For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by the slave woman and the other by the free woman. His son by the slave woman was born according to the flesh, but his son by the free woman was born as the result of a divine promise.
Summary: Abraham’s first two sons represent much more than two births. They are part of a story of impatience and second-guessing God.
Abraham, if you didn’t know, had more than two sons. The Bible tells us that after Sarah’s death, Abraham took another wife named Keturah. She bore him six more sons who, in turn, fathered additional grandchildren for Abraham. Paul isn’t saying that Abraham only had two sons but that his first two sons were both related to a promise God made to Abraham.
When Abraham first arrived in Canaan, he was seventy-six years old (Genesis 16:3,16). Sometime after he arrived in Canaan, the Lord appeared to him and promised Abraham a son that would be his own “flesh and blood” (Genesis 15:4-5). The Bible records that “Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness” (Genesis 15:6).
So God said it, Abraham believed it, and … nothing happened. Years passed, and Sarah did not get pregnant. Since they were not getting any younger, Sarah concocted a scheme to force God’s promise to happen. If she couldn’t get pregnant, perhaps her slave, Hagar, could. Her logic seems to have been that since she “owned” Hagar, she would “own” the son, too.
Okay …
Her plan works up to a point. Abraham gets Hagar pregnant, and then she gives birth to a boy. Bingo! The plan worked! Except for the part about the son being Sarah’s. Hagar was the real mother, and nothing on earth could change that fact. When Sarah realized this, she resented both Hagar and the boy.
Thirteen years later, God visited Abraham again and reminded him that he had not forgotten his promise. A year after that, Isaac was born to Abraham and Sarah, and God’s promise was fulfilled.
This story is complicated on a lot of levels.
The Bible says that “Abraham believed the Lord” when God promised him a son. Yet a few years later, Abraham is getting Hagar pregnant in hopes of forcing God’s hand. Is that faith? Is that righteousness?
Later, God reminds Abraham that he had promised him a son and, oh, by the way, your son will show up next year, and also, by the way, it doesn’t matter that you will be one hundred years old or that your wife is ninety years old. God was faithful even if Abraham wasn’t. Abraham’s first son, Ishmael, was born because of Sarah’s impatience and Abraham’s complicity. His second son, Isaac, was born despite his parent’s age or their expectations.
Even though Abraham went on to have more children later in life, it was these two sons who would go on to change the world.
Application: God’s timing does not depend on human expectations.
Food for Thought: How might the world be different if Abraham and Sarah had been more patient and trusting?
Interesting question. All I can offer is speculation so I am interested in what others might offer in their responses.
The question makes me speculate on the birth of the Arab nation and that nation’s effect on the world.
Genesis 25:16 These are the sons of Ishmael and these are their names, by their villages and by their encampments, twelve princes according to their tribes. (These are the years of the life of Ishmael: 137 years. He breathed his last and died, and was gathered to his people.) They settled from Havilah to Shur, which is opposite Egypt in the direction of Assyria. He settled over against all his kinsmen.
That last part is a reference to Genesis 16: 12
He shall be a wild donkey of a man,
his hand against everyone
and everyone’s hand against him,
and he shall dwell over against all his kinsmen.”
I also wonder about the timing of Issacs’s birth. Had Abram and Sarah remained strong in their faith and not taken matters into their own hands would Isaac have been born earlier? And if he had, what effect that would have had? Its all very speculative. I think my point here is God has a plan for everyone, and ultimately it is to bring us into His presence. I think God is faithful, and wants to bring us into His presence, but has shown us that He will not give us a “mulligan” on the condition of our hearts. If we will humble ourselves before Him, put our faith in Him and in Christ, He is ready to fill us with His Spirit. When we take matters into our own hands, it means our hearts are not ready to receive His blessing.
I’m really open to anyone else’s thoughts on this.
Chris,
You bring up some very interesting points. I hadn’t thought about the effect the timing of Isaac’s birth might have had. That could have impacted a lot of things like, for example, who he eventually married.
What comes to my mind after reading your comment is God’s omniscience as revealed in Romans 8:28:
“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”
While it is pure speculation, one might look to the avoidance of thousands of years of strife between the descendants of these two brothers. The entire world has been affected by the ongoing strife that lasts to this day.
Thanks Rich!
Interesting how that grudge match never goes away. It will take something powerful … like Jesus … to fix that! 🙂