That is what is written: “You have taken account of my wandering. Put my tears in Your flask [nodekha]” (Psalms 56:9) – [accept my tears] like that woman with the flask [Hagar]. Just as it is written in the book of Psalms: “Hear my prayer, Lord, and heed my cry; [do not be silent at my tears]” (Psalms 39:13) – [David said:] ‘To the tears of Hagar You were not silent, but to my tears You are silent?
And if You will say: Because she was a stranger she was beloved, I, too, “for I am a stranger with You, a sojourner, like all my fathers”’ (Psalms 39:13). “God heard the voice of the lad; the angel of God called to Hagar from the heavens, and said to her: What is it with you, Hagar? Fear not, as God has heard the voice of the lad, as he is there” (Genesis 21:17). “The angel of God called to Hagar from the heavens” – due to the merit of Abraham.
“As he is there” – due to his own merit; the prayer of an ill person himself is superior to all others. “As he is there” – Rabbi Simon said: The ministering angels leapt to condemn him before God]. They said before Him: ‘Master of the universe, a person who is destined to kill your children by thirst,39When being exiled by the Babylonians (see Eikha Rabba 2:4). will You produce a spring for him?’ He said to them: ‘What is he right now, righteous or wicked?’
They said to him: ‘He is righteous.’ He said to them: ‘I judge a person only at his present time. “Rise, lift the boy”’ (Genesis 21:18). “God opened her eyes and she saw a well of water.
She went and filled the skin with water, and gave the lad to drink” (Genesis 21:19). “God opened her eyes” – Rabbi Binyamin said: Everyone has the presumptive status of being blind until the Holy One blessed be He opens their eyes.40A person does not see anything unless God wants them to see it. [This is derived] from here: “God opened her eyes.” “She went and filled the skin with water” – this teaches that she was lacking in faith.41She did not believe that God would continue to provide them with water.