Open English Translation GEN Chapter 21

21 In due course, Yahweh visited Sarah just as he’d said and he did for her exactly what he’d said, 2 so that Sarah conceived and gave birth to a son for Abraham in his old age at the very time of the year that God had told him.[ref] 3 Abraham named their son Yitshak, 4 and he circumcised him when he was eight days old, just as God had commanded him.[ref] 5 Abraham was one hundred years old when his son Yitshak was born, 6 and Sarah said, “God has brought laughter to me. Everyone who hears will laugh with me.” 7 And she continued, “Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would breastfeed children, yet I have given him a son in his old age.”

8 The child grew and was weaned, and Abraham held a large feast on the day Yitshak was weaned.

9 But Sarah noticed that Ishma’el (the son of Hagar the Egyptian who she had given birth to for Abraham) was mocking, 10 so Sarah said to Abraham, “Get rid of that slave woman and her son, because that slave woman’s son won’t be inheriting anything along with my son Yitshak.”[ref] 11 Now this stressed out Abraham who also cared for that son, 12 but God told him, “Don’t get distressed because of the boy and your slave woman. Listen to what Sarah’s telling you, because it’s in Yitshak that your descendants will be called yours.[ref] 13 But I’ll also make the descendants of the slave woman’s son into a nation, because he’s also your son.”

14 Abraham got up early the next morning, and got some bread and a skin of water and helped Hagar put them on her shoulder. Then he gave her the child and sent her away, and she left and wandered in the wilderness around Beersheba. 15 But when the water from the skin was gone, she threw the child under one of the bushes, 16 and she went and she went a short distance away (about as far as a bow can shoot an arrow) and sat down there, because she said, “I don’t want to watch my child die.” And as she sat at a distance, she sobbed loudly.

17 Now God heard the boy’s voice, so one of God’s messengers called Hagar from heaven and said to her, “What’s the matter, Hagar? Don’t be afraid, because God has heard the boy’s voice over there. 18 Get up and get the boy and hold on to him by the hand, because I’ll make his descendants into a great nation.” 19 Then God enabled her to see a well, so she went and filled the skin with water and gave the boy a drink.

20 As the boy grew up, God kept watch over him, and he lived in the wilderness and became an expert with the bow and arrow. 21 He settled in the Paran wilderness, and in due course his mother found an Egyptian girl for him to marry.

22 One day King Abimelech and Phicol, the commander of his army, spoke to Abraham, saying, “We can see that God is with you in everything you do. [ref] 23 So then, swear to me here by God that you won’t treat me or my children or my descendants badly, and that’ll you’ll be kind to this country just as I showed kindness to you.”

24 “I swear it,” Abraham replied.

25 But Abraham complained to Abimelech about a well of water that had been taken over by Abimelech’s slaves. 26 “I don’t know who did that,” Abimelech responded, “and you hadn’t told me about it, so I’ve only just heard about it today.” 27 Then Abraham gave some sheep and cattle to Abimelech to confirm their agreement together, 28 and then he separated seven female lambs from the rest of the flock. 29 “Why did you pen those seven lambs,” Abimelech asked.

30 “Because I want you to take them,” Abraham insisted. “I want them to be the verification that it was me who dug this well.” 31 So that’s why the place was named ‘Beersheba’ (which means ‘Well of the seven’ or ‘Well of the oath’), because that’s where the two of them made their agreement.

32 So the agreement was made at Beersheba, then Abimelech and Phicol, the commander of his army, got up and returned home to the Philistine region. 33 Then Abraham planted a tamarisk tree there at Beersheba, and he prayed to Yahweh, the God of eternity. 34 Then Abraham continued his stay in the Philistine region for quite some time.