And God was with the lad; and he grew, and dwelt in the wilderness, and became an archer.
20. God was with the lad ] Cf. 22, Gen 26:3, Gen 39:2.
became an archer ] R.V. marg. rightly, became, as he grew up, an archer. Lat. factusque est juvenis Sagittarius. His descendants were famous in later times for their skill in the use of the bow (cf. Isa 21:17). Cf. Jetur the son of Ishmael (Gen 25:15), the reputed ancestor of the Ituraeans.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Verse 20. Became an archer.] And by his skill in this art, under the continual superintendence of the Divine Providence, (for God was with the lad,) he was undoubtedly enabled to procure a sufficient supply for his own wants and those of his parent.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
i.e. A skilful hunter of beasts, and warrior with men too, according to the prediction, Gen 16:12. For the bow was a principal instrument in war, as well as in hunting, Gen 48:22; 49:23,24. And these two professions oft went together. See Gen 10:9.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
20, 21. God was with the lad,c.Paran (that is, Arabia), where his posterity has ever dwelt(compare Ge 16:12 also Isa 48:19;1Pe 1:25).
his mother took him a wifeOna father’s death, the mother looks out for a wife for her son,however young; and as Ishmael was now virtually deprived of hisfather, his mother set about forming a marriage connection for him,it would seem, among her relatives.
Ge21:22-34. COVENANT.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
And God was with the lad,…. To confirm his health, to provide for him the necessaries of life, to protect him from danger in the wilderness where he was, and to prosper and succeed him in temporal things; all which is owing to the providential goodness of God:
and he grew; increased in bodily stature, and arrived to manhood; or, “he became great”, in riches and in substance, as Ben Melech interprets it:
and dwelt in the wilderness; of Beersheba, where he now was, or of Paran after mentioned, a fit place for a wild man to dwell in, as it was said he should be; and by this means the oracle was fulfilled,
Ge 16:12:
and became an archer; skilful in the use of the bow and arrow, both for hunting and slaying of wild beasts, on whose flesh he lived, and for lighting with men, against whom his hand would be: the Jewish writers l say he was born with a bow, and brought up with one, and that he shot an arrow at his brother Isaac, with an intention to kill him, while he was in Abraham’s house; but it does not appear that he had any knowledge or use of the bow until he was in the wilderness and was grown up, by which he lived and defended himself; and so his posterity the Kedarenes, who sprung from his son Kedar, were famous for archery,
Isa 21:17; and the Ituraeans, from Jetur, another of his sons,
Ge 25:15, were remarkable for their bows, of which Virgil m speaks; and so the Arabians that live in the deserts and round about them, called Nabathees, from Nabaioth, another son of Ishmael, are now extraordinary marksmen for bows and arrows, and to sling darts which are made of cane n: the Saracens got their living not by the plough, but chiefly by the bow, and were all of them warriors, and lived upon wild flesh, and as rapacious as kites o; and now the troops of the governor of Mecca, whereabout Ishmael, by the Arabs, is supposed to live, which are only infantry, are called Al-Harrabah, that is, archers, or dart men p.
l Pirke, c. 30. Ammian. Marcellin. Hist. l. 14. m “Ithyraeos taxi curvantur in arcus”. Georgic. l. 2. ver. 448. n Rauwolff’s Travels, par. 2. ch. 4. p. 118. by Ray. o Ammian. Marcellin. l. 14. p. 8. Ed. Vales. p Sharif al Edrisi, apud Pocock. Specim. Arab. Hist. p. 122, 124.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
20. And God was with the lad. There are many ways in which God is said to be present with men. He is present with his elect, whom he governs by the special grace of his Spirit; he is present also, sometimes, as it respects external life, not only with his elect, but also with strangers, in granting them some signal benediction: as Moses, in this place, commends the extraordinary grace by which the Lord declares that his promise is not void, since he pursues Ishmael with favor, because he was the son of Abraham. Hence, however, this general doctrine is inferred; that it is to be entirely ascribed to God that men grow up, that they enjoy the light and common breath of heaven, and that the earth supplies them with food. Only it must be remembered, the prosperity of Ishmael flowed from this cause, that an earthly blessing was promised him for the sake of his father Abraham. In saying, that Hagar took a wife for Ishmael, Moses has respect to civil order; for since marriage forms a principal part of human life, it is right that, in contracting it, children should be subject to their parents, and should obey their counsel. This order, which nature prescribes and dictates, was, as we see, observed by Ishmael, a wild man in the barbarism of the desert; for he was subject to his mother in marrying a wife. Whence we perceive, what a prodigious monster was the Pope, when he dared to overthrow this sacred right of nature. To this is also added the impudent boast of authorizing a wicked contempt of parents, in honor of holy wedlock. Moreover the Egyptian wife was a kind of prelude to the future dissension between the Israelites and the Ishmaelites.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(20) He grew.Literally, became great, that is, grew to manhood.
