The First Book of Moses, called Genesis
Genesis 21
Chapter XXI · Vol. I, pp. 245–246
1 Isaac is born, and circumcised. 6 Sarah's joy. 9 Hagar and Ishmael are cast forth. 15 Hagar in distress. 17 The angel comforteth her. 22 Abimelech's covenant with Abraham at Beer-sheba, 33 who calleth upon the Lord.
1 AND athe LORD visited Sarah as he had said, and the LORD did unto Sarah as he had spoken.
a Ps. 12.6. ch. 17.19; 18.10. Ro. 4.17,18,19,20. Tit. 1.2. Ro. 4.19.
2 For Sarah bconceived, and bare Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him.
5 And Abraham was an ehundred years2 old when his son Isaac was born unto him.
e ch. 17.1,17.
2 About 1896.
7 And she said, Who would have said unto Abraham, that Sarah should have given children suck? for I have born him a son in his old age.
8 And the child grew, and was weaned:3 and Abraham made a ggreat feast the same day that Isaac was weaned.
3 Weaned is derived from the Saxon awendan, signifying to remove from one place to another, as a grown child is removed from its mother's breast to other nourishment.—C.
g ch. 19.3; 26.30; 29.22; 40.20. Ju. 14.10,12. 1 Sa. 25.36. 2 Sa. 3.20. 1 Ki. 3.15. Es. 1.3.
10 Wherefore she said unto Abraham, iCast out this bond-woman and her son: for the son of this bond-woman shall not be heir with my son, even with Isaac.
i Ga. 4.30. ch. 25.19; 17.19,21. Pr. 22.10; 20.11. Jn. 8.35. 1 Jn. 2.19. Mat. 8.11,12; 22.13.
12 And God said unto Abraham, Let it not be grievous in thy sight because of the lad, and because of thy bond-woman; in all that Sarah hath said unto thee, hearken unto her voice: forl in Isaac shall thy seed be called.
13 And also of the son of the bond-woman willm I make a nation, because he is thy seed.
m ch. 16.10; 17.20; 25.12-18.
14 And Abraham nrose up early in the morning, and took bread, and a bottle5 of water, and gave it unto Hagar, (putting it on her shoulder,) and the child, and sent her away: and she departed, and owandered in the wilderness of Beer-sheba.
n Ps. 119.60. Ec. 9.10.
5 The eastern bottles were not glass, according to the modern European use of the word, but skins ingeniously rendered waterproof.—C.
o Gal. 4.23,24.
15 And the water was spent in the bottle, and she cast the child under one of the shrubs.
16 And she went, and sat her down over against him a good way off, as it were a bowshot: for she said, pLet me not see the death of the child. And she sat over against him, and lift up her voice, and wept.
17 And qGod heard the voice of the lad: and the angel of God called to Hagar out of heaven, and said unto her, What aileth thee, Hagar? fearr not; for God hath heard the voice of the lad where he is.6
q ch. 16.11. Ex. 22.23,27. 2 Ki. 13.4. Mat. 15.32. Ps. 65.2; 50.15; 91.15.
r See ch. 15.1. Is. 43.1,2; 41.10,13,14. Mar. 5.36. Re. 1.18.
6 In ver. 9 we find Ishmael mocking, which Paul, Ga. 4.29, interprets as a persecution of Isaac. Mocking being to a delicate and sensitive mind, as was Sarah's one of the most grievous forms of persecution against herself and her child. But now, happily, in this verse, we find Ishmael praying, and God hearing and promising.—Note, The happy effects of parental chastisement, when not dictated by passion, but approved and directed of God.—C.
18 Arise, lift up the lad, and hold him in thine hand; for sI will make him a great nation.
s ver. 13; ch. 16.10; 17.20; 25.12-18. 1 Ch. 1.29-31.
19 And God topened her eyes, and she saw a well of water; and she went and filled the bottle with water, and gave the lad drink.
20 And uGod was with the lad; and he grew, and dwelt in the wilderness, and became an archer.
u ch. 17.20; 16.12; 39.2,21. Ju. 6.12.
21 And he dwelt in the wilderness of Paran:7 andx his mother took him a wife out of the land of Egypt.
7 Paran lay along the southern border of Palestine, extending to the valley of Arabah on the east, and to the mountains of Sinai on the south.—P.
x ch. 24.4; 28.2. Ju. 14.2. 1 Co. 7.38.
