As we study the story of Abraham, we find out that his wife was barren for many years, yet God had promised him he will be a father of many nations. Barrenness and male heirship were very common in the patriachal age. To cuber these problems the Near East patriarchs had surrogate arrangements, polygamy arrangements and levirate marriages.
Historically and culturally, the ancient Near Eastern patriarchal society had a common practice that if a wife was unable to have children, she could give her maidservant to her husband to bear children in her place. This was done with the understanding that the child would legally be considered the wife’s and not the maidservant’s child.
With the above cultural background, Sarah confidently asked Abram to consider having children with Hagar. “Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had borne him no children. But she had an Egyptian maidservant named Hagar; so she said to Abram, ‘The Lord has kept me from having children. Go, sleep with my maidservant; perhaps I can build a family through her.’” (Genesis 16:1-2, NIV)
This practice, known as a surrogate arrangement, was culturally acceptable and not seen as immoral at the time. In fact, Sarah’s decision would have been viewed as a logical and socially acceptable way to ensure that Abraham would have an heir, especially since having children was considered essential for a woman’s identity and security in that period.
In interpretating the above passage while ignoring this historical and cultural context, one might mistakenly view Sarah’s actions as morally questionable, a lack of trust in God’s promises and poor decision making when in reality, she was following a common cultural practice. This context helps us understand the complexity of the situation, including the emotional and social pressures Sarah might have faced, and the larger narrative of God’s plan unfolding through imperfect human actions.
Understanding the historical and cultural context of the patriarchal period is vital for correctly interpreting many biblical passages.