According to the Book of Genesis, Hagar is an Egyptian Woman, wife of Abraham. Abraham's firstborn son through Hagar, Ishmael, became the progenitor of the Ishmaelites, generally taken to be the Arabs. Various commentators have connected her to the Hagrites (sons of Agar), perhaps claiming her as their eponymous ancestor. Hagar is alluded to, although not named, in the Quran, and Islam considers her Abraham's second wife.
Biblical narrative
Abram, Sarai, Hagar and the angel According to the Bible, Hagar was the Egyptian woman, Abram's wife (whose names later became Sarah and Abraham). Sarai regarded herself as barren and sought a way to fulfil God's previous promise that Abram would have descendants. Since she had grown old, she offered Hagar as a concubine to Abram. Hagar became pregnant and tension arose between the two women. Genesis states that when she knew she was pregnant, Hagar began to despise Sarai. Sarai complained to Abram who said "Your servant is in your hands, do with her whatever you think best". Then Sarai mistreated Hagar, so Hagar fled from her. Hagar fled into the desert on her way to Shur. At a spring en route, an angel of the LORD appeared to Hagar and instructed her to return to Sarai and to submit to her mistress. In wording which "mirrors the covenantal blessings given to Abram", the angel promises Hagar that her offspring will multiply and become uncountable. Then she was told by the angel that she would give birth to a son and that she should call her son "Ishmael". Afterward, Hagar referred to God as "El Roi" (variously "god of sight"; "god saw me"; "god who appears"). She then returned to Abram and Sarai, and soon gave birth to a son, whom she named as the angel had instructed.
Hagar cast out
Later, Sarah gave birth to Isaac, and the tension between the women returned. At a celebration after Isaac was weaned, Sarah found the teenage Ishmael mocking her son (Genesis 21:9). She was so upset by the idea of Ishmael inheriting their wealth that she demanded that Abraham send Hagar and her son away. She declared that Ishmael would not share in Isaac's inheritance. Abraham was greatly distressed, but God told Abraham to do as his wife commanded because God's promise would be carried out through Isaac; Ishmael would be made into a great nation as well because he was Abraham's offspring. Abraham brought Hagar and Ishmael out together. Abraham gave Hagar bread and water then sent them into the wilderness of Beersheba. She and her son wandered aimlessly until their water was completely consumed. In a moment of despair, she burst into tears. God heard her son crying and came to rescue them. The angel opened Hagar's eyes and she saw a well of water. He also told Hagar that God would "make a great nation" of Ishmael. Hagar found her son a wife from Egypt and they settled in the Desert of Paran.
Sayings of Agur A verse in the Sayings of Agur (Proverbs 30:23) has been associated with Hagar: "[Under three things the earth trembles, under four it cannot bear up]: ... a maidservant when she displaces her mistress". The Septuagint has this wording, whereas the Masoretic text refers to a maid "inheriting from her mistress". John Gill observes that such a servant "might be exemplified in the case of Hagar, the bondmaid of Sarah, a type of those that are under the law of works, and seek the inheritance by it; and who trust in themselves that they are righteous, and despise others."
Islamic narrative
Hagar does not directly appear in the Quran, but she features in various Islamic traditions, which do not portray her as a slave but as a maid (of Sarah or of Abraham) named Hājar. The Islamic narrative slightly differs from the biblical account, in that it is God alone who commands Abraham to take Hagar and Ishmael down to the desert, later Mecca, and leave them there. Due to the scarcity of water in the desert, it did not take long for both mother and son to suffer from a great thirst, and so Hagar ran between the hills of Safa and Marwah in search of water for her son. After the seventh run between the two hills, an angel appeared before her. He helped her and said that God heard Ishmael cry and would provide them with water, and Hagar found the sacred Zamzam Well. Mecca was later known for its perfection and abundance of water, and an Arab tribe called the Banu Jurhum settled there with Hagar and her son Ishmael, because of the presence of the water.
Religious views
Rabbinical commentary
Rabbinical commentators asserted that Hagar was Pharaoh's daughter. The midrash Genesis Rabbah states it was when Sarah was in Pharaoh's harem that he gave her his daughter Hagar as servant, saying: "It is better that my daughter should be a servant in the house of such a woman than mistress in another house." Sarah treated Hagar well, and induced women who came to visit her to also visit Hagar. Hagar, when pregnant by Abraham, however, began to act superciliously toward Sarah, provoking the latter to treat her harshly, to impose heavy work upon her, and even to strike her with her slipper. Some Jewish commentators identify Hagar with Keturah (Jewish Babylonian Aramaic: קְטוּרָה, romanized: Qəṭurɔ꞉), the woman Abraham married after the death of Sarah, stating that Abraham sought her out after Sarah's death. It is suggested that Keturah was Hagar's personal name, and that "Hagar" was a descriptive label meaning "stranger". This interpretation is discussed in the Midrash and is supported by Rashi, Judah Loew ben Bezalel, Shlomo Ephraim Luntschitz, and Obadiah ben Abraham Bartenura. Rashi argues that "Keturah" was a name given to Hagar because her deeds were as beautiful as incense (hence: ketores), and/or that she remained chaste from the time she was separated from Abraham—קְטוּרָה derives from the Aramaic word "restrained". The contrary view (that Keturah was someone other than Hagar) is advocated by the Rashbam, Abraham ibn Ezra, David Kimhi, and Nachmanides. They were listed as two different people in the genealogies in the Book of Chronicles (1 Chronicles 1:29–33).
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