22 And it came to pass at that time, that Abimelech, and Phichol the chief captain of his host, spake unto Abraham, saying, yGod is with thee in all that thou doest:
23 Now therefore zswear unto me here by God, that thou wilt not deal falsely with me, nor with my son, nor with my son's son: but according to the kindness that I have done unto thee, thou shalt do unto me, and to the land wherein thou hast sojourned.
z ch. 14.22,23; 26.28; 31.44,53. 1 Sa. 30.15. 2 Co. 1.23. 1 Sa. 20.13-17. He. 6.16. Je. 4.2. De. 6.13.
25 And Abraham reproved Abimelech bbecause of a well of water. which Abimelech's servants had violently taken away.8
b ch. 26.15-22; 29.8. Ex. 2.15-17. Ju. 1.15.
8 During the summer months water is extremely scarce in the south of Palestine. The only supply for flocks and herds is got from deep wells, many of which are excavated through the rocky strata to a depth of more than 100 feet. This makes them very valuable; and to this day they form fruitful sources of quarrels and bloodshed among Arab tribes.—P.
26 And Abimelech said, cI wot not who hath done this thing; neither didst thou tell me, neither yet heard I of it, but to-day.
c ch. 13.7. 2 Ki. 5.22.
27 And Abraham dtook sheep and oxen, and gave them unto Abimelech; and both of them made a covenant.
d Pr. 18.15,24; 19.6; 17.8; 21.14.
28 And Abraham set seven ewe-lambs of the flock by themselves.
29 And Abimelech said unto Abraham, What mean these seven ewe-lambs which thou hast set by themselves?
30 And he said, For these seven ewe-lambs shalt thou take of my hand, that they emay be a witness unto me that I have digged this well.
e ch. 31.44-48. Jos. 24.27; 22.27.
31 Wherefore he called that place 9Beer-sheba, because there they sware both of them.
9 That is, the well of the oath, ver. 14; ch. 26.31. Jos. 15.28. Ju. 20.1. 2 Sa. 17.11. 1 Ki. 4.25. It was the south border of Canaan.
32 Thus they made fa covenant at Beer-sheba: then Abimelech rose up, and Phichol the chief captain of his host, and they returned into the land of the Philistines.
f ch. 14.13; 31.53. 1 Sa. 18.3.
33 And1 Abraham planted a grove2 in Beer-sheba, and gcalled there on the name of the LORD, hthe everlasting God.
Notes
Ver. 1. God visited Sarah, i.e. granted the mercy he had promised, ch. 1. 24, 25; Ex. 4. 31; Ru. 1. 6; 1 Sa. 2. 21; Job 10. 12; Lu. 1. 68.
Ver. 3. i.e. Laughter, so called because of his father's believing and his mother's unbelieving laughter at the promise of his birth, and because of their great joy at the fulfilment of it, ch. 17. 17; 18. 12; ver. 6; Is. 54. 1.
Ver. 12. 'Isaac, as thine heir, shall bear and propagate thy name; and the promised seed and land, and the spiritual prerogatives, shall be entailed upon him, Ro. 9. 7, 8; He. 11. 8.
Ver. 14. Bread and water include all necessary provision; of which it is probable they had sufficient to have served them till they had gotten to Hagar's friends in Egypt, had they not lost their way.
Ver. 25-30. In these hot countries a well was of great value, ch. 26. 18, 20, 21. Abimelech's acceptance of the seven ewe-lambs imported his renunciation of all claim to this well.
Ver. 33. The planting of groves for the opportunity of greater retirement when worshipping God, being afterwards abused to promote idolatry and superstition, was forbidden, Ex. 34. 13; De. 16. 21.
Reflections.—What a pleasure God sometimes takes to delay the fulfilment of promises, till it becomes, humanly speaking, improbable, if not impossible, for the trial of our faith and patience; but he never defers it a moment beyond the due time; and the joys which attend the seasonable fulfilment thereof are great and certain: and yet even then our attempts to anticipate it often mingle our joys with wormwood and gall! How proper in all our straits to consult the Lord, and to request and hope for his watchful care over our relations, particularly such as are exposed to dangers! Let my care be to honour God in all my conduct, and he will take care to honour me before the world, as is good in his sight! And while Sarah and her family rejoice over her son, let me, let all the redeemed, rejoice that 'to us a Child is born, to us a Son is given, whose name is Wonderful;' and that God in him hath made us, like Isaac, children of the promise! Let us Gentiles rejoice that while the Hebrews are, like Ishmael, cast out, to be wandering, wild, and hated, we are called to the fellowship of the sons of God! Here likewise let us observe how sharply God corrects those who have been insolent despisers of others, and how near the most seasonable mercies may be, whilst we perceive them not!