Abstract
This paper provides a unique and textually justified reading that affords greater understanding of the biblical representation of Sarah, Hagar, Abraham, Ishmael and God. It argues for the privileged position of Hagar's suffering in God's precise economy of crime and punishment, details the conspicuous parallels between Hagar's ordeal and Moses' experience and demonstrates that the biblical imperative to deal righteously with the stranger is the conscience-shaping ethical consequence of the sacrifice of Hagar. The Hagar stories are not about male or ethnic dominance but about divine justice and human compassion.
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