way. However, this violated God’s design (2:24) and showed a lack of trust in 
     God’s willingness & ability to fulfill His promises in His timing.
 c) The plan to “help God out with His plan” was successful in bringing about a pregnancy, but there were 
     disastrous consequences (which continues today in the Arab/Israel conflicts). As was foreseeable, 
     Hagar didn’t handle her elevated status well. She despised, looked down upon her mistress because she 
     was able to get pregnant while Sarai couldn’t. Sarai blamed Abram even though it was her idea 
     (3:12,13). Abram passively pointed out Hagar was her maid under her power. Then Sarai treated 
     Hagar harshly (15:13, Ex. 1:11-12), putting her in her place. Hagar ran away.
 d) Getting impatient with the Lord and lowering our moral standards leads to regrettable results.
2. The Lord’s Gracious Intervention (vs. 7-16)
 a) The angel of the Lord (4X) found her by a spring of water on the way to Shur returning home to 
     Egypt. The evidence is strong that this Person is the Lord (a pre-incarnate appearance of Christ).
 b) He confronted her with a question (3:9). Hagar honestly responded that she was fleeing from her 
     mistress Sarai. The Lord told her to return and submit to Sarai’s authority. God’s will is that we submit 
     to the authority He has established on earth.
 c) This tough command is followed by a wonderful promise similar to those made to Abram: The Lord 
     would greatly multiply her descendants so they would be too many to count (Abram was the father).
 d) The Lord gave further information about this babies future: 
  -Short term: It was a boy. He was to be named “Ishmael” (“God hears”) because the Lord had heard and 
   given heed to Hagar’s affliction. This implies she prayed.
  -Long term: “wild donkey/man”- free roaming nomadic lifestyle in constant turmoil with others. “live to 
   the east” (or “against the face of/in defiance of his brothers”). Perhaps it combines living on the fringes 
   of permanent settlement with a defiant attitude.
 e) Hagar responded with grateful praise. She was overwhelmed that the Lord appeared to her & she gave 
     Him a new name “The God Who sees.” V13b with wordplay on “seeing”, translation possibilities 
     include: “Have I even remained alive after seeing Him?” OR “Truly I have seen Him who looks 
     after/sees me.” The well took on the name, “The Well of the Living One Who sees me.”
 f) The Lord is concerned for the downtrodden. He sees and cares even for the lowly & insignificant.
3. A step forward in the dilemma (vs. 15-16)
 a) Hagar returned to Sarai/Abram and bore Abram a son. Abram obediently named the boy “Ishmael.”
 b) This happened when Abram was 86 (11 years in the promise land). The tension was not removed or 
     avoided, while this family sought to follow God’s ways by faith. “God hears” would be a continual 
     reminder to Abram that God heard concerning Sarai’s barren condition & His promises, but as time 
     went on they would wonder if Ishmael was God’s plan for the many descendants promised.
 c) At times we have to live with consequences of impatient decisions knowing the Lord hears and will 
     carry out His plan in His time.