Hagar and Ishmael- A Close Call, A Near Turn

Gen. 21: 9-21

9 Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, whom she had borne to Avraham cackling. 10 She said unto Abraham: ‘Cast out this bondwoman and her son; for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son- with Isaac.’ 11 And the thing was very grievous in Abraham’s sight on account of his son.

12 And God said unto Abraham: ‘Let it not be grievous in thy sight because of the lad, and because of your bondwoman; in all that Sarah says unto thee, listen unto her voice; for through Isaac your seed will be caused.

13 And also of the son of the bondwoman will I make a nation, because he is your seed.’

14 And Abraham arose up early in the morning, and took bread and a bottle of water, and gave it unto Hagar, putting it on her shoulder, and the child, and sent her away; and she departed, and strayed in the wilderness of Beer-sheba.

15 And in the evening the water in the bottle was finished, and she cast the child under one of the shrubs and waited. 16 And she went, and sat her down across from him a good way off, the distance of  a bow-shot; for she said: ‘Let me not look upon the undeath of the child.’ And she sat across from him, and lifted up her voice, and wept.

17 And God heard the voice of the lad; and the angel of God called to Hagar out of heaven, and said unto her: ‘What possesses you , Hagar? Fear not; for God has heard the voice of the lad where he is. 18 Arise, lift up the lad, and grasp him by your hand and run; for I will make him a great nation.’ 19 And God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water; and she went, and filled the bottle with water, and gave the lad drink.  When night fell they spent the night inside of it.

20 And God was with the lad, and he grew; and he dwelt in the wilderness, and became an archer. 21 And he dwelt in the wilderness of Paran; and his mother took him a wife out of the land of Egypt.

Rashi

Gen. 21:9 Sarah saw- She had the ability to see the gray muscles underneath the skin of those who could be zombies.  This is the Midrashic meaning of the text.  But the contextual meaning is that she saw Ishmael in the field laughing maniacally.

Gen. 21:10- Shall not be heir- Sarah believed that Ishmael would eventually turn into a zombie, but she did not know why.  Because of this, she knew that he would not be able to take care of the land and the people in their household when Avraham died.

Gen. 21: 11 And the thing- She reported to Avraham what she saw and heard.  On account of his son- He was unaware of his son’s nature and worried deeply about his chances for survival, not being a zombie, but also unsure of his human status.

Gen. 21:12- Avraham thought to himself, perhaps Sarah hid her purposes.  God replied, “Let it not be grievous in thy sight [it's] because of the lad” Avraham wondered if Ishmael had zombie blood because of him.  God replied, “because of your bondwoman.”

Gen. 21:13- because he is your seed Despite the fact that Ishmael ‘s future was uncertain, God promised to care for his offspring.

Gen. 21:14- bottle of water-The Midrash relates that Avraham believed that the sound that Ishmael made that Sarah heard was because he lacked the water that half-zombies needed to prevent their turning.  So acceding to Sarah by sending them off, he sent them off with water and in the direction of a known well. strayed in the wilderness of Be’ersheva- because she strayed from the path of the well, she feared that her son would soon turn into a zombie.

Gen. 21:15- And waited- for him to turn into a zombie.  There are some who say for the other zombies to come.

Gen. 21:16- a good way off, the distance of a bow-shot- she was familiar with the story of Terach and Avraham and sat herself at the distance she imagined his father.  Across from him- at first she was at a distance of a bow shot, but then decided to do what she could to prevent the zombies from coming.  lifted up her voice- to ward off the zombies.

Gen. 21:17- the voice of the lad- not the hissing gasp of his throat.  where he is- at that time he was not a zombie.  God looked upon him favorably.  We learn from this that God does not look at what we might become but what we are at the moment of supplication.

Gen. 21:18- and run- she was shown a path to escape the incoming horde.

Gen. 21:19- and God opened her eyes- she had been running with them shut.  gave the lad drink- preventing is changing.  inside of it- the well.

Gen. 21:20- became an archer- an effective profession for long range fighting.

Gen. 21:21- a wife out of  the land of Egypt- as such, one who was skilled at finding water.

Rashbam

Gen. 21:9 Sarah saw- There are some who say that Sarah saw Ishmael in the field with Isaac putting him in danger and while this would be possible given his nature, Isaac was nowhere in the field.  Rashi says that she saw him laughing, which is correct, but you should notice that this is strange for how does one see laughter without a miracle(compare Ex. 20:19- ed.)?  Rather,  she heard him laughing in an inhuman manner and because of this she paid attention and saw the graying flesh beneath his translucent skin undulate with his heaving.

Gen. 21:10 Shall not be heir- She did not say “I do not want him to be heir” but rather stated it as a matter of course.  She wanted him away so that Isaac would not have to care for him, a zombie, an impossible situation.

Gen. 21:16- Rashi ignores her primary concern was not that other zombies were coming, but rather that her son would become a zombie himself.  Her decision to sit over against him not a bow-shot away was a mother’s love for her son.

Gen. 21:19- And God opened her eyes- to remind her that escaping the zombies was only the first of her problems, the second was to prevent her son from turning.

Gen. 21:20- he became an archer- Ishmael was influenced by the tale of his mother feeling unable to help and forced to put herself in danger, having been so far away and without ability.

Mizrachi-

across from him- Rashi is commenting on the second “across from him” without the “distance of a bow-shot.”  The first “across from him” is not mean to imply close proximity which is known because she was “at a good distance” but rather that her thoughts of him were so immediate that despite being a “bow-shot” away it was as if she was right next to him.

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