Genesis 21

In chapter 21 we finally see Abraham and Sarah having a child, and they named him Isaac, which means “laughter.” Now people can laugh with joy for her and Abraham, not laugh in mockery as when she was childless. How old was Abraham at this time? He was one hundred years old. Do you think Abraham and Sarah were oftentimes mistaken for Isaac’s grandparents, especially at teacher-parent conferences? What type of personality was Isaac? What if he was a strong-willed, difficult child to raise? Imagine Abraham asking God, “Is this the best you could do? I waited all these years and you give me a child like this? You know there aren’t any boarding schools or military academies out here to send him off to, don’t you?”

How long did he have to wait for the promise of a child to be fulfilled? Twenty-five years. God did promise a son, but He didn’t tell him when. How long have we prayed for something and wondered, “Did God say “NO”? Maybe He said “Yes, but not right away.” We pray, “Your will be done,” we might add, “on Your schedule, also.”

The Jews have been praying for the Messiah to come for centuries. In Galatians 4:4, we read, “When the time had fully come, God sent his Son.” We pray, “Thy kingdom come, thy will be done.” When might that be? In Romans 9:9 it says, “At the appointed time, I will return.” God has his timetable, we have ours. So, an unanswered prayer might not be a “NO!” It might be, “OK, but not now.”

Some of our religious legends are a bit strange, to say the least. According to the Rabbis, when Isaac was born at that hour the sick were restored to health, the blind recovered their sight, and the deaf their hearing; the brightness of the sun and of the moon was intensified. I have a suggestion. There should be a rule that no rabbi can write commentary if they have been drinking. Nor should they shop online. Here is another legend. In chapter 21:8, as was the custom of the day, the parents held a celebration on the day Isaac was weaned. There were those who did not believe that Sarah had given birth to Isaac. Some thought that he may have been the son of Hagar or an orphan. To silence these slanderers Abraham prepared a great feast on the occasion of the weaning of Isaac, and, by a miracle, Sarah was enabled to nurse all the babies that had been brought by the women invited to the feast. As there was no longer any doubt as to Sarah's maternity, the slanderers questioned Abraham's paternity. Then God imprinted on the face of Isaac the features of Abraham, and the likeness between father and son became so great that one was often mistaken for the other. No, I’m not making this stuff up. This is why Scripture says to us, Do not add to or take away from what is commanded (Deut. 4:2; 12;32, Rev. 22:18,19), or do not go beyond what is written (I Cor 4:6).  Imagine if you are little Isaac and you looked into a mirror and saw the image of a 100-year-old man. Yikes! He hadn’t even made it to puberty, and he is already an old man.

So, was everybody happy for Abraham and Sarah? Did everyone love to see the attention being given to little Isaac? Of course not. This wasn’t The Waltons and they weren’t living in Mayberry. Sulking over in the corner was Ishmael. OK, you caught me, he may not have been sulking in the corner. That would be adding to the word of God. But verse 9 says he was mocking. He had been the center of attention, an only child, for years. He was now 17 to 20 years old, mocking a 3-5 years old. Teenagers can be difficult enough to live with. Now this kid comes along and is prized more highly than he was. He is getting all the attention. I think you can see that this isn’t going to end well. In Galatians 4:29 it says that Ishmael, “persecuted the son born by the power of the Spirit.” According to one tradition, Ishmael would take Isaac to the fields and there casting at him arrows and balls under the pretext of play, but in reality, to get rid of him. “Hey, let’s take the kid out for target practice. We’ll have him hold up the targets for us. It will be fun.” Maybe Ishmael was the one who invented Lawn Darts. Do you remember that game? Who came up with that idea? “Let’s give the kids pointed dart to throw around in the yard while the adults are drinking. What could possibly go wrong?” 

Sarah has had it with that woman and her kid. She says to Abraham, get rid of them. Poor Abraham. He had grown to love both kids, and to keep peace he has to send Ishmael and Hagar away. In that day, the father was forbidden to expel the son of the handmaid when the son of the wife had been born. Ishmael could be disinherited, but he was not to be sent away. God says to him, “Listen to whatever Sarah tell you.” Now ladies, pay attention to this passage. Men preachers sometimes love to take Eph 5:22 out of context where it says, “wives, submit to your husbands.” They don’t always spend as much time on verse 25, “Husbands, love your wives just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her.” So now, the wives can do the same, tell your husbands, “God says that you should do what I say! Now take me to the Mall.”

