So, after Abram had lived ten years in the land of Canaan, Sarai, Abram’s wife, took Hagar the Egyptian, her servant, and gave her to Abram her husband as a wife.
English Standard Version (ESV)
The verse highlights that Sarai, not Abram, initiates the plan to have a child through Hagar. This underscores that the move, while ultimately flawed, stemmed from Sarai's desire for the promised offspring and was done with Abram's consent, not his selfish initiative.
So, after Abram had lived ten years in the land of Canaan, Sarai, Abram’s wife, took Hagar the Egyptian, her servant, and gave her to Abram her husband as a wife.
English Standard Version (ESV)
After living in Canaan for ten years, Abram and Sarai's longing for a child, coupled with Sarai's barrenness, leads Sarai to take her Egyptian servant Hagar and give her to Abram as a wife. This decision, born from human impatience and a desire to fulfill God's promise of descendants, marks the beginning of a complex family dynamic and a path that deviates from God's original design for marriage.
We often think of faith as waiting patiently. But what happens when that waiting turns into an urge to 'help' God fulfill His promises?
Genesis 16:3 introduces a moment where Abram and Sarai's faith takes a detour. After ten years in Canaan, still without the promised heir, Sarai takes initiative.
The verse calls Hagar a 'wife,' but was it the same kind of wife God originally intended?
The text states Sarai 'gave her [Hagar] to Abram her husband as a wife.' However, the context and later biblical references clarify Hagar's role.
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This distinction is important because it highlights that even within accepted cultural practices, there are nuances and potential departures from God's ideal, which can have significant consequences.
Understand the original words
Kena'an · Hebrew Proper Noun
A descriptive term for the region promised to Abram and his descendants by God. It represents the geographical location of the covenant promise and the future inheritance of Israel.
c. 2091 BC
Abram called to Canaan
God calls Abram from Haran to the land of Canaan, promising to make him a great nation. Abram is 75 years old.
c. 2081 BC— this verse
Abram dwells in Canaan
Abram and his household have now lived in Canaan for ten years, yet no heir has been born.
c. 2081 BC
Hagar given to Abram
Sarai, barren and impatient, gives her Egyptian servant Hagar to Abram as a secondary wife to bear children.
c. 2080 BC
Birth of Ishmael
Hagar conceives and bears Ishmael to Abram. This event sparks conflict within the household and establishes a lineage that will rival Abram's promised line.
This passage directly parallels the Genesis account, explaining that Hagar and Ishmael represent slavery and a life bound by the law, contrasting with Sarah and Isaac who represent freedom and God's promises through grace.
Genesis 17:15-19This passage shows God's faithfulness to His promises despite the complicated family situation. He reaffirms the covenant with Abraham and Sarah, promising that Isaac, not Ishmael, will be the heir of the covenant, highlighting the distinction between God's chosen line and other descendants.
Romans 9:7-9Paul uses the birth of Ishmael and Isaac to illustrate God's sovereign choice in salvation, emphasizing that not all descendants of Abraham are necessarily children of the promise, but only those born according to God's specific plan.
1 Samuel 1:1-20This narrative shows a similar human attempt to solve barrenness through a secondary wife, Hannah's suffering and eventual divine intervention for Samuel offer a contrast to Sarai's impatience and the consequences that followed.
clarkeGenesis 16:3: "And Sarai Abram's wife took Hagar her maid the Egyptian, after Abram had dwelt ten years in the land of Canaan, and gave her to her husband Abram to be his wife."
And Sarai, Abram's wife, took Hagar - and gave her to her husband - to be his wife - There are instances of Hindoo women, when barren, consenting to their husbands marrying a second wife for the sake of children; and second marriages on this account, without consent, are very common - Ward
pooleGenesis 16:3: "And Sarai Abram's wife took Hagar her maid the Egyptian, after Abram had dwelt ten years in the land of Canaan, and gave her to her husband Abram to be his wife."
1911 i.e. His concubine, or secondary wife. Polygamy, though it was forbidden by God’s first institution, Genesis 2:24 , compared with Matthew 19:5 , and brought into the world by wicked Lamech, yet it was sometimes practised by the patriarchs, either by God’s permission, who could rightly dispense with his own laws whe…
The verse highlights that Sarai, not Abram, initiates the plan to have a child through Hagar. This underscores that the move, while ultimately flawed, stemmed from Sarai's desire for the promised offspring and was done with Abram's consent, not his selfish initiative.
After living in Canaan for ten years, Abram and Sarai's longing for a child, coupled with Sarai's barrenness, leads Sarai to take her Egyptian servant Hagar and give her to Abram as a wife. This decision, born from human impatience and a desire to fulfill God's promise of descendants, marks the beginning of a complex family dynamic and a path that deviates from God's original design for marriage.
After living in Canaan for ten years, Abram and Sarai's longing for a child, coupled with Sarai's barrenness, leads Sarai to take her Egyptian servant Hagar and give her to Abram as a wife. This decision, born from human impatience and a desire to fulfill God's promise of descendants, marks the beginning of a complex family dynamic and a path that deviates from God's original design for marriage.
"So, after Abram had lived ten years in the land of Canaan, Sarai, Abram’s wife, took Hagar the Egyptian, her servant, and gave her to Abram her husband as a wife." — The verse highlights that Sarai, not Abram, initiates the plan to have a child through Hagar. This underscores that the move, while ultimately flawed, stemmed from Sarai's desire for the promised off…
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Last reviewed October 2026