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Hagar and Ishmael
Read the cited context and compare 10 documented textual points.
Comparison 14 of 34
Hagar and Ishmael
The two accounts at a glance
Bible
World English BibleHagar and Ishmael are sent away, find water in the wilderness of Beersheba, and Ishmael lives in the wilderness of Paran.
Qur'an
Sahih InternationalAbraham associates offspring with an uncultivated valley near the sacred house and prays for them; Hagar and Ishmael are not named in these verses.
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10 documented comparison points
The comparison distinguishes what the Qur'an itself says from later Islamic identification. It reads both Genesis Hagar narratives and every Qur'anic passage about Abraham settling offspring near the Sacred House and praying for Ishmael. Labels use one standard: agreement means both texts state the point; additional detail means one adds a non-conflicting detail; omission means one is silent; ambiguity means an identity or meaning is not explicit; contradiction means both texts state mutually exclusive claims. Stylistic wording alone is not counted.
Whether Hagar is named
Hagar is named as Sarah's Egyptian servant and Ishmael's mother.
Hagar is not named anywhere in the Qur'an. Connecting the unnamed settled offspring of Q 14 with Hagar and Ishmael comes from interpretation and tradition.
Why Hagar first leaves
Pregnant Hagar treats Sarah with contempt; Sarah deals harshly with her, and Hagar flees.
No pregnancy conflict between Sarah and Hagar, harsh treatment, or first flight is narrated.
The angel at the spring
The angel of Yahweh finds Hagar by a spring, commands her return, promises descendants, and she names God; the well is called Beer Lahai Roi.
No corresponding angelic meeting, return command, divine name, or Beer Lahai Roi scene appears.
The prophecy concerning Ishmael
The angel predicts numerous descendants and describes Ishmael as a wild donkey of a man living in conflict with relatives.
Ishmael is praised as true to his promise, a messenger and prophet who commands prayer and charity.
Covenant and circumcision
God promises to bless Ishmael and make him fruitful, but establishes the named covenant with Isaac. Ishmael is circumcised at thirteen.
The Qur'anic passages praise Ishmael and link him with Abraham's prayer and the Sacred House, but do not narrate his age-thirteen circumcision or the Genesis distinction between blessing and covenant.
Why Hagar and Ishmael are sent away
After Sarah sees Ishmael mocking or playing, she demands that the slave woman and son be expelled so Ishmael will not inherit with Isaac. God tells Abraham to listen to Sarah.
No expulsion prompted by Sarah, inheritance conflict, or mocking at Isaac's feast is narrated.
Where Hagar and Ishmael go
Hagar wanders in the wilderness of Beersheba; Ishmael grows in the wilderness of Paran and takes an Egyptian wife.
Abraham says he has settled some descendants in an uncultivated valley near God's Sacred House. The verse does not name Hagar, Ishmael, Beersheba, Paran, or Mecca.
How water is provided
When the skin of water is exhausted, Hagar puts the boy under a bush, weeps at a distance, and God opens her eyes to a well.
The Qur'an does not narrate Hagar searching for water, the child's placement under a bush, or a well appearing. The Zamzam and Safa-Marwah details belong to later Islamic tradition.
Abraham's later presence with Ishmael
After the expulsion, Genesis does not narrate Abraham and Ishmael building a sanctuary together; they next appear together at Abraham's burial.
Abraham and Ishmael raise the foundations of the House together and pray for acceptance and a faithful community.
Ishmael's descendants and death
Genesis names Ishmael's twelve sons, settlements, age at death, and burial among his people.
The Qur'an does not name Ishmael's twelve sons, settlements, age 137, or death account.
What do both texts share?
- Both texts associate Abraham's descendants with a sparse wilderness or uncultivated setting.
- Both texts give Ishmael an important place in Abraham's family.