And dwelt in the wilderness.He sought no refuge in Egypt, where so large a Semitic population was gathering, nor in any Canaanite town, but took to the wandering life in the desert, such as is still usual with the Arabs.
An archer.Heb., a shooter of bowshots. Another explanation, from a verb signifying to multiply, or be great, is not tenable.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
20. God was with the lad A divine providence watched over and cared for him, although he passed outside the chosen household of Jehovah’s covenant .
He grew There was room for this, for as yet he was but an undeveloped lad .
Became an archer Hebrews, he was growing an archer . He became increasingly a skilful bow-man . His descendants were long after noted for their use of the bow . Isa 21:17.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Gen 21:20. God was with the lad See ch. Gen 17:20. God immediately protected Ishmael, as well as gave him all the blessings which he had promised. See note on Gen 17:12 of ch. 16:
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
Gen 21:20 And God was with the lad; and he grew, and dwelt in the wilderness, and became an archer.
Ver. 20. And God was with the lad, &c. ] The fountain of Hagar, saith a divine, lying between Bared and Kadesh Barnea, was afterwards called the well of the living God; and seemeth mystically to represent baptism, the laver of regeneration. For the Church, like Hagar with her son Ishmael, travelling through the wilderness of this world, is pressed with a multitude of sins and miseries, &c. Wherefore they, joining together in prayer, crave to be refreshed with the water of life. For Hagar signifieth a pilgrim. Ishmael, a man whom the Lord heareth; who, travelling together with his mother the Church in this world, fighteth against the enemies thereof, and shooteth the arrows of faith against all infernal and cruel beasts and lusts. Thus he. a
a Itinerar. Script., fol. 95.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Gen 21:20-21
20God was with the lad, and he grew; and he lived in the wilderness and became an archer. 21He lived in the wilderness of Paran, and his mother took a wife for him from the land of Egypt.
Gen 21:20 The metaphor “God was with the lad” is also used of Jacob (Gen 28:15) and Joseph (Gen 39:2-3; Gen 39:21). It expresses YHWH’s personal care and presence (note Gen 21:22). Ishmael shared in the blessing of Abraham!
Gen 21:21 “and his mother took a wife for him from the land of Egypt” This was obviously meant to be done by the father, but in this case Hagar chose a wife for Ishmael from her own people.
Fuente: You Can Understand the Bible: Study Guide Commentary Series by Bob Utley
God: Gen 17:20, Gen 28:15, Gen 39:2, Gen 39:3, Gen 39:21, Jdg 6:12, Jdg 13:24, Jdg 13:25, Luk 1:80, Luk 2:40
an archer: Gen 10:9, Gen 16:12, Gen 25:27, Gen 27:3, Gen 49:23, Gen 49:24
Reciprocal: Gen 21:14 – child 1Sa 10:7 – God
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Gen 21:20-21. God was with the lad This accounts for his preservation and support in that wilderness, in which, had not God been with him in an extraordinary manner, in answer to Abrahams prayer, in all probability he must have perished.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
21:20 And God was {i} with the lad; and he grew, and dwelt in the wilderness, and became an archer.
(i) Concerning outward things God caused him to prosper.