Ishmael

Ishmael^[a] was the first son of Abraham, the common patriarch of the Abrahamic religions, through his wife Sara's handmaiden Hagar (Genesis 16:3). According to the Genesis account, he died at the age of 137 (Genesis 25:17). According to biblical tradition, he is the ancestor of the Arabs.

Within

Etymology

The name "Yishma'el" existed in various ancient

The Genesis narrative sees the account of Ishmael's life take place through chapters 16, 17, 21 and 25.

Birth

In Genesis 16, the birth of Ishmael was planned by the Patriarch

Hagar and Sarah began to show contempt for each other, they responded by treating each other harshly. Abraham then told Hagar to flee his home and go into the desert region between Abraham's settlement and Shur. Genesis 16:7–16 describes the naming of Ishmael, and God's promise to Hagar concerning Ishmael and his descendants. This occurred at the well of Beer-lahai-roi, where Hagar encountered the Angel of the Lord, who said to her "Behold, you are with child / And shall bear a son; / You shall call him Ishmael, / For the Lord has paid heed to your suffering."^[4] The Angel commanded Hagar, "Return to your mistress [Sarai] and submit to her."

Abraham was blessed so that his descendants would be as numerous as the stars in the sky (Gen 26:4). God would make of Ishmael a great nation because he was of the seed of Abraham. However, God told Hagar that her son would be living in conflict with his relatives. When Ishmael was born, Abraham was 86 years old.

Inheritance, rights and the first circumcision

When he was 13 years old, Ishmael was circumcised at the same time as all other males in Abraham's household, becoming a part of the covenant in a mass circumcision. His father Abram, given the new name "Abraham", then 99, was circumcised along with the others (Genesis 17).

At the time of the covenant, God informed Abraham that his wife Sarah would give birth to a son, whom he was instructed to name Isaac. God told Abraham that He would establish his covenant through Isaac, and when Abraham inquired as to Ishmael's role, God answered that Ishmael has been blessed and that he "will make him fruitful, and will multiply him exceedingly; twelve princes shall he beget, and I will make him a great nation." (Genesis 17). God also mentioned that "He will be a wild donkey of a man, His hand will be over (against) everyone, And everyone's hand will be against him; And he will live in the presence of his brethren."(Genesis 16).

A year later, Ishmael's half-brother Isaac was born to Abraham by his first wife Sarah when she was 90 years old (Genesis 17:17), after she had ceased showing any signs of fertility (Genesis 18:11).

On the day of feasting during which Abraham celebrated the weaning of Isaac, Ishmael was "mocking" or "playing with" Isaac (the Hebrew word מְצַחֵֽק, "meṣaḥeq" is ambiguous)^[5] and Sarah asked Abraham to expel Ishmael and his mother, saying: "Get rid of that slave woman and her son, for that slave woman's son will never share in the inheritance with my son Isaac."^[6][7] Her demand was painful for Abraham, who loved Ishmael. Abraham agreed only after God told him that "in Isaac your seed shall be called", and that God would "make a nation of the son of the bondwoman" Ishmael, since he was a descendant of Abraham (Genesis 21:11–13), God having previously told Abraham "I will establish My covenant with [Isaac]", while also making promises concerning the Ishmaelite nation (Genesis 17:18–21).

At the age of 14, Ishmael was freed along with his mother. The Lord's covenant made clear Ishmael was not to inherit Abraham's house and that Isaac would be the seed of the covenant: "Take your son, your only son, whom you love and go to the region of Moriah." (Genesis 22:2–8) Abraham gave Ishmael and his mother a supply of bread and water and sent them away. Hagar entered in the wilderness of

After roaming the wilderness for some time, Ishmael and his mother settled in the Desert of Paran, where he became an expert in archery. Eventually, his mother found him a wife from the land of Egypt.^[8] They had twelve sons each of whom became a tribal chief in one of the regions from Havilah to Shur (from Assyria to the border of Egypt).^[9] His sons:^[10]

