Ishmael: A Child at Play with Nothing to Say?

(1) Sarai, Abram’s wife, had borne him no children. She had an Egyptian maidservant whose name was Hagar...(3) So Sarai, Abram’s wife, took her maid, Hagar the Egyptian—after Abram had dwelt in the land of Canaan ten years—and gave her to her husband Abram as concubine. (4) He cohabited with Hagar and she conceived; and when she saw that she had conceived, her mistress was lowered in her esteem... (6) Abram said to Sarai, “Your maid is in your hands. Deal with her as you think right.” Then Sarai treated her harshly, and she ran away from her. (7) An angel of the LORD found her by a spring of water in the wilderness, the spring on the road to Shur...(11) The angel of the LORD said to her further, “Behold, you are with child And shall bear a son; You shall call him Ishmael, For the LORD has paid heed to your suffering. (12) He shall be a wild ass of a man; His hand against everyone, And everyone’s hand against him; He shall dwell alongside of all his kinsmen”...(15) Hagar bore a son to Abram, and Abram gave the son that Hagar bore him the name Ishmael. (16) Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore Ishmael to Abram.

(1) The LORD took note of Sarah as He had promised, and the LORD did for Sarah as He had spoken. (2) Sarah conceived and bore a son to Abraham in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken. (3) Abraham gave his newborn son, whom Sarah had borne him, the name of Isaac. (4) And when his son Isaac was eight days old, Abraham circumcised him, as God had commanded him. (5) Now Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him. (6) Sarah said, “God has brought me laughter; everyone who hears will laugh with me.” (7) And she added, “Who would have said to Abraham That Sarah would suckle children! Yet I have borne a son in his old age.” (8) The child grew up and was weaned, and Abraham held a great feast on the day that Isaac was weaned. (9) Sarah saw the son whom Hagar the Egyptian had borne to Abraham Metzachek. (10) She said to Abraham, “Cast out that slave-woman and her son, for the son of that slave shall not share in the inheritance with my son Isaac.” (11) The matter distressed Abraham greatly, for it concerned a son of his. (12) But God said to Abraham, “Do not be distressed over the boy or your slave; whatever Sarah tells you, do as she says, for it is through Isaac that offspring shall be continued for you. (13) As for the son of the slave-woman, I will make a nation of him, too, for he is your seed.” (14) Early next morning Abraham took some bread and a skin of water, and gave them to Hagar. He placed them over her shoulder, together with the child, and sent her away. And she wandered about in the wilderness of Beer-sheba. (15) When the water was gone from the skin, she left the child under one of the bushes, (16) and went and sat down at a distance, a bowshot away; for she thought, “Let me not look on as the child dies.” And sitting thus afar, she burst into tears. (17) God heard the cry of the boy, and an angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and said to her, “What troubles you, Hagar? Fear not, for God has heeded the cry of the boy where he is. (18) Come, lift up the boy and hold him by the hand, for I will make a great nation of him.” (19) Then God opened her eyes and she saw a well of water. She went and filled the skin with water, and let the boy drink. (20) God was with the boy and he grew up; he dwelt in the wilderness and became a bowman. (21) He lived in the wilderness of Paran; and his mother got a wife for him from the land of Egypt. (22)

Even as he Rabbah (grew), the Keshet (cruetly) grew with him.

[Another interpretation:] While a Roveh (lad), he trained himself in the use of a Keshet (bow).

[Another interpretation:] He was the Rabbah (master) of all Keshet (bowmen).

Rabbi Hoshaya the elder said, and the child grew and was weaned from temptation.

[Another interpretation:] The rabbis said, he was weaned from his mother’s milk.

Now metzachek refers to nothing else but sexual immorality, as in the verse, "The Hebrew servant, whom you have brought to us, came in to make sport of me." (Gen. 39:17). This teaches that Sarah saw Ishmael rape maidens, seduced married women and dishonored them...

[Another Interpretation:] This term metzachek refers to idolatry, as in the verse, "And the people sat to eat and drink and got up to metzachek (worship idols) (Exodus 32:6). This teaches that Sarah saw Ishmael build altars, catch locusts, and sacrifice them...

[Another Interpretation:] The term metzachek refers to murder, as in the verse, "Let the young men, please, arise and metzachek (murder) before us" (II Sam. 2:14)...

[Another Interpretation:] Ishmael said to Isaac: 'Let us go and see our pieces in the field' and he would pick up the bow and shoot arrows, aiming in Isaac's direction, while pretending to metzachek (Joke), as it is written: "As a madman who casts fire-brands, arrows, and death" (Mishlei 26:18-19); so is the man that deceives his neighbor, and said: 'I am metzachek (joking)....

[Another Interpretation,] Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai says: this is to be interpreted to the praise of Ishmael. This expression of metzachek is only used as 'inheritance'. At the moment that Isaac...was born, all were happy. Ishmael said to them: are you dumb? I am the first-born, I am going to receive a double portion of the inheritance, responding to what Sarah had said, "Because the son of this maidservant will not inherit with Isaac" (Bereshit 21:10)...