Genesis 21 is one of the chapters that can teach you about the importance of names in the Old Testament. If there’s a name that is mentioned, we can understand the future of this character. However, we need to pay attention to another detail- what happened if there’s a character without a name that is mentioned?

When Sarah saw that she was barren, she asked Abram to take another woman, Hagar, in order to enable the family of Abram to survive for the next generation, as written:

“וַתֹּאמֶר שָׂרַי אֶל-אַבְרָם, הִנֵּה-נָא עֲצָרַנִי יְהוָה מִלֶּדֶת- בֹּא-נָא אֶל-שִׁפְחָתִי, אוּלַי אִבָּנֶה מִמֶּנָּה; וַיִּשְׁמַע אַבְרָם לְקוֹל שָׂרָי…. וַתֵּלֶד הָגָר לְאַבְרָם בֵּן; וַיִּקְרָא אַבְרָם שֶׁם-בְּנוֹ אֲשֶׁר-יָלְדָה הָגָר, יִשְׁמָעֵאל”

“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 Sarah said…So Hagar bore Abram a son, and Abram gave the name Ishmael to the son she had borne”(Genesis 16:2,15)

Sarah didn’t like Hagar. She was the woman that gave Abram the firstborn and not Sarah. When she felt that Hagar’s son was mocking at her son, she said to Abraham:

“וַתֵּרֶא שָׂרָה אֶת-בֶּן-הָגָר הַמִּצְרִית, אֲשֶׁר-יָלְדָה לְאַבְרָהָם מְצַחֵק.  וַתֹּאמֶר, לְאַבְרָהָם, גָּרֵשׁ הָאָמָה הַזֹּאת, וְאֶת-בְּנָהּ:  כִּי לֹא יִירַשׁ בֶּן-הָאָמָה הַזֹּאת עִם-בְּנִי עִם-יִצְחָק.”

“But Sarah saw that the son whom Hagar the Egyptian had borne to Abraham was mocking, and she said to Abraham, “Get rid of that slave woman and her son, for that woman’s son will never share in the inheritance with my son Isaac.”

A stranger that would read this chapter, and didn’t know that the name of Hagar’s son is Ishmael, can say that when you are written as “her son” or as “the son of Hagar the Egyptian” – you are not important or you are less important than Isaac.

Have a blessed week and don’t forget to enjoy the Biblical Hebrew. Learn the words of this blog and improve your vocabulary!

Eli

Hebrew-Transcription-Translation

הָגָר -hāgār- Hagar

בֵּן-bēn- Son

שָׂרַי- śāray-Sarah

שֶׁם-Shēm-Name

הָאָמָה-Hā’āmāh-The maid

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