descendants will be too numerous to count. God instructs her to name the child Ishmael, which means “God hears,” because God heard Hagar’s cries of distress. Ishmael will be “a wild ass of a man,” no doubt a stereotypical dig at the surrounding Arabs (Ishmaelites) with whom the Israelites have always been in conflict. But more importantly, God’s promise to Hagar indicates that God is not limited to Hebrews. In this passage God promises to create another people who will also be numerous. Indeed, just