My name is Ishmael. It means, “God hears.”
I have a little brother named Isaac. His name means, “he laughs.”
We’re actually half-brothers. Our father is Abraham. Isaac’s mother is his wife, Sarah. And my mother is her servant, Hagar. Our moms fought all the time when we were little. They both wanted to be dad’s favorite. They both wanted their son to be his favorite, too.
I guess we learned from them. We followed their example and fought, too.
There was this one time that Sarah got really mad. Dad was throwing a party for Isaac, which he never did for me. I was upset because Isaac always got special attention because Sarah adored him.
See, Sarah was really old when she had Isaac. She thought it was funny that someone so old could have a baby. That’s why she named him Isaac. But she also thought it was wonderful that someone so old could have a baby. So she really loved him.
And she spoiled him rotten.
Sarah really didn’t like me because she was afraid I would keep Isaac from getting to have whatever he wanted. When I was still in my mom’s womb, my mom was scared of Sarah and wanted to run away, but God heard her misery and promised that I would grow up big and strong.
That’s why she named me Ishmael.
Isaac and I were sort of born into rivalry.
So, I was upset because little Isaac got this big party, so, I started teasing him. It wasn’t even that bad. There were other times when we would fight that were way worse. But this time, Sarah saw me. So she went to Dad saying, “Get rid of that slave woman and her son.”
Dad was really upset. Yeah, he loved Isaac a lot, but he also really loved me.
I’m Dad’s son, too.
But he still sent me and my mom out into the desert to fend for ourselves. When we ran out of water my mom put me under a bush and sat where she could see the bush, but not me. She told me she was sorry, but she couldn’t watch her son die.
I was scared. I didn’t know what death was like. All I wanted was my mom. So I cried. And God heard me crying. And he sent an angel to my mom, who said, “Do not be afraid; God has heard the boy crying as he lies there. Lift the boy up and take him by the hand, for I will make him into a great nation.”
God doesn’t play favorites like our parents. He promised to make both of us into great nations.
And he did.
I became the father of the people who are called Muslims, also called those who submit to God. And Isaac became the father of the Jews, also called the children of God.
It’s funny though,
Because we’re all children of God.
Isaac and I are brothers because our father is Abraham. But every person to ever live are brothers and sisters because our Father is God.
Genesis 16 and 21
Neglected Word 