In verse 10 there is a contrast between “her son”/“that slave woman’s son” and “my son Isaac.” The literary mastery of the passage is seen in the very next verse that follows: “The matter distressed Abraham greatly because it concerned his son.” Sarah rejects Ishmael because he is not her son, but Abraham is greatly distressed because he loves his son Ishmael. Actually, this deliberate and artistic use of language is developed further. Verse 10 may be translated literally in this way: “The matter was very distressing in the eyes of Abraham on account of his son.” But in verse 12 God says to Abraham: “Do not be distressed in your eyes on account of the lad, and on account of your slave woman.” How does God view Ishmael? As “the lad.” God does not say to Abraham “your lad” or “your son.” But at the beginning of the very next chapter when God tests Abraham, God says, “Take your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love, and go to the region of Moriah” (22:2).
This comparing and contrasting of Isaac and Ishmael is still implicit in the account of Hagar and Ishmael’s plight in the desert. After wandering for some time Hagar and her son run out of water. Hagar gets her 15-16 year old son to lie under a bush, while she sits down nearby, unable to watch him die. In this section of the chapter Ishmael is called “the boy” (yeled). This invites comparison with the earlier use of yeled in the chapter to refer to Isaac, namely verse 8 where we read: “The boy (yeled) grew and was weaned, and on the day Isaac was weaned Abraham had a great feast.” The yeled Isaac is associated with a great feast and the yeled Ishmael is associated with potential death by starvation.
Within the broader context all of this serves to teach that while God will not desert Ishmael and, indeed, will make a great nation from him, the focus must be on Isaac as the conduit for the Abrahamic blessings. At the beginning of Genesis 22 Isaac can be called Abraham’s only son because by this stage Ishmael is completely out of the picture. As Genesis 17:18 revealed - “If only Ishmael might live under your blessing!” - Abraham was prone to look to Ishmael as the back-up plan were anything disastrous to happen to Isaac. In Genesis 22 the dire testing of Abraham will underscore the reality that there is no back-up plan and that the fulfilment of God’s promises depend utterly and entirely upon what God will do through Isaac.
www.facetofaceintercultural.com.au
Posted November 20, 2009
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