1. Nebaioth (נְבָיוֹת Nəḇāyōṯ)
2. Quraysh tribe, and thus, ancestor of the Islamic prophet Muhammad.^[11]
3. Adbeel
   (אַדְבְּאֵל ʾAḏbəʾēl)
4. Mibsam
   (מִבְשָֽׂם Mīḇsām)
5. Mishma (מִשְׁמָע Mīšmāʿ‍)
6. Dumah (דוּמָה Ḏūmā)
7. Massa
   (מַשָּֽׂא Massāʾ‍)
8. Hadad (חֲדַד Ḥăḏaḏ)
9. Tema (תֵימָא Ṯēmāʾ‍)
10. Jetur (יְטוּר Yəṭūr)
11. Naphish (נָפִישׁ Nāfīš)
12. Kedemah (קֵדְמָה Qēḏəmā)

Ishmael also had one known daughter, Mahalath or Basemath, the third wife of Esau.^[12]

Abraham's corpse was not buried until Ishmael was sent news and after his arrival at the burial.^[13] Ishmael died at the age of 137.^[14]

Family tree

World views

Jewish and Islamic traditions consider Ishmael to be the ancestor of Arabs.^[17]

Judaism

In later Jewish texts, Ishmael is portrayed as someone who was inclined towards many things Abraham considered wicked. Rabbinic sources say that Ishmael prayed to idols when he believed to be alone^{[18][failed verification]}, although there is no indication of this behavior from the biblical narrative. According to the Book of Genesis, in the Hebrew Bible, Isaac rather than Ishmael was the true heir of the Abrahamic tradition and covenant, while at the same time being blessed by God with a great nation.^[19]

In Samaritan Torah version, Ishmael was described in Book of Genesis 16 as a 'fertile of man' instead of a 'wild ass of a man' as suggested in Masoretic Pentateuch which commonly used as standard version of Hebrew Bible in Jewish community.^[20]

In some traditions Ishmael is said to have had two wives, one of them named Aisha.^[21][22] This name corresponds to the Muslim tradition for the name of Muhammad's wife.^[1] This is understood as a metaphoric representation of the Muslim world (first Arabs and then Turks) with Ishmael.^[23][24]

Rabbinical commentators in the Midrash Genesis Rabbah also say that Ishmael's mother Hagar was the Pharaoh's daughter, making Ishmael the Pharaoh's grandson. This could be why Genesis 17:20 refers to Ishmael as the father of 12 mighty princes. According to Genesis 21:21, Hagar married Ishmael to an Egyptian woman, and if Rabbinical commentators are correct that Hagar was the Pharaoh's daughter, his marriage to a woman she selected could explain how and why his sons became princes.

According to other Jewish commentators, Ishmael's mother Hagar is identified with

It is also said that Sarah was motivated by Ishmael's sexually frivolous ways because of the reference to his "making merry" (Gen. 21:9), a translation of the Hebrew word "Mitzachek".^[citation needed] This was developed into a reference to idolatry, sexual immorality or even murder; some rabbinic sources claim that Sarah worried that Ishmael would negatively influence Isaac, or that he would demand Isaac's inheritance on the grounds of being the firstborn. Regarding the word "Mitzachek" (again in Gen. 21:9) The Jewish Study Bible by Oxford University Press says this word in this particular context is associated with "Playing is another pun on Isaac's name (cf. 17.17; 18.12; 19.14; 26.8). Ishmael was 'Isaacing', or 'taking Isaac's place'."^[29] Others take a more positive view, emphasizing Hagar's piety, noting that she was "the one who had sat by the well and besought him who is the life of the worlds, saying 'look upon my misery'".^[30]

Christianity

Some Christians believe that God fulfills his promises to Ishmael today by blessing the Ishmaelites with oil[33] and political strength.^[34]

Pre-Islamic Arabia

Some Pre-Islamic poetry mentions Ishmael, his father Abraham, and a sacrifice story, such as the Pre-Islamic poet "Umayyah Ibn Abi As-Salt", who said in one of his poems: بكره لم يكن ليصبر عنه أو يراه في معشر أقتال ([The sacrifice] of his first-born of whose separation he [Abraham] could not bear neither could he see him surrounded in foes).^[35][36][37]

Zayd ibn Amr was another Pre-Islamic figure who refused idolatry and preached monotheism, claiming it was the original belief of their [Arabs] father Ishmael.^[38][39]

Also, some of the tribes of Central West Arabia called themselves the "people of Abraham and the offspring of Ishmael", as evidenced by a common opening of speeches and harangues of reconciliation between rival tribes in that area.^[40][41]

