Bible History
Bible History

Genesis 16 - New American Bible (Revised Edition) (NABRE)

You are here: Home New American Bible (Revised Edition) (NABRE) Genesis 16

Chapter 16

Birth of Ishmael.[a] 1 Abram’s wife Sarai had borne him no children. Now she had an Egyptian maidservant named Hagar.(A) 2 Sarai said to Abram: “The Lord has kept me from bearing children. Have intercourse with my maid; perhaps I will have sons through her.” Abram obeyed Sarai.[b](B) 3 Thus, after Abram had lived ten years in the land of Canaan, his wife Sarai took her maid, Hagar the Egyptian, and gave her to her husband Abram to be his wife. 4 He had intercourse with her, and she became pregnant. As soon as Hagar knew she was pregnant, her mistress lost stature in her eyes.[c](C) 5 (D)So Sarai said to Abram: “This outrage against me is your fault. I myself gave my maid to your embrace; but ever since she knew she was pregnant, I have lost stature in her eyes. May the Lord decide between you and me!” 6 Abram told Sarai: “Your maid is in your power. Do to her what you regard as right.” Sarai then mistreated her so much that Hagar ran away from her.

7 The Lord’s angel[d] found her by a spring in the wilderness, the spring on the road to Shur,(E) 8 and he asked, “Hagar, maid of Sarai, where have you come from and where are you going?” She answered, “I am running away from my mistress, Sarai.” 9 But the Lord’s angel told her: “Go back to your mistress and submit to her authority. 10 I will make your descendants so numerous,” added the Lord’s angel, “that they will be too many to count.”(F) 11 Then the Lord’s angel said to her:

“You are now pregnant and shall bear a son;
you shall name him Ishmael,[e]
For the Lord has heeded your affliction.
12 He shall be a wild ass of a man,
his hand against everyone,
and everyone’s hand against him;
Alongside[f] all his kindred
shall he encamp.”(G)

13 To the Lord who spoke to her she gave a name, saying, “You are God who sees me”;[g] she meant, “Have I really seen God and remained alive after he saw me?”(H) 14 That is why the well is called Beer-lahai-roi.[h] It is between Kadesh and Bered.

15 Hagar bore Abram a son, and Abram named the son whom Hagar bore him Ishmael.(I) 16 Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore him Ishmael.

Footnotes

  1. 16:1–16 In the previous chapter Abraham was given a timetable of possession of the land, but nothing was said about when the child was to be born. In this chapter, Sarah takes matters into her own hands, for she has been childless ten years since the promise (cf. 12:4 with 16:16). The story is about the two women, Sarah the infertile mistress and Hagar the fertile slave; Abraham has only a single sentence. In the course of the story, God intervenes directly on the side of Hagar, for she is otherwise without resources.
  2. 16:2 The custom of an infertile wife providing her husband with a concubine to produce children is widely attested in ancient Near Eastern law; e.g., an Old Assyrian marriage contract states that the wife must provide her husband with a concubine if she does not bear children within two years.
  3. 16:4 Because barrenness was at that time normally blamed on the woman and regarded as a disgrace, it is not surprising that Hagar looks down on Sarah. Ancient Near Eastern legal practice addresses such cases of insolent slaves and allows disciplining of them. Prv 30:23 uses as an example of intolerable behavior “a maidservant when she ousts her mistress.”
  4. 16:7 The Lord’s angel: a manifestation of God in human form; in v. 13 the messenger is identified with God. See note on Ex 3:2.
  5. 16:11 Ishmael: in Hebrew the name means “God has heard.” It is the same Hebrew verb that is translated “heeded” in the next clause. In other ancient Near Eastern texts, the name commemorated the divine answer to the parents’ prayer to have a child, but here it is broadened to mean that God has “heard” Hagar’s plight. In vv. 13–14, the verb “to see” is similarly broadened to describe God’s special care for those in need.
  6. 16:12 Alongside: lit., “against the face of”; the same phrase is used of the lands of Ishmael’s descendants in 25:18. It can be translated “in opposition to” (Dt 21:16; Jb 1:11; 6:28; 21:31), but here more likely means that Ishmael’s settlement was near but not in the promised land.
  7. 16:13 God who sees me: Hebrew el-ro’i is multivalent, meaning either “God of seeing,” i.e., extends his protection to me, or “God sees,” which can imply seeing human suffering (29:32; Ex 2:25; Is 57:18; 58:3). It is probable that Hagar means to express both of these aspects. Remained alive: for the ancient notion that a person died on seeing God, see Gn 32:31; Ex 20:19; Dt 4:33; Jgs 13:22.
  8. 16:14 Beer-lahai-roi: possible translations of the name of the well include: “spring of the living one who sees me”; “the well of the living sight”; or “the one who sees me lives.” See note on v. 13.

Cross references

  1. 16:1 : Gn 11:30.
  2. 16:2 : Gn 21:8–9; Gal 4:22.
  3. 16:4 : 1 Sm 1:6; Prv 30:23.
  4. 16:5–16 : Gn 21:10–19.
  5. 16:7 : Ex 15:22.
  6. 16:10 : Gn 17:20; 21:13, 18; 25:12–18.
  7. 16:12 : Gn 21:20; 25:18.
  8. 16:13 : Gn 24:62.
  9. 16:15 : Gn 16:2; Gal 4:22.

