The First Book of Moses: Genesis

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- Chapter 21 -

Then the Lord visited Sarah, just as he had promised; and he fulfilled what he had spoken.

And she conceived and gave birth to a son in her old age, at the time that God had foretold to her.

And Abraham called the name of his son, whom Sarah bore for him, Isaac.(a)

And he circumcised him on the eighth day, just as God had instructed him,

when he was one hundred years old. Indeed, at this stage of his father’s life, Isaac was born.

And Sarah said: “God has brought laughter to me. Whoever will hear of it will laugh with me.”

And again, she said: “Hearing this, who would believe Abraham, that Sarah breast-fed a son, to whom she gave birth, despite being elderly?”

And the boy grew and was weaned. And Abraham made a great feast on the day of his weaning.

Sarah Turns against Hagar

(Galatians 4:21–30)

And when Sarah had seen the son of Hagar the Egyptian playing with her son Isaac, she said to Abraham:

“Cast out this woman servant and her son. For the son of a woman servant will not be heir with my son Isaac.”

Abraham took this grievously, for the sake of his son.

And God said to him: “Let it not seem harsh to you concerning the boy and your woman servant. In all that Sarah has said to you, listen to her voice. For your offspring will be invoked in Isaac.

Yet I will also make the son of the woman servant into a great nation, for he is your offspring.”

And so Abraham arose in the morning, and taking bread and a skin of water, he placed it upon her shoulder, and he handed over the boy, and he released her. And when she had departed, she wandered in the wilderness of Beersheba.

And when the water in the skin had been consumed, she set aside the boy, under one of the trees that were there.

And she moved away and sat in a distant area, as far as a bow can reach. For she said, “I shall not see the boy die.” And so, sitting opposite her, he lifted up his voice and wept.

But God heard the voice of the boy. And an Angel of God called to Hagar from heaven, saying: “What are you doing, Hagar? Do not be afraid. For God has heeded the voice of the boy, from the place where he is.

Rise up. Take the boy and hold him by the hand. For I will make of him a great nation.”

And God opened her eyes. And seeing a well of water, she went and filled the skin, and she gave the boy to drink.

And God was with him. And he grew, and he stayed in the wilderness, and he became a young man, an archer.

And he lived in the desert of Paran, and his mother took a wife for him from the land of Egypt.

The Covenant at Beersheba

At the same time, Abimelech and Phicol, the leader of his army, said to Abraham: “God is with you in everything that you do.

Therefore, swear by God that you will do no harm to me, and to my posterity, and to my stock. But according to the mercy that I have done to you, you will do to me and to the land, to which you have turned as a newcomer.”

And Abraham said, “I will swear.”

And he reproved Abimelech because of a well of water, which his servants had taken away by force.

And Abimelech responded, “I do not know who did this thing, but you also did not reveal it to me, nor have I heard of it, before today.”

And so Abraham took sheep and oxen, and he gave them to Abimelech. And both of them struck a pact.

And Abraham set aside seven female lambs from the flock.

Abimelech said to him, “What purpose have these seven female lambs, which you have caused to stand separately?”

But he said, “You will receive seven female lambs from my hand, so that they may be a testimony for me, that I dug this well.”

For this reason, that place was called Beersheba, because there both of them did swear.(b)

And they initiated a pact on behalf of the well of oath.

Then Abimelech and Phicol, the leader of his army, rose up, and they returned to the land of the Palestinians. In truth, Abraham planted a grove in Beersheba, and there he called upon the name of the Lord God Eternal.

And he was a settler in the land of the Palestinians for many days.

Footnotes

(a)21:3 Isaac:This word signifies laughter.(Challoner)

(b)21:31 Bersabee:That is, the well of oath.(Challoner)

The LORD visited Sarah as he had said, and the LORD did to Sarah as he had spoken.

Sarah conceived, and bore Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him.

Abraham called his son who was born to him, whom Sarah bore to him, Isaac.(a)

Abraham circumcised his son, Isaac, when he was eight days old, as God had commanded him.

Abraham was one hundred years old when his son, Isaac, was born to him.

Sarah said, “God has made me laugh. Everyone who hears will laugh with me.”

She said, “Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? For I have borne him a son in his old age.”

The child grew and was weaned. Abraham made a great feast on the day that Isaac was weaned.

Sarah Turns against Hagar

(Galatians 4:21–30)

Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, whom she had borne to Abraham, mocking.

Therefore she said to Abraham, “Cast out this servant and her son! For the son of this servant will not be heir with my son, Isaac.”

The thing was very grievous in Abraham’s sight on account of his son.

God said to Abraham, “Don’t let it be grievous in your sight because of the boy, and because of your servant. In all that Sarah says to you, listen to her voice. For your offspring will be named through Isaac.

I will also make a nation of the son of the servant, because he is your child.”

Abraham rose up early in the morning, and took bread and a container of water, and gave it to Hagar, putting it on her shoulder; and gave her the child, and sent her away. She departed, and wandered in the wilderness of Beersheba.

The water in the container was spent, and she put the child under one of the shrubs.

She went and sat down opposite him, a good way off, about a bow shot away. For she said, “Don’t let me see the death of the child.” She sat opposite him, and lifted up her voice, and wept.

God heard the voice of the boy. The angel of God called to Hagar out of the sky, and said to her, “What troubles you, Hagar? Don’t be afraid. For God has heard the voice of the boy where he is.

Get up, lift up the boy, and hold him with your hand. For I will make him a great nation.”

God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water. She went, filled the container with water, and gave the boy a drink.

God was with the boy, and he grew. He lived in the wilderness, and as he grew up, he became an archer.

He lived in the wilderness of Paran. His mother got a wife for him out of the land of Egypt.

The Covenant at Beersheba

At that time, Abimelech and Phicol the captain of his army spoke to Abraham, saying, “God is with you in all that you do.

Now, therefore, swear to me here by God that you will not deal falsely with me, nor with my son, nor with my son’s son. But according to the kindness that I have done to you, you shall do to me, and to the land in which you have lived as a foreigner.”

Abraham said, “I will swear.”

Abraham complained to Abimelech because of a water well, which Abimelech’s servants had violently taken away.

Abimelech said, “I don’t know who has done this thing. You didn’t tell me, and I didn’t hear of it until today.”

Abraham took sheep and cattle, and gave them to Abimelech. Those two made a covenant.

Abraham set seven ewe lambs of the flock by themselves.

Abimelech said to Abraham, “What do these seven ewe lambs, which you have set by themselves, mean?”

He said, “You shall take these seven ewe lambs from my hand, that it may be a witness to me, that I have dug this well.”

Therefore he called that place Beersheba,(b) because they both swore an oath there.

So they made a covenant at Beersheba. Abimelech rose up with Phicol, the captain of his army, and they returned into the land of the Philistines.

Abraham planted a tamarisk tree in Beersheba, and there he called on the name of the LORD, the Everlasting God.

Abraham lived as a foreigner in the land of the Philistines many days.

Footnotes

(a)21:3 Isaac means “He laughs”.

(b)21:31 Beersheba can mean “well of the oath” or “well of seven”.