The Return of the Prince of Persia
by
Josprel
A fictional story about the spiritual forces behind the current world unrest, based on the Book of the Prophet Daniel, Chapter 10.
Part Two
Rich opened one of the Bibles to the Book of Genesis, chapter 16, and handed it to Brad. He then found the same passage in his own Bible.
“Brad, before we read from this chapter, I’ll give you some background to it. For many years, Abraham’s wife, Sara, was unable to conceive a child. She was so devastated by this that she finally convinced her husband to take Hagar, her Egyptian maid, as a concubine. Her plan was to