Islam

Ishmael (Arabic:إسماعيل Ismāʿīl) is recognized as an important

Part of a series on Islam Islamic prophets
Prophets in the Quran Listed by Islamic name and Biblical name. ʾĀdam (Adam) ʾIdrīs (Enoch) Nūḥ (Noah) Hūd (Eber) Ṣāliḥ (Selah ) ʾIbrāhīm (Abraham) Lūṭ (Lot) ʾIsmāʿīl (Ishmael) ʾIsḥāq (Isaac) Yaʿqūb (Jacob) Yūsuf (Joseph) Ayūb (Job) Shuʿayb (Jethro) Mūsā (Moses) Hārūn (Aaron) Dhu al-Kifl (Ezekiel) Dāūd (David) Sulaymān (Solomon) Yūnus (Jonah) ʾIlyās (Elijah) Alyasaʿ (Elisha) Zakarīya (Zechariah) Yaḥyā (John) ʿĪsā (Jesus) Muḥammad (Muhammad)
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Ishmael is mentioned over ten times in the

1. ^
   ISBN 9780028657400
   . ISHMAEL, or, in Hebrew, Yishmaʿeʾl; eldest son of Abraham. Ishmael's mother was Hagar, an Egyptian slave girl whom Sarah gave to Abraham because of her own infertility; in accordance with Mesopotamian law, the offspring of such a union would be credited to Sarah (Gn. 16:2). The name Yishmaʿeʾl is known from various ancient Semitic cultures and means 'God has hearkened,' suggesting that a child so named was regarded as the fulfillment of a divine promise. Ishmael was circumcised at the age of thirteen by Abraham and expelled with his mother at the instigation of Sarah, who wanted to ensure that Isaac would be Abraham's heir (Gn. 21). In the New Testament, Paul uses this incident to symbolize the relationship between Judaism, the older but now rejected tradition, and Christianity (Gal. 4:21–31). In the Genesis account, God blessed Ishmael, promising that he would be the founder of a great nation and a 'wild ass of a man' always at odds with others (Gn. 16:12). He is credited with twelve sons, described as 'princes according to their tribes' (Gn. 25:16), representing perhaps an ancient confederacy. The Ishmaelites, vagrant traders closely related to the Midianites, were apparently regarded as his descendants. The fact that Ishmael's wife and mother are both said to have been Egyptian suggests close ties between the Ishmaelites and Egypt. According to Genesis 25:17, Ishmael lived to the age of 137. Islamic tradition tends to ascribe a larger role to Ishmael than does the Bible. He is considered a prophet and, according to certain theologians, the offspring whom Abraham was commanded to sacrifice (although surah 37:99-111 of the Qur'an never names that son). Like his father Abraham, Ishmael too played an important role in making Mecca a religious center (2:127-129). Judaism has generally regarded him as wicked, although repentance is also ascribed to him. According to some rabbinic traditions, his two wives were Aisha and Fatima, whose names are the same as those of Muhammad's wife and daughter. Both Judaism and Islam see him as the ancestor of Arabian peoples.
2. ^ ^{a b} Gigot, Francis (1910). "Ismael" . Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 8.
3. ^ Genesis 16:3-4
4. ^ Genesis 16:11, NJPS.
5. ISBN 978-0-521-49507-3
   .
6. ^ "Hagar". Encyclopædia Britannica. 2007.
7. ^ Genesis 25:2–6
8. ^ Genesis 21:17–21
9. Jewish Encyclopedia
   (1906).
10. ^ Genesis 25:12–18
11. American Sunday-School Union. p. 494 [p. 502 on–line]. Archived from the original
    on January 22, 2010. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
12. Jewish Encyclopedia
    (1906).
13. ^ Genesis 25:9
14. ^ Genesis 25:17
15. ^ S. Nikaido (2001), p. 1
16. ^ Noble, John Travis. 2013. "Let Ishmael Live Before You!" Finding a Place for Hagar's Son in the Priestly Tradition. Doctoral dissertation, Harvard University.
17. ^
    • Both Judaism and Islam see him as the ancestor of Arabian peoples. Jones, Lindsay (2005). Encyclopedia of religion. Macmillan Reference USA.
      ISBN 9780028657400
      .
    • Ishmael is recognized by Muslims as the ancestor of several prominent Arabian
      ISBN 978-1-55728-595-9
      .
    • Ishmael was considered the ancestor of the Northern Arabs and Muhammad was linked to him through the lineage of the patriarch Adnan. Ishmael may also have been the ancestor of the Southern Arabs through his descendant Qahtan.
    • "
      The Beginning and the End by Ibn Kathir
      – Vol. 3, p. 323 The History by Ibn Khaldun, Vol, 2, p. 4
    • The tribes of Central West Arabia called themselves the "people of Abraham and the offspring of Ishmael". The Signs of Prophethood, Section 18, page 215."Signs of Prophethood in the Noble Life of Prophet Muhammad (part 1 of 2): Prophet Muhammad's Early Life – The Religion of Islam". Islamreligion.com.
