The son of Abraham by Hagar, Sarah's Egyptian servant, born when Abraham was eighty-six. God promised Hagar that her son's descendants would be too many to count, and named him before his birth. After Isaac was born and weaned, Sarah saw Ishmael laughing and demanded that he and his mother be sent away; they nearly died in the wilderness of Beersheba until God opened Hagar's eyes to a well. He became an archer, married an Egyptian, fathered twelve princes, and came with Isaac to bury their father at Machpelah.
Scan by NYPL — Public domain (via Wikimedia Commons)Ancient writersThe first-century Jewish historian Josephus recounts Ishmael, his mother Hagar, and his twelve sons, presenting them as ancestors of the Arab peoples. This is a non-biblical ancient writer transmitting the tradition, though it is dependent on and elaborates the Genesis account.
Flavius Josephus, Jewish Antiquities 1.12.2-4 (Niese §§213-221); recounts Hagar, Ishmael, and Ishmael's twelve sons as ancestors of the Arab nations, elaborating the Genesis 25 account.
Tribe & people
ScholarlyNeo-Assyrian royal inscriptions mention a North Arabian tribal confederation called Sumu'il (Shumu'il); some scholars, notably in studies of the ancient Arabs, have connected this name with the biblical Ishmaelites. The identification is philologically attractive but remains debated, so it is offered as a scholarly hypothesis rather than direct attestation of the individual.
Neo-Assyrian references to the Sumu'il/Shumu'il confederation; connection to the Ishmaelites discussed by I. Eph'al, The Ancient Arabs. Debated; concerns the tribal group, not the person.
Name & titles
ScholarlyThe name Yishma'el means "God hears" (or "may God hear"), an etymology the biblical text itself supplies when it says the LORD had heard Hagar's affliction. It is a common West Semitic theophoric name-type attested widely across the ancient Near East.
Onomastic point; the etymology is given in Gen 16:11 and the shema'-el name pattern is well attested in Amorite and later Semitic sources.
Yahweh’s angel said to her, “Behold, you are with child, and will bear a son. You shall call his name Ishmael, because Yahweh has heard your affliction.
Kohler-Hagar · Christian Köhler (1809-1861) — Public domain (via Wikimedia Commons)040.3 402 Agar quitte Abraham (Genesis 21 14) • invenit James Tissot • pinxit James Tissot • excudit Maurice de Brunoff apud Philip de Vere • praesentat Phillip Medhurst · Phillip Medhurst — CC BY-SA 4.0 (via Wikimedia Commons)041.3 402 Ismaël tire de l'arc (Genesis 21 20) • invenit James Tissot • pinxit James Tissot • excudit Maurice de Brunoff apud Philip de Vere • praesentat Phillip Medhurst · Phillip Medhurst — CC BY-SA 4.0 (via Wikimedia Commons)BOWYER BIBLE GENESIS 152. Abraham driving away Hagar. Genesis cap 21 v 14. Hamilton · Phidev74 — CC BY-SA 4.0 (via Wikimedia Commons)BOWYER BIBLE GENESIS 154. Hagar and Ishmael. Genesis cap 21 v 17. Rosa · Phidev74 — CC BY-SA 4.0 (via Wikimedia Commons)The Bible and its story.. (1908) (14576464040) · Internet Archive Book Images — No restrictions (via Wikimedia Commons)Oldtestamentthre0001unse 0096 (cropped) · James Tissot — Public domain (via Wikimedia Commons)Hagar and Ishmael in desert (Grigoriy Ugryumov) · Grigory Ugryumov — Public domain (via Wikimedia Commons)
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Scan by NYPL — Public domain (via Wikimedia Commons)
Ancient writersThe first-century Jewish historian Josephus recounts Ishmael, his mother Hagar, and his twelve sons, presenting them as ancestors of the Arab peoples. This is a non-biblical ancient writer transmitting the tradition, though it is dependent on and elaborates the Genesis account.
