Commento su Genesi 21:14

לחם וחמת מים BREAD AND A BOTTLE OF WATER — but not silver and gold, because he hated him for taking to degenerate ways (Exodus Rabbah 1:1).

AND THE CHILD, AND HE SENT HER AWAY. This is to be understood in connection with the above: And he gave to Hagar [the bread and bottle of water]… and the child, for he gave her the child also to go with her wherever she will go.

ותתע במדבר באר שבע, that is why she ran out of water, a supply of which she had carried with her. Avraham had given her a big enough supply if she would have taken the direct route to Beer Sheva.

שם על שכמה, the hose containing the water; this was in order to show that she was a slave woman. A reminder of the angel at the time having told her that she was to submit to her mistress Sarah (16,9) A righteous person of the caliber of Avraham would certainly not send away a woman and her son without provisions adequate to ensure that she can reach the next location where new provisions can be obtained. [I wonder why Hagar was not given an animal to ride on? Clearly, Avraham was intent that she should be known to be a slave by the fact that she had to travel on foot. Ed.] Our sages in Bereshit Rabbah 53,15 understand the words ויהי אלוקים את הנער in verse 20, to mean that she had both donkeys and camels at her disposal as well as her son’s servants. If we accept that line in the Midrash at face value, the crisis which overtook Hagar and Ishmael was only that they ran out of water due to having lost their way in the desert. As soon as they found a source of water they had all the means to establish themselves economically, even in the midst of the desert. It was natural for Ishmael to settle in the desert as his mother had been told already while she was pregnant that here son would be a פרא אדם, someone preferring to live in the wilderness, not in civilised society.

על שכמה ואת הילד. On her shoulder together with the child. Abraham put Ishmael also on Hagar's shoulder because the latter refused to leave his father's house. As a result Abraham tied him up as one ties up a child, put him on Hagar's shoulder and expelled her.

וישכם, to carry out G’d’s instruction.

And a skin of water: Our father Avraham estimated that there would be enough for the journey to arrive at another inhabited place; but she went and strayed. And as a result, the water came to an end. And thus did the Rashbam explain.

שם על שכמו ואת הילד, “he placed it on her shoulder together with the child.” According to our sages Avraham placed both the jug of water as well as Ishmael on Hagar’s shoulders. According to the plain meaning of the verse the meaning of the words ואת הילד is that these words mean that not only Hagar but also Ishmael would walk with Hagar (not ride) also.

And he got up early: It recounts the righteousness of Avraham, that he got up early in the morning to implement the commandment of God. Such that he did not give silver and gold into her hand. Rather, "he took bread," since Sarah had said (Genesis 21:10), "drive out this maidservant." And there is a difference between, "drive out," and "send away": With the sending away of slaves, it is written (Deuteronomy 15:13), "you shall not send them away empty." For sending away is with goodness, but driving out is with a strong hand and with anger. And he gave [it] himself to Hagar, and not through an agent, since his mercy was not moved at all. He placed it on her shoulder: Such that he did not allow her to eat in his house and go afterwards; rather he placed [it] on her shoulder. And the child: After he placed [it] on her shoulder, he sent her away with the child, to show her that the main expulsion was hers, because she incited the child to laugh. And on account of her, he is also sending away the child. And he did this so that the child would not be be disgusting in her eyes. And she went and strayed: As he did not send one of his servants to show her the way; sending her without accompaniment, which was not like his way even with guests who were strangers. As he would walk with them to send them away. For he kept the commandment of God.

But no silver and gold because he despised him... But according to the simple explanation [see Rashi on v. 11] he did not fall into bad ways. Why did Avraham not give him silver and gold? An answer is: Avraham assumed that shortly, after Sarah’s anger subsides, he will bring him back. (Maharshal) But according to R. Meir Stern’s explanation on v. 11, the question does not arise, because the simple explanation does not conflict with the Midrash. Both are needed; see there. Furthermore, Maharshal’s answer cannot be correct. For if it was, Rashi himself should have explained thusly, that Avraham intended to bring him back—as this would satisfy both the simple explanation and the Midrash. Rashi should not have given a reason that satisfies only the Midrash.

