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Verse Takeaways
1
The "Wild Ass" Symbol
Commentators explain that the description of Ishmael as a "wild ass" is not simply an insult. The wild ass of the desert was seen as a noble, swift, and fiercely independent creature that could not be tamed. This imagery powerfully prophesies the character of Ishmael's descendants—the Bedouin Arabs—known for their love of freedom, nomadic lifestyle, and untamable spirit.
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Book Overview
Genesis
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Commentaries
5
Albert Barnes
On Genesis 16:1–16
18th Century
Theologian
1. הנר hāgār — Hagar, “flight.” Hejrah, the flight of Muhammad.
7. מלאך mal'ak “messenger, angel.” A dep…
Charles Ellicott
On Genesis 16:12
19th Century
Bishop
He will be a wild man. —Heb., he will be a wild-ass man. The wild ass of the Arabian deserts is a very noble cre…
John Calvin
On Genesis 16:12
16th Century
Theologian
And he will be a wild man. The angel declares what kind of person Ishmael will be. The simple meaning is (in my judgment) that he will be …
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John Gill
On Genesis 16:12
17th Century
Pastor
And he will be a wild man
Living in a wilderness, delighting in hunting and killing wild beasts, and robbing and plu…
Matthew Henry
On Genesis 16:7–16
17th Century
Minister
Hagar was out of her place, and out of the way of her duty, and going further astray, when the Angel found her. It is a great mercy to be stopped i…