Genesis 16
Waiting When the Promise Feels Delayed
As we step into Genesis 16, we find ourselves right back in the tension of disappointment. Abram and Sarai are still waiting. Time has passed, the promise still stands, but the child has not come. Sarai has no children of her own, and the silence feels heavy. We know this place well—the space where God has spoken, yet our circumstances seem unchanged.
This chapter reminds us that long timelines are not evidence of God’s absence. When the waiting stretches on, we’re invited to reorient ourselves toward truth instead of becoming consumed by our circumstances. That doesn’t mean pretending the pain isn’t real. It means surrendering our situation to the Lord rather than letting it define us. God’s goodness isn’t always easy or comfortable, but it is marked by His presence and peace—Christ with us, now and forever.
Taking Matters Into Our Own Hands
Sarai’s disappointment eventually turns into a plan. She offers Hagar, her Egyptian servant, to Abram so that a family might be built through her. Abram agrees. What’s striking is that this plan does not come from God—it comes from fear, impatience, and desperation.
The language of this moment intentionally echoes Genesis 3. Just as Eve gave the fruit to Adam, Sarai gives Hagar to Abram. And just like in the garden, the man passively goes along with it. Scripture is drawing a clear line for us: when we operate outside of God’s timing and God’s way, even with good intentions, the result is brokenness.
We see it immediately. Hagar conceives, tension explodes, and blame replaces responsibility. Sarai points at Abram. Abram retreats into passivity. Hagar is mistreated and flees. This is what happens when we gaze at our problems instead of gazing at the Lord. Fear leads us to control, control leads to conflict, and conflict leaves casualties in its wake.
The God Who Sees the Marginalized
In the wilderness, everything changes. The angel of the Lord meets Hagar by a spring in the desert and calls her by name. This moment is astonishing. Hagar is a foreigner, a servant, abused, pregnant, and alone—at the very bottom of the social order. Yet the God of the universe sees her.
God speaks into her pain with both truth and promise. He hears her misery. He knows her future. He names her son. And Hagar responds by naming God: “You are the God who sees me.” This is the first time in Scripture that a person gives God a name—and it comes from a marginalized, hurting woman in the wilderness.
This encounter reveals the heart of God. He is not distant or indifferent. He is attentive, compassionate, and near to the broken. Again and again throughout Scripture, we see that our God is the One who sees, the One who hears, and the One who moves toward suffering rather than away from it.
Grace, Faith, and the Story That Continues
Genesis 16 also helps us understand the bigger story unfolding through Abraham. Ishmael is born, and God promises that his descendants will be many, though marked by conflict. The chapter ends by reminding us of Abram’s age—eighty-six years old. Humanly speaking, the promised child through Sarai is becoming impossible.
And that’s exactly the point.
God is leading Abram and Sarai to the end of themselves so that when the promise is fulfilled, it will be unmistakably His work. Christianity reads Abraham’s story not as a tale of moral perfection, but as a testimony of grace. Abraham is justified not by his obedience, but by his faith. God’s promises move forward not because people get it right, but because God is faithful.
As we reflect on this chapter, we’re invited to ask ourselves: where are we tempted to rush God, to take control, or to remain silent when faithfulness calls us to speak? And where have we encountered the God who sees us—so clearly that it deserves to be remembered, named, and shared?
The story is far from over. God is still at work, even in the waiting. And as Genesis continues, we’ll see that what seems impossible for us is precisely where God’s glory shines brightest.
