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JANUARY 8
4 And behold, the word of the LORD came to
him, saying, “This one shall not be your heir,
but one who will come from your own body
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shall be your heir.” Then He brought him out- 16:3 gave her to her husband. After 10 child-
side and said, “Look now toward heaven, and less years (see 12:4), Sarai resorted to the cus-
count the stars if you are able to number tom of the day by which a barren wife could
them.” And He said to him, “So shall your get a child through one of her own maidser-
descendants be.” vants (v. 2, “I shall obtain children by her”).
6 And he believed in the LORD, and He ac- Abram, ignoring divine reaction and assur-
counted it to him for righteousness. ance in response to his earlier attempt to
7 Then He said to him, “I am the LORD, who appoint an heir (see 15:2–5),sinfully yielded to
brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans, to Sarai’s insistence, and Ishmael was born.
give you this land to inherit it.”
8 And he said, “Lord GOD, how shall I know
that I will inherit it?” her maid, the Egyptian, and gave her to her
9 So He said to him, “Bring Me a three-year- husband Abram to be his wife, after Abram
old heifer, a three-year-old female goat, a had dwelt ten years in the land of Canaan. So
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three-year-old ram, a turtledove, and a young he went in to Hagar, and she conceived. And
pigeon.” Then he brought all these to Him when she saw that she had conceived, her
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and cut them in two, down the middle, and mistress became despised in her eyes.
placed each piece opposite the other; but he 5 Then Sarai said to Abram, “My wrong be
did not cut the birds in two. And when the upon you! I gave my maid into your embrace;
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vultures came down on the carcasses, Abram and when she saw that she had conceived, I
drove them away. became despised in her eyes. The LORD judge
12 Now when the sun was going down, a deep between you and me.”
sleep fell upon Abram; and behold, horror and 6 So Abram said to Sarai, “Indeed your maid
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great darkness fell upon him. Then He said is in your hand; do to her as you please.” And
to Abram: “Know certainly that your descen- when Sarai dealt harshly with her, she fled
dants will be strangers in a land that is not from her presence.
theirs, and will serve them, and they will 7 Now the Angel of the LORD found her by a
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afflict them four hundred years. And also the spring of water in the wilderness, by the
nation whom they serve I will judge; after- spring on the way to Shur. And He said,
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ward they shall come out with great posses- “Hagar, Sarai’s maid, where have you come
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sions. Now as for you, you shall go to your from, and where are you going?”
fathers in peace; you shall be buried at a good She said, “I am fleeing from the presence of
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old age. But in the fourth generation they my mistress Sarai.”
shall return here, for the iniquity of the 9 The Angel of the LORD said to her, “Return
Amorites is not yet complete.” to your mistress, and submit yourself under
17 And it came to pass, when the sun went her hand.” Then the Angel of the LORD said
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down and it was dark, that behold, there to her, “I will multiply your descendants
appeared a smoking oven and a burning torch exceedingly, so that they shall not be counted
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that passed between those pieces. On the
same day the LORD made a covenant with
Abram, saying:
“To your descendants I have given this land,
from the river of Egypt to the great river, the 16:7 the Angel of the LORD. This special indi-
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River Euphrates— the Kenites, the Kenez- vidual spoke as though He were distinct from
zites, the Kadmonites, 20 the Hittites, the Yahweh, yet also spoke in the first person as
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Perizzites, the Rephaim, the Amorites, the Ca- though He were indeed to be identified as
naanites, the Girgashites, and the Jebusites.” Yahweh Himself,with Hagar recognizing that in
Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had borne him seeing this Angel, she had seen God (v. 13).
16 no children. And she had an Egyptian Others had the same experience and came to the
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maidservant whose name was Hagar. So Sarai same conclusion (see Gen. 22:11–18; 31:11–13;
Ex. 3:2–5; Num. 22:22–35; Judg. 6:11–23;
said to Abram, “See now, the LORD has 13:2–5; 1 Kin. 19:5–7). The Angel of the Lord,
restrained me from bearing children. Please, who does not appear after the birth of Christ,
go in to my maid; perhaps I shall obtain chil- is often identified as the preincarnate Christ.
dren by her.” And Abram heeded the voice of
Sarai. Then Sarai, Abram’s wife, took Hagar
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