Women in the Bible: An Innovative Wife Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had borne him no children. And she had an Egyptian maidservant whose name was Hagar. So Sarai said to…
Women in the Bible: An Innovative Wife – What Sarah’s unconventional solution teaches about initiative, sacrifice, and follow-through
Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had borne him no children. And she had an Egyptian maidservant whose name was Hagar. So Sarai said to Abram, “See now, the Lord has restrained me from bearing children. Please, go in to my maid; perhaps I shall obtain children by her.” And Abram heeded the voice of Sarai. Then Sarai, Abram’s wife, took Hagar her maid, the Egyptian, and gave her to her husband Abram to be his wife.. So he went in to Hagar, and she conceived. – Genesis 16:1-4
Our second learning point from Sarah, Abraham’s wife, shall dwell mostly on her innovative mindset. She was a selfless woman and an innovative wife who sought inventive ways to solve her family’s problems, even when such solutions might not work out in her favor.
Our reference passage today starts with the problem of barrenness in Abraham’s household. After decades of marriage, the union produced no child despite God’s firm promise otherwise. Meanwhile, as the couple continued to age and advance in years, Sarah could no longer bear it, and what she did next taught us three important lessons.
Firstly, Sarah demonstrated an unusual selflessness in the idea she brought forward. Seeing that her own childlessness might harm her husband by depriving him of the privilege of having an heir(ess) to inherit his vast estate, Sarah thought it best that Abraham take up another woman and have a child by her.
This is not an easy proposal for anyone to make, let alone to execute. But Sarah was looking beyond herself and focusing more on her husband’s needs when she broached it. She was also genuine enough to make the move good and was not just saying it to look good. She was sincere and earnest. She brought the maidservant to Abraham to have a child by her.
The second lesson we can learn from Sarah is her innovative mindset and approach to tackling a problem. Seeing that she was past her prime, she felt it best to propose that her husband marry someone younger and have a child through her. By so doing, she initiated the idea of surrogacy to the world, as the child to be born would be in her and her husband’s name, even though born by another. In an era not renowned for its innovations, Sarah proved that genius was not restricted to gender, age or place. She practically bequeathed the idea of surrogacy to us.
Another lesson we can learn from Sarah is the ability to follow through and back her words with action. She did not just say it to look good or sound politically correct; she meant it and went ahead and handed over her maid to her husband to father a child through her. Even though this later backfired on her, it was a move worth it in the daring she demonstrated by pushing it, and the result that it fetched them.
The world needs more doers than talkers, more proactive people than reactive ones, and more innovative thinkers-cum-performers than manufacturers of excuses. Sarah, through her actions, proved to us that she was all of these and more. Many of us can learn a lot from her.
Entities in the Bible: The First Surrogate Parent Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had borne him no children. And she had an Egyptian maidservant whose name was Hagar. So Sarai said…
Entities in the Bible: The First Surrogate Parent – Understanding surrogate parenting through Hagar’s role in the Abrahamic narrative
Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had borne him no children. And she had an Egyptian maidservant whose name was Hagar. So Sarai said to Abram, “See now, the Lord has restrained me from bearing children. Please, go in to my maid; perhaps I shall obtain children by her.” And Abram heeded the voice of Sarai. Then Sarai, Abram’s wife, took Hagar her maid, the Egyptian, and gave her to her husband Abram to be his wife, after Abram had dwelt ten years in the land of Canaan. So he went in to Hagar, and she conceived. – Genesis 16:1-4
As we continue to explore personalities and characters in the Bible, our searchlight today will focus on the first surrogate parent in the Bible: Hagar, Sarah’s Egyptian maidservant.
The Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary defines surrogate as “a substitute, especially a person deputizing for another in a specific role or office.” No doubt, the term and practice of surrogate parenting are commonplace today. However, it is interesting to note that this practice did not just start in our modern milieu. Rather, it was as ancient as the society itself, dating back to the BC era, as we can see in the scenario that played out in the bible passage above.
Sarah, the wife of Abraham, had become impatient at her inability to conceive and bear a child for her husband. So, she proposed that her husband sleep with her maidservant so that they could have a child through the process that would bear their name. Being a slave, Hagar, the lady involved, had no say in the matter as her master and mistress had the power of life and death over her. So, even if she did not mind, she could not decline their proposition.
However, by carrying a pregnancy for the couple, she therefore enters the book of record as the first person to be a surrogate parent.
