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Genesis 21:8-21
With thanks to page sponsor 2014:
St. John's Lutheran Church
Adrian, Michigan
Pastor Joel Sarrault

• Reading the Text:
  • NRSV (with link to Anglicized NRSV) at Oremus Bible Browser.
  • Hebrew Interlinear Bible, WLCv, WLC5, CHES, AV.
  • The Bible Gateway: NRSV, RSV, NIV, NASB, CEV, The Message, KJV, etc.
  • The Blue Letter Bible. KJV, alternate versions, Hebrew text with concordance, commentaries.
  • The World Wide Study Bible includes commentary, exposition and sermons.
  • Bereshit 21: Massoretic, Hebrew, Aramaic, JPS.
• Historical References, Commentary and Comparative Texts:
  • Navigating the Bible: Text/Rabbinic commentary and Divrei Torah.
  • Chapter LVI, Dialogue With Trypho, Justin Martyr. (c 160)
  • I.11, Stromata, Clement of Alexandria (c 200)
  • XII.31, Commentary on the Gospel of Matthew, Origen. (c.247)
  • Rashi's Commentary, c. 1075. chabad.org.
  • From Calvin's Commentary on Genesis.
    • "It seems, indeed, at first sight, something frivolous, that Sarah, being angry about a mere nothing, should have stirred up strife in the family. But Paul teaches, that a sublime mystery is here proposed to us, concerning the perpetual state of the Church."
  • From the Geneva Notes.
    • "True faith renounces all natural affections to obey God's commandment."
  • From Matthew Henry's Commentary.
    • "Let us not overlook the manner in which this family matter instructs us not to rest in outward privileges, or in our own doings."
  • From Wesley's Notes.
    • "It is presumption to say, that all these who are left out of the external dispensation of God's covenant are excluded from all his mercies."
  • "The Allegories of Sarah and Hagar," C.H. Spurgeon, 1856.
    • "Whosoever amongst you will cast all his good works away, and will come to Jesus, with this 'Nothing, nothing, NOTHING, Nothing in my hands I bring, Simply to the cross I cling'."
  • From the Commentary on the Whole Bible (Jamieson, Fausset and Brown, 1871).
    • "Ishmael was a lad of seventeen years, and it is quite customary for Arab chiefs to send out their sons at such an age to do for themselves: often with nothing but a few days' provisions in a bag."
• Contemporary References, Commentary and Comparative Texts:
  • Commentary, Genesis 21:8-21, Kathryn Schifferdecker, Preaching This Week, WorkingPreacher.org, 2014.
    • "It is easy to overlook this story of Ishmael, set as it is between the story of Isaac's miraculous birth and the story of his (near) sacrifice. Yet, it is worth pausing and considering what Ishmael's story tells us about God's care and providence."
  • "God Has Made Laughter For Me, Sorry About You!" John C Holbert, Opening the Old Testament, 2014.
    • "How easily does our gracious laughter turn to angry arrogance when the shoe is now on our bigoted feet?"
  • "Slavery, Surrogacy, and Society: Making a Future in the Wilderness," Anathea Portier-Young, ON Scripture, Odyssey Networks, 2014. Video: Until You Love Yourself.
    • "Unfortunately, slavery is hardly new, it is at the heart of Israel's founding story."
  • Liberal Lectionary Resources, Drew Herring, 2014.
    • "...the story of Hagar is a ray of light streaming into dark circumstances, pointing us to a God who makes a way out of no way, whispers to us that we are never completely forgotten, never all alone, never left for dead, whatever our circumstances may be."
  • "Hagar and Ishmael in the Desert, - I See You," Linda Fabian Pepe, Theological Stew, 2014.
    • "...when things happen in our life, and the circumstances that we find ourselves in, seem incomprehensible, and when we stand with our little dust fist to the wide open sky and scream "why"= whether it's at injustice, or unfairness or out of grief or helplessness… God hears..."
  • Pulpit Fiction, plus podcast. Reflections of lectionary text, pop culture, current events, etc. Robb Mc Coy and Eric Fistler, 2014.
  • "Hagar," "Isaac," Frederick Buechner, Peculiar Treasures.
  • Commentary, Genesis 21:8-21, Mark Throntveit, Preaching This Week, WorkingPreacher.org, 2008.
    • "This continuation of Genesis 21:1-7 describes the conflict in Abraham's family caused by Isaac's birth."
  • "Ishmael: God Hears and Sees," The Journey with Jesus: Notes to Myself, Daniel B. Clendenin, Journey with Jesus Foundation, 2005.
    • "God is not deaf, dumb or blind. He is not implacable, impersonal, or impassible, without feeling or emotion. He is not an absentee landlord deity. No, Christians believe that He sees every human misery, and that He hears every painful sob."
