User:Mchristiana12/sandbox

Patriarchs
Shortly after the death of Moses, Joshua began to draw attention to himself for being a strong leader. He was selected by Moses and was instructed to lead Israel to the promised land. There were many obstacles that the people needed to overcome. It was a city-state that was being ruled by a very powerful king and the people needed to journey across the river, making a difficult trek. Through much hard work and leadership, Joshua lead the people to success. The land that was conquered had to be divided amongst the people. Since he helped lead the people to conquer the land, Joshua is still viewed as one of the Patriarchs of Israel.

Covenants
A covenant is an agreement made between God and His people. This agreement is an important factor when it comes to the Patriarchs because this it is what establishes a person as a Patriarch. The term covenant is first mentioned in Genesis 6:18 where God instructs Noah to build an ark in order to prepare for the great flood. In this verse God says, “But I will establish my covenant with you, and you shall come into the ark, you, your sons, your wife, and your sons' wives with you.” This covenant is God’s promise to carry forth his relationship with humans to fulfill His goal of creation. Therefore, in a way, these words connect all covenants made throughout the Bible with the continuation of humanity through God’s contact with his followers. There are many other covenants God makes with his followers throughout the Bible, the other major one being with Abraham. In this covenant God says, “ I will establish my covenant between me and you and your offspring after you throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your offspring after you. And I will give to you and to your offspring after you the land of your sojournings, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession, and I will be their God.” (Genesis 17: 7-8). He then goes on to say, “This is my covenant, which you shall keep, between me and you and your offspring after you: Every male among you shall be circumcised.” (Genesis 17:10). Other important covenants in the Bible include: the Sinai and Mosaic covenants, the Davidic covenant, the New covenant, and others.

The Wives and Sons of Abraham
Abraham, also known as Ibrahim, is the main patriarch that connects the three Abrahamic religions (Judaism, Christianity, Islam) through his wives. In a previous covenant made between God and Abraham, God promised Abraham and his wife, Sarah, land and offspring. However, even after traveling to Canaan, the Sarah was still barren. For this reason, in Genesis 16, Sarah offered Abraham their slave, Hagar, to be a surrogate. “Consort with my maid; perhaps I shall have a child through her,” Sarah says (Genesis, 16:2). This led to much controversy between the Abrahamic religions about who the true ‘matriarch’ of the Bible is. Not only is there controversy over the wives of Abraham, but his sons as well. Hagar ended up birthing Abraham’s oldest son, Ishmael, and Sarah eventually birthed his son, Isaac. Muslims believe Ishmael is the rightful son of Abraham and Jews/Christians believe that Isaac is in terms of inheriting the covenant. In some cases, the New Testament diminishes Ishmael’s reputation as the son of Abraham. For example, in Genesis 21:9, Sarah says to Abraham, “Get rid of that slave woman and her son, for that woman’s son will never share in the inheritance with my son Isaac.” This reputation then ended up reflecting poorly upon Ishmael’s descendants. In Christianity, Isaac and Jacob, Isaac’s son, were granted the covenant since they were deemed Abraham’s rightful heirs in the Hebrew Bible and New Testament. However, for Muslims, Ishmael would be granted this power rather than Isaac. The rightful wife and son of Abraham is up to interpretation based on the three Abrahamic religions.

Hagar's Role
During this time period, it was a common practice for a slave to be gifted as part of a bride’s dowry. This would make Hagar Sarah’s own property. Sarah could not have children, making it very complicated since motherhood and birthing a male heir was very respected and a necessary part of a woman’s life. Since Sarah could not carry children, it seemed logical for Hagar to have children with Abraham. This causes conflict in the family because the slave is now bearing the children of Abraham. Hagar despised her mistress because she was carrying a child. Her role as a concubine pregnant with Abraham’s child complicates her behavior because she must obey her master.