Bishop Keith Butler
Feb 1
And Sarai said unto Abram, My wrong be upon thee: I have given my maid into thy bosom; and when she saw that she had conceived, I was despised in her eyes: the Lord judge between me and thee. But Abram said unto Sarai, Behold, thy maid is in thine hand; do to her as it pleaseth thee. And when Sarai dealt hardly with her, she fled from her face. And the angel of the Lord found her by a fountain of water in the wilderness, by the fountain in the way to Shur. And he said, Hagar, Sarai's maid, whence camest thou? and whither wilt thou go? And she said, I flee from the face of my mistress Sarai. And the angel of the Lord said unto her, Return to thy mistress, and submit thyself under her hands. And the angel of the Lord said unto her, I will multiply thy seed exceedingly, that it shall not be numbered for multitude. (Genesis 16:5-10)
Sarai made a horrible mistake by asking Abraham to lie with her maidservant. She realized the wrong she had done and instead of taking her part of the blame; she laid it upon Abram. My wrong be upon thee is an archaic way to say, “It was your fault that I did this!” Sarai was exceeding upset and when she saw Hagar, once a solution in Sarai’s mind, she was only reminded of her own barrenness. Her jealousy and anger continued to boil against her servant until Hagar was afraid for her own life.
Hagar’s cry, “I flee from the face of my mistress Sarai,” showed the desperation that was in her heart. However, the angel's instruction may seem counterintuitive to us. He said, “Return to thy mistress, and submit thyself under her hands.” I imagine Hagar was confused. This is the woman who wanted to kill her for nothing she had done wrong, but for the wrong that was done to her! Yet, the angel did not just tell her to return; he spoke a promise from God as well, adding, “I will multiply thy seed exceedingly.” God had a plan to take Hagar from despair to destiny!
God sees the wrong that has been done to you. A part of living in this fallen world is that people can hurt, harm, and offend us in great ways. Yet, God’s plan is not thwarted by wrongdoers. If we seek His face, His promise, His gifts, and His plan can still come to pass, even in the aftermath of affliction. Don’t let despair deny you God’s destiny!