Old/New Testament
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.”
9 The angel of the Lord told her, “You must go back to your mistress and submit to her authority.” 10 The angel of the Lord also told her, “I will greatly multiply your offspring, who will be too many to count.
11 “Look, you are pregnant and will give birth to a son,” the angel of the Lord continued to say to her. “You will name him Ishmael,[g] because the Lord has heard your cry of[h] misery. 12 As a man, he’ll be uncontrollable.[i] He’ll[j] be against everyone, everyone will be against him,[k]and he’ll live in conflict with[l] all of his relatives.”
13 So she called the name of the Lord who spoke to her, “You are ‘God who sees,’ because I have truly seen the one who looks after me.”
14 That’s why the spring was called, “The Well of the Living One who Looks after Me.” It was between Kadesh and Bered.
15 Hagar eventually gave birth to Abram’s son. Abram named his son whom Hagar bore Ishmael. 16 Abram was 86 years old when Hagar gave birth to Ishmael for Abram.
God Appears to Abram
17 When Abram was 99 years old, the Lord appeared to Abram and announced, “I am God Almighty. Live in constant awareness that I’m always with you,[m] and be blameless. 2 I’ll establish my covenant between me and you, and I’ll greatly increase your numbers.” 3 Then Abram fell to the ground[n] as God continued speaking to him. 4 “Look, I’ve made a covenant with you. You will be the father of many nations. 5 Your name is no longer to be Abram.[o] Instead your name will be Abraham,[p] since I’ll make you the father of many nations. 6 I’m going to cause you to have many descendants, and I’ll bring nations from you. Kings will come from you. 7 I’m establishing my covenant between me and you, and with your descendants who come after you, generation after generation, as an eternal covenant, to be your God and your descendants’ God after you. 8 I’ll give to you and to your descendants the land to which you have traveled—all the land of Canaan—as an eternal possession. I will be their God.”
The Sign of the Covenant
9 God continued to speak to Abraham, “You and your descendants who are born in the future are to keep my covenant—that is, you and your descendants, generation after generation. 10 Here is my covenant that you are to observe, between me and you and your descendants: Every male among you is to be circumcised. 11 You are all to be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskin, and this is to be the sign of the covenant between me and you. 12 Generation after generation, every male among you is to be circumcised on the eighth day after his birth,[q] including the servant born in your house or the one purchased from a foreigner, who is not of your offspring. 13 The servant born in your house or the one purchased with money is to be circumcised. My covenant is to remain in your flesh as an eternal covenant. 14 Any uncircumcised male who does not have the foreskin of his flesh circumcised on the eighth day[r] after his birth[s] is to be eliminated from his people because he has broken my covenant.”
Sarah’s Pregnancy Foretold
15 God told Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you are not to call her Sarai any longer,[t] because her name is to be Sarah.[u] 16 I will bless her. Furthermore, I will give you a son from her. I will bless her, so that nations, kings, and people will come from her.”
17 Abraham fell to the ground,[v] laughed, and told himself, “Can a child be born to a 100-year-old man? Can a 90-year-old Sarah give birth?” 18 So Abraham responded to God, “If only Ishmael would live in constant awareness that you’re always with him!”[w]
19 But God replied, “No, but your wife Sarah will give birth to your son, and you are to name him Isaac.[x] I’ll confirm my covenant with him as an eternal covenant for his descendants. 20 And as for Ishmael, I’ve heard you. I’ll bless him, and he’ll have many descendants.[y] I will multiply him greatly, he’ll father twelve tribal leaders, and I’ll cause his descendants[z] to become a great nation. 21 Now as to Isaac, I’ll confirm my covenant with him, to whom Sarah will give birth as your son at this time next year.” 22 With that, God finished talking to Abraham, and ascended, leaving him.
23 Abraham took his son Ishmael and all the servants born in his house or purchased with his money—every male among the men of his household—and circumcised them[aa] that very day, just as God had spoken to him. 24 Abraham was 99 years old when he was circumcised,[ab] 25 and his son Ishmael was thirteen years old when he was circumcised.[ac] 26 Both Abraham and his son Ishmael were circumcised on that very day. 27 Every man born in his household—as well as those who had been purchased with money from a foreigner—was circumcised with him.
Teaching about Adultery
27 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You are not to commit adultery.’[a] 28 But I say to you, anyone who stares at a woman with lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29 So if your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one of your body parts than to have your whole body thrown into hell.[b] 30 And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away from you. It is better for you to lose one of your body parts than to have your whole body go into hell.”[c]
Teaching about Divorce(A)
31 “It was also said, ‘Whoever divorces his wife must give her a written notice of divorce.’[d] 32 But I say to you, any man who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, causes her to commit adultery, and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.”
Teaching about Oaths
33 “Again, you have heard that it was told those who lived long ago, ‘You must not swear an oath falsely,’ but, ‘You must fulfill your oaths to the Lord.’[e] 34 But I tell you not to swear at all, neither by heaven, because it is God’s throne, 35 nor by the earth, because it is his footstool, nor by Jerusalem, because it is the city of the Great King. 36 Nor should you swear by your head, because you cannot make one hair white or black. 37 Instead, let your message be ‘Yes’ for ‘Yes’ and ‘No’ for ‘No.’ Anything more than that comes from the evil one.”
Teaching about Retaliation(B)
38 “You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’[f] 39 But I tell you not to resist an evildoer. On the contrary, whoever slaps you on the right cheek, turn the other to him as well. 40 If anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, let him have your coat as well. 41 And if anyone forces you to go one mile,[g] go two with him. 42 Give to the person who asks you for something, and do not turn away from the person who wants to borrow something from you.”
Teaching about Love for Enemies(C)
43 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You must love your neighbor’[h] and hate your enemy. 44 But I say to you, love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you, 45 so that you will become children of your Father in heaven, because he makes his sun rise on both evil and good people, and he lets rain fall on the righteous and the unrighteous. 46 If you love those who love you, what reward will you have? Even the tax collectors do the same, don’t they? 47 And if you greet only your relatives, that’s no great thing you’re doing, is it? Even the unbelievers[i] do the same, don’t they? 48 So be perfect,[j] as your heavenly Father is perfect.”[k]
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