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The Lord's message was: "I will make you into a great nation." But this time it was not a direct confirmation of God's blessing on Abram and Sarai. Actually, these words were spoken by an angel to Hagar, Sarai's maid.
Hagar was pregnant by Abram. When she realized she was pregnant, she became so "arrogant " that Sarai couldn't stand it. With Abram's permission, Sarai caused her to flee. "The angel of the Lord " caught up with Hagar near a spring in the desert.
This drama began when Sarai tried to build a family through surrogate motherhood. "The Lord has given me no children, " she lamented. So she gave her Egyptian servant to Abram "to be his second wife ". Abram did not hesitate to accept her, even though he had rightfully assumed God's promised son was to be borne by Sarai.
The angel told Hagar to go back to her mistress. Besides giving her God's promise of many descendants, the angel added that she was to name her son Ishmael "because God has heard your woes ".
The consequences of this "conspiracy " would be far-reaching. Significant for us is that God never lost sight of the individual players in this drama--especially of the victim Hagar (see also Genesis 21:8-20). She was overwhelmed by God's love and concern for her. She spoke of the Lord as " `The God who looked upon me' for she thought, `I saw God and lived to tell it'. " (LB)
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