Overview
The scarcity of information about Yishmael leads commentators to evaluate his character based on clues from those who interact with him, specifically Avrohom and Sarah. In so doing, though, exegetes find themselves in a catch-22. On one hand, it seems inconceivable that Sarah would expel Yishmael had he been an innocent, righteous youth. On the other hand, it is equally troubling to suggest that Avrohom could have raised a son that committed terrible crimes.
As a result, the commentators' characterizations of Yishmael run the gamut from innocent to evil. Some exegetes, like Radak, posit that Yishmael was a wholesome youth, and Tzeror HaMor even faults Sarah for banishing him. Rashi, following numerous Midrashim, goes to the opposite extreme, painting an utterly wicked Yishmael and interpreting the various stories in which he appears to match this image. Ramban attempts to strike a balance between the competing factors, depicting a negative, but not villainous Yishmael.
Neutral to Positive
Yishmael did not actively sin and may even have had some merits.
SOURCES: R. Simon in Bereshit Rabbah, Ibn Ezra, Radak, Tzeror HaMor, Abarbanel
Prophecy to Hagar – "וְהוּא יִהְיֶה פֶרֶא אָדָם " – These commentators all view the prophecy as either a positive or neutral characterization of the soon to be born Yishmael, but they differ in the details:
- Free – According to Ibn Ezra, "פֶּרֶּא אָּדָּם" is a metaphor for a non-submissive person who is free from the yoke of others. The angel told Hagar that Yishmael would be a powerful individual, victorious over his neighbors ("יָּדוֹ בַכֹל"), but simultaneously causing others to fight back ("וְיַד כֹל בוֹ").
- Man of the wilderness – Radak asserts that "פֶּרֶּא אָּדָּם" refers to a man of the wilderness who, due to his nomadic lifestyle, will constantly be battling his neighbors ("יָּדוֹ בַכֹל וְיַד כֹל בוֹ"). However, he will not flee from them, but manage to dwell amongst them ("עַל פְנֵי כָּל אֶּחָּיו יִּשְכֹן").
- Man of civilization – Abarbanel reads the opening words of the angel as a rhetorical question: "Will your son be a man of the wilderness?" The angel is, thus, informing Hagar that Yishmael will live amongst men ("עַל פְנֵי כָּל אֶּחָּיו יִּשְכֹן"), intermingling and socializing with them ("יָּדוֹ בַכֹל"), rather than alone in the wilderness.
Avrohom's plea: "לוּ יִשְמָעֵאל יִחְיֶה לְפָנֶיך " – According to Abarbanel, Avrohom is asking HaShem what will become of Yishmael once Yitzchak is born. He is worried about Yishmael's physical and spiritual well-being, wondering whether Yishmael will die young (being replaced by Yitzchak) and whether he will be part of HaShem's covenant. The question assumes that, in Avrohom's eyes, there was no intrinsic disqualification which would have caused Yishmael to be automatically rejected.
"מְצַחֵק" – Most of these commentators suggest that Yishmael was simply happily dancing, playing, or laughing, and that the word carries no derogatory connotation at all.
Why did Sarah want Yishmael expelled?
- According to Ibn Ezra, Sarah was simply jealous, while the Tzeror HaMor asserts that she was insulted as she mistakenly thought that Yishmael was laughing at her.
- Abarbanel contends that even before the incident Sarah was planning to expel Yishmael, fearing that otherwise he would claim rights to the inheritance. Seeing Yishmael being the center of attention simply confirmed her suspicions that the longer he stayed, the more difficult disinheriting him would become.
Evaluation of Sarah – According to the Tzeror HaMor, Yishmael's actions did not warrant an expulsion and Sarah sinned in her actions. Her descendants were later punished when Yishmael's progeny refused water to the Children of Israel, resulting in many deaths. Radak, too, suggests that Sarah was deserving of rebuke, saying that Avrohom kept quiet only for the sake of "household peace" (שלום בית).
