Hagar and Ishmael in the Wilderness, by Karel Dujardin

Ishmael (Hebrew: יִשְׁמָעֵאל, Standard Yišmaʿel Tiberian Yišmāʿêl; Arabic: إسماعيل, Ismā'īl) is a figure in the Torah, Bible, and Qur'an. Karel Dujardin ( Sep 27 1626, Amsterdam - Nov 20 1678, Venice) Dutch animal and landscape painter Tiberian Hebrew is an extinct (yet very well documented Oral tradition of pronunciation for ancient Hebrew, especially the Hebrew of the Tanakh, that was Arabic (ar الْعَرَبيّة (informally ar عَرَبيْ) in terms of the number of speakers is the largest living member of the Semitic language term " Torah " ( Hebrew: תּוֹרָה "teaching" or "instruction" sometimes translated as "Law" most commonly refers to Etymology According to the Online Etymology Dictionary, the word bible is from Latin biblia, traced from the same word through Medieval Latin and Late Latin The Qur’an ( القرآن, literally "the recitation" also sometimes transliterated as Qur’ān, Koran, Alcoran Jewish, Christian and Muslim believers regard Ishmael as Abraham's older son, born by his wife's handmaiden Hagar. Judaism (from the Greek Ioudaïsmos, derived from the Hebrew יהודה Yehudah, " Judah " in Hebrew יַהֲדוּת Yahedut Christianity ( Greek Χριστιανισμός from the word Xριστός ( Christ)is a monotheistic Religion centered on the life and teachings For other meanings including people named 'Islam' see Islam (disambiguation. Abraham ( Ashkenazi   Avrohom or Avruhom; ابراهيم, {{Unicode|Ibrāhīm}}; Ge'ez: A handmaiden (or handmaid) is a female attendant assistant servant, or slave. Hagar (הָגָר "Stranger" Standard Hebrew Hagar, Tiberian Hebrew Hāḡār; هاجر Hajar) according to the Though born of Hagar, according to Mesopotamian law, Ishmael was credited as Sarah's son (Genesis 16:2)^[1] According to the Genesis account, he died at the age of 137 (Genesis 25:17). Mesopotamia (from the Greek meaning "land between the rivers" is an area geographically located between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers largely corresponding Sarah (; Arabic: سارة, Sārah; "a woman of high rank" is the wife of Abraham as described in the Hebrew Bible ^[2]

Both Jewish and Islamic traditions consider Ishmael as the ancestor of Arab people. The araB gene Promoter is a bacterial promoter activated by e L-arabinose binding ^[1]

Judaism has generally viewed Ishmael as wicked though repentant. Judaism (from the Greek Ioudaïsmos, derived from the Hebrew יהודה Yehudah, " Judah " in Hebrew יַהֲדוּת Yahedut ^[1] Judaism maintains that Isaac (the father of the Jewish people) rather than Ishmael was the true heir of Abraham. According to the Hebrew Bible, Isaac ( Hebrew: Yitzchak יִצְחָק, Standard Yiẓḥaq PLEASE TAKE NOTE************ ^[3] The New Testament contains few references to Ishmael. Biblically, Ishmael is used to symbolize the older - now rejected - Judaic tradition; Isaac symbolizes the new tradition of Christianity. ^[1] Islamic tradition, however, has a very positive view of Ishmael, giving him a larger and more significant role. The Qur'an views him as a prophet. According to the interpretation of some early theologians whose view prevailed later, Ishmael was the actual son that Abraham was called on to sacrifice, as opposed to Isaac. ^[1][4]

Etymology and meaning

Cognates of Hebrew Yishm'e'l existed in various ancient Semitic cultures. In Linguistics and Ethnology, Semitic (from the Biblical " Shem " Hebrew שם translated as "name" Arabic: ساميّ ^[1] For example, it is known that the name was used in early Babylonian and in Minæan. Babylonia was an Amorite state in lower Mesopotamia (modern southern Iraq) with Babylon as its capital The Minaeans from Arabic ( المعينيون Maeeneyyoon or ( معين Maeen (also spelled Ma`in) were an ancient Arab group in ^[2] It is translated literally as "God has hearkened", suggesting that "a child so named was regarded as the fulfillment of a divine promise. Eli (Hebrew אל is the Northwest Semitic word and name either translated into English as "god" or "God" or left untranslated as Eli, depending "^[1]

Hebrew Bible

See also: Account of Isaac in the Hebrew Bible

The dismissal of Hagar, by Pieter Pietersz Lastman

Expulsion of Ishmael and His Mother, from Gustave Doré's illustrated Bible of 1866. According to the Hebrew Bible, Isaac ( Hebrew: Yitzchak יִצְחָק, Standard Yiẓḥaq Pieter Lastman (1583 Amsterdam - buried 4 April 1633, Amsterdam was a Dutch painter.