  • Comments (commentary) and Clippings (technical notes for in-depth study), Chris Haslam, Anglican Diocese of Montreal.
  • Parashat Va-yera, Rabbi David Ackerman, Jewish Theological Seminary Commentary, 2008.
    • "We, like Abraham, don't always know where we're headed. And like Abraham, we walk in order to learn, in Aviva Zornberg's rich words, 'what it means not (yet) to be shown, to be told.'"
  • The Old Testament Readings: Genesis 21:8-21. Weekly Comments on the Revised Common Lectionary, Howard Wallace Audrey Schindler, Morag Logan, Paul Tonson, Lorraine Parkinson, Theological Hall of the Uniting Church, Melbourne, Australia.
    • "Christian preachers need also to consider whether Paul?s treatment of Hagar in Galatians 4 does justice to the Genesis accounts..."
  • Desert Scribblings, Genesis 21:8-21, Geoff McElroy.
    • "While we don?t exclude on basis of labels and prejudice as much as the past, even though we still have some ways to go in issues like race and gender and other areas, and while our most fervent exclusions these days revolve around matters of opinion and thought, our tendency to exclude others not like us is still holding strong."
  • "A Great Partner for a Great Endeavor," Torah Commentary by Wendy Amsellem. BeliefNet.
    • "Along the way, Abraham learns that no one person has a monopoly on God's covenant, and that great endeavors require great partners."
  • Parshah Vayeira, text, commentary & articles from Chassidic Masters, sermons, etc from Chabad Lubavitch.
  • Parshas Vayera from The Project Genesis Torah Study. Index to numerous articles and studies on Genesis 18:1-22:24.
  • Parshat Vayeira, articles and commentary by the Jewish Community of Atlanta, at The Torah From Dixie.
  • "Commentary on Genesis 21:8-21: Fourth Sunday After Pentecost (Year A)," by Dennis Bratcher at the Christian Resource Institute.
    • "Juxtaposed with the first half of the reading in which God?s people are the oppressors, God?s actions in the world for liberation and freedom raises ominous implications for those who do the oppressing."
  • "Death and Reconciliation: Chayye Sarach," Rabbi Arthur Waskow, The Shalom Center.
    • "Such a parallel! ? By the time their father Avraham has died, each has lived for many years with the knowledge that he ? their father! ? sent them to the brink of death."
  • "What happens when Christians Mess Up?"  from the Biblical Studies Foundation.
    • "While we cannot justify the motivation of Sarah for her ultimatum, I personally believe that such a move had to occur in order to force Abraham’s hand in setting aside his aspirations for this son."
  • "Reinterpreting Hagar's Story," Jessica Grimes, Lectio Difficilior, 2004.
    • "Themes of excluding and choosing, privileging and denying are signs that the story of Hagar is not just about a surrogate mother whose desires are being denied. This story is about an enslaved woman who symbolizes the struggle for survival of colonized people because she experiences subjugation and freedom, twice."
  • "Gender, Class, and Androcentric Compliance in the Rapes of Enslaved Women in the Hebrew Bible," Susanne Scholz, Lectio Difficilior, 2004.
    • "This article began with the words of women enslaved in nineteenth-century America, which provided the perspective for the examination of the biblical stories. There are, however, remarkable differences between the two, and three differences shall be highlighted here..."
  • "Ismael" from The (1913) Catholic Encyclopedia.
  • "Abraham, Sarah and Hagar: A Family Affair: Did Sarah Sin Against Hagar?" by Rabbi Matis Greenblatt, Literary Editor of Jewish Action Magazine.
    • "We may be defending the most justifiable cause. And yet, the manner in which we pursue our objective is critical; so critical that if we pursue our goal too forcefully or with a measure of insensitivity the results may be disastrous."
• Recommended articles from ATLAS, an online collection of religion and theology journals, are linked below. ATLAS Access options are available for academic institutions, alumni of selected theological schools, and clergy/church offices. Annotated list of "starting place" articles at ATLAS for this week's texts (includes direct links).
  • Bailey, Wilma Ann, "Black and Jewish Women Consider Hagar," Encounter, 2002.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Classens, L. Juliana M., "Laughter and Tears: Carnivalistic Overtones in the Stories of Sarah and Hagar," Perspectives in Religious Studies, 2005.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Dozeman, Thomas B., "The Wilderness and Salvation History in the Hagar Story," Journal of Biblical Literature, 1998.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Dube, Musa W., "Toward a Post-Colonial Feminist Interpretation of the Bible," Semeia, 1997.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Guenther, Allen, "A Typology of Israelite Marriage: Kinship, Socio-Economic, and Religious Factors," Journal for the Study of the Old Testament, 2005.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Holladay, William L., "Outcasts and Forebears," The Christian Century, 1996.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Horn, Cornelia B., "Between text and sermon: Genesis 21:8-21," Interpretation, 2014..
