“So Sarai said to Abram, “Look now, the LORD has prevented me from bearing children. Please go to my maidservant; perhaps I can build a family by her.” And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai.”
Genesis 16:2
BSBGo deeper on this verse (4)
- Sarai, Hagar, and Abram: Helping God Keep His Promise (Genesis 16)
What did Sarai mean by "build a family"?
The word for build here is banah (H1129), the ordinary Hebrew word for building a house, a wall or a city. It sounds like ben (H1121), son, so a Hebrew reader hears a pun: to be given a child is to be built up. Sarai hoped, quite literally, to be built through Hagar.
Read the whole studyConnection with listening to a voice
The phrase "listened to the voice" runs through Genesis. In Eden God said to Adam, "Because you have listened to the voice of your wife" (Genesis 3:17), and here Abram listened to Sarai's plan for the promised son. Later it is used of God's own voice: "because you have obeyed My voice" (Genesis 22:18) and "because Abraham listened to My voice" (Genesis 26:5).
Read the whole studyConnection with Rachel and Bilhah
Later Rachel, still childless, used this same plan with her own maidservant: "Here is my maidservant Bilhah. Sleep with her, that she may bear children for me, so that through her I too can build a family" (Genesis 30:3).
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How to Hear God’s Voice: A Practical Guide for BelieversScripture is the record of a God who speaks. This guide covers how to hear Him today and keep what He says.Engage with Genesis 16:2 in a fresh way
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