Men in the Bible: Cain and the First Misery Cain replied to the Lord, “My punishment is too great for me to bear! You have banished me from the land…
Men in the Bible: Cain and the First Misery
Cain replied to the Lord, “My punishment is too great for me to bear! You have banished me from the land and from your presence; you have made me a homeless wanderer. Anyone who finds me will kill me!” – Genesis 4:13-14 (New Living Translation)
We are still studying the man, Cain. Today, we will explore him from another unpleasant angle of being the first man in recorded history to be plagued with misery.
While this may not be such a big deal in itself, since we are all probably familiar with the story, the essence of today’s note is to help us to appreciate some of the consequences that our actions, good or bad, may attract, even when we do not really think about them. This was probably the case with Cain too, as he might not have guessed what the repercussions of killing his brother might be. After all, there was no precedence for him to learn from, which could have helped him reign in his violent impulse.
There is an African saying, “someone who does what no one else has done before will certainly experience an effect no one else has experienced.” This was the case with Cain as he soon found out when God decided to punish him for his offence. If Adam and Eve had seen the worst hand of God as the punishment for their own disobedience in eating the forbidden fruit, Cain had it much worse than his parents with this weighty pronouncement of God:
And He said, “What have you done? The voice of your brother’s blood cries out to Me from the ground. So now you are cursed from the earth, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. When you till the ground, it shall no longer yield its strength to you. A fugitive and a vagabond you shall be on the earth.” – Genesis 4:10-12
While Adam had the ground cursed for his sake, in the case of Cain he was outrightly cursed from the earth with the implication that he would be forever unproductive, as the earth would not yield its goods to him. This is a terrible sentence indeed, as it meant that Cain was condemned to a life of unfruitfulness. There is no work, no business, no trade, no endeavor that he would do that would give him a satisfactory yield.
Moreover, Cain was also condemned to a life of fugitive and vagabond. The Oxford Dictionary defines a fugitive as “a person who has escaped from a place or is in hiding, especially to avoid arrest or persecution,” and a vagabond as “a person who wanders from place to place without a home or job.” These are no desirable statuses for anyone. However, they were the lot of Cain as the divine sentence for the heinous crime he committed in taking the life of his innocent brother.
He was condemned to running from place to place with no settled abode to call his own. He would run from humans, animals. elements, and everything else. Even when those were not really chasing him, his guilty consciousness would not allow him to think so, as he would only see threats to his life and safety around everyone and everything he was around. What a miserable way to live indeed.
Sin has consequences that are usually unfavorable.
Men in the Bible: Adam – A Man of Understanding And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam, and he slept; and He took one of…
Men in the Bible: Adam – A Man of Understanding
And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam, and he slept; and He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh in its place. Then the rib which the Lord God had taken from man He made into a woman, and He brought her to the man. And Adam said: “This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; She shall be called Woman because she was taken out of Man.” – Genesis 2:21-23
Another attribute of Adam was understanding. Despite being a lonely figure with no forbear for him to study or a mate for him to hobnob, he was nonetheless enamored with mental acumen that helped him to make a sense of his world.
We read yesterday how intelligence helped him to appraise and name all other creatures in accordance with his assessment of their nature and characteristics. We also established how his verdict was so accurate that neither God nor any of the creatures he named contested the names he assigned. Today, we will be exploring another mental acuity that he displayed, which is understanding.
Having been presented with hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of creatures to name, Adam found no connection with any of them. But when the last creature that God brought for him to name was presented before him, he had his “Aha’ moment. He knew this was it.
“This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh!” He exclaimed. Note the emphasis on the word “now”. That confirms that he had mentally eliminated all the other creatures that were brought to him as potential partner. it also affirms our earlier note that he had to refuse God by not choosing any of those creatures as his mate.
However, immediately he saw this latest creature, he did not hesitate to identify her as one more closely associated with him than the other creatures he had seen (‘bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh’) and in labeling her in association with himself (‘she shall be called Woman because she was taken out of Man’). That is understanding at work.
Understanding helped Adam to both describe the nature of the woman and her unique identity. Another word for understanding is insight. While knowledge is common, as anyone can acquire knowledge by reading, listening, or being exposed to useful information; understanding is not so commonplace. It is a step higher than the realm of knowledge. But that does not mean it is not attainable for anyone who desires it. You just need to be more attentive to develop understanding and grow in it.