You Might Also Like:

Genesis 16 - Young's Literal Translation (YLT)

16 And Sarai, Abram's wife, hath not borne to him, and she hath an handmaid, an Egyptian, and her name [is] Hagar; 2 and Sarai saith unto Abram, `Lo, I pray thee, Jehovah hath restrained me from bearing, go in, I pray thee, unto my handmaid; perhaps I am built up from her;' and Abram hearkeneth to t...
Read More

Genesis 16 - Wycliffe Bible (WYC)

16 Therefore Sarai, the wife of Abram, had not engendered [to him] free children; but she had a servantess of Egypt, Hagar by name, (And so Sarai, Abram’s wife, had not borne him any children; but she had an Egyptian slave-girl, named Hagar,) 2 and Sarai said to her husband, Lo! the Lord hath closed...
Read More

Genesis 16 - World English Bible (WEB)

16 Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, bore him no children. She had a servant, an Egyptian, whose name was Hagar. 2 Sarai said to Abram, “See now, Yahweh has restrained me from bearing. Please go in to my servant. It may be that I will obtain children by her.” Abram listened to the voice of Sarai. 3 Sarai, ...
Read More

Genesis 16 - The Voice (VOICE)

16 Despite God’s promise, years went by. Still Abram’s wife Sarai remained childless. But she did have an Egyptian servant girl whose name was Hagar. Sarai had an idea so she approached her husband. Sarai (to Abram): 2 You can see that the Eternal One has still not allowed me to have any children. W...
Read More

Genesis 16 - Tree of Life Version (TLV)

Hagar and Ishmael16 Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had not borne him children. But she had an Egyptian slave-girl—her name was Hagar. 2 So Sarai said to Abram, “Look now, Adonai has prevented me from having children. Go, please, to my slave-girl. Perhaps I’ll get a son by her.”Abram listened to Sarai’s v...
Read More

Genesis 16 - Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (RSVCE)

The Birth of Ishmael16 Now Sar′ai, Abram’s wife, bore him no children. She had an Egyptian maid whose name was Hagar; 2 and Sar′ai said to Abram, “Behold now, the Lord has prevented me from bearing children; go in to my maid; it may be that I shall obtain children by her.” And Abram hearkened to th...
Read More

Genesis 16 - Revised Standard Version (RSV)

The Birth of Ishmael16 Now Sar′ai, Abram’s wife, bore him no children. She had an Egyptian maid whose name was Hagar; 2 and Sar′ai said to Abram, “Behold now, the Lord has prevented me from bearing children; go in to my maid; it may be that I shall obtain children by her.” And Abram hearkened to th...
Read More

Genesis 16 - New Revised Standard Version, Anglicised (NRSVA)

The Birth of Ishmael16 Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, bore him no children. She had an Egyptian slave-girl whose name was Hagar, 2 and Sarai said to Abram, ‘You see that the Lord has prevented me from bearing children; go in to my slave-girl; it may be that I shall obtain children by her.’ And Abram list...
Read More

Genesis 16 - New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

The Birth of Ishmael16 Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, bore him no children. She had an Egyptian slave whose name was Hagar,(A)2 and Sarai said to Abram, “You see that the Lord has prevented me from bearing children; go in to my slave; it may be that I shall obtain children by her.” And Abram listened to t...
Read More

Genesis 16 - New Living Translation (NLT)

The Birth of Ishmael16 Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had not been able to bear children for him. But she had an Egyptian servant named Hagar. 2 So Sarai said to Abram, “The Lord has prevented me from having children. Go and sleep with my servant. Perhaps I can have children through her.” And Abram agreed...
Read More

Genesis 16 - New Life Version (NLV)

Hagar and Ishmael16 Now Abram’s wife Sarai had not given birth to any children. She had a woman servant from Egypt whose name was Hagar. 2 So Sarai said to Abram, “Now see, the Lord has kept me from having children. Go in to the woman who serves me. It may be that I will get children through her.” ...
Read More

Genesis 16 - New King James Version (NKJV)

Hagar and Ishmael16 Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, (A)had borne him no children. And she had (B)an Egyptian maidservant whose name was (C)Hagar. 2 (D)So Sarai said to Abram, “See now, the Lord (E)has restrained me from bearing children. Please, (F)go in to my maid; perhaps I shall [a]obtain children by h...
Read More

Genesis 16 - New International Version - UK (NIVUK)

Hagar and Ishmael16 Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had borne him no children. But she had an Egyptian slave named Hagar; 2 so she said to Abram, ‘The Lord has kept me from having children. Go, sleep with my slave; perhaps I can build a family through her.’Abram agreed to what Sarai said. 3 So after Abra...
Read More

Genesis 16 - New International Version (NIV)

Hagar and Ishmael16 Now Sarai,(A) Abram’s wife, had borne him no children.(B) But she had an Egyptian slave(C) named Hagar;(D) 2 so she said to Abram, “The Lord has kept me from having children.(E) Go, sleep with my slave; perhaps I can build a family through her.”(F)Abram agreed to what Sarai said....
Read More

Genesis 16 - New International Reader's Version (NIRV)

Hagar and Ishmael16 Abram’s wife Sarai had never had any children by him. But she had a female slave from Egypt named Hagar. 2 So she said to Abram, “The Lord has kept me from having children. Go and sleep with my slave. Maybe I can have a family through her.”Abram agreed to what Sarai had said. 3...
Read More

Genesis 16 - New English Translation (NET)

The Birth of Ishmael16 Now Sarai,[a] Abram’s wife, had not given birth to any children,[b] but she had an Egyptian servant[c] named Hagar.[d] 2 So Sarai said to Abram, “Since[e] the Lord has prevented me from having children, please sleep with[f] my servant. Perhaps I can have a family by her.”[g] ...
Read More

61 Bible Translations

Popular Articles

Explore the Bible Like Never Before!

Bible History Online

Bible Study Tools

Top Tags