WAS ISHMAEL A BABY OR A TEENAGER? : BIBLICAL FALACIES AND LIES THE BIBLICAL VERSION Sarah, Abrahams first wife was jealous of Hagar and her son Ishmael. She did not want Ishmael to inherit with her son Isaac because Ishmael was the son of the SLAVE. She was particularly angry because of what she considered mockery on the part of Ishmael toward his younger brother Isaac while they were playing together. (Gen 21:10) Get rid of that slave woman and her son, for that slave womans son will never share in the inheritance with my son Isaac. This incident took place after Isaac was weaned. Abraham obeyed his wife Sarah whose demand of casting out the slave woman and her son was blessed by God who told Abraham to (Gen 21:12) listen to Sarah. One morning Abraham rose up, gave provisions and water to Ishmael and Hagar, and left them in the wilderness of Beer Sheba in Southern Palestine (Gen 21:14). When Hagar ran out of water she could not bear to watch her son die, so she sat away. Eventually, an angel appeared before her and provided her with a spring of water. The angel further told her (Gen 21:18) Arise, lift up the lad and hold him in your hand; for I will make him a great nation. Was Ishmael and Hagar sent to the desert before or after the birth of Isaac? If we were to accept the Biblical version, we would encounter a number of inconsistencies and contradictions. It is clear from the story in Gen. 21:14-19 that Ishmael was a little baby at that time. For example according to Gen. 16:16 Abraham was 86 years old when Ishmael was born. And according to Gen. 21:5 Abraham was one hundred years old when Isaac was born. It follows that Ishmael was already fourteen years old when his younger brother Isaac was born. According to Gen. 21:8-19 the incident took place after Isaac was weaned. Biblical scholars tell us the child was probably weaned at about the age of three. Thus, it follows that when Hagar and Ishmael were taken away Ishmael was a full-grown teenager, seventeen years old. However, the profile of Ishmael in Gen 21:14-19 is a small baby and not a full-grown teenager. Why? Genesis 21:14-21 14 Early next morning Abraham took some food and a full water-skin and gave them to Hagar. He set the child on her shoulder and sent her away, and she wandered about in the wilderness of Beersheba. 15 When the water in the skin was finished, she thrust the child under a bush, 16 then went and sat down some way off, about a bowshot distant. How can I watch the child die? she said, and sat there, weeping bitterly. 17 God heard the child crying, and the angel of God called from heaven to Hagar, What is the matter, Hagar? Do not be afraid: God has heard the child crying where you laid him. 18 Go, lift the child and hold him in your arms, because I shall make of him a great nation. 19 Then God opened her eyes and she saw a well full of water; she went to it, filled the water-skin, and gave the child a drink. 20 God was with the child as he grew up. He lived in the wilderness of Paran and became an archer; 21 and his mother got him a wife from Egypt. (The Revised English Bible) LIE 1) the original Hebrew for Gen. 21:14 is and put the bread and water on her shoulder AND the boy. Anyone fluent in Hebrew can confirm this! This reading is still rendered in the Revised English Bible; however, other Bible publishers possibly aware of the discrepancy decided to translate the verse slightly different; however, we can see their trick! How would a mother carry a seventeen-year-old teenager on her shoulder? Certainly he was probably strong enough to carry his mother. Ishmael must have been a baby! LIE 2) in Gen 21:15 we are told that Hagar put the child under one of the bushes. Ishmael must have been a baby and not a teenager! LIE 3) in Gen 21:16 we are told that Hagar sat away so she did not have to see the child die before her eyes. Is this the profile of a husky seventeen-year-old teenager who probably was capable of being worried about his mother dying before his eyes? Or is it obviously a profile of a small helpless baby? Ishmael must have been a baby and not a teenager! LIE 4) Gen 21:17-18, the angels told Hagar lift the child and hold him in your arms. Is a seventeen-year-old man the object of being lifted up and held in ones arms by a woman while CRYING? Or is it the reference of a small child. Ishmael must have been a baby and not a teenager! LIE 5) According to Gen 21:19 we are told that Hagar filled the bottle with water and gave the child a drink. One would expect a seventeen year old to bring water to his mother instead. Ishmael must have been a baby and not a teenager! LIE 6) According to Gen 21:14 Abraham puts the food and water on Hagars shoulder. Why doesnt the strong husky seventeen-year old Ishmael offer to carry the food and water? Ishmael must have been a baby and not a teenager! LIE 7) According to Gen 21:20-21?? Ishmael grew up, became an archer and got married. Ishmael must have been a baby and not a teenager! The above analysis leads to the inevitable conclusion that while the Bible contains some evidence of human additions, deletions and interpolations which only a subsequent authentic revelation could clear. The Islamic version of the story is fully consistent and coherent from A to Z; Ishmael was a baby and Isaac was not born yet when this incident took place. This proves that the real reason behind their settlement in Arabia (Paran) was not the dictation, jealousy, ego or sense of racial superiority on the part of Sarah. It was rather Gods plan, pure and simple! (Gen 21:10) Get rid of that slave woman and her son, for that slave womans son will never share in the inheritance with my son Isaac. How hypocritical Sarah is, for initially she saw potential in Hagar, (Gen 16:2) The Lord has kept me from having children. Go, sleep with my maidservant; perhaps I can build a family through her. (Gen 16:4) He slept with Hagar, and she conceived. When Sarah knew she was pregnant, she began to despise her mistress. But, the lies isnt Sarah’s or Abraham’s or Hagar’s…they belong to the evil innovations of the hands of these writers.
Posted on: Wed, 06 Aug 2014 22:20:35 +0000
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