Chapters 16-25 of the book of Genesis contain the stories of Ishmael. ^[2] Historians and academics in the fields of linguistics and source criticism believe that the stories of Ishmael belong to the three strata of J, or Yahwist source, the P, or Priestly source, and the E, or Elohist source (See Documentary hypothesis). See also History An historian is an individual who studies and writes about History, and is regarded as an Authority on it This entry is about Source evaluation (or information evaluation) in an interdisciplinary context and thus not limited to some discipline-specific understanding of The Priestly Source (P is posited as the most recent of the four chief sources of the Torah, as postulated by the long-established "standard" Wellhausen (or Graf-Wellhausen The Elohist (E is one of four sources of the Torah described by the Documentary Hypothesis. ^[2]For example, The narration in Genesis 16 is of J type and the narration in Genesis 21:8-21 is of E type. ^[5]

According to the Bible, Sarah (Abraham's wife) was childless, yet desired a son. Sarah (; Arabic: سارة, Sārah; "a woman of high rank" is the wife of Abraham as described in the Hebrew Bible Abraham ( Ashkenazi   Avrohom or Avruhom; ابراهيم, {{Unicode|Ibrāhīm}}; Ge'ez: She offers her maidservant Hagar to Abraham as a surrogate. Hagar (הָגָר "Stranger" Standard Hebrew Hagar, Tiberian Hebrew Hāḡār; هاجر Hajar) according to the Customs of the time dictated that, although Hagar was the birth mother, any child conceived would belong to Sarah and Abraham. "Mom" "Mum" and "Mommy" redirect here ^{[3] [6]}

Hagar became pregnant and proud of herself, which resulted in harsh treatment by Sarah. Hagar fled and ran into the wilderness, where an angel appeared to her by a spring of water. ^[3] The angel of the Lord told her to return, adding that God would increase her descendants through a son whose name would be Ishmael. The angel told Hagar that Ishmael would become "a wild donkey of a man" and would be in constant struggle with others. ^[3]

So Hagar returned to Abraham's house, and had a son whom she named Ishmael. ^[3] Abraham was 86 years old when Ishmael was born. ^[7] Abraham, obeying God's commandment, circumcised Ishmael when he was thirteen. ^[8] The next year, Abraham's wife Sarah became pregnant with his second son, Isaac. ^[3] One day Sarah was angered by seeing Ishmael mocking or playing with Isaac (the Hebrew word is ambiguous^[9]),^[2] and she asked Abraham to expel him 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. "^{[3] [10]} Ishmael was very dear to Abraham. He initially refused to do as Sarah asked. ^[2] He finally gave in to his wife's request when God told him that He would take care of Ishmael, since he was a descendant of Abraham. ^[8][11] Abraham provided Hagar and her child with bread and a bottle of water and sent her into the desert of Paran. The Desert of Paran or Wilderness of Paran ( Hebrew מדבר פארן Midbar Par'an) is quite likely the place where the Israelites spent part of their ^[8][12] Hagar, with her son, wandered in the wilderness and ran out of water. When they were reduced to great distress, an angel appeared and showed Hagar a spring of water saying "What is the matter, Hagar? Do not be afraid; God has heard the boy crying as he lies there. Lift the boy up and take him by the hand, for I will make him into a great nation. "^[8][13]

