Genesis 16

1 Now Sarai, Abram's wife, bore him no children, but she had an Egyptian servant whose name was Hagar.

Sarai, Abram's wife, hadn't been able to have any children for him. However, she owned a female Egyptian slave named Hagar,

2 Sarai said to Abram, "Look now, God has prevented me from bearing. Please go in to my servant. It may be that I will obtain children by her." Abram listened to the voice of Sarai.

so Sarai said to Abram, “Please listen to me. The Lord hasn't let me have any children. So please go and sleep with my slave. Maybe I can have a family through her.” Abram agreed to what Sarai had suggested.

3 So Sarai, Abram's wife, took Hagar the Egyptian, her servant, after Abram had lived ten years in the land of Canaan, and gave her to Abram her husband to be his wife.

So Sarai, Abram's wife took her Egyptian slave Hagar and gave her to her husband as his wife. Abram had been living in the land of Canaan for ten years when this happened.

4 He slept with Hagar, and she conceived. When she saw that she had conceived, her mistress was despised in her eyes.

Abram slept with Hagar and she became pregnant. When she realized she was pregnant, she treated her mistress with contempt.

5 Sarai said to Abram, "This wrong is your fault. I gave my servant into your bosom, and when she saw that she had conceived, she despised me. God judge between me and you."

Then Sarai complained to Abram, “What I'm suffering is all your doing! I gave you my servant to sleep with, and now that she knows she's pregnant, she treats me with contempt. May the Lord decide who's at fault—you or me!”

6 But Abram said to Sarai, "Look, your servant is in your hand. Do to her whatever is good in your sight." Sarai dealt harshly with her, so she fled from her presence.

“Listen, she's your slave!” Abram replied. “You can do whatever you want to her.” Sarai treated Hagar so badly that she ran away.

7 And the angel of God found her by a spring of water in the desert, by the spring on the way to Shur.

The angel of the Lord met Hagar at a spring in the desert—the spring on the road to Shur.

8 And he said, "Hagar, servant of Sarai, where did you come from, and where are you going?" And she said, "I am running away from the presence of my mistress Sarai."

He asked her, “Hagar, Sarai's slave—where have you come from, and where are you going?” “I'm running away from my mistress Sarai,” she replied.

9 The angel of the LORD said to her, "Return to your mistress, and submit yourself to her authority."

“Go back to your mistress and do what she tells you,” the angel of the Lord told her.

10 The angel of the LORD said to her, "I will greatly multiply your descendants, so that they will be too numerous to count."

Then he continued, “I will give you many, many descendants—in fact they'll be so many they can't be counted.”

11 Then the angel of God said to her, "Look, you are with child, and will bear a son. You are to name him Ishmael, because God has heard your affliction.

The angel of the Lord went on to tell her: “Listen! You're pregnant, and you will have a son. You are to name him Ishmael, for the Lord has heard how you've suffered.

12 He will be like a wild donkey among men. His hand will be against every man, and every man's hand against him. And he will live away from all of his brothers."

He'll be a wild donkey kind of man—he will fight with everyone, and everyone will fight with him. He will forever be fighting with his relatives.”

13 And she called his name, the one who spoke to her, "You are El Roi," for she said, "Here I have seen the one who sees me."

From then on Hagar called the Lord who spoke to her, “You are the God who sees me,” because she said, “Here I saw the one who sees me.”

14 Therefore the well was called Beer Lahai Roi. Look, it is between Kadesh and Bered.

That's why the well is called “the Well of the Living One who Sees Me.” It's still there, between Kadesh and Bered.

15 Hagar bore a son for Abram. Abram called the name of his son, whom Hagar bore, Ishmael.

Hagar gave birth to a son for Abram. Abram named his son Ishmael.

16 Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore Ishmael to Abram.

Abram was 86 when Hagar had Ishmael.