The pain of hope deferred weigh heavily on the human soul
Sarai proposes a child for Abram through Hagar
The pain of hope deferred can weigh heavily on the human
soul. Proverbs 13:12 reminds us that “Hope
deferred makes the heart sick, but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life.”
Waiting for unanswered prayers, and even the public shame that accompanies
unmet expectations, can easily break one’s spirit. Yet, the real challenge is
not the waiting or the pain itself, but the temptation to unbelief. When hope
seems delayed, faith becomes the lifeline that sustains the heart. Trusting
God, even when prayers appear unanswered. Trust in God brings inner healing and
guards against despair.
Abram’s story in Genesis 16 illustrates how even the father
of faith stumbled under pressure. Sarai, weary of waiting, reasoned that
perhaps God’s promise needed human intervention. She urged Abram to father a
child through Hagar. Like Adam, who listened to Eve without seeking God’s
counsel, Abram listened to Sarai. This decision reflected human reasoning,
while ignoring divine instruction. Nonetheless, God’s redemptive plan, the
promised Seed who would ultimately be Christ [Genesis 3:15; Galatians 3:16] and
could never come through human shortcuts or cultural practices. The covenant
promise was not to be fulfilled by human arrangements, but by God’s miraculous
power. Ishmael was born, but he was not the child of promise. Isaac, born in
God’s appointed time, would carry forward the covenant.
So
Sarai said to Abram, “See now, the Lord has restrained me from bearing
children. Please, go in to my maid; perhaps I shall obtain children by her.” And
Abram heeded the voice of Sarai (Genesis 16:2).
Hagar acted as a surrogate mother according to Sarai.
However, God's purpose of the Seed of a woman "Messiah," could not
come through human arrangements. Abram's experience teaches us that: first,
waiting on God may test our faith, but His promises are never advanced by human
manipulation. Next, painful delays are often the stage for God to demonstrate
His power, and not our ingenuity. Then, true fulfillment comes only through
God’s appointed way, not through shortcuts fashioned by human wisdom.
Believers must see things mindful of the realm of the
spirit, more than the material world. When we impatiently attempt to fulfill
God’s promises in our own effort, it accomplishes and may prolong the delay.
The custom/culture of a surrogate mother was not out of sensual romance. In
fact, it was an abuse to the man as Hagar would sit on the lap of Sarai as
Abram inseminated her. This had symbolic significance that the child would
legally belong to Sarai. This is illustrated in [Genesis 30:3], when Rachel
gave Bilhah to Jacob.
Paul interprets the account of Hagar and Sarah as an
allegory of the Covenant of the Flesh, which leads to bondage, and the Covenant
of Promise, which leads to freedom. On one hand, Hagar the slave woman
represents Mount Sinai and the law. Ishmael was born according to the flesh,
meaning through human planning and effort rather than God’s promise. Hence,
those who depend on the law for righteousness remain in bondage because human
effort cannot bring God’s ultimate promise. On the other hand, Sarah, though
barren, represents the covenant of grace. Isaac was born through promise, and
his birth was a miraculous work of God, not human schemes. Paul’s point is that
just as Ishmael persecuted Isaac [Genesis 21:9], those who rely on works of the
law oppose those who live by faith. Yet, Scripture declares:
Cast
out the bondwoman and her son, for the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir
with the son of the freewoman (Galatians 4:30).
In other words, God’s inheritance comes only through the
line of promise fulfilled in Christ, not through human arrangements. Therefore,
when hope seems delayed, we must resist the temptation to create “Ishmael's”
solutions born of human anxiety rather than divine promise.
Sarai’s anger towards Hagar
In the ancient Near Eastern culture, childbearing was
directly tied to a woman’s dignity, honor, and perceived worth. A barren woman
was often stigmatized, seen as under divine disfavor, and socially vulnerable.
Sarai’s situation was therefore deeply painful, despite Abram’s faith and
wealth. Therefore, when Hagar conceived, it shifted the household dynamics.
Sarai felt that Hagar’s pregnancy proved the issue lay with her, not Abram.
This intensified her shame, especially in a culture where a wife’s value was
bound to producing heirs. Additionally, a mix of guilt, frustration, and
perhaps even regret that she had initiated this arrangement.
Then
Sarai said to Abram, “My wrong be upon you! I gave my maid into your embrace;
and when she saw that she had conceived, I became despised in her eyes. The
Lord judge between you and me (Genesis 16:5).
Hagar, as the maid, was socially inferior, but conception
elevated her status. She began to look down on Sarai, reversing the hierarchy
of the household. This despising wounded Sarai even more deeply because it
exposed her vulnerability in her own home.
Sarai acknowledged that the situation had gotten out of
hand, beyond human resolution. With bitterness, she shifted blame to Abram for
accepting her plan instead of protecting her dignity as his wife.
The promise of the Angel of the LORD to Hagar
Hagar chose to escape rather than endure the harsh
treatment. In her loneliness and despair, she ended up in the wilderness, a
place of both crisis and encounter. In the wilderness of despair, the angel of
the LORD met her, revealing God’s compassion. The angel called her by name,
showing personal recognition, and gave her instructions to return to Abram's
home and submit. Additionally, the angel promised Ishmael and numerous
descendants. Therefore, Hagar’s wilderness separation was not abandonment, but
became a divine appointment. Her pride met Sarai’s anger, but God’s mercy
overruled both, turning her trial into a testimony.
And
the Angel of the Lord said to her: “Behold, you are with child, and you shall
bear a son. You shall call his name Ishmael, because the Lord has heard your
affliction (Genesis 16:11).
The name Ishmael means God will hear. Believers need to pray
for revival and spiritual awakening among the Arab peoples, because when they
cry out to Jesus, God will hear.
God’s blessing and protection of Hagar and Ishmael
Hagar’s encounter shows a deep spiritual truth, she ran
because she thought her situation was unbearable, but God did not immediately
change her circumstances. Instead, God changed her perspective. Her pride, her
pain, and her sense of rejection were confronted by the reality of a God who
sees and cares. Instead of removing her from hardship, God gave her strength to
endure it with a transformed heart. More often than not, we seek God to change
our circumstances, but we must learn to be triumphant where we are. It is not a
change of climate we need, but a change of heart.
Then
she called the name of the Lord who spoke to her, You-Are-the-God-Who-Sees; for
she said, “Have I also here seen Him who sees me?” 14 Therefore the well was
called Beer Lahai Roi; observe, it is between Kadesh and Bered (Genesis
16:13-14).
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