Hagar: A Maidservant

“Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had borne him no children. And she had an Egyptian

maidservant [šipḥâ] whose name was Hagar” (Genesis 16:1).

Hagar was an Old Testament slave, and she knew it. Although that seems foreign to us, she endured it every day of her life; that is, until she didn’t.  When Abraham rejected her and Ishmael and put them on the run, Hagar was free.

You may think, how could Abraham, our “father of faith,” keep slaves? Although it seems unconscionable for us, generally speaking, it was a common practice in ancient days. A careful examination of the Old Testament exposes ownership and the reality of the slave or maidservant - manservant designation. So the concept is not new. These women or men were the property of their masters. That means they belonged to them and were their personal property to do with as they saw fit. Due to the nature of their enslavement, they owned nothing except what was provided, had no opinion, no money, and no position or status other than servitude. They were nameless and faceless - Abraham and Sarah never addressed Hagar by name in scripture. And to make matters worse, slaves were wholly indentured to the needs and requests of their masters. If they served a good and fair master, it was tolerable. If not, it was a wretched life indeed.

As I already stated, Hagar’s story unfolds in the Old Testament, but slave ownership was also mentioned in the gospels and Acts. In other words, God knew about slavery. The term maidservant occurs 53 times in scripture. Here we see its first occurrence in our focus verse: Genesis 16:1.

In all relationships, healthy boundaries, authority, and respect are essential. In Paul’s relationship treatise in the New Testament book of Ephesians, the Holy Spirit compelled Paul to address the appropriate conduct for believers in master/slave relationships. (See Ephesians 6:5-9.) Why? For many reasons, and lest we forget, even Abraham and Sarah failed in their dealings with Hagar. Although God sees no difference, is no respecter of people, and created all, we can agree that it was necessary to establish God-honoring boundaries for all relationships, so God reaffirmed them through Paul.

In some translations, the Greek word doulos is used interchangeably for bondservant or slave, so for clarity, we’ll define slave as “one who is subservient to, and entirely at the disposal of his master.” Note that ownership is in view. Generally speaking, this was not voluntary. According to the Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament, a closely related word, šipḥâ, identifies a female slave who could be given as a gift to a daughter when she married.[1] We see evidence of that custom in the lives of Leah and Rachel. You may recall their father, Laban, presented maidservants to his daughters when they married Jacob. (See Genesis 29:24, 29.) 

Most scholars agree, Hagar was born a slave. It’s interesting to consider that her ownership transferred from the Egyptian Pharaoh to Abraham and Sarah in Genesis 12:16. Note that since she was a slave, Hagar had no say in the matter. Here we see her introduction to scripture and to Sarah and Abraham. Although the word šipḥâ(s) may have had a broader use in the sense of “female slaves,” generally, those mentioned in the Old Testament were personal maids-in-waiting and attended to married women, as we see in our text. That brings us to our main discussion of Hagar. It’s essential to consider her timely acquisition because it affects our lesson. Lest we forget Abraham’s beloved Sarah was barren. Watch this though. She was barren, but not unprepared; Sarah had a plan. Let’s take a look.

A “Nuzi” law from ancient Mesopotamia aided the barren women of Sarah's day. Sarah knew of the law because she and Abraham hailed from the region. (Note: Abraham’s call to faith moved them from Ur to Canaan by way of Nahor (a city in Mesopotamia), and there they remained until Abraham's father, Terah, died. After Terah’s passing, Abraham was released from the responsibility of his father’s care. At last, he was free to move forward with God. Take notice, though Nahor (Laban and Rebekah's dad) had no effectual call, so he put down roots and remained  in Nahor. Take notice of the city’s name - Nahor!

So as it happened, when Sarah experienced a lapse of faith and could wait no longer, she called upon Abraham's senses to implore the Nuzi law. In her mind, it afforded her the perfect solution, because under it, a barren wife could take possession of her maid’s womb to produce a child. Although that looks foreign to us, here’s the legal thought on the matter. Since the maid was Sarah’s personal property, so was her womb! It was her prerogative - Sarah could! And the law supported her efforts!

Although Hagar’s surrogacy is not the measure of her life, we can agree that it changed her life on many levels. Ultimately, it led to her salvation and two theophanies!  Even though there were other surrogates in the day, Hagar is the first surrogate mother of record. The law further provided that if a son were born of Hagar and Abraham’s union, "he" would become Abraham's heir unless Sarah later birthed a son. As we well know, that's precisely what happened. When it pleased God, He opened Sarah's womb, and Isaac was born 14 years after Ishmael - when Abraham was 100 and Sarah was 90. That’s 25 years after Abraham received God's promise.

Believer, search your heart! As you do, consider that the master/slave relationship is not limited to the pages of scripture; it is real. Throughout the New Testament, the word bondservant or slave is applied metaphorically to someone who is wholly devoted to Jesus. Paul, Timothy, James, Peter, and Jude described themselves as “bondservants of Christ.” (See Romans 1:1; Philippians 1:1; James 1:1; 2 Peter 1:1; and Jude 1:1.) Ladies, we are in good company! 

What’s the takeaway? Indeed, we belong to Jesus. Note that our devotion is not forced, and we are not duty-bound. Instead, Jesus wants our hearts! Out of our devoted love for Him, we should serve Him with joy and thankfulness in light of all that He has done on our behalf. He has paid for us - He died so we might live and have life abundantly. Consequently, He desires that we love Him, fellowship with Him, and worship only Him. All our honor and praise belong to Jesus. Paul said that we should be zealous for God and serve Him with our lives. He called it our reasonable service. He encouraged the Romans with this plea: “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service” (Romans 12:1) NKJV. (Emphasis added.)

Since it’s our reasonable service, here’s how The Message Bible suggests we do it. “So here’s what I want you to do, [with God’s help]: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering” (Romans 12:1). The Message Bible.

Prayer: Mighty and gracious Lord, we love You! Please bring Your word to performance in our lives, for we desire to worship You in a way that declares: My God reigns and I will worship only Him. Jesus, may our humble worship be pleasing in Your sight. Amen and amen.

[1] Austel, H. J. (1999). 2442 שׁפח. In R. L. Harris, G. L. Archer Jr., & B. K. Waltke (Eds.), Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament (electronic ed., p. 947). Moody Press.