Thankfully, the first man had great understanding, and we all share the same DNA with him. Therefore, this presupposes that we also have the potential to develop understanding beyond the basic level.
Men in the Bible: Adam – A Man of Intelligence and Wisdom
Out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field and every bird of the air, and brought them to Adam to see what he would call them. And whatever Adam called each living creature, that was its name. So Adam gave names to all cattle, to the birds of the air, and to every beast of the field. – Genesis 2:19-20
Another admirable trait about Adam was intelligence. He was an intelligent man. From our reference passage, God brought all the creatures He had made to Adam to see what he would call them, and Adam did not disappoint. He named every one of them without leaving any without an identity. That was intelligence.
As easy as it may seem to name something, it is noteworthy that apart from the ones done by God hitherto, this was the first naming exercise in the Bible or recorded history. No one apart from God had attempted to name anything or anyone before Adam. So it was a novelty for him.
Also, apart from the newness of it all, he must have spent a great deal of time observing and analyzing each of the creatures God led to him before he could name them based on his assessment of their idiosyncrasies. Now, imagine how many creatures he named. They must be hundreds of thousands, if not millions of them. Imagine what each of them must have looked like when they were brought to him, the big, the tiny, the monstrous looking, the benign, the flat, the rotund, the straight, the bent, and so on. All for him alone to name as he saw them to be.
The good news is that Adam obviously got all the names right as the Bible did not tell us that God disputed with him about any of the names he gave. It is also remarkable that none of the creatures he named contested the name he gave them, as they could have done at that time. Rather, both God and the creatures agreed with him. So, whatever Adam called anyone stayed.
While the process of nomenclature is loosely done in our present days, particularly among people with little understanding of the implications of names, and in parts of the world where there is little appreciation of cultural identity. It is important to note that a name should never be a random affair. It is something that must be done with intentionality and understanding because everything is in a name. A name can define the identity, the attributes, the personality, the destiny, the path, and the destination of so named.
Adam obviously knew this, and he must have taken time to carefully study every creature before him to see how they were, what they looked like, what they could be and the role they would play in this hemisphere before labelling them. it takes intelligence to do this. The fact that he also evaluated all these creatures and did not identify any of them that could partner with him even when he was in dire need of one at the time was another indication of intelligence.
Knowing how important a name can be, what are you going to do differently with the way you name henceforth?
Another lesson we can learn from God is His disposition to a balancing act. He is not a God of extremes. Even though some who profess to follow Him go to extremes in His name or make extreme claims on His behalf, extreme is not a label that one can pin on God. He balances the acts.
Understanding God: He is Not Moved by Sentiments
Another lesson we can learn from the personality of God is that sentiments do not move Him. Therefore, He cannot be deceived into making a wrong judgment or call, as humans tend to do.
Understanding God: He is A Creator
He is a Creator. This is not to be interpreted loosely, particularly in the light of our contemporary use of the word. God is the ultimate Creator, as He created all things, even the ends of the earth (Isaiah 40:28).
Understanding God: God of the Beginning
There is no better way to begin this journey of exploring the people and entities in the Bible than to start with God. He is not just the beginning but is the origin of all things.
Women in the Bible: A Paragon of Beauty
What made Sarah’s beauty so compelling that kings and nations took notice? Explore the deeper layers of grace, favour, and mystery surrounding one of Scripture’s most unforgettable women — and discover why her story still provokes wonder today.
Men in the Bible: A Man of Ambition and Adventure
Terah may not have reached Canaan, but his courage to start a life-changing journey laid the foundation for Abraham’s destiny. Discover how ambition and bold steps mark a life of significance.
Men in the Bible: An Impetuous and Impudent Man
A revealing glimpse into a man whose choices exposed deeper issues of character, showing how hastiness and entitlement can quietly shape a destiny, and why his story still speaks to us today.
Men in the Bible: A Man with Little Foresight
Sometimes what looks like a smart choice can hide the seed of a mistake. This reflection from Scripture invites us to think again about how foresight — or the lack of it — shapes a man’s story.
Men in the Bible: The First Man to Tithe
Before laws, temples, or traditions, one man honoured God with his substance. Abraham’s tithe was not commanded, demanded, or enforced. It flowed from reverence.
Fathers in the Bible: A Destiny-Shaping Father
What makes a man a truly aware father? Discover how one man’s prophetic foresight shaped his son’s destiny and changed generations forever.
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