Genesis 16:1-8

International Standard Version

Sarai, Hagar, and Ishmael

16 Now Abram’s wife Sarai had not borne a child for him. She had an Egyptian servant girl whose name was Hagar. ² So Sarai told Abram, “You are well aware that the Lord has prevented me from giving birth to a child. Go have sex with my servant, so that I may possibly bear a son^[a] through her.”

Abram listened to Sarai’s suggestion, ³ so Abram’s wife Sarai took her Egyptian servant, Hagar, and gave her as a wife to her husband Abram. This took place^[b] ten years after Abram had settled in the land of Canaan. ⁴ He had sex with Hagar, and she became pregnant. When she realized that she was pregnant, she looked with contempt on her mistress.

⁵ Then Sarai told Abram, “My suffering is your fault! I gave you my servant so you could have sex with her,^[c] and when she discovered that she was pregnant, she looked on me with contempt. May the Lord judge between you and me!”

⁶ Abram answered Sarai, “Look, your servant is under your control, so do to her as you wish.”^[d] So Sarai dealt so harshly with Hagar^[e] that she ran away from Sarai.^[f]

⁷ The angel of the Lord found her by a spring of water in the desert on the road to Shur. ⁸ “Hagar, servant of Sarai,” he asked, “Where are you coming from and where are you going?”

She answered, “I am running away from my mistress Sarai.”