The Torah touches on this very issue, and the Rabbis of the Midrash, those ancient interpreters of scripture, offer some pretty fascinating explanations.
Let's dive into Bereshit Rabbah 45, a section of the great Midrashic commentary on Genesis. The verse we're looking at is Genesis 16:1: "Sarai, Abram’s wife, had not borne children to him, and she had an Egyptian maidservant, and her name was Hagar." It seems straightforward, right? But the Rabbis see layers of meaning here.
The Midrash connects Sarai's difficulty conceiving to Proverbs 31:10: "A woman of valor who can find? Far beyond pearls is her value [mikhra]." Rabbi Abba bar Kahana asks, what is her "mikhra"? He answers: her pregnancy. For a righteous woman, conception is difficult, more precious than pearls. It's as if the very act of bringing life into the world is harder for those closest to God. We find a similar idea expressed when the Midrash interprets Ezekiel 16:3, "Your origins [mekhorotayikh] and your birth," understanding mekhorotayikh to mean conception, implying it comes even before birth itself.
Why would this be? The Midrash hints that great righteousness comes with great challenges. Think about it: Abraham was older than his brothers, yet his brothers had children earlier. The Midrash tells us that Abraham was one year older than Naḥor, and Naḥor was one year older than Haran. So, Abraham was two years older than Haran. Allowing one year for the pregnancy of Milka and one year for the pregnancy of Yiska, Haran begot children at the age of six years! But Abraham? No children for a long, long time. Was this a coincidence? The Rabbis suggest that because Abraham was so righteous, begetting children was much more difficult for him than for Haran.
But was the problem with Abraham or Sarah? The Midrash presents differing opinions. Rabbi Yehuda says that Sarai could have had children with someone else; the issue was with Abraham. Rabbi Nehemya disagrees, saying neither to him nor to another would she have borne children! So, what does "had not borne children to him" mean? Rabbi Nehemya interprets it as "to him and to her [lo vela]," suggesting the difficulty lay with both of them.
Then there's the curious detail about Hagar, the Egyptian maidservant. The text calls her "her maidservant." The Midrash explains that Hagar was a maidservant of melog property. What's melog? It refers to property that belongs to the wife, but whose profits belong to the husband. He had to provide for her, but couldn’t sell her. So, Hagar belonged to Sarah, not Abraham. If Abraham had full ownership, she would have been "their" maidservant.
The Talmud (Mishna Yevamot 7:1) mentions "melog slaves," and the Rabbis wanted to understand this concept better. Reish Lakish explained it like this: "Pluck, pluck [melog melog]." Like plucking hair that keeps growing back, the husband takes the profits, while the principle remains intact. Interesting, right?
But here’s where the story gets really intriguing. Rabbi Shimon ben Yoḥai offers a stunning idea: Hagar was Pharaoh's daughter! When Pharaoh saw the miracles that were done for Sarah's sake, he gave his daughter to Abraham (or, according to some manuscripts, to Sarah), declaring that it was preferable for his daughter to be a maidservant in that household than a mistress in another. The Midrash sees this reflected in the verse: "And she had an Egyptian maidservant, and her name was Hagar" – here is your reward [ha agrikh]. The same thing happened with Avimelekh, who also gave his daughter to Sarah after witnessing miracles. This is then linked to Psalms 45:10: "The daughters of kings are among those who honor you; at your right hand stands the consort, attired in gold from Ofir."
So, what does all this mean? It's a reminder that things aren't always as they seem on the surface. The struggles we face, especially those deeply personal ones, might have deeper, even cosmic, implications. Righteousness isn't a guarantee of an easy life; sometimes, it's quite the opposite. And even in the most challenging situations, there can be unexpected blessings, even daughters of kings, hidden within.