16:1 Sarai, Abram’s wife, had no children, but she had a slave girl from Egypt named Hagar.
16:2 Sarai said to Abram, “Look, the Lord has ·not allowed me to have [L prevented/restrained me from having] children, so ·have sexual relations with [L go to] my slave girl. If she has a child, maybe I can ·have my own family [reproduce; have a child; L build] through her [C taking a second wife or concubine was common for a childless couple at the time].” Abram did what Sarai said.
16:3 It was after he had lived ten years in Canaan that Sarai gave Hagar to her husband Abram as a ·wife [or concubine]. (Hagar was her slave girl from Egypt.)
16:4 Abram ·had sexual relations with [L went in to] Hagar, and she ·became pregnant [conceived]. When Hagar learned she ·was pregnant [conceived], she began to ·treat [look on] her mistress Sarai ·badly [with contempt].
16:5 Then Sarai said to Abram, “·This is your fault [L May the wrong/violence done to me be on you]. I gave my slave girl ·to you [into your embrace; L into your lap], and when she ·became pregnant [L conceived], she began to ·treat [look on] me ·badly [with contempt]. Let the Lord ·decide who is right—[judge between] you or me.”
16:6 But Abram said to Sarai, “·You are Hagar’s mistress [L Your slave girl is in your hand/power]. Do ·anything you want [L what is good in your eyes] to her.” Then Sarai ·was hard on [afflicted; abused] Hagar, and Hagar ·ran away [L fled from her presence].
16:7 The ·angel [messenger] of the Lord [C the angel of the Lord was either a representative of the Lord or the Lord himself; v. 13; Judg. 6:11, 14] found Hagar beside a spring of water in the ·desert [wilderness], by the road to Shur [C likely a location in southern Canaan; 20:1; 25:18; Ex. 15:22; 1 Sam. 15:7].
16:8 ·The angel [L He] said, “Hagar, Sarai’s slave girl, where have you come from? Where are you going?” Hagar answered, “I am ·running away [fleeing] from my mistress Sarai.”
16:9 The ·angel [messenger] of the Lord [16:7] said to her, “Go home to your mistress and ·obey [submit to] her.”
16:10 The angel of the Lord also said, “I will ·give you so many descendants [L greatly multiply your seed so that] they cannot be counted.”
16:11 The ·angel [messenger] added, “You ·are now pregnant [have conceived], and you will ·have [L give birth to] a son. You will name him Ishmael [C sounds like the verb “to hear”], because the Lord has heard ·your cries [L of your affliction].
16:12 Ishmael will be ·like a wild donkey [L a wild donkey/ass of a man]. ·He [L His hand] will be against everyone, and ·everyone [L everyone’s hand] will be against him. He will ·attack [L dwell against] all his brothers.”
16:13 The slave girl gave a name to the Lord who spoke to her: “You are ‘·God who sees me [or God of seeing; Hebrew El-Roi]’ ” because she said to herself, “Have I really seen God who sees me?”
16:14 So the well there, between Kadesh [C also known as Kadesh Barnea in northeast Sinai] and Bered [C location unknown], was called Beer Lahai Roi [C the well of the Living One who sees me].
16:15 Hagar gave birth to a son for Abram, and Abram named ·him [L his son which Hagar bore him] Ishmael.
16:16 Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar gave birth to Ishmael.
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