What is…
Beer-lahai-roi
also known as: Beer-la'hai-roi, BeerLahaiRoi, Lahai-roi, Lahairoi
Meaning: “The Well of Him that Lives and Sees Me,” “Well of the Living One that Sees Me,” “Well of the Living God,” or, as some translate it, “The Well of the Vision of Life”
This place had a significant water source—a spring/fountain/ain (or well) (Gen. 16:7).
Hagar
This place did not have this name until after a divine event involving Hagar, the maid servant of Sarai and the concubine of Abram—out of faltered faith in God. This is the place where the Lord (or the “angel of the Lord”) met with Hagar after Abram’s (Abraham) wife Sarai (Sarah) treated her harshly (Genesis 16:7-14). Hagar fled, wandering “in the wilderness of Beersheba.”
It was here that Hagar learned that her unborn child was a male, that his name was to be Ishmael, and that he would have a great many descendants.
…the angel of the Lord said to her,
“I will greatly multiply your descendants so that they will be too many to count.”
The angel of the Lord said to her further,
“Behold, you are with child,
And you will bear a son;
And you shall call his name Ishmael,
Because the Lord has given heed to your affliction.
“He will be a wild donkey of a man,
His hand will be against everyone,
And everyone’s hand will be against him;
And he will live to the east of all his brothers.” —Genesis 16:10-12
Then she called the name of the LORD who spoke to her,
“You are a God who sees.”
For she said,
“Have I even remained alive here after seeing Him?”
Therefore the well was called Beer-lahai-roi… —Genesis 16:13-14 NASB
Isaac
Later, Abraham’s grandson Isaac dwelled at this place of water with his family (Genesis 16:7; 24:62; 25:11), and it may be where his son Jacob was born.
Location
Beer-lahai-roi was located on the way to Shur, between Bered (Bared) and Kadesh (Gen. 16:14).
Some have identified it with Ain el-Qoseimeh, and other with Ain Muweileh, or Ain Moilahhi, southwest of Beersheba, and about 12 miles west from Kadesh-barnea, assuming that is the same “Kadesh,” or Ma’ Martaba near Tell Breig.
“Azmon is a place on the southern border of the land promised to Israel [Jacob] and allotted to Juday (Numbers 34:4; Joshua 15:4) in the area of Kadesh Barnea. Some identify the site with Ain el-Qoseimeh, while others believe that it should be identified with Ain Muweileh.” —The Baker Illustrated Bible Dictionary, edited by Tremper Longman III
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