God reassures Abraham that Ishmael will not be without a promise. He reiterates his promise to make of him a great nation. He will not receive the Abrahamic Covenant, but he will benefit from the blessing aspect of it. Of course, he doesn’t tell him that this nation would continue the sibling rivalry for generations to come.

The next day Abraham gave Hagar provisions and sent them on their way. The word that is translated “sent her away” is not a hostile word, as when Sarah told Abraham to send her away. The word is a neutral word, meaning, “a friendly release.” There was no hostility here, just sadness.

In verse 14 it says that they wandered in the desert. In other words, she got lost. If you are in the desert, there aren’t many landmarks to guide you. A map wouldn’t be of much help. Everywhere you turned, the terrain looked the same. She had enough provisions to get to the next oasis, but her food and water had run out. So, she helped her son find a bit of shade under a bush and she herself move away from him so she wouldn’t have to see him succumb to the heat. Verse 16, “and as she sat there nearby, she began to sob.”

Then the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and said to her, “What is the matter, Hagar?” Really? He has to ask? Well, you can see in the text that her eyes were opened, and she saw a well and she was reassured that her son will become a great nation.

Why does God wait so long to intervene? It’s difficult enough to leave the only family you’ve known without having to nearly die in the process. Couldn’t Abraham have given her a couple of servants, how about a guide, to make sure they had a safe and comfortable trip and only stayed at Five Star Hotels?

God was with the young boy. He became an archer. Was that a hobby, sort of like the rich playing polo or was it a job he went to every day? I like the way this ends, “While he was living in the Desert of Paran, his mother got a wife for him from Egypt.” What was that like? Ishmael comes home from “archering” and Mom says, “Guess what I bought for you from Egypt? Ta Dah. How do you like her? Isn’t she pretty?”

The chapter ends with Abimelech making a peace treaty with Abraham. Why? Well, they recognized that God was with Abraham, blessing him. They noticed that he seems to have won all the battles he fought, he was very wealthy, sort of had the Midas Touch. He may not have known exactly what was going on, but he did know that he didn’t want to be on the wrong side of Abraham. It all goes back to the unconditional covenant God made with Abraham in Gen. 12:3, which included, “I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse.” Abimelech says, “Show to me and the country where you are living as an alien the same kindness, I have shown you.” Abraham then told him about some ruffians who took a water well from his men. Abimelech said, “I don’t know anything about that. This is the first that I’ve heard of it.” So, they made a peace treaty and, for the time being, everyone lived in peace. They called the location where this was made Beer-Sheva. Sheva means seven. Seven was the number of lambs Abraham gave to Abimelech. You will see the word Sheva again, in the book of Job. In the Jewish religion, when someone dies, the family has their home open for visitors for seven days. People can come, pay their respects for a period of seven days. Why seven? Because when Job was grieving over the death of his children, he sat for seven days and his friends came to be with him. They silently sat there. They call this sitting Shiva.

He then planted a Tamarisk tree and stayed put for a long time. If you are interested in plants and trees, here is what I found on the Tamarisk tree. Tamarisks are very common trees and shrubs in the Middle East, especially in soils with high salt concentration and are therefore the only trees found on the shores of the Dead Sea. The tamarisk has small scale like leaves and small branches which give the tree a pine-like appearance. During the heat of the day the tamarisk secretes salt, a process very wasteful of water. The salt dries. During the night, the salt absorbs water from the air. In the morning, the water evaporates creating a sort of natural air-conditioning. This cooling effect is another reason for its popularity as a shade tree. Attractive pink or white flowers are produced during the winter, although a tree may flower any time during the year. The fruits are wind dispersed but the tamarisk is easily propagated by cuttings.

Two plants are mentioned in Genesis 21. The first is the shrub under which Hagar placed Ishmael (verse 15). The second is the tamarisk planted by Abraham (verse 33). The shrub could also easily be a tamarisk as this is one of the most common shrubs and trees in the vicinity of Beersheba or it could be the white broom.

Why did Abraham plant a tamarisk? Trees were often used as memorials for great men. It is therefore appropriate that Abraham should honor God by planting the tamarisk. It would be a permanent memorial of the covenant between the two.

Saul held court under a tamarisk in Gibeah (I Samuel 22:6). This dark green tree would be evident from the hilltop and provide a sort of "address" for visitors and could probably be seen for miles.