Genesis 16

Sorry I didn't post anything yesterday. I went to a friend's wedding in Dallas, and got back very late.

Genesis 16:2

So Sarai said to Abram, "Now behold, the Lord has prevented me from bearing children. Please go in to my maid; perhaps I will obtain children through her." And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai.

At first glance, this doesn't seem to terrible. God has promised Abram descendents, but I don't recall that he's said anything about them coming from Sarai. She's in her seventies at this point, well past childbearing age. So if Abram's going to have kids, it would appear they're not going to be from her. Therefore, they have to come from someone else, so her servant is as good a choice as any.

Today we tend to use this passage as an example of not trying to take God's work into our own hands. And I'm not trying to argue the example. However, given that I think they only had "half" the prophecy at this point, I don't hold this against Sarai as much as some do. She had given up hope, and probably thought she was doing God's will by offering this alternative to the impossible. She learned later that "impossible" doesn't mean what she thought, though.