They lived in the wilderness of Paran, where Hagar's son became an expert in archery. Archery is the practice of using a bow or Crossbow to shoot Arrows Archery has historically been used in Hunting and Combat and has His mother married him to an Egyptian woman. Ancient Egypt was an Ancient Civilization in eastern North Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now ^[8] According to the Bible, Ishmael had 12 sons who became twelve tribal chiefs. The twelve sons of Ishmael, were named Nebaioth, Kedar, Adbeel, Mibsam, Mishma, Dumah, Massa, Hadad, Tema, Jetur, Naphish, and Kedemah (See Genesis 25) ^[2] Ishmael's sons settled everywhere from Havilah to Shur, i. Nebaioth ( Heb This list contains persons named in The Bible of minor notability about whom either nothing or very little is known aside from any family connections This list contains persons named in The Bible of minor notability about whom either nothing or very little is known aside from any family connections For the Legacy of Kain character see Dumah Dumah ( Heb Multiple Biblical characters with the names Hadad or Hadar existed Iturea is the Greek name of a province derived from the Biblical Jetur, name of a son of Ishmael ( comp Havilah is a land mentioned in the Bible first described in Genesis 211 in relation to the Garden of Eden: "The name of the first is the Pishon Taurus (it looks like a bull (ˈtɔrəs bull, symbol, Unicode ♉ is one of the Constellations of the Zodiac. e. from Assyria to the border of Egypt. Early history The most Neolithic site in Assyria is at Tell Hassuna, the center of the Hassuna culture ^[8] Ishmael also had a daughter named Mahalath or Bashemath who married Esau. Esau (ˈisɔ ( Hebrew, Standard Hebrew Esav, Tiberian Hebrew ʿĒśāw) is the brother of Jacob (whom God renamed ^[14]. Ishmael also appears with Isaac at the burial of Abraham. ^[8][15] Ishmael died at the age of 137. ^[2]

Jewish traditions

see also Isaac in Jewish traditions

Judaism has generally viewed Ishmael as wicked though repentant. Abraham ( Ashkenazi   Avrohom or Avruhom; ابراهيم, {{Unicode|Ibrāhīm}}; Ge'ez: Hagar (הָגָר "Stranger" Standard Hebrew Hagar, Tiberian Hebrew Hāḡār; هاجر Hajar) according to the Sarah (; Arabic: سارة, Sārah; "a woman of high rank" is the wife of Abraham as described in the Hebrew Bible According to the Hebrew Bible, Isaac ( Hebrew: Yitzchak יִצְחָק, Standard Yiẓḥaq According to the Hebrew Bible, Keturah or Ketura ( was the woman whom Abraham, the Patriarch of the Israelites, married after the According to the Hebrew Bible, Zimran ( also known as Zambran. Jokshan ("an offense" "hardness" or "a knocking" most probably Josephus' Jazar. Medan (Hebrew "contention to twist conflict" also spelt Madan was the third son of Abraham, the Patriarch of the Israelites, and Ishbak (Hebrew ish'băk "he will leave leaving" also spelt Jisbak and Josabak. Shuah ( Hebrew: "ditch swimming humiliation" also known as Sous, was the sixth son of Abraham, the Patriarch of the Israelites According to the Hebrew Bible, Isaac ( Hebrew: Yitzchak יִצְחָק, Standard Yiẓḥaq ^[1] According to the Haggadah Ishmael was as an idolater and a "brother-hater, who becomes ill from Sarah's evil eye. The Haggadah (הגדה is a Jewish religious text that sets out the order of the Passover Seder. The evil eye is a belief that the Envy elicited by the good Luck of fortunate people may result in their misfortune "^[16] Ishmael later repents and comes to revere his brother Isaac. ^[16]

In some Rabbinic traditions Ishmael is said to have had two wives named Aisha and Fatima. Those names correspond to the Muslim tradition for the names of Muhammad's wife and daughter. ^[1] This is understood as a metaphoric representation of the Muslim world (first Arabs and then Turks) with Ishmael. ^[17] The Talmud also mentions God's regret over Ishmael. ^[18]

The Israelites regarded the supposedly freedom-loving and bellicose descendants of Ishmael as inferior because Abraham had expelled Ishmael and his mother. See also History of ancient Israel and Judah According to the Bible, the Israelites were the dominant group living in the Land of Israel. ^[16][1]

