Hagar was an Egyptian slave in Sarah's household. When Sarah could not have children, she gave Hagar to Abraham. Hagar conceived, looked down on her mistress, and was treated so harshly that she ran away into the desert.
By a spring on the way to Shur, the angel of the LORD found her. He asked where she had come from and where she was going, told her to go back, and promised her a son named Ishmael, God hears. Hagar became the only person in Scripture to give God a name: the God who sees me. Years later she was sent away again, and when the water ran out God opened her eyes to a well.
“
You are a God of seeing
Name means
Uncertain; possibly “flight” or “stranger”
Home
Egypt, then Abraham's household, then the wilderness of Paran
Role
Sarah's servant, mother of Ishmael
Read in
;
Hagar's story
The spring in the wilderness
Beginning
Given to Abram
Sarah gives her to Abram, and she conceives.
Low point
Running away
Treated harshly, she flees into the wilderness.
High point
The God who sees
The angel finds her; she names God and goes back. Ishmael is born.
Low point
Sent away
Sent off with bread and water. When it runs out she sits away from her son to weep.
Ending
A well of water
God hears the boy, opens her eyes to a well, and is with Ishmael.
Starts as a slave with no say in her own life. Ends as a mother who had met the God who sees.
Where Hagar lived and went
Only places Scripture records. Softer, dotted pins are traditional or uncertain sites. Tap a pin for the passage.
HomeMinistryKey momentTraditional or uncertainPinch or use + to zoom. Tap a cluster to spread it out.
How Hagar is wired
Why there's no type here
Hagar has only a few lines, spoken in crisis, so a type would be guesswork.
Strengths & struggles
What's good in Hagar
Answered God honestly (). Obeyed and went back (). Kept going for her son in the desert ().
Where Hagar struggles
Looked on Sarah with contempt once she conceived ().
What Hagar wanted most
Scripture does not say directly. In the desert she wanted not to watch her son die ().
Hagar was found by the God who sees. In Jesus, God came to look outsiders in the eye.
Jesus noticed the people others overlooked, like a Samaritan woman by a well (). Paul uses Hagar's story to contrast slavery and freedom (): in Christ even outsiders become children of promise. The God who saw Hagar sees you.
Questions to sit with
1
The angel asked Hagar where she came from and where she was going. How would you answer?
2
Hagar named God “the God who sees me.” Where do you need to know you are seen?
Study Hagar with your group
Ready-to-lead group studies with discussion questions and a leader's note are on the way.
