Hagar bore a son for Abram. Abram called the name of his son, whom Hagar bore, Ishmael.
World English Bible
Genesis 16:15
This verse is examined in more than one Scripture Analysis section. Each lens is shown on its own terms, in the section's own words; GEBible reaches no verdict of its own.
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Examined in Scripture Analysis
Contradictions (2)
Questions where the Bible appears to say two different things, with the passages on each side set together.
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How old was Abraham when Ishmael was born?
Genesis 16:16 says plainly that Abraham was 86 when Ishmael was born. But if you stack Gen 11:26 (Terah was 70 when Abram was born), Acts 7:4 (Abram left Haran only after Terah died), and Gen 11:32 (Terah died at 205), then Abram was at least 135 when he left Haran — which would make Ishmael's birth even later than that, not at 86.
Critical scholarship: Widely regarded as a genuine contradiction.
Numbers
More on this question
The proposed answers and sources for each reading are on the question page.
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How many sons did Abraham have?
Genesis 22:2 calls Isaac Abraham's "only son" — at the moment when Ishmael is already thirteen years old and demonstrably alive, and when Genesis 25 is about to list six more sons by Keturah. So either Abraham has one son, or two, or eight, depending on the page.
Critical scholarship: Leans toward reconciliation.
Numbers
More on this question
The proposed answers and sources for each reading are on the question page.
Each section sets the viewpoints side by side; you weigh the evidence. Here, "critical scholarship" means academic study, not a value judgment. How this is built →
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This citation refers to this GEBible page — the verse and the analysis gathered here. To cite the underlying scholarship, cite those sources directly.
"Genesis 16:15 — Scripture Analysis" GEBible, https://gebible.app/analysis/verse/genesis/16/15?version=WEB (retrieved 26 August 2026).