was, that she was reduced to great distress. The bread might not be exhausted, but the water was; and no spring being to be found in this inhospitable place, she and Ishmael appear to have walked about, till he, overcome of thirst, could walk no longer. She had supported him, it seems, as long as she could; but fearing he should die in her arms, she cast him under a shrub, just to screen him from the scorching sun, and went and sat herself down over against him, a good way off, as it were a bow-shot: for she said, Let me not see the death of the child! And she sat over against him, and lifted up her voice and wept.

see.

Ver. 17, 18. A more finished picture of distress we shall seldom The bitter cries and flowing tears of the afflicted mother, with the groans of her dying son, are heard, and seen, and felt, in a manner as though we were present. And wherefore do they cry? Had there been any ear to hear them, any eye to pity them, or hand to help them, these cries and tears might have been mingled with hope: but, as far as human aid was concerned, there was no place for this. Whether any of them were directed to heaven, we know not. We could have wished, and should almost have expected, that those of the mother, at least, would have been so; for surely she could not have forgotten Him who had seen, and delivered her from a similar condition about sixteen years before, and who had then promised to multiply her seed, and to cause this very child to dwell in the presence of all his brethren. But whether any of these expressions of distress were directed to God, or not, the groans of the distressed reached his ear. God heard the voice of the lad: and the angel of God called to Hagar out of heaven, and said to her, What aileth thee, Hagar? Fear not; for God hath heard the voice of the lad, where he is. Arise, lift up the lad, and hold him in thine hand: for I will make him a great nation.

Ver. 19. At this instant lifting up her eyes, she saw a spring of water, which before she had over-looked; and filling her bottle from it, returned to the lad, and gave him drink. To God the Lord belong the issues from death. He maketh strong the bands of the mocker; and again he looseth his prisoners, and delivereth those that were appointed to die. If Ishmael were at any future

time possessed of true religion, he must look back upon these humbling, but gracious dispensations of the God of his father Abraham, with very tender emotions.

Ver. 20, 21. Whether Hagar and her son continued any longer in the wilderness of Beersheba, we are not informed: it would rather seem that they left it, and prosecuted their journey. They did not however settle in Egypt, though in process of time she took a wife for him from that country; but in the wilderness of Paran, where the providence of God watched over him, and where he lived, and perhaps maintained his mother by the use of the bow. But to return

Ver. 22-24. Abraham still continued to sojourn in the land of the Philistines; not indeed at Gerar, but within a few miles of it. Here he was visited by king Abimelech, who, attended by the captain of his host, in the most friendly manner, in behalf of himself and his posterity, requested to live in perpetual amity with him. God is with thee, saith he, in all that thou doest. Now therefore swear unto me here by God, that thou wilt not deal falsely with me, nor with my son, nor with my son's son: but according to the kindness that I have done unto thee, thou shalt do unto me, and to the land wherein thou hast sojourned. And Abraham said, I will swear. Observe, (1.) The motive that request: he saw that God was with him.

induces this friendly Probably the news of

the extraordinary birth of Isaac had reached the court of Abimelech, and become a topic of conversation. This, (said he,) is a great man, and a great family, and will become a great nation: the blessing of heaven attends him. It is our wisdom, therefore, to take the earliest opportunity to be on good terms with him!' Had Abimelech's successors always acted on this principle towards Israel, it had been better for them: for whether they knew it, or not, God in blessing Abraham had promised to bless them that blessed him, and to curse them that cursed him. (2.) The solemnity with which he wished the friendship to be confirmed: swear unto me by God. It is a dictate of prudence very common among magistrates, to require men to swear by a name which the party holds sacred. In this view, Abimelech certainly acted a wise part; for whoever made light of God's name, the party here would

not. (3.) Abraham's cheerful and ready compliance. I hope he did not need to be sworn not to deal falsely; but as posterity was concerned, the more solemn the engagement the better. The friend of God has no desire but to be the friend of man.

Ver. 25, 26. Now that they are entering into closer terms of amity, however, it is proper that if there be any cause of complaint on either side, it should be mentioned and adjusted, that nothing which is past, at least, may interrupt their future harmony. Abraham accordingly makes mention of a well of water which Abimelechs servants had violently taken away. In this country, and to a man whose substance.consisted much in cattle, a spring of water was of consequence; and to have it taken away by mere violence, though it might be borne from an enemy, yet is not to be overlooked where there is professed friendship. In this matter Abimelech fairly and fully exonerates himself: I wot not, saith he, who hath done this thing : neither didst thou tell me, neither yet heard I of it but to-day. Public characters cannot always be accountable for the misdeeds of those who act under them: they had need take care, however, what sort of servants they employ, as while matters are unexplained, that which is wrong is commonly placed to their

account.

Ver. 27-32. Abraham, satisfied with the answer, proceeds to enter into a solemn covenant with Abimelech, and as it should seem a covenant by sacrifice.* The sheep and oxen appear to have been presented for this purpose; and the seven ewe lambs were probably a consideration to him, as lord of the soil, for a rightful and acknowledged propriety in the well. Having mutually sworn to this covenant of peace, the place where it was transacted was from hence called Beersheba, the well of the oath, or the well of seven, alluding to the seven lambs which were given as the price of it. Matters being thus adjusted, Abimelech and Phichol, the chief captain of his host, took leave and departed.

Ver. 33, 34. Abraham being now quietly settled at Beersheba, planted a grove, and called there on the name of Jehovah, the everlasting God. The grove might be for the shading of his tent, and

* See on Chap. xv. 10. p. 142.

perhaps for a place of worship. Such places were afterwards abused to idolatry; or if otherwise, yet became unlawful when the temple was erected. The use which Abraham made of it was worthy of him. Such was his common practice: wherever he pitched his tent, there he reared an altar to the Lord. A lovely example this, to all those who would tread in the steps of the faith of Abraham. It does not appear, however, that this was a common, but rather a special act of worship; somewhat like that of Samuel, when he set up a stone between Mizpeh and Shen, and called it Ebenezer, saying, Hitherto the Lord hath helped us. There are periods in life, in which we are led to review the dispensations of God towards us, with special gratitude and renewed devotion. In this situation Abraham continued many days: but still he is a sojourner, and such he must continue in the present world,