Key Verses
And as for Ishmael, I have heard you: I will surely bless him; I will make him fruitful and will greatly increase his numbers. He will be the father of twelve rulers, and I will make him into a great nation. (Genesis 17:20, NIV)
Ishmael lived a hundred and thirty-seven years. He breathed his last and died, and he was gathered to his people. (Genesis 25:17)
God had promised to make a great nation of Abraham (Genesis 12:2), declaring that his own son would be his heir: “This man will not be your heir, but a son who is your own flesh and blood will be your heir.” (Genesis 15:4, NIV)
During the time Sarah had been barren, Hagar flaunted her child, behaving rudely toward her mistress. When Isaac was weaned, Ishmael, who was about 16 years old, mocked his half-brother. Angered, Sarah dealt harshly with Hagar. She was determined that Ishmael would not be heir with her son Isaac. Sarah told Abraham to cast Hagar and the boy out, which he did.
God, however, did not abandon Hagar and her child. The two were stranded in the desert of Beersheba, dying from thirst. But an angel of the Lord came to Hagar, showed her a well, and they were saved.
Hagar later found an Egyptian wife for Ishmael and he fathered twelve sons, just as Isaac's son Jacob would.
Two generations later, God used the descendants of Ishmael to save the Jewish nation.
Isaac's grandsons sold their brother Joseph into slavery to Ishmaelite traders. They took Joseph to Egypt where they sold him again.
Joseph eventually rose to become second in command of the entire country and saved his father and brothers during a great famine.