“9 And Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, which she had born unto Abraham, mocking. 10 Wherefore she said unto Abraham, Cast out this bondwoman and her son: for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son, even with Isaac.” – Genesis 21: 9-10

You would think that after having had such a miraculous pregnancy and the virtually impossible birth of a baby boy at age ninety, Sarah would have been the happiest person on earth. You would think she would have been pleased and pleasant. You would think she would have been easy going and easy to get along with. Not a chance! Instead of being a gracious and loving person, at least to Ishmael, Hagar’s son, she became a step mother from hell!

As soon as her own son Issac was weaned, Sarah turned on Hagar and Ishmael and demanded that they be put out of her house. Earlier, when Hagar had first become pregnant with Ishmael, she treated Hagar so badly that Hagar ran away. However, she came back. Now, Sarah is putting her and that boy Ishmael out! What happened?

1. Sarah was forced to face a harsh reality which she had created. It was her brilliant idea to give Hagar to Abraham so that she could have a son for him. Now that Ishmael was born and now that Sarah had her own child (which she did not ever expect to have), she wanted to throw away the woman and the child which she had brought into their life.

2. Sarah was forced to remember a barren period in her life. The sight of Ishmael was a reminder to her (and others) of her inadequacies and imperfections. In her mind, keeping him and his mother around would prevent her from getting pass her past.

3. Sarah was forced to face a future where she would have to share her husband Abraham with Hagar and Ishmael. It was her idea to share Hagar with Abraham in the first place because she could not imagine a future where Abraham had no heir. Now that she had her own son, Isaac, she could no longer imagine a future where she shared her husband with them. It is amazing how quickly and easily our plans and our priorities change.

As a result of these things and more, Sarah took out her frustrations, envy, and anger on Ishmael and Hagar. Needless to say, their blended family never blended! Still, it is not right to blame our children for our mistakes!