Hagar

To round up this series for Women’s Month and dive into Spring, I gravitated to an account that I often read. The story of a slave girl named Hagar. Abram (later known as Abraham) and Sarai (later known as Sarah) head to Egypt because of a severe famine. Clearly, Egypt must have had provisions that was lacking everywhere else. Abram, concerned about the reception he might receive in a foreign land, convinces Sarai to play the role of his sister, not his wife (Genesis 16). The Pharoah deals generously with Abram and Sarai is taken into the palace. Abram prospers and has an abundance of livestock, and specifically mentioned are his male and female servants. Perhaps, either gifted or purchased, this was the start of Hagar’s journey in Abram’s household?

Soon enough, Abram’s deception is uncovered, and he is sent packing out of Egypt with everything that he had. Including his female servant Hagar. Her story is intricately woven with Abram and Sarai. It is very likely that Hagar was a name given to her. Researchers claim that Hagar is in fact a Jewish name, not an Egyptian one. I am reminded that when my grandfather, somewhere between 1860 and 1911, arrived in South Africa as an indentured labourer, (a fancy term for ‘slave’) his original Indian name was changed, and he was given an easier, westernized name. His name must have been a bit of a mouthful! A new name did not bring a new position. Hagar, taken from her homeland, possibly given a different name, afforded no rights, with her slave status ensuring she had no say in her day to day life is a character who showcases how good God really is, even when the circumstances dictate otherwise.

God promises Abram that he will be the father of many nations. Sarai is impatient- there is no sign of a child from herself. So, she does what is considered the tradition of the day. Offers Abraham the chance to have a child with Hagar. Hollywood and Bollywood could not have scripted this better! It just goes downhill from there for Hagar. Trust me. Women don’t want any co-stars in the days of their lives, especially not where their husbands are concerned. It may have been Sarah’s grand idea, but soon enough, the enormity of her actions (and Hagar’s belly!) causes friction in the camp (Genesis 16:4-6). Hagar, forgetting her slave position, starts to show contempt towards Sarah. Sarah decides to show Hagar who is in charge. Unable to bear the mistreatment, pregnant and alone, Hagar runs away into the desert.

When I wrote on various other women for the month of August, there were always questions that popped out at me. Had I behaved in some way like the character, which gave me a chance to examine my life and try to rectify where I was going off course. When I read Hagar’s story, I am enveloped by the surety that there are certain irrefutable truths about what God does and who he is. No matter how complicated my story gets, these few things remain true.

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God sees me

Hagar’s role in her story is not a pleasant one. The scripture tells us that Hagar, as soon as she fell pregnant, treated Sarah with contempt. The act of treating someone as if they are beneath consideration. The act of despising or a lack of respect and reverence towards another. Other translations say she became proud and despised Sarah. Pretty outrageous behavior for someone who held no position of prominence! Sarah retaliates in kind.

Running away from a miserable life, Hagar runs right into the most unexpected person. God. YHWH. God finds Hagar, talks to her, gives her instructions to return, he acknowledges her distress, he discloses the gender of the baby, names her unborn child, and then promises her that her offspring would be, not just the baby she carried, but many! The slave woman has an encounter with a living God.

So many characteristics of God is revealed in Hagar’s short encounter. He is a relational God. He chose to speak to Hagar. He is a caring God. He listens to her. He is a God who disciplines. His directive to return is for her own benefit. She must return and serve this cruel mistress to whom she has shown contempt, an act that would surely shape her character. She will be provided for, even though she is a slave. He is a supernatural God. He reveals things to her that no-one else could know. A male child is coming. A male child held so much importance in those times. He is a compassionate God. He validates her feelings, acknowledges her distress over her situation. He is a just God. Despite the circumstances of the baby’s conception (people doing what was outside of his plan) he gives reassurance that her baby would be the one through whom she would enjoy descendants too numerous to count.

In return, she calls God by a name he has not been called before. A slave girl with no social standing, someone rejected, abused and alone encounters a God who cares about her life. He cares about how her story ends. The God of seeing or the God who sees me. El Roi.

Hagar’s story shaped my understanding of the concept 'God the Father'. Many people struggle with this trait, especially if you have had a less than stellar example in the form of your earthly father. A bad representation of a father figure on earth will not convince you that a heavenly father, who you haven’t seen, is a good and loving God who watches over you. Hagar’s story reminds me that God sees me. It doesn’t matter where you come from or what tragedy or trauma you think sets you apart from other people. It doesn’t matter if you have been good or bad, if you believe in him or not. He sees you. He sees me. What exactly does God see? Maybe you believe God sees those who behave righteously and walk uprightly? No. He sees my weaknesses, my despair, my anxiety, my doubt, my struggles, my addictions, my loneliness, my longings, my tears, my aspirations, my failures, my defeat, my helplessness, my deepest darkest thoughts and still he seeks to have a relationship with me. He wants to be to me and you, who he was to Hagar. A faithful, compassionate, loving, promise-keeping God.

His intervention is not focused on changing Hagar’s bad behavior. It is focused on the future that he knows will unfold for Hagar and her unborn child if she listens to his instructions and obeys his commands. It reminds me of how often in the scripture all God required from his people was that they would be obedient and serve him only. It is set out once again Deuteronomy 28:1 If you fully obey the Lord your God and carefully follow all his commands I give you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations on earth. We very seldom fully and carefully follows his commands. God’s response to Hagar’s shortcomings was the same response he gives you and me when we fall short. He compassionately guides us on our way (sometimes back to a place where we don’t want to be) and then lets his plan for our lives unfold in his way, in his time.

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God keeps his promises to me

Having been a magistrate for a good few years, contempt of court is a term I became familiar with. It is the offence of being disobedient or disrespectful to a court of law. The penalties are a fine or even some jail time. After treating Sarah with contempt, some might even say Hagar deserved what came her way. A life of misery. That was her punishment. God didn’t focus on her bad behavior. He had a plan for her life. He knew exactly who she was when he addressed her in Genesis 16:8 “Hagar, slave of Sarai…” When he asked her where she was coming from, he already knew the answer. When he asked her where she is going to, he already knew she had no plan of action. He always knows. God tells her to go back to the camp and be Sarah’s slave again. 'Submit to her authority,' God says. The amplified version of this text says submit humbly. I would have been rolling my eyes at this stage. He doesn’t just leave it there. He gives her a promise that she can hold on to, while she goes back to this soap opera unfolding back at the camp. The promise that her child would become a nation, no longer bound by slavery, but free. The number of times I have wanted to run away and God says, “Stay right there missy!” (I paraphrase of course) and I open the word and find all his promises that can carry me through that tough season. This God who sees me, who sees you, he is in control over everything. Was Hagar’s situation a good one? Absolutely not. Still God was available and present in it, ensuring that instead of a certain death in the desert, Hagar found life.

Perhaps if you had someone break their promise to you, Hagar’s story will gently remind you that God keeps his promises. If you are identifying with Hagar right now, running away, dealing with the consequences of your own behavior, just remember that He has mapped out all his promises in his word. All you must do is turn to his word and hold onto the promises he has made and is determined to fulfil.

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God provides for me

Hagar, after her momentous encounter with God, heads back to the camp she ran away from. She gives birth to her son Ishmael. Genesis 17 and 18 helps us put together a timeline and the text suggests that Ishmael was between 13 -15 years old when Isaac was born. During a celebration for Isaac, Sarah is not impressed with Ishmael’s behaviour and tells Abraham to send the slave woman and her son away. Blended families. Never a dull moment there! Abraham is troubled by Sarah’s request, but once again God repeats his promise concerning Ishmael, to Abraham. Ishmael would be a nation too because he was Abrahams offspring.

Sent off with just a few bits of provision, Hagar is once again wandering in the desert, only this time, she has her child with her. Her supplies run out at some stage and water is crucial to their survival. Genesis 21 hints that Ishmael might have been too weak too continue. He is, by this time a teenager and the Bible tells us that Hagar placed him some distance away so she would not have to watch him die. While Hagar was weeping, God hears Ishmaels cries and responds to the situation. Ishmael is dying. Hagar is distressed and God opens her eyes to what was already his provision for them.

I have realized sometimes God will give me not what I desire to overcome the trial but what I need to be sustained in the trial. Often, we associate provision with a monetary equivalent. He provides that and so much more. His provision for Hagar was not a new husband or wealth or transportation out of the desert. It was water. Sustenance to gain strength and move on from the place she had found herself in. A well of water close enough to save them both. How often has God’s answer been right in front of my eyes but my attention was focused on the situation and I couldn’t see his hand of provision? How often has God provided the very thing I need to move me from the position I am in to the next chapter of my story? The well had already been provided. God didn’t allow it to miraculously be formed in that moment. It was already built and filled with water. All Hagar needed was God to open her eyes to it. God’s provision is never dependant on anything that we can or cannot do. It is not dependant on how strongly I believe in what I need to make it through.

Maybe his provision is not instantly accessible like the well of water was to Hagar. Perhaps the provision comes in stages and we cannot understand the why. However and whatever he provides, it will always be what we need to fulfil his purpose for our lives. He is and always will be the God who sees you, the God who provides for you and the God who keeps his promises to you. He is Sovereign. He is good. He is in control.