Genesis 21 Devotional Bible Study
Genesis 21 Chapter Summary
God enabled Sarah to have a son at the age of 90. Abraham was 100 years old. When their son Isaac was eight days old, Abraham circumcised him, as God commanded him.
One day, Sarah saw Ishmael mocking Isaac and asked Abraham to send Hagar and Ishmael away from the family. Abraham was distressed, but God told him to do it and promised to make both of Abraham's sons into great nations.
When Hagar and Ishmael ran out of water in the desert, the angel of the Lord revealed a well of water to Hagar to keep the two of them from dying.
Ishmael became a great archer in the Desert of Paran and married a woman from Egypt. Hagar had been from Egypt.
Around this same time, Abimelek came to Abraham to make a treaty with him because he recognized God was with Abraham and wanted him as an ally rather than a potential enemy.
Sarah makes a selfish, mean choice in sending Hagar and
Ishmael away. The two end up in the desert, near death, because of what Sarah
did to them. Sometimes, people hurt us or do wrong things to us (breaking up
with us, betraying us, firing us, etc.) and we feel like we’ve been sent out to
the desert to die. Everything’s been taken away from us and our souls or our
hearts just feel dry and cracked, like a rocky desert.
But God told Abraham not to worry about Ishmael (verse 12) and He told Hagar not to be afraid (verse 17). God knew what was going to happen to Hagar and Ishmael and He knew how He was going to help them.
God also knows everything that’s going to happen to us, and He knows that whatever other people do to us, He is still in control of our lives. He can still take care of us when others hurt us.
When Hagar and Ishmael were dying in the desert, God
provided water. God always provides exactly what we need. If your spirit or
your heart is dry, God can come in and give you the life-giving water of His
Spirit (John 4:7-13).
God didn’t leave Ishmael when Sarah and Abraham sent him
away. God was with Ishmael as he grew up. God will never leave us. People will.
People will betray us. People will hurt us. Relationships will end or change.
But God will never leave us.
Take a moment to thank Him for His constant Presence in your life. Ask the Spirit to let you feel Him with you now.
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