“But Abram said unto Sarai, Behold, thy maid is in thy hand; do to her as it pleaseth thee. And when Sarai dealt hardly with her, she fled from her face. And the angel of the LORD found her by a fountain of water in the wilderness, by the fountain in the way to Shur. And he said, Hagar, Sarai's maid, whence camest thou? and whither wilt thou go? And she said, I flee from the face of my mistress Sarai. And the angel of the LORD said unto her, Return to thy mistress, and submit thyself under her hands.” (Genesis 16:6-9)

Has someone dealt with you hardly? The word hardly in the Greek is awnaw. It means to be dealt with harshly, or treated severely. And when Sarai dealt hardly with her, she fled from her face.
Sarai ill treated Hagar, allowing raw emotion and anger to ensue over Hagar who was carrying her husband Abram’s child. It was Sarai’s own idea to circuMVent God’s plan, bringing Abram a child by her own means, even if it meant her husband was to lie with her maid Hagar, Sarai pushed an ungodly union between them to fruition. From then on, Sarai dealt hardly with her, and she soon fled from her face. Hagar ran away from these relational prOBlems staring her in the face. She was looking to find peace and relief by running away from this situation.

How often do you want to run away from relationship issues plaguing your closest relationships? A husband not treating his wife with respect, children who have no honor for their parents, brothers or sisters unable to put away the sibling rivalry from their youth. Family relationship issues plague many homes today. Many choose the same route Hagar did, running away from their prOBlems instead of dealing with them.

Hagar had OBediently followed through with her earthly master Sarai’s scheme to produce an heir for Abram through sinful disOBedience. Not only did Sarai come up with this half-baked plan, but she led the other two down the path of this sinful choice. Each person is responsible for their own wicked choices in God’s court of justice. He does not participate in the “blame game” which is played out to epidemic proportions today, nor does he hold to the “kangaroo courts of man’s justice.

What prOBlems or situations might you run away from in your life? Is it time to lay down the game token you have been fondly clutching from the “blame game” and picking up the Word of God instead? The Word of God has answers and direction for all issues of life.

God did send an angel to seek out after Hagar that day. The angel did find her in desperation and anguish by a source of water in the wilderness:

And the angel of the LORD found her by a fountain of water in the wilderness, by the fountain in the way to Shur. And he said, Hagar, Sarai's maid, whence camest thou? and whither wilt thou go? And she said, I flee from the face of my mistress Sarai. And the angel of the LORD said unto her, Return to thy mistress, and submit thyself under her hands. And the angel of the LORD said unto her, I will multiply thy seed exceedingly, that it shall not be numbered for multitude.” (Genesis 16:7-10)

The angel of the Lord did appeal to Hagar to return in submission to Sarai her earthly master, promising to number heir of Abram exceedingly. To Hagar on one hand this request from the angel must have seemed outlandish. Why would she want to choose to return to a situation that was laced with rejection and anger? However, on the other hand, this angel of the Lord had been sent by God to come to Hagar as she lay in udder desperation, knowing she was in a situation way over her head. Clearly this promise from God spoken by the Angel of the Lord to multiply her seed was from a merciful and loving God who heard her desperate cries. Just as He hears our desperate cry today, He heard her prayers and pleading.

“Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.” Jeremiah 33:3

Hagar did choose to follow the leading of the angel of the Lord. She turned away from her sin, from her rejection, and trusted in God to fulfill His promises to her as she became OBedient unto Him.
For Further Contemplation:

For Further Contemplation:

Do you hear the Lord calling for you to turn about and be OBedient unto Him today? Clutch tightly onto the promises contained in His Word for your life.

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