Finding Hagar

Every time I see a positive work on Hagar and Ishmael from an evangelical Christian pen, I rejoice and feel encouraged that the gracious story of God’s redeeming love outside the line of Promise is being retold. Mike Kuhn’s work Finding Hagar mixes in a beautiful way both serious scholarship and deep life applications. The corporate effort behind this work involving nice and vivid pictures drawn by his daughter points to the cordiality and passion with which this work was done. I wholeheartedly recommend this beautiful, serious and yet simple, work by Kuhn to every student of the Bible and especially to every Christian worker in the Arab World.

Tony Maalouf, PhD
Distinguished Professor of World Christianity and Middle Eastern Studies,
Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, Fort Worth, Texas, USA
Visiting Professor,
Jordan Evangelical Theological Seminary, Amman, Jordan

Finding Hagar takes on itself the task of gently – and persuasively! – adjusting any misconceptions we might have on the place of Ishmael in God’s larger scheme. By dovetailing the biblical narratives in Genesis with Jewish and Islamic traditions, Kuhn provides a panoramic timeline on which readers can travel up and down, revisiting familiar places and people and meeting new pieces of information. The encounters require that we rethink our presuppositions. And they challenge us to take our place in the continuing story of Hagar and her children.

Havilah Dharamraj, PhD
Academic Dean and Head, Department of Old Testament,
South Asia Institute of Advanced Christian Studies, Bangalore, India

Mike Kuhn’s book on Hagar and Ishmael will open your eyes to what has been hidden in the shadows and has been overlooked. In this book, the spotlight is shed on Hagar as one of the best supporting actors in God’s drama of redemptive history. Does Hagar speak to us today? In this book you will see how she speaks to us and to our burning issues. I wish every Christian would read this book as it brings grace to two irritant and misunderstood figures, Hagar and Ishmael. Once I started reading this book, I could not stop until I finished it.

Nabeel T. Jabbour, ThD
Author, The Crescent through the Eyes of the Cross

As one who has had the Middle East as his assignment from the heart of God for over fifty years, I was captivated by this page-turning entrance into the Patriarch Abraham’s country in the light of Mike Kuhn’s artistic insights. This amazingly accomplished Arabist and scholar, with his wife, Stephanie, have absorbed a depth of understanding of the nuances of Middle East culture, with historical biblical insights, so that the reader is transported into Hagar’s life . . . brought to life as you’ve never known it before! The bonus is that you’ll want to read your Old Testament with fresh depth and enjoyment.

Greg Livingstone
Founder, Frontiers

Hagar, the first female theologian, and her firstborn son, Ishmael, circumcised under the Abraham covenant, is the story retold born out of Kuhn’s decades of living in Middle Eastern society. He brings a wider vision and biblical scholarship to this story that has been misunderstood by Christians throughout history. A blessing at the time, now interpreted in the modern mind as a curse with tragic repercussions for millions of people. By retelling this ancient saga, we are having our own prejudices revealed. A must-read.

Christine A. Mallouhi
Author, Waging Peace on Islam and Miniskirts, Mothers and Muslims

Few Christians understand the depth of emotional feelings that Muslims attach to their perceived lineage through Hagar and Ishmael. Mike Kuhn expertly weaves his personal experiences with Arabs along with significant research to break new ground for the reader seeking to plumb the mindset, not only of Arabs, but also of Muslims worldwide. Particularly helpful are Kuhn’s extrapolations from Hagar to oppressed migrants in our contemporary settings. Kudos on a job well done.

Phil Parshall, DMiss
Author, Lifting the Veil and The Cross and the Crescent
Retired, SIM USA

1. Preface: Reconsidering an Old Story
2. 1 – Shifha Sarai
3. 2 – Barren
4. 3 – Wedding Day
5. 4 – Rivals
6. 5 – Finding Hagar
7. 6 – Questions
8. 7 – The Promise
9. 8 – Donkey Man
10. 9 – El Ro’i
11. 10 – Oh That Ishmael Might Live!
12. 11 – Laughter
13. 12 – God Hears
14. 13 – Son of the Slave
15. 14 – Progeny
16. 15 – Considering Hagar and Moses
17. 16 – Hagar and Ishmael through the Centuries
18. 17 – Hagar Speaks Today
19. Appendix: Ishmael: Father of the Arabs?