    • Gibb, Hamilton A.R. and Kramers, J.H. (1965). Shorter Encyclopedia of Islam. Ithaca: Cornell University Press. pp. 191–98.
    • Maalouf, Tony. Arabs in the Shadow of Israel: The Unfolding of God's Prophetic Plan for Ishmael's Line. Kregel Academic.
      ISBN 9780825493638
      .
    • Urbain, Olivier (2008). Music and Conflict Transformation: Harmonies and Dissonances in Geopolitics. I.B.Tauris.
      ISBN 9781845115289
      .
18. ^ "Isaac & Ishmael". www.chabad.org. Retrieved 2020-07-22.
19. ^ Encyclopaedia Judaica. Vol. 10. p. 34.
20. ISBN 978-0802865199
21. ^ "ISHMAEL". Retrieved 2 October 2015. Ishmael married a Moabitess named 'Adishah or 'Aishah (variants "'Ashiyah" and "'Aifah," Arabic names; Targ. pseudo-Jonathan to Gen. xxi. 21; Pirḳe R. El. l.c.); or, according to "Sefer ha-Yashar" (Wayera), an Egyptian named Meribah or Merisah.
22. ^ Singer, Isidore; Adler, Cyrus (1906). The Jewish Encyclopedia. p. 647. Retrieved 2 October 2015. Ishmael married a Moabitess named 'Adishah or 'Aishah (variants "'Ashiyah" and "'Aifah," Arabic names; Targ. pseudo-Jonathan to Gen. xxi. 21; Pirḳe R. El. l.c.); or, according to "Sefer ha-Yashar" (Wayera), an Egyptian named Meribah or Merisah.
23. ISBN 9780199730049
    . Retrieved 2 October 2015. ...In medieval Hebrew usage, Ishmael represents the muslim world (i.e., the arabs and later the turks)
24. ISBN 9781467443777
    . Retrieved 2 October 2015. We already know from the basic narrative that Hagar the Egyptian provided an Egyptian wife for her son and an Egyptian daughter-in-law for herself (Gen. 21:21). The wife remained nameless, but we know this would not be for long. One suggestion in Pirqe de Rabbi Eliezer (The Chapters of Rabbi Eliezer), from the eighth century, written probably under Islamic rule, is that Ishmael had two wives named Aisha and Fatima, which happen to be the names of Muhammad's wife and daughter, respectively (Pirqe R. El. 30). Rather than coincidence, this could have been a way of emphasizing the close affinity of Islamic peoples with the great prophet and founder. At all events, Ishmael (Isma'il) became the symbol, representative, and patriarch of the Arab peoples in general and, in virtue of his noble descent and Arabian origins, of Islamic peoples...
25. Chabad Lubavitch
    .
26. ^ "Who Was Ketura?", Bar-Ilan University's Parashat Hashavua Study Center, 2003.
27. ^ "Parshat Chayei Sarah" Archived 2008-11-13 at the Wayback Machine, Torah Insights, Orthodox Union, 2002.
28. Bereshit Rabbah
    61:4.
29. ISBN 9780195297515
    .
30. ISBN 0-8028-3634-8
31. ^ Galatians 4:28–31
32. ^ Encyclopedia of Christianity(Ed. John Bowden), Isaac
33. ^ An invitation to Ishmael by C. George Fry.
34. ^ The Ishmael Promise and Contextualization Among Muslims by Jonathan Culver
35. ^ The Treasury of literature, Sect. 437
36. ^ The Beginning of History, Volume 3, Sect.10
37. ^ Al-Kashf Wa Al-Bayan, Vol. 11, p. 324
38. The Beginning and the End by Ibn Kathir
    – Vol. 3, p. 323
39. ^ The History by Ibn Khaldun, Vol, 2, p. 4
40. ^ The Signs of Prophethood, Section 18, page 215
41. ^ The Collection of the Speeches of Arabs, volume 1, section 75
42. ^ "Islamic Pedia - Ibrahim (the Prophet) إبراهِيم - عليه السلام". www.islamicencyclopedia.org.
43. ^ ^{a b c d} A–Z of Prophets in Islam and Judaism, Wheeler, Ishmael
44. ^ "Search ishmael- Quran.com". Quran.com. Retrieved 2023-09-08.
45. ^ Quran 38:48
46. ^ Quran 6:86
47. ^ Quran 2:127-129
48. ^ Quran 14:35-41
49. ^ Quran 2:136
50. ^ Quran 2:133
51. ^ Quran 37:100-107
52. ^ "Isaac", Encyclopedia of Islam, volume 4
53. ^ Glasse, C., "Ishmael", Concise Encyclopedia of Islam
54. ^ Encyclopedia of Islam Volume 4, Ismail
55. ^ Quran 2:127
56. ^ Azraqi, Akhbar Makkah, vol. 1, pp. 58–66
57. ^ Chronicles, Tabari, Vol I: From Creation to Flood
58. ISBN 978-0-87743-187-9
    .
59. ^ Cole, Juan R.I. (1995). "Interpretation in the Baháʼí Faith". Baháʼí Studies Review. 5 (1).
60. ^ "Concerning the appearance of two Davids; there is a Tablet from 'Abdu'l-Bahá in which He says that just as there have been two Ishmaels, one the son of Abraham, and the other one of the Prophets of Israel, there have appeared two Davids, one the author of the Psalms and father of Solomon, and the other before Moses." (Shoghi Effendi, Dawn of a New Day, pp. 86–87)

