 F. Baroccio pinx.E. Smith sculp.
HAGAR AND ISHMAEL.
FISHER, SON & CO. LONDON, 1834 |
HAGAR AND ISHMAEL.
"And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and took bread, and a bottle of water, and gave it unto Hagar, (putting it on her shoulder,) and the child, and sent her away: and she departed, and wandered in the wilderness of Beer-sheba.
"And the water was spent in the bottle, and she cast the child under one of the shrubs.
"And she went, and sat her down over against him, a good way off, as it were a bow-shot: for she said, Let me not see the death of the child. And she sat over against him, and lift up her voice, and wept.
"And God heard the voice of the lad: and the angel of God called to Hagar out of heaven, and said unto her, What aileth thee, Hagar? fear not; for God hath heard the voice of the lad where he is.
"Arise, lift up the lad, and hold him in thine hand: for I will make him a great nation.
"And God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water: and she went, and filled the bottle with water, and gave the lad drink."
Genesis xxi. 14—19.
They sank amid the wilderness,
The weary and forsaken;
She gave the boy one faint caress,
And prayed he might not waken.
But death, not sleep, was on those eyes,
Beneath the heat declining:
O'er glittering sands and cloudless skies
The noontide sun was shining.
Far, far away the desert spread;
Ah! love is fain to cherish
The vainest hopes, but now she said,
"Let me not see him perish."
Then spoke the Lord, and at his word
Sprang forth a little fountain,
Pure, cold as those whose crystal hoard
Is in some pine-clad mountain;
And herb and shrub upon the brink
Put forth their leaf and blossom;
The pelican came down to drink
From out its silvery bosom.
O blessed God, thus doth thy power,
When, worn and broken-hearted,
We sink beneath some evil hour,
And deem all hope departed—
Then doth the fountain of thy grace
Rise up within the spirit,
And we are strengthened for that race
Whose prize we shall inherit.
When least we hope, our prayer is heard,
The judgment is averted,
And comes the comfort of thy word,
When most we seem deserted.