God’s Promises to the Sons of Abraham

As of this writing, tomorrow is the 20th anniversary of the attack on our country on 9/11/2001. Since the attackers were Muslim, I thought it would be good to take a look back 2000 years to the origins of the people groups we now know as Arabs. Many Arab groups consider Ishmael to be their ancestor, as did Muhammad, founder of Islam.

The Abraham narrative includes amazing promises made to him by God. He would be the father of nations, and be a blessing to all. Implied in these promises is that the Messiah would come from his descendants. This narrative includes the birth of Ishmael, fathered by Abraham by Sarah’s servant Hagar. Most interpreters teach that Abraham stumbled in having Ishmael. He was trying to take matters into his own hands rather than wait for God’s promise to be fulfilled. I have a different slant on this based on a close reading of the scriptures.

Scripture Review

God appeared to Abram (before his new name) in a vision and told him not to be afraid (recorded in Genesis 15). God himself is Abram’s reward. Then Abram launched into a complaint that he has no children, and therefore no heir. His servant Eliezer would be his heir. He is genuinely wondering how God’s promises would be fulfilled.

God answered him in Genesis 15:4. “Then the word of the Lord came to him: “This man (Eliezer) will not be your heir, but a son who is your own flesh and blood will be your heir.” His wife Sarah is not mentioned here; only that Abram would have a son, his own flesh and blood (literally, “what will come out of your own loins”).

Chapter 16 describes Sarai giving her servant Hagar to Abram. In 16:2 she says, “the Lord has prevented me from bearing children. Go in to my servant; it may be that I shall obtain children by her.” Abram listened to her, went to Hagar, and conceived a son.

Important Points

God’s promise to Abram at that time only said that he would have a son, not that Sarai would be the mother. Sarai, being childless, was thinking about her own motherhood. She so desperately wanted children that she asked Abram to essentially take a second wife, her slave Hagar.  In those times, masters considered that their slave’s children belonged to them. It wasn’t uncommon for others to do what Sarai did.  The same thing happened with Jacob and his wives, yet God considered all twelve sons, born from the wives or the servants, to be legitimate leaders of the tribes of Israel.  We need to view events from their cultural norms, not ours.

Abram went along with her, possibly for two reasons.  He wanted to please his wife, having seen up close her unfulfilled desire for children for many years.  Second, he may have thought “maybe this is how God will fulfill his promise”.  Remember that Abraham was operating on the original promise that his son would be his, but not necessarily Sarah’s.

Years later God appeared to Abram and changed his name to Abraham (Abram means “exalted father” but Abraham means “father of multitudes”). In this promise, found in Genesis 16, God revealed new aspects of His covenant with Abraham. He said that Sarai (princess) would now be Sarah (princess of nations), and that she would have a son by Abraham. It is important to emphasize that God’s earlier promise only said that Abraham would have a son, without specifying the mother.

How This Adds Up

The common interpretation that Abraham was trying to fulfill God’s promise in his own power rather than faithfully waiting on God, doesn’t ring true to the text. The rest of the Scriptures commend Abraham for his faith. He gets more ink in Hebrews 11 (the faith chapter) than anyone else. Genesis 15:6, “Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness.” Paul quotes this verse in Romans 4:3, Galatians 3:6, and James 2:23. Abraham waited years for Ishmael and I believe, sincerely thought he was God’s promised child. When God finally did reveal that Sarah would have a son, Abraham said to God in 15:18, “Oh that Ishmael might live before you!”

It is true that in God’s grand scheme of things, Ishmael and Hagar represented the law and the flesh while Sarah and Isaac represented the promise and the Spirit as Paul discusses in Galatians 4. Ishmael’s birth was natural, while Isaac’s was supernatural. But Paul was speaking from hindsight, after Jesus had come and the full picture of God’s plan had been revealed. Abraham acted in good faith with the knowledge that he had at that time. There is no hint of criticism of Abraham about this episode in the Scriptures.

Muslims Today

Because today’s Muslims can be traced back to Ishmael, many have linked Abraham and Sarah’s “mistake” to the violence and persecution perpetrated by some of today’s Muslims. But God loved and had plans for Ishmael. Genesis 17:20 says, “As for Ishmael, I have heard you; behold, I have blessed him and will make him fruitful and multiply him greatly. He shall father twelve princes, and I will make him into a great nation.” Ishmael was no accident. God wasn’t surprised then, or now. God loves Muslims and has plans for them. Jesus is appearing to many Muslims in dreams and visions in many countries, and the Gospel is spreading everywhere in the Islamic world, especially Iran.

Ishmael wasn’t a mistake; he was part of God’s plan for the nations. Abraham wasn’t trying to fulfill God’s promises by his own strength; he was waiting, believing, and acting on what God had told him.