New Testament

see also Hagar in the New Testament, Isaac in New Testament

According to the Genesis account, Ishmael and his mother were expelled at the instigation of Sarah, in order to make sure that Isaac would be Abraham's heir. Hagar (הָגָר "Stranger" Standard Hebrew Hagar, Tiberian Hebrew Hāḡār; هاجر Hajar) according to the According to the Hebrew Bible, Isaac ( Hebrew: Yitzchak יִצְחָק, Standard Yiẓḥaq In the book of Galatians, Paul uses the incident "to symbolize the relationship between Judaism, the older but now rejected tradition, and Christianity. The Epistle to the Galatians is a book of the New Testament. It is a letter from Paul of Tarsus to a number of early Christian communities in the Roman province of " (Gal 4:21-31)^[1] In Galatians 4:28-31,^[19] Hagar is associated with the Sinai covenant, while Sarah is associated with the covenant of grace (into which her son Isaac enters). The Epistle to the Galatians is a book of the New Testament. It is a letter from Paul of Tarsus to a number of early Christian communities in the Roman province of The Sinai Peninsula or Sinai ( Coptic: sina; Egyptian Arabic: sina سينا Arabic, sina'a سيناء Sarah (; Arabic: سارة, Sārah; "a woman of high rank" is the wife of Abraham as described in the Hebrew Bible ^[20]

Islam

Main article: Islamic view of Ishmael

see also: Hagar in Islamic traditions

Ishmael (Arabic: Ismā'īl) is a prophet in Islam. In Islam, Ishmael ( circa 1781 BC - 1638 BC? is known as the first-born son of Abraham ( Ibrahim in Arabic) from Hagar Hagar (הָגָר "Stranger" Standard Hebrew Hagar, Tiberian Hebrew Hāḡār; هاجر Hajar) according to the Muslims regard as Prophets of Islam ( Arabic: نبي) those non-divine humans chosen by Allah as Prophets For other meanings including people named 'Islam' see Islam (disambiguation. The Qur'an considers him to be a son of Abraham. ^[21] His name appears twelve times in the Qur'an mostly in a list^[22] with other prophets "as part of a litany of remembrances in which the pre-Islamic prophets are praised for their resolute steadfastness and obedience to God, often in the face of adversity. Jahiliyyah, al-Jahiliyah or jahalia ( Arabic: جاهلية) is an Islamic concept of "ignorance of divine guidance" or "the "^[23]

Both Jewish and Islamic traditions consider Ishmael as the ancestor of Arab people. According to the Muslim tradition, Muhammad was a descendant of Ishmael through his son Kedar. ^[8]

Picture of the Kaaba taken in 1880. Islamic traditions hold that the Ka'aba was rebuilt by Abraham and Ishmael.

Abraham and Ishmael are said to have built the foundations of the Ka'aba ("They were raising the foundations of the House", Qur'an 2:127). The Kaaba ( Arabic: ar الكعبة; 'kɑʕbɑ or 'kæʕbæ "Cube" is a Cuboidal building in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, and is the The Kaaba ( Arabic: ar الكعبة; 'kɑʕbɑ or 'kæʕbæ "Cube" is a Cuboidal building in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, and is the The Qur’an ( القرآن, literally "the recitation" also sometimes transliterated as Qur’ān, Koran, Alcoran ^[23] Islamic traditions hold that the Ka'aba was first built by the first man, Adam. See also Adam and Eve Adam ( Hebrew: אָדָם was according to a literal interpretation of Genesis, the first man created by Abraham and Ishmael rebuilt the Kaaba on the old foundations. ^[24]

The Qur'an states that Abraham was commanded to sacrifice his son. The Qur’an ( القرآن, literally "the recitation" also sometimes transliterated as Qur’ān, Koran, Alcoran The son is not named in the Qur'an (see Qur'an 37:99-113) and in early Islam, there was a controversy over the son's identity. The Qur’an ( القرآن, literally "the recitation" also sometimes transliterated as Qur’ān, Koran, Alcoran For other meanings including people named 'Islam' see Islam (disambiguation. However the belief that the son was Ishmael prevailed, and this view is continued to be endorsed by Muslim scholars. A Muslim (مسلم pronounced Muslim, not Muzlim) is an adherent of the Religion ^[4] The argument of those Muslims who believed in the Ishmael theory was that "the promise to Sarah of Isaac followed by Jacob (Qur'an 11:71-74) excluded the possibility of a sacrifice of Isaac. Jacob ( Hebrew: יַעֲקֹב, Standard   Yaʿaqov Tiberian   Yaʿăqōḇ; The Qur’an ( القرآن, literally "the recitation" also sometimes transliterated as Qur’ān, Koran, Alcoran The Binding of Isaac, in Genesis, is a story from the Hebrew Bible in which God asks Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac on Mount Moriah "^[4] The other party held that the son of sacrifice was Isaac since "God's perfecting his mercy on Abraham and Isaac (in Qur'an 12:6) referred to his making Abraham his friend and saving him from the burning bush and to his rescuing Isaac. The Qur’an ( القرآن, literally "the recitation" also sometimes transliterated as Qur’ān, Koran, Alcoran "^[4].

