away from her.” (Gen. 16:1-6) At the fountain on the way to Shur Jehovah’s angel found Hagar and instructed her to return to her mistress and to humble herself under her hand. Moreover, she was told that Jehovah would greatly multiply her seed and that the son to be born to her was to be called Ishmael. Abraham was eighty-six years old when Ishmael was born.—Gen. 16:7-16.

Years later, when Abraham prepared “a big feast on the day of Isaac’s being weaned” at the age of about five years, Sarah noticed Hagar’s son Ishmael, now about nineteen years old, “poking fun” or playing with Isaac in a mocking way, and here making early manifestation of the antagonistic traits that Jehovah’s angel foretold would be shown by him. (Gen. 16:12) Apparently fearing for the future of her son Isaac, Sarah requested Abraham to drive out Hagar and her son. This displeased Abraham, but at Jehovah’s direction he followed through on his wife’s request. Early the next morning he dismissed Hagar with her son, giving her bread and a skin water bottle.—Gen. 21:8-14.

Hagar wandered about in the wilderness of Beer-sheba. “Finally the water became exhausted . . . and she threw the child under one of the bushes.” Ishmael’s being referred to as a “child” is not an anachronism, for the Hebrew word yeʹledh here rendered “child” also means “young man,” and is so translated at Genesis 4:23. As to his being thrown under one of the bushes, although it was foretold that he would be a “zebra of a man,” Ishmael may not have been very strong as a teen-ager. (Gen. 16:12) Hence he may have given out first, necessitating his mother’s supporting him. This would not be inconceivable, for women in those days, especially slave women, were accustomed to carrying heavy burdens in everyday life. It seems that in time Hagar also gave out, making it necessary for her to withdraw her support from him, depositing him, perhaps somewhat abruptly, under the nearest sheltering bush. Hagar herself sat down “about the distance of a bowshot” (a common Hebrew expression denoting the usual distance at which archers placed their targets) away from her son. Although Hagar did not want to see her son die, she, nevertheless, kept him in sight.—Gen. 21:14-16.

God’s angel then called to Hagar, telling her not to be afraid and that Ishmael would be constituted a great nation. Furthermore, God opened her eyes so that she saw a well of water, from which she filled the skin bottle and gave her son a drink. “God continued to be with the boy,” and in time he became an archer and “took up dwelling in the wilderness of Paran.” Hagar procured a wife for him from the land of Egypt.—Gen. 21:17-21.

According to the apostle Paul, Hagar figured in a symbolic drama in which she represented the nation of fleshly Israel, bound to Jehovah by the Law covenant inaugurated at Mount Sinai, which covenant brought forth “children for slavery.” Because of the nation’s inability, due to their sinful condition, to keep the terms of that covenant, under it the Israelites did not become a free people but were condemned as sinners worthy of death, hence being slaves. (John 8:34; Rom. 8:1-3) Jerusalem of Paul’s day corresponded to Hagar, for Jerusalem the capital, representing the organization of natural Israel, found herself in slavery with her children. Spirit-begotten Christians, though, are children of the “Jerusalem above,” God’s symbolic woman. This heavenly Jerusalem, like Sarah the freewoman, has never been in slavery. But just as Isaac was persecuted by Ishmael, so also the children of the “Jerusalem above,” who have been set free by the Son, experienced persecution at the hands of the children of enslaved Jerusalem. However, Hagar and her son were driven out, representing Jehovah’s casting off natural Israel as a nation.—Gal. 4:21-31; see also John 8:31-40.

HAGGAI

(Hagʹgai) [festive].

A Hebrew prophet in Judah and Jerusalem during Zerubbabel’s governorship in the reign of Persian King Darius Hystaspis. (Hag. 1:1; 2:1, 10, 20; Ezra 5:1, 2) “Haggai” may be an abbreviated form of “Haggiah,” meaning “festival of Jah (Jehovah).”

Jewish tradition holds that Haggai was a member of the Great Synagogue. From Haggai 2:10-19 it has been suggested that he may have been a priest. His name appears along with that of the prophet Zechariah in the superscriptions of Psalm 111 (112) in the Latin Vulgate, Psalms 125 and 126 in the Syriac Peshitta Version, 137 in the Septuagint Version, 145 in the Septuagint, the Peshitta, and the Vulgate, and 146, 147 and 148 in the Septuagint and the Peshitta. It is probable that Haggai was born in Babylon and that he returned to Jerusalem with Zerubbabel and the Jewish remnant in 537 B.C.E. But little is actually known about Haggai, for the Scriptures do not reveal the prophet’s parentage, tribe, and so forth.

Haggai, the first postexilic prophet, joined about two months later by Zechariah (Hag. 1:1; Zech. 1:1), kindled the zeal of the repatriated Jewish exiles for the resumption of temple construction after a halt of some years precipitated by enemy opposition but extended by Jewish apathy and selfish pursuit of personal interests. (Ezra 3:10-13; 4:1-24; Hag. 1:4) Four God-given messages delivered by Haggai during about a four-month period in the second year of Darius Hystaspis (520/519 B.C.E.) and recorded by the prophet in the Bible book of Haggai were especially effective in initially moving the Jews to resume temple-building work. (Hag. 1:1; 2:1, 10, 20; see HAGGAI, BOOK OF.) Haggai and Zechariah continued to urge them on in the work until the temple was completed in Darius’ sixth year, in 515 B.C.E.—Ezra 5:1, 2; 6:14, 15.

HAGGAI, BOOK OF

An inspired book of the Hebrew Scriptures listed among the so-called “Minor Prophets.” It consists of four messages from Jehovah to Jews that had returned from Babylonian exile, urging them to finish rebuilding the temple in Jerusalem. Also being prophetic, the book foretold such things as the filling of Jehovah’s house with glory and the overthrow of human kingdoms.—Hag. 2:6, 7, 21, 22; compare Isaiah 2:2-4.

WRITERSHIP AND CANONICITY

Haggai the prophet was the writer, he first having personally delivered each message found in the book. (Hag. 1:1; 2:1, 10, 20; see HAGGAI.) While most of the ancient Scripture catalogues do not list the book of Haggai by name, it is evidently included in their references to the ‘twelve minor prophets,’ the number twelve thus being complete. The Jews have never questioned its right to a place among the Hebrew Scriptures, and the canonicity of the book is definitely established by the quotation from Haggai 2:6 appearing at Hebrews 12:26.—Compare Haggai 2:21.

STYLE

The language is simple and the meaning is made abundantly clear. Thought-provoking questions are sometimes posed. (Hag. 1:4, 9; 2:3, 12, 13, 19) The book of Haggai contains strong reproof, encouragement and hope-inspiring prophecy. The divine name, Jehovah, appears thirty-five times in its thirty-eight verses, and it is clearly shown that the messages were from God, Haggai serving as His commissioned messenger.—Hag. 1:13.

DATE AND CIRCUMSTANCES

The four messages recorded by Haggai were delivered at Jerusalem within about a four-month period in the second year of Persian King Darius Hystaspis (520/519 B.C.E.), the book apparently being completed in 520 B.C.E. (Hag. 1:1; 2:1, 10, 20)