Hagar :The Neglected Maid Servant

Photo credit: Foter / Public Domain Mark 1.0

We have talked about Sarah but what about Hagar? The story of Hagar can be found in the book of Genesis, the sixteenth chapter. Hagar is the Egyptian woman, who was the maidservant of Sarah, Abraham’s wife.  Many theologians believe that Hagar was given to Abraham and Sarah by the King of Egypt as a parting gift. The name Hagar means  flight or stranger, which is so relevant to her story. Hagar was a stranger in the land of her mistress and later would flee from her mistreatment.

Hagar’s story begins with good intentions, but shows the importance of patience and seeking God’s will while waiting for Him to fulfill His promises to us. Unable to have a child of her own Sarah gave Hagar to Abraham in hopes that she will bare him a child. Hagar would then become the second wife of Abram and the child would be considered Sarah’s. They believed it would fulfill the promise God made them. Although what they had done was customary to the women of those times, it introduced a host of other issues in the lives of everyone involved.

The major issue that would ensue was the scorn that Hagar had for Sarah, after knowing she had conceived a child with Abraham. Had Abraham and Sarah waited on the Lord to execute His perfect will, they would not have had these problems. In Sarah’s jealousy and frustration, Hagar runs away (this is before she is told to leave) because of her mistreatment and Hagar experienced a life altering occurrence. The angel of the Lord appeared to her while on the road to Shur. When asked where she was coming from (and going), she explained why she was leaving. It was then she was told to submit to Sarah and that her descendants would be too numerous to count. The angel of the Lord also gave her instructions on naming her son and explained that he would be a wild man, living in hostility towards his brothers. She gave this name to the Lord. “You are the God who sees me,” she said. “I have now seen the One who sees me.” Hagar then bore Ishmael, Abraham’s first son.

Hagar’s story is significant because it shows God’s mercy even in self inflicted trials. When the angel of the Lord visited Hagar, it is the first time in scripture something of this magnitude happened. It was an honor that the angel named her son Ishmael, God will hear, and He showed her compassion. The Lord heard her cry and even in her wrong doing, He comforted her and gave her the strength to face her problems. Hagar was Egyptian and so her only knowledge of God was through Abraham and Sarah yet God still came to her aid when she needed, not once but twice. Although Hagar had been wrong for her scorn for Sarah, Sarah was also wrong for her ill-treatment to Hagar. Abraham could have avoided the series of problems that he faced if he would have had faith in God’s promise and didn’t interfere with His plans. The story of Hagar shows the willingness of God to help us and also His mercy.

We as followers of Christ and children of God should learn from the mistakes of everyone involved in Hagar’s story. There is no problem too big for God to fix. He will right our wrongs, if we allow Him to.

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