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Kaminsky, Joel S., "Humor and the Theology of Hope: Isaac as a Humorous Figure," Interpretation, 2000.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Lyke, Larry L., "Where Does 'the Boy' Belong? Compositional Strategy in Genesis 21:14," Catholic Biblical Quarterly, 1994.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Mbuwayesango, Dora R., "Childlessness and Woman-To-Woman Relationships in Genesis and in African Patriarchal Society: Sarah and Hagar from a Zimbabwean Woman's Perspective (Gen 16:1-16; 21:8-21)," Semeia, 1997.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Meyer, Lauree Hersch, "Hagar's Holiness: Genesis 16 and 21," Brethren Life and Thought, 1992.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Moser, Barry, "Blood and Stone: Violence in the Bible & the Eye of the Illustrator," Cross Currents, 2001.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Niehoff, Maren R., "Mother and Maiden, Sister and Spouse, Sarah in Philonic Midrash," Harvard Theological Review, 2004.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Nikaido, S., "Hagar and Ishmael as Literary Figures: An Intertextual Study," Vetus Testamentum, 2001.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • O'Connor, Kathleen, "Abraham's Unholy Family: Mirror, Witness, Summons," Journal for Preachers, 1997.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Okoye, James C., "Sarah and Hagar: Genesis 16 and 21," Journal for the Study of the Old Testament, 2007.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Reis, Pamela Tamarkin, "Hagar Requited," Journal for the Study of the Old Testament, 2000.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Schwartz, Joshua, "Ishmael at Play: On Exegesis and Jewish Society," Hebrew Union College Annual, 1995.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Sprinkle, Joe M., "Old Testament Perspectives on Divorce and Remarriage," Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society, 1997.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Stancil, David C., "Genesis 16:1-16; 21:8-21 -- The Uncherished Child: A 'Modern' Wilderness of the Heart," Review & Expositor, 1994.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Steinberg, Naomi, "The Genealogical Framework of the Family Stories in Genesis," Semeia, 1989.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Thomas-Smith, Karen, "Seeing through the Eyes of Our Sister, Hagar: An Expository Sermon on Genesis 16:1-16, 21:1-21 and John 4:5-14," Review & Expositor, 2008.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Thompson, John L., "Hagar, Victim or Villain? Three Sixteenth-Century Views," The Catholic Biblical Quarterly, 1997.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Wells, Samuel, "Casualties of Destiny," Journal for Preachers, 2009. (Sermon)
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Williams, James G., "The Beautiful and the Barren: Conventions in Biblical Type-Scenes," Journal for the Study of the Old Testament, 1980.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
• Sermons:
  • "The Story of Hagar," Rev. Sara Buteux, First Congregational Church of Hadley, MA.
• With Children:
  • Worshiping with Children, Including children in the congregation's worship, using the Revised Common Lectionary, Carolyn C. Brown, 2014.
  • "Storypath Lectionary Links: Connecting Children's Literature with our Faith Story," June 22, 2014, Union Presbyterian Seminary.
  • "Abraham - Father of Many Nations," "Isaac," Illustrating the Story (lessons, children's sermons), coloring pages, activity sheets, crafts, children's songs. MSSS Crafts.
  • "The Birth of Isaac," online computer java-based coloring pages from Grace Baptist Church of Feeding Hill.
• Drama:
• Graphics & Bulletin Materials:
• Hymns and Music:
  • Hymnary.org, hymns, scores, media, information.
• Fine Arts Images Linked at The Text This Week's Art Index:
  • Hagar/Ishmael
• Movies scenes with the following themes, listed at The Text This Week's Movie Concordance:
• Literature and Literary References:
  • Poetry from The Public Peace Process: Resources and Inspiration:
    • With Love to Isaac and Ishmael, by Gary F. Gordon
    • Sarah and Hagar, recorded by Linda Hirschhorn on More Than Luck and a Prayer.
  • "Sarah Was A Woman": A Modern Poem by Edna Aphek. Jewish Heritage On-Line Magazine   
• Study links and resources for the Book of Genesis

• INDEX BY SCRIPTURE
• PODCASTS
• NARRATIVE LECTIONARY RESOURCES
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• FOR USE IN TIMES OF VIOLENCE
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• Year C
• Maundy Thurs Apr 14
• Good Friday Apr 15
• Easter Day Apr 17
• Easter 2 Apr 24
• Easter 3 May 1
• Easter 4 May 8
• Easter 5 May 15
• Easter 6 May 22
• Ascension May 26
• Easter 7 May 29
• Pentecost June 5
  

• Calendars
• YEAR A
• YEAR B
• YEAR C

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