Hagar: God’s Beloved Stranger

“My eyes are fountains of tears. My feet sink in quicksand.”

In Pharaoh’s harem Hagar had little status and few friends-other than Baufra, the gardener. Little she knew that her future was bound up with a wealthy merchant from a distant land, who worshiped a strange god that he could not see. When famine brought Abram to the Two-Lands, Pharaoh took his beautiful sister, Sarai, as his intended princess, and Hagar became her attendant. Ultimately, young Hagar chose to leave her opulent society and cast her lot with the sand-dwellers of Canaan, who worshiped El-Shaddai. Author Hester Thomsen re-creates the texture of life in Egypt under the twelfth dynasty: the social and political influences; the feasts, opinions, and customs; the religion in which Hagar was trained; and the temple services in which she took part.

The dialogue incorporates actual phrases taken from the Egyptian writings of the period, evoking Hagar’s emotions and re-creating the world in which she lived. Hagar’s amazing story shows how small choices can change the course of history.