According to Bruce Metzger and Michael Coogan, professors of Religious Studies, the circumcision of Muslims has its roots in the tradition that Ishmael was circumcised. Bruce Manning Metzger ( 9 February, 1914, Middletown Pennsylvania – 13 February, 2007, Princeton New Jersey) was a professor Religious studies, or Religious education, is the academic field of multi-disciplinary Secular study of religious beliefs behaviors and institutions Male circumcision is the removal of some or all of the Foreskin (prepuce from the Penis. ^[25]

Bahá'í Faith

The Bahá'í writings state that it was Ishmael, and not Isaac, who was the son of Abraham almost sacrificed. The Bahá'í Faith is a Religion founded by Bahá'u'lláh in nineteenth-century Persia, emphasizing the spiritual unity of all humankind ^[26] However, the Bahá'í writings also state that the name is unimportant as either could be used: the importance is that both were symbols of sacrifice. ^[27] The Bahá'í writings also consider Ishmael an ancestor of Muhammad and the Arabs. ^[28] According to Shoghi Effendi, there has also been another Ishmael, this one a prophet of Israel ^[29]

Notes

References

Books and journals

• Metzger, Bruce M; Michael D Coogan (1993). The Oxford Companion To The Bible. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0195046458.  
• Nikaido, S. (2001). "Hagar and Ishmael as Literary Figures: An Intertextual Study". Vetus Testamentum 51.  
• Werblowsky, R. J. Zwi; Geoffrey Wigoder (1997). The Oxford Dictionary of Jewish Religion. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-508605-8.  

Encyclopedias

• Brill's New Pauly- Antiquity. (2005). Ed. Hubert Cancik and Helmuth Schneider. Brill Academic Publishers. ISBN 978 9004122703.  
• The Columbia Encyclopedia (6th). (2000). Ed. Paul Lagasse, Lora Goldman, Archie Hobson, Susan R. Norton. Gale Group. ISBN 978-1593392369.  
• Encyclopedia of Christianity (1st). (2005). Ed. John Bowden. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-522393-4.  
• Encyclopaedia of Islam Online. The Encyclopaedia of Islam ( EI) is the standard Encyclopaedia of the Academic discipline of Islamic studies. Ed. P. J. Bearman, Th. Bianquis, C. E. Bosworth, E. van Donzel, W. P. Heinrichs. Brill Academic Publishers. ISSN 1573-3912.  
• Encyclopedia of Religion (2nd). (2005). Ed. Lindsay Jones. MacMillan Reference Books. ISBN 978-0028657332.  
• The New Encyclopedia Britannica. (2005). Encyclopedia Britannica, Incorporated; Rev Ed edition. ISBN 978-1593392369.  
• Encyclopedia of the Qur'an. The Encyclopaedia of the Qur'an ( EQ) is a scholarly work with essays on the most important themes and subjects and an encyclopaedic dictionary of Qur'an terms concepts (2005). Ed. Jane Dammen McAuliffe. Brill Academic Publishers. ISBN 978-9004123564.  

See also

• Isaac
• Abraham
• List of names referring to El

External links

• Genealogy from Adam to the Twelve Tribes
• Ishmael in Islam
• The Jewish Encyclopedia: Ishmael. According to the Hebrew Bible, Isaac ( Hebrew: Yitzchak יִצְחָק, Standard Yiẓḥaq Abraham ( Ashkenazi   Avrohom or Avruhom; ابراهيم, {{Unicode|Ibrāhīm}}; Ge'ez: The word "theophory" refers to the practice of embedding the name of a god or a deity in usually a proper name
• Biographical Study on Ishmael
• "Ismael". Catholic Encyclopedia. The Catholic Encyclopedia, also referred to today as the Old Catholic Encyclopedia, is an English-language Encyclopedia published by The Encyclopedia (1913). New York: Robert Appleton Company.  
• Ishmael in Bahá'í Faith