Genesis 16:7 - Meaning and Application

This is the first time Scripture records an angel appearing to someone. Hagar was a picture of the law, which was given through angels; but the world to come is not placed under their rule (Hebrews 2:5). Notice how the angel stopped her as she fled (Hebrews 2:7).

It seems she was heading back toward her own country, since she was on the road to Shur, which lay toward Egypt. It would be good if our troubles made us think of our true home, the better country. But Hagar was outside her proper place, outside the path of her duty, and going farther astray when the angel found her. It is a great mercy to be stopped in a sinful path, whether by conscience or by God’s providence. God sometimes lets those who are wandering stay lost for a while, so that when they see their folly and the loss they have brought on themselves, they may be more ready to return. Hagar was not stopped until she reached the wilderness, sat down weary, and was glad to find clear water to refresh herself. God brings us into a wilderness and meets us there (Hosea 2:14).

Next, notice how the angel questioned her (Genesis 16:8). He called her Hagar, Sarai’s maid. He did this, first, to check her pride. Though she was Abram’s wife and therefore was bound to return, he still called her Sarai’s maid to humble her. It is true that courtesy teaches us to give others their highest titles, but humility and wisdom teach us to speak of ourselves in the lowest terms. Second, he did it to rebuke her flight. Sarai’s maid should be in Sarai’s tent, not wandering in the wilderness and lingering by a spring of water. It is good for us often to remember what our place and calling are (Ecclesiastes 10:4).

The angel’s questions were wise and fitting. “Where have you come from?” He was reminding her that she was running away from both the duty she owed and the blessings she enjoyed in Abram’s house. It is a great advantage to live in a godly home, and people who have that privilege should think carefully before they are quick to leave it. “Where are you going?” He was warning her that she was running toward sin in Egypt, for if she returned to that people, she would likely return to their gods. He was also warning her of danger in the wilderness through which she would have to travel (Deuteronomy 8:15). Those who are turning from God and from duty should remember not only where they have fallen from, but where they are falling to. See Jeremiah 2:18 and John 6:68.

Her answer was honest and straightforward: “I am running away from my mistress.” In that answer, she admits her fault in fleeing from her mistress, yet she also explains that she was driven by her mistress’s harsh treatment. Children and servants should be treated with kindness and gentleness, lest we push them into careless and wrong actions and become partly responsible for their sins. Their sin will still condemn them, but it will not excuse us.

Then the angel sent her back with wise and tender counsel: “Return to your mistress and submit to her” (Genesis 16:9). In other words, go home, humble yourself for what you have done wrong, ask for pardon, and resolve to act better in the future. He had no doubt she would be welcomed back, even though Abram does not seem to have sent after her. Those who have left their proper place and duty, when they are convinced they were wrong, must quickly return and change their ways, no matter how painful that may be.