In my last post, I shared how we can find encouragement in Hagar's story. Her story stands out when things may seem beyond our control, just as she had no control over hers.
Her story is in three parts, the first being in Genesis 16 where she flees from Sarai’s mistreatment (probably brought on by her ability to produce an heir when Sarai could not) while pregnant with Abraham’s son. The second part is in Genesis 21 where Abraham sends Hagar away, this time with his son, Ishmael, to keep the peace with Sarah. Then, lastly, we see God fulfill His promise to her through the 12 nations that came from Ishmael’s 12 sons and his daughter, Basemath, who married her cousin Esau. Each time her difficult circumstances got worse, God met her, spoke with her, and rescued her.
This is perhaps the one character trait of God that I rest in the most: He’s The God Who Sees. He is not only the God who sees, but He’s also the God who sees us. He sees us, responds, and cares about our situations, the challenges we face, and our hearts.
God keeps the promise He made to Hagar when He first appeared to her and named her son "Ishmael," which means "God hears" or "God will hear." He hears Ishmael cry from extreme thirst from under the nearby bush under which Hagar had put him because she couldn’t bear to hear him die. As she cries a short distance away, God hears both Ishmael and her. He rescues them by showing her a nearby source of water. In verses 20-21 we are told God continued to be with Ishmael as he grew up. Eventually, she and her son founded the Nabatean dynasty. (Petra was their capital.)
When Abraham dies, Ishmael is there to help Isaac bury him—demonstrating he holds no bitterness against his father. His actions make me feel certain Hagar forgave Abraham and Sarah as well.
The main reason I believe Hagar was able to forgive is because she was changed by the revelation of the God who saw her. He saw the injustice done to her and to Ishmael, as well as His response. He rescued her not only by showing her the water but also by giving her and her son an inheritance from Himself, instead of the one from Abraham.
If we rest in the fact that God sees us and our circumstances—and trust He is with us—we can bear up in hope.
If we rest in the fact that God sees us and sees the injustice to us—and trust He will do something about it—we can forgive and move forward.
I am reminded of the story of an addict who started down the addiction path because her neighbor raped her. She reported it to her parents who believed her but did nothing about it. She was forced to live on the same street for the rest of her time at that home. They failed to bring justice to the situation and she suffered for it until a counselor confronted the family. After justice was addressed, she was able to get healing.
So, not only is He the God who sees, the God who sees us, the God who sees injustice, but He’s also the God who does something about it. Sometimes people get upset when Christians talk about the judgment or wrath of God because it doesn’t seem to jive with a loving, kind God. However, those of us who have experienced injustice or are students of the injustices people have enacted, know that justice—and even wrath—has its place.
Grace acts.