Genesis 12: 4-20; 16:1-15; 21:8-21 (NKJV)
Here we are at the last lesson in our study on Hagar, in lesson 6 we left Hagar and Ishmael lost and wandering in the desert, let’s see how it all ends …
Let’s begin with Genesis 21:15
Verses 15 - 16: When the water in the skin was used up, she left the boy under one of the bushes. Then she went and sat down opposite him, about a bowshot away, for she said, "Do not let me see the boy die." And she sat opposite him and lifted up her voice and wept.
Did you notice in verse 14 that Hagar and
Ishmael got lost and wandered about in the wilderness of Beersheba? This would explain their water running out.
Verse 17: God heard the lad crying; and the
angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and said to her, "What is the
matter with you, Hagar? Do not fear, for God has heard the voice of the lad
where he is.
God heard … oh, how comforting that thought
is! God heard the lad crying, let that
sink in … He hears the cry of His children today, too. God hears!
God has a question for Hagar … ‘what is the
matter with you?’ It’s as if God is
saying, ‘have you forgotten how I took care of you before … why are you afraid
now?’
It seems that Hagar in her anguish and
distress had forgotten … do we do the same thing when our world lays crushed
and crumbling at our feet. It’s hard to
hold on to God when the ashes of our lives are smoldering at our feet isn’t it
…. this is where Hagar is now, and God meets her there! Doesn’t that just make you smile! God meets her there! God meets us right where we are when we’re at
the end of our ropes, too!
Verse 18:
"Arise, lift up the lad, and hold him by the hand, for I will make
a great nation of him."
God is saying, ‘Get up and go to your son,
I have plans for him too!’ Even though
Ishmael was not the promised child through which the Messiah would come, God
still cared for him and had a plan for him as well.
Today, we know the ‘great nation’ God
was referring to as the Arabs.
Verse 19:
Then God opened her eyes and she saw a well of water; and she went and
filled the skin with water and gave the lad a drink.
Hagar was likely dehydrated and exhausted
as well. Wandering around lost in an
unfamiliar area is emotionally draining, not to mention her anguish over seeing the condition of her son. All
of this likely contributed to her not being aware of the nearby well.
When God made her aware of the well, she
went and filled the skin with water and gave to her son. Hagar was once again reminded that God saw
and knew and that He had not abandoned them.
Verses 20—21: God was with the lad, and he grew; and he
lived in the wilderness and became an archer.
He lived in the wilderness of Paran, and his mother took a wife for him
from the land of Egypt.
God was with Ishmael …
Ishmael became skilled with the bow and
became an archer …
He lived in the wilderness of Paran (located
in the Siani Peninsula in modern day Israel ) …
Hagar took a wife for him from Egypt.
In closing:
Mohammed, founder of Islam, was a
descendant of Hagar
Arabs are descendants of the Ishmaelites
(Ishmael) Hagar’s son. God fulfilled His
promise regarding Ishmael in that he became the father of the Arab nation that
we know today.
The seed of all that’s wrong in the middle
east conflict has its roots right here in this situation.
Abram and Sarai’s attempt to secure the
‘promised child’ was the result of a lack of faith in God.
One has to wonder if Abraham and Sarah
could have realized the consequences of their decision and what it would set in
motion, if they would have waited on God’s timing. Do we think about future consequences of decisions
we make?
Scripture doesn’t give us further details
about Ishamel or Hagar’s life.
And finally …
What would Hagar tell
us today about God if she could? Would
she tell us that …
He is real …
He can be trusted …
He is to be obeyed …
We can do hard things when God is with us …
He sees …
He hears ...
He is there when our situation is not
perfect …
He provides …
He is there when choices are taken away
from us … (God doesn’t prevent others
nor us from making bad choices even when those choices hurt others. He gives us all freewill! When we look at our choices through the lives
of others getting hurt, it should cause us to choose differently.)
What would Ishmael
tell us:
You can trust God …
God hears our cries …
God loves the rejected …
God provides …
Don't fight God's plan ...
Nothing will deter God’s ultimate plan ...
What would Sarah tell
us …
Keep the faith …
Wait on God’s timing …
Trust God’s timing …
Don’t try to help God …
Be patient …
Bad decisions have bad consequences …
It’s not about what I want.
What would Abraham
tell us …
Obedience to God must come first …
Even the faithful can stumble …
God knows best …
There are painful consequences to
disobedience to God.
One more thing … we need to answer the question the very
title of this study asks … was Hagar, broken and alone, really alone? I hope by now you can see that she wasn’t,
God was with her and provided a way for her.
Was it the way Hagar likely wanted, I feel safe in saying it wasn’t, but
God was with her, He didn’t abandon her.
Let that sink in … there are powerful
lessons for us in this study on Hagar and the way God cared for her and
Ishmael! Lessons that we just might need
to be reminded of every now and then!
I hope you have enjoyed this study and that
you have gotten a closer glimpse of our great God.
As we close out this study on Hagar, our next study is in the works. I'll let you know when it's ready to start posting ... likely closer to the fall season.
Until then I urge you to spend time in
God’s Word daily …
patsy
@ From
This Heart of Mine
~ a place for women to gather and study God's Word ~
Sources used for this study:
Clipart from Adobe Stock
Various
translations of the Holy Bible
Various
commentaries
Several
trusted and biblically sound online sources
Dictionary
of New Testament Background, Editors: Craig A Evans & Stanley E. Porter
Archaeological
Study Bible
All
the Women of the Bible by Edith Deen
Daughters
of Eve by Lottie Beth Hobbs
Halley’s Bible Handbook by H. H. Halley
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