Limitless Word
Now the angel of the LORD found Hagar by a spring of water in the desert—the spring along the road to Shur.
Genesis 16:7 · Berean Standard Bible
Parallel translations
  • WEB Yahweh’s angel found her by a fountain of water in the wilderness, by the fountain on the way to Shur.
  • KJV And the angel of the LORD found her by a fountain of water in the wilderness, by the fountain in the way to Shur.
  • NKJV Now the Angel of the Lord found her by a spring of water in the wilderness, by the spring on the way to Shur.
  • NASB Now the angel of the Lord found her by a spring of water in the wilderness, by the spring on the way to Shur.
  • NLT The angel of the Lord found Hagar beside a spring of water in the wilderness, along the road to Shur.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Quick answer

The angel of Yahweh found Hagar by a spring in the wilderness. God sought out the fleeing, afflicted servant.

Overview

The angel of the Lord, often understood as a special manifestation of God Himself, finds Hagar in her distress. That God pursues a runaway Egyptian servant reveals His compassion for the lowly and forgotten. This seeking grace anticipates the gospel, where God in Christ seeks and saves the lost and outcast.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 9

  • Exod 15:22Then Moses led Israel from the Red Sea, and they went out into the Desert of Shur. For three days they walked in the desert without finding water.
  • Gen 25:18Ishmael’s descendants settled from Havilah to Shur, which is near the border of Egypt as you go toward Asshur. And they lived in hostility toward all their brothers.
  • Gen 21:17Then God heard the voice of the boy, and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven, “What is wrong, Hagar? Do not be afraid, for God has heard the voice of the boy where he lies.
  • Prov 15:3The eyes of the LORD are in every place, observing the evil and the good.
  • Gen 31:11In that dream the angel of God said to me, ‘Jacob!’ And I replied, ‘Here I am.’
  • 1 Sam 15:7Then Saul struck down the Amalekites all the way from Havilah to Shur, which is east of Egypt.
  • Gen 20:1Now Abraham journeyed from there to the region of the Negev and settled between Kadesh and Shur. While he was staying in Gerar,
  • Gen 22:15And the angel of the LORD called to Abraham from heaven a second time,
  • Gen 22:11Just then the angel of the LORD called out to him from heaven, “Abraham, Abraham!” “Here I am,” he replied.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (5)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Genesis videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Genesis 16:7YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on GenesisMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

Christ at the center

From the first promise that the seed of the woman would crush the serpent (3:15), through Abraham's blessing to all nations and Judah's coming ruler, Genesis sows every seed that flowers in Christ — the true offspring, the better Adam, the ram caught for Isaac.

How Genesis 16:7 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.

Original language

Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.