ואת הילד gehört zu ויתן אל הגר, das שם על שכמה ist Parenthese, es heißt darum nicht: וישם על שכמה, und wird ausdrücklich hervorgehoben, weil es eben die Art des Fortschickens charakterisiert. Als Sklavin, nicht als Abrahams Weib und Mutter seines Sohnes, war sie zu entlassen. Das forderte, wie bereits bemerkt, unerbittlich das Verhältnis und der Zweck dieser ganzen Entfernung. — ילד. Auch Josef war siebzehn Jahre alt und wird noch ילד genannt. (1. B. M. 37, 30.) Im Verhältnis der da maligen und jetzigen durchschnittlichen Lebensdauer von hundertundzwanzig zu siebzig, entspricht ein damaliger siebzehnjähriger Mensch unserem heutigen Knaben von zehn bis elf Jahren.

He placed on her shoulder the skin [of water] and the bread; but the child [he placed] into her hands, since he was fourteen.

ויקח לחם וחמת מים, “he took bread and hose full of water.” Rashi points out that he did not give Hagar silver or gold, as he himself had grown to dislike Ishmael, seeing that he had become a degenerate. Besides, at this stage Avraham did not have any “inheritance” at his disposal that he could give away, seeing that he himself was only a stranger in the land, just as was his son Ishmael. We have learned in the Talmud Kidushin 17 that when a father and a son convert to Judaism they are both “strangers,” i.e. converts, but no longer legally considered as related to one another. As a result, there does not exist a “fatherson” relationship to base any inheritance claim on. (Choshen Mishpot 283) Nonetheless, it had been Avraham’s intention after Sarah’s death to give his son Ishmael “gifts,” as opposed to an inheritance, as is clear from how he treated the sons of Keturah, his concubine after Sarah’s death (and Yitzchok having married and having received his full inheritance. Genesis 25,5).

ואת הילד AND THE CHILD — the child, too, he placed on her shoulder, for Sarah had cast an evil eye upon him, so that a fever seized him and he could not walk (Genesis Rabbah 53:13).

ואת הילד, he also gave her the child;

ויקח לחם וחמת מים, he gave her enough food and water to last for a day or two. She was unable to carry more than that. He also gave her a plentiful supply of water as the distance to Egypt was considerable. On the other hand, she might have had relatives much closer than in Egypt. He gave her also silver and gold so that she could replenish her supplies, although the Torah did not make a specific mention of this.

ותלך ותתע במדבר, ”She went and lost her way in the desert.” The water supply that Avraham had provided was exhausted only because instead of walking straight towards her destination, she procrastinated and made detours.

He also placed the child on her shoulder... ואת הילד refers to what immediately preceded [שם על שכמה] rather than to ויתן אל הגר. [Rashi knows this] because if Avraham did not place the child on her shoulder, Scripture should state that she picked him up before saying, “And she threw the lad...”

שם על שכמה, “he placed on Hagar’s shoulder;” this refers to the bread and the hose of water. [Not as most commentators assume to Ishmael. Ed.]

ותלך ותתע AND SHE WENT AND WANDERED — she reverted to the idol worship of her father’s house (Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer 30).

וישלחה, he first accompanied her some distance out of his loving concern for them. (compare 18,16).

ואת הילד, he placed the bread and the water on her shoulder, and arranged for Ishmael to walk ahead of her. He was approximately 15 and the time, and if he would tire, Hagar would have to carry him for a while either on her shoulder or in her lap.

She returned to her family’s idolatry. Rashi deduced this because ותלך connotes going along deliberately and willingly, as הליכה always means. Yet then it says ותתע, connoting that she did not know where she was going, as she lost her way in the desert. One term contradicts the other. And we cannot say that at first she knew where she was going but then lost her way, because why should Scripture tell us she went deliberately? It is obvious that she went where she was going before she lost her way! Furthermore, the verse’s intent is to recount how she lost her way in the desert and therefore had no water, etc. There is no reason to say she went deliberately on the way. Therefore Rashi explains that her ותתע was deliberate, and that is why it says ותלך ותתע — she deliberately went astray. How? She returned to her family’s idolatry. Rashi explained ותתע as idolatry, based on ויהי כאשר התעו אותי (20:13), translated by Onkelos as: “When the nations went astray after idolatry.” (R. Meir Stern)

ואת הילד, “and the boy;” he made sure that she held him by her hand. According to Rashi, Ishmael had been taken ill, so that Hagar had to carry him also. If you were to argue that we have been taught that sickness did not exist until Yaakov was on his deathbed, (Baba Metzia 87) we must assume that the Talmud refers to terminal sickness, but that did not include dying from thirst, etc.

וישלחה, either from his house, or he accompanied her some distance until outside the town limits.

וישלחה, “he sent her off,” into freedom since having been intimate with her he was not allowed to sell her to another owner according to Torah law. (Compare Exodus 21,11)

ותלך ותתע, she did not know the route once she had entered the desert.