Larry Richards Writes, "Well-Established Custom ...

Larry Richards writes, "Well-established custom in the Patriarchal Age protected the rights of any child born to a man by a slave woman. Though the son of the wife was a man’s legal heir, his child by a concubine was guaranteed an inheritance. Sarah’s demand that Abraham send Ishmael away was doubly distressing. Abraham loved Ishmael. And he believed that sending Ishmael away was morally wrong. Only God’s direct intervention, and God’s promise to guarantee Ishmael future, finally moved Abraham to banish Hagar and his son. Abraham would surely understand the pain of those who lose their children through divorce. How desperately we need to remember that God cares for our loved ones, even when we cannot." The Bible Reader’s Companion, (Includes index.; Wheaton, Ill.: Victor Books, 1991), Ge 20:1