Genesis 16:4-9

16:4 He had sexual relations with ¹  Hagar, and she became pregnant. ²  Once Hagar realized she was pregnant, she despised Sarai. ³  16:5 Then Sarai said to Abram, “You have brought this wrong on me! ⁴  I allowed my servant to have sexual relations with you, ⁵  but when she realized ⁶  that she was pregnant, she despised me. ⁷  May the Lord judge between you and me!” ⁸ 

16:6 Abram said to Sarai, “Since your ⁹  servant is under your authority, ¹⁰  do to her whatever you think best.” ¹¹  Then Sarai treated Hagar ¹²  harshly, ¹³  so she ran away from Sarai. ¹⁴ 

16:7 The Lord’s angel ¹⁵  found Hagar near a spring of water in the desert – the spring that is along the road to Shur. ¹⁶  16:8 He said, “Hagar, servant of Sarai, where have you come from, and where are you going?” She replied, “I’m running away from ¹⁷  my mistress, Sarai.”

16:9 Then the Lord’s angel said to her, “Return to your mistress and submit ¹⁸  to her authority.

[16:4]  ¹ tn Heb “entered to.” See the note on the same expression in v. 2.

[16:4]  ² tn Or “she conceived” (also in v. 5)

[16:4]  ³ tn Heb “and she saw that she was pregnant and her mistress was despised in her eyes.” The Hebrew verb קָלַל (qalal) means “to despise, to treat lightly, to treat with contempt.” In Hagar’s opinion Sarai had been demoted.

[16:5]  ⁴ tn Heb “my wrong is because of you.”

[16:5]  ⁵ tn Heb “I placed my female servant in your bosom.”

[16:5]  ⁶ tn Heb “saw.”

[16:5]  ⁷ tn Heb “I was despised in her eyes.” The passive verb has been translated as active for stylistic reasons. Sarai was made to feel supplanted and worthless by Hagar the servant girl.

[16:5]  ⁸ tn Heb “me and you.”

[16:6]  ⁷ tn The clause is introduced with the particle הִנֵּה (hinneh), introducing a foundational clause for the coming imperative: “since…do.”

[16:6]  ⁸ tn Heb “in your hand.”

[16:6]  ⁹ tn Heb “what is good in your eyes.”

[16:6]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “her”; the referent (Hagar) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[16:6]  ¹¹ tn In the Piel stem the verb עָנָה (’anah) means “to afflict, to oppress, to treat harshly, to mistreat.”

[16:6]  ¹² tn Heb “and she fled from her presence.” The referent of “her” (Sarai) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[16:7]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “the messenger of the Lord.” Some identify the angel of the Lord as the preincarnate Christ because in some texts the angel is identified with the Lord himself. However, it is more likely that the angel merely represents the Lord; he can speak for the Lord because he is sent with the Lord’s full authority. In some cases the angel is clearly distinct from the Lord (see Judg 6:11-23). It is not certain if the same angel is always in view. Though the proper name following the noun “angel” makes the construction definite, this may simply indicate that a definite angel sent from the Lord is referred to in any given context. It need not be the same angel on every occasion. Note the analogous expression “the servant of the Lord,” which refers to various individuals in the OT (see BDB 714 s.v. עֶבֶד).

[16:7]  ¹¹ tn Heb “And the angel of the Lord found her near the spring of water in the desert, near the spring on the way to Shur.”

[16:8]  ¹³ tn Heb “from the presence of.”

[16:9]  ¹⁶ tn The imperative וְהִתְעַנִּי (vÿhit’anni) is the Hitpael of עָנָה (’anah, here translated “submit”), the same word used for Sarai’s harsh treatment of her. Hagar is instructed not only to submit to Sarai’s authority, but to whatever mistreatment that involves. God calls for Hagar to humble herself.