Sources

Books and journals

• Metzger, Bruce M; Michael D Coogan (1993). The Oxford Companion To The Bible. Oxford University Press.
  ISBN 978-0-19-504645-8
  .
• Nikaido, S. (2001). "Hagar and Ishmael as Literary Figures: An Intertextual Study".
  doi:10.1163/156853301300102110
  .
• Werblowsky, R.J. Zwi; Geoffrey Wigoder (1997). The Oxford Dictionary of Jewish Religion. Oxford University Press.
  ISBN 978-0-19-508605-8
  .
• Quinn, Daniel (1993). Ishmael. Bantam Dell Pub Group.
  ISBN 978-0-553-56166-1
  .

Encyclopedias

• Hubert Cancik; Helmuth Schneider, eds. (2005). "Ishmael". Brill's New Pauly: Encyclopaedia of the Ancient World: Antiquity. Brill Academic Publishers.
  ISBN 978-90-04-12270-3
  .
• Paul Lagasse; Lora Goldman; Archie Hobson; Susan R. Norton, eds. (2000). "Ishmael". The Columbia Encyclopedia (6th ed.). Gale Group.
  ISBN 978-1-59339-236-9
  .
• John Bowden, ed. (2005). "Ishmael". Encyclopedia of Christianity (1st ed.). Oxford University Press.
  ISBN 978-0-19-522393-4
  .
• P.J. Bearman; Th. Bianquis; C.E. Bosworth; E. van Donzel; W.P. Heinrichs (eds.). "Ishmael".
  ISSN 1573-3912
  .
• Lindsay Jones, ed. (2005). "Ishmael". Encyclopedia of Religion (2nd ed.). MacMillan Reference Books.
  ISBN 978-0-02-865733-2
  .
• "Ishmael". The New Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica, Incorporated; Rev Ed edition. 2005.
  ISBN 978-1-59339-236-9
  .
• Jane Dammen McAuliffe, ed. (2005). "Encyclopaedia of the Qurʼān".
  ISBN 978-90-04-12356-4
  .

External links

Wikiquote has quotations related to Ishmael.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ishmael.

• Genealogy from Adam to the Twelve Tribes
• Ishmael in Islam
• Ishmael – The Jewish Encyclopedia
• Biographical Study on Ishmael (archived 4 January 2007)
• Gigot, Francis (1910). "Ismael" . Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 8.
• Ishmael in Baha'i Faith