Discovery BoxGenesis 21:12 
Context21:12 But God said to Abraham, “Do not be upset 1 about the boy or your slave wife. Do 2 all that Sarah is telling 3 you because through Isaac your descendants will be counted. 4
Genesis 21:17
Context21:17 But God heard the boy’s voice. 5 The angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and asked her, “What is the matter, 6 Hagar? Don’t be afraid, for God has heard 7 the boy’s voice right where he is crying.
Genesis 21:19-20
Context21:19 Then God enabled Hagar to see a well of water. 8 She went over and filled the skin with water, and then gave the boy a drink.
21:20 God was with the boy as he grew. He lived in the wilderness and became an archer.
1 tn Heb “Let it not be evil in your eyes.”
2 tn Heb “listen to her voice.” The idiomatic expression means “obey; comply.” Here her advice, though harsh, is necessary and conforms to the will of God. Later (see Gen 25), when Abraham has other sons, he sends them all away as well.
3 tn The imperfect verbal form here draws attention to an action that is underway.
4 tn Or perhaps “will be named”; Heb “for in Isaac offspring will be called to you.” The exact meaning of the statement is not clear, but it does indicate that God’s covenantal promises to Abraham will be realized through Isaac, not Ishmael.
5 sn God heard the boy’s voice. The text has not to this point indicated that Ishmael was crying out, either in pain or in prayer. But the text here makes it clear that God heard him. Ishmael is clearly central to the story. Both the mother and the
6 tn Heb “What to you?”
7 sn Here the verb heard picks up the main motif of the name Ishmael (“God hears”), introduced back in chap. 16.
8 tn Heb “And God opened her eyes and she saw a well of water.” The referent (Hagar) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
