Genesis 16:13 She gave this name to the LORD who spoke to her: “You are the God who sees me,” for she said, “I have now seen the One who sees me.”
The majesty of God’s redeeming power has been made evident since the dawn of time. When we consider the heavens, the work of God’s hands, we witness the grandiose expanse of His creative intellect and yet in the midst of all the expanse, God looks upon us.
Do you ever feel like God has overlooked you?
There was a young woman who was brought into the tent of Abraham to serve under his wife Sarai. An Egyptian by descent, Hagar would have been considered lowly, and without much regard. As a maid servant, she would have been responsible for helping Sarai with basic household duties such as cooking, cleaning, and laundry. The lowliest were expected to be available at any time. They might help with livestock, work in the fields, and it wasn’t uncommon to serve as a surrogate for the mistress when she couldn’t bear children.
God had promised Abraham not only an heir, but a number of descendants who would come after him more numerous than the stars he could see.
Genesis 15:4-5 “And behold, the word of the Lord came to him, saying, “This one shall not be your heir, but one who will come from your own body shall be your heir.” Then He brought him outside and said, “Look now toward heaven, and count the stars if you are able to number them.” And He said to him, “So shall your descendants be.”
The promise had been given and then God sealed it with a Covenant agreement.
Abraham knew the promise would come from him, but he and Sarai had become impatient and took matters into their own hands. After Abraham laid with Hagar and she conceived, Sarai became jealous and dealt harshly with that poor young woman. Sarai got what she desired, and yet it wasn’t enough. After Hagar fled from Sarai, we see God intervening again, but this time in the life of that lowly maiden.
Genesis 16:7 “Now the Angel of the Lord found her by a spring of water in the wilderness, by the spring on the way to Shur. And He said, “Hagar, Sarai’s maid, where have you come from, and where are you going?”
The God who hung the heavens, looked down upon that poor girl and showed her compassion. God gave Hagar a promise, much like the promise He gave Abraham.
Genesis 16:9 “The Angel of the Lord said to her, “Return to your mistress, and submit yourself under her hand.” Then the Angel of the Lord said to her, “I will multiply your descendants exceedingly, so that they shall not be counted for multitude.”
God’s promise showed Hagar that not only was He present and heard her prayers, but that He was compassionate and merciful. Regardless of the circumstances surrounding the event, God looked down upon Hagar and saw her for the person that she is.
Genesis 16:13 “Then she called the name of the Lord who spoke to her, You-Are-the-God-Who-Sees (El Roi); for she said, “Have I also here seen Him who sees me?”
When God intervenes, He shows us an aspect of who He is. Compassion, mercy, and gentleness are just a few of the attributes we witness here, but even more so is how God sees the lowly. The God who saw Hagar during the greatest trial of her life, is the same God who saw Job in his affliction.
Job 7:8 “The eye of Him who sees me(El Roi) will behold me no more;
while your eyes are on me, I shall be gone.”
The God Who Sees
No matter what position we may hold, or the extent of our failures, God does not see people the way the world sees them. When Samuel was tasked with finding the next king of Israel, God directed him to the household of Jesse. As each of Jesse’s sons stood before the prophet, each were summarily dismissed. Jesse had assumed David would not be considered so he didn’t invite him to see the prophet, but God saw in David what others could not see.
1 Samuel 16:12 “And he sent and brought him in. Now he was ruddy and had beautiful eyes and was handsome(Roi). And the LORD said, “Arise, anoint him, for this is he.”
The world saw in David a particular image, but God could see that he would be a man after His own heart.
The Lord looks beyond the flesh and sees the spirit of man.
Even when the physical appearance is depleted, when what is visible to the world is repulsive and considered ugly, the Lord continues to see the person for who they are.
Job 33:21 “His flesh is so wasted away that it cannot be seen(Roi), and his bones that were not seen stick out.”
The body may be broken, aged with time, afflicted by sin or just malformed in a way that doesn’t look normal. Praise God, we are not judged by the outward appearance, otherwise we would all be lost. The heart can be softened, it can be turned to God and healed. The heart can be transformed by the power of God and made beautiful in His sight.
For those who choose to follow Jesus, there is a transformation that occurs. The Lord takes that which is repulsive and makes it beautiful. The heart of sin is an offense towards God’s holiness, the heart forgiven is made pure, white, and holy before Him.
The God who Reveals
For those who choose to reject the Lord, the ugliness of sin will be revealed. As God condemned the lawless nation that had forsaken Him, He reminded the prophet Nahum that He will expose their evil for all to see.
Nahum 3:6 “I will cover you with filth and show (Roi) the world how vile you really are.”
There is a day coming when all will be made evident. For those who have been redeemed, the Lord will exalt His people and declare their glory. For those who have hardened their hearts and turned from the living God, the vileness of their lives will be exposed for all to see.
The God who sees is the God who is judge over all.
Nothing escapes His sight, no one will be judged unfairly.
How do you think God sees you today?
We can know our judgment by holding up His Word to our lives. The Word of God is living and active, sharper than any two edged sword, dividing soul and spirit, joint and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.(Heb. 4:12)
Let the Word be your judge now, so that you won’t be surprised when the One who revealed that Word stands before you one day…and the God who sees you, who knows you, will be your salvation just as He was there for that young maiden so long ago.
U.T. 