Summary Genesis 16:1-6:
Sarai told Abram to sleep with her servant in order to have a child. Once Hagar got pregnant, she got an attitude (probably thought herself better than Sarai) and despised her mistress. Then Sarai blamed Abram for this. Abram gave Sarai permission to do what she wanted with Hagar. She mistreated her, and Hagar fled.
BSF Study Questions Genesis: Lesson 10, Day 4: Genesis 16:1-6
11a) They knew God would give them a child, so they decided to help God out by using Hagar (which was acceptable back then). They believed God, but didn’t have any patience and thought they knew the method better.
b) Personal Question. My answer: We can believe one thing, but do another. Our fears and our doubts can make us do irrational actions even though we know they aren’t the best decision.
12a) Abram slept with Hagar (not his wife as God ordained). Sarai willingly gave Hagar to Abram (not ordained either). Both in a sense committed adultery.
b) There is nothing good that comes from sin. Ishmael was born, whom the Islamic faith comes from. They are non-Christians. Short-term, Sarai was angry at Abram when it was her fault, so their marriage was not doing well.
13) Everything is a wait game. You can’t push God’s timing.
Conclusions BSF Study Questions Genesis: Lesson 10, Day 4: Genesis 16:1-6
You think Abram and Sarai would have learned after Sarai was prostituted out to Pharaoh, but nope. Only thing that came out of this was pain from everyone involved.
End Notes BSF Study Questions Genesis: Lesson 10, Day 4: Genesis 16:1-6
Hagar was a slave they got when they went to Egypt the first time against God’s orders.(Genesis 12:16). As you can see, sin compounds sin.
Sarai was tired of waiting for a baby. She was probably feeling hurt and sadness for not having a child yet. She could have thought God did not want her as the mother of the nations, only Abram as the father. She may have been angry at God, too. All of her feelings culminated in the sin of adultery.
- Sarai didn’t believe God’s promise anymore.
- She responded in sin against a covenant marriage.
Abram goes along with it. Ten years probably seemed like a long time to them. We must remember we can’t rush God. God is testing our patience and our obedience.
Note they did not pray about this decision. They just did it.
Some Bible scholars think that Hagar would sit on Sarai as Abram inseminated her. They point to Genesis 30:3 of Rachel giving Bilhah to support this. We don’t know. All we know is that having a surrogate mother was common in ancient times.
Having a baby with Abram gave Hagar clout, which she wielded against Sarai.
Sarai blames Abram, which is true. He was the head of the household and should have said no. Abram could have handled the problem, instead he defers to Sarai. This is what it is. Abram probably wanted to stay out of their squabbles. Hagar flees, probably back to her home in Egypt.