A BLESSING FOR ISHMAEL AND ISAAC

 

BY THE END OF THE LESSON, PARTICIPANTS WILL:

IDENTIFY the blessings God gave to Abraham's two sons, Isaac and Ismael; BELIEVE God's promises despite the circumstances, and PRAY for leading of the Holy Ghost in addressing the conflicts in our lives and our world.

 

FOCAL VERSES Genesis 21:13-14; 21:17-21; 26:2-5; 26:12-13

KEEP IN MIND

"In all that Sarah hath said unto thee, hearken unto her voice; for in Isaac shall thy seed be called. And also of the son of the bondwoman will I make a nation, because he is thy seed" (from Genesis 21:12-13).

 

AT-A-GLANCE

1. God's Promise for Ishmael (Genesis 21:13-14)

2. God's Protection and Provision for Ishmael (vv. 17-21)

3. God's Promise for Isaac (26:2-5, 12-13)

 

IN FOCUS STORY

Rita couldn't wait to meet her sister. Her parents had married when they were just out of high school, but the marriage fell apart quickly. Both of her parents remarried and eventually had other children. Rita's father had remained in contact but was never a big part of her life. Her mother's second marriage didn't last and soon after, Rita's mother became ill. During her mother's illness, an aunt cared for Rita and her brother. When her mother died, her father said that he was willing to take Rita, but not her brother. From that point on, she didn't see much of her father. Eventually he stopped calling. The last thing she had heard was that he has passed away.

Now years later, she received an interesting message on Facebook. It was from her sister, her father's daughter from his second marriage. They began to talk on the telephone and found that they had quite a bit in common. Both had been blessed despite the circumstances, and she was glad to hear that her father often talked about her and his regret that he had left her in the care of another relative. Now the two sisters would meet at last. They had lived very different lives, but they recognized that they were their father's children.

In today's lesson, we learn that although circumstances of birth can cruelly separate siblings, the loving kindness of God is poured out despite past pain.

 

THE PEOPLE, PLACES, and TIMES

Hager. Hager was an Egyptian girl who lived as a slave in the household of Abraham and Sarah. Although the Bible does not tell us, it is reasonable to assume that Hager may have been a part of a generous dowry paid to Abraham by Pharaoh (12:10-20). Giving slaves was a widely accepted practice. If this theory is correct, then it is easy for us to see that Hagar was at a distinct advantage among Sarah and the other Hebrew women. She had come from Egypt, a land that was economically, socially, and politically advanced. Now she was the property of a nomadic tribeswoman. She was both a foreigner and a slave among a people whose living conditions must have seemed quite primitive to her.

Concubines. In the ancient world, it was not unusual for men in power to have both wives and concubines. Concubines served many of the same roles as wives. The primary differences was their inability to actually marry the man. Often, this was a socioeconomic issue. If the concubine was a slave, then she could not marry her master.

Reasons for the practice of concubinage are numerous. Poor families could find financial relief by selling their daughters (Exodus 21:7-11; Judges 19:1), A concubine was often used to provide male heirs for a barren wife (Genesis 16:15-16) and often for multiplying both the available family workforce and the family wealth and status. Concubinage was also used to solidify political relationships between nations. Royal wives were sometimes inherited by succeeding kings (2 Samuel 12:8). We read of concubinage in the early Israelite history. Though they did not have the same status as the wife, concubines were not to be mistreated (Exodus 21:7-11) and were protected from being violated by other men (Genesis 35:22, 49:3-4). The sons of concubines were often treated as co-heirs with the sons of wives.

 

BACKGROUND

Not only does God make promises, He can be counted on to keep them. God promised Abraham that not only would he have a son, God would also "make thy seed as the dust of the earth: so that if a man can number the dust earth, then shall they seed also be numbered" (from 13:16). Abraham was already an old man when God made this promise, and his wife, Sarah, was past childbearing age. More than ten years went by and still Abraham had no child. So it is not that surprising that Abraham had grown doubtful. Instead of trusting God to do what He said He would, Abraham foolishly listened to his wife, Sarah. She proposed that Abraham take her Egyptian slave, Hagar, as a concubine and father children through her. Hagar became pregnant and the domestic situation between the two women became so hostile that Hagar ran away.

Hagar was intercepted by the angel of the Lord on her way back to Egypt. The angel, perhaps a pre-incarnate presence of Jesus, told Hagar, "Return to the mistress [Sarah], and submit thyself under her hands...I will multiply thy seed exceedingly, that is shall not be numbered for multitude" (from 16:9-10). Hagar believed that God would keep His promise to her, and she returned to Abraham and Sarah. Perhaps Hagar understood that if God could be with her in the wilderness, He could be with her in having to submit to Sarah. This is a wonderful reminder to us. We often want to run away from our problems, but God wants to demonstrate His power in the midst of our problems. When her son was born, Hagar obeyed the instructions she had received from the angel and named him Ishmael, which means "God hears."

 

SEARCH THE SCRIPTURES

1. Concerning Ismael's future, what did God promise to Abraham and to Hagar (Genesis 21:13, 18)?

 

2. What intervention did God send to Hagar when she was in despair (vv. 17, 19)?

 

3. What were some of the blessings that God promised to Isaac (Genesis 26:2-4)?

 

4. What do these passages say about the outcomes for both Ishmael and Isaac (Genesis 21:20-21; Genesis 26:12-13)?

 

DISCUSS THE MEANING

1. What does this passage say about Egypt (Genesis 21;21; Genesis 26:2) and what impact did that have on the lives of Isaac and Ishmael?

 

2. In what ways did the parents honor God for the lives of Isaac and Ishmael (Genesis 21:18-19; Genesis 26:5)?

 

3. In the In Focus story, Rita and her sister find common ground on which to meet. Consider people in your family or life with whom you have history of strife. How can you help to find common ground?

 

LESSON IN OUR SOCIETY

1. Many people, including Christians, have strong opinions about the strife between the Palestinians and Jews in Jerusalem. For most people, those opinions are driven by either the opinions of those around them or their biblical view. While the media, politicians, and even Christian leaders offer sound bites, we could better pray for peace if we understood the situation. How can we better learn about both sides of the argument so we can ask God to help us pray for peace in that area?

2. While we are reminded of the strife in the Middle East, we cannot ignore the violence in cities and towns across the United States. This lesson shows us that God blessed both of the sons of Abraham because God honored His promises. What promises has God made about the children in your home, community, or church? How are you helping them to reach the potential they have in God and protecting them from the violence around them? As people called by the Name of Jesus, what obligation do we have to intervene for our children and our communities?

 

3. Violence around the world is claiming the lives of children and families. Investigate what the P.A.W. International Missions Department is doing in various countries and determine how you, your family, and your church can help.

 

MAKE IT HAPPEN

Many of us know of situations of hurt and resentment within our own families. The causes for these estrangements are numerous, but the result is the same: bitterness and brokenness. Think about some of those situations in you family. Pray and ask God to use you to help reconcile family members.

 

(Except from The Apostolic Light P.A.W.)

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