Genesis 21

1- And the LORD visited Sarah as He had said, and the LORD did unto Sarah as He had spoken.

2- For Sarah conceived, and bare Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him.

The set time is the exact time.

3- And Abraham called the name of his son that was born unto him, whom Sarah bare to him, Isaac.

Isaac is #3327 in the Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible, and it means laughter.

4- And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac being eight days old, as God had commanded him.

Notice how Abraham always obeys God.  This is how you get His blessings.

5- And Abraham was an hundred years old, when his son Isaac was born unto him.

6- And Sarah said, ” God hath made me to laugh, so that all that hear will laugh with me.”

7- And she said, ” Who would have said unto Abraham, that Sarah should have given children suck?  for I have born him a son in his old age.”

8- And the child grew, and was weaned: and Abraham made a great feast the same dy that Isaac was weaned.

9- And Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, which she had born unto Abraham, mocking.

Mocking is #6711 in the Hebrew lexicon of the Strong’s Concordance, it means laughing at in scorn.  Ishmael was maybe 15 or so here and he was being mean to the baby Isaac.

10- Wherefore she said unto Abraham, ” Cast out htis bondwoman and her son: for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son, even with Isaac.”

11- And the thing was very grievous in Abraham’s sight because of his son.

Ishmael was Abraham’s son too, so he felt bad sending him away with Hagar.

12- And God said unto Abraham, ” Let it not be grievous in thy sight because of the lad, and because of thy bondwoman; in all that Sarah hath said unto thee, hearken unto her voice; for in Isaac shall thy seed be called.

13- And also the son of the bondwoman will I make a nation, because he is thy seed.”

14- And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and took bread, and a bottle of water, and gave it unto Hagar, putting it on her shoulder, and the child, and sent her away: and she departed, and wandered in the wilderness of Beer-sheba.

Beer- sheba is #884 in the Hebrew Lexicon of the Strong’s Concordance.  It means well of an oath.  It is named after an oath Abraham makes with Abimelech but here it also reminds us of the oath God had made to Hagar.  She had no cause to fear as she does in the following verses.  Always trust God.

15- And the water was spent in the bottle, and she cast the child under one of the shrubs.

16- And she went, and sat her down over against him a good way off, as it were a bowshot: for she said, “Let me not see the death of the child.”  And she sat over against him, and lift up her voice, and wept.

17- And God heard the voice of the lad; and the angel of God called to Hagar out of heaven, and said unto her, “What aileth thee, Hagar?”  fear not; for God had heard the voice of the lad where he is.

God had already promised Hagar that her son was going to be a great nation.  She had no cause to fear.  She did not trust God as Abraham did.

18- Arise, lift up the lad, and hold him in thine hand; for I will make him a great nation.”

19- And God opened up her eyes, and she saw a well of water; and she went, and filled the bottle with water, and gave the lad drink.

This is a dug well as opposed to a spring or naturally appearing water.

20- And God was with the lad; and he grew, and dwelt in the wilderness, and became an archer.

21- And he dwelt in the wilderness of Paran: and his mother took him a wife out of the land of Egypt.

22- And it came to pass at that time, that Abimelech and Phicol the chief captain of his host spake unto Abraham, saying, ” God is with thee in all that thou doest:

23- Now therefore swear unto me here by God that thoy will not deal falsely with me, nor with my son, nor with my son’s son: but according to the kindness that I have done unto thee, thou shalt do unto me, and to the land wherein thou hast sojourned.”

24- And Abraham said, ” I will swear.”

25- And Abraham reproved Abimelech because of a well of water, which Abimelech’s servants had violently taken away.

26- And Abimelech said, ” I wot not who hath done this thing: neither didst thou tell me, neither yet heard I od it, but to day.”

Abimelech denies any knowledge of his people taking the well from Abraham.  It is probably so that he did not know because he has proven that he fears the LORD and place great value on Abraham as God’s prophet.

27- And Abraham took sheep and oxen, and gave them unto Abimelech; and both of them made a covenat.

28- And Abraham set seven ewe lambs of the flock by themselves.

29- And Abimelech said unto Abraham, ” What mean these seven ewe lambswhich thou has set by themselves?”

30- And he said, ” For these seven ewe lambs shalt thou take of my hand, that they may be a witness unto me, that I have digged this well.”

31- Wherefore he called that place Beer-sheba;  because there they sware both of them.

32- Thus they made a covenat at Beer-sheba: then Abimelech rose up, and Phicol the chief captain of his host, and they returned into the land of the Philistines.

33- And Abraham planted a grove in Beer-sheba, and called there on the name of the LORD, the everlasting GOD.

The everlasting GOD is the divine definition Jehova.

34- And Abraham sojourned in the Philistines’ land many days.

Continue to Genesis Chapter 22