I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Genesis 21-23.

Every year when I come to the story of Hagar and Ishmael being sent away by Abraham, I have to remind myself that by this point Ishmael was a young man.  I have an image of Ishmael as a toddler being carried into the wilderness by his mother.  However, we know he was older than that.  Ishmael was fourteen when Isaac was born and this is at least a year after that and probably more.  When Abraham sent Hagar and Ishmael away, Ishmael was old enough to try to take care of himself rather than just crying about the unfairness of life.

I do not want to make much of it, but I see a contrast with how Isaac acted when Abraham took him to offer him as a sacrifice.   While Ishmael had been a passive participant in his exile, Isaac noticed that they did not have a sacrifice and asked his father about it.  However, what I find more interesting is when the angel tells Abraham not to sacrifice the boy.  The angel refers to Isaac as Abraham’s only son in a way which foreshadows Jesus as God’s only son.  Abraham heading into the wilderness to sacrifice Isaac was recognition that something more was needed, but God stopped Abraham because Isaac was not that something more, that needed to wait for Jesus to be that sacrifice.  While I believe the focus of this story is to let us know that God does not want us to sacrifice our children to Him, it also foreshadows His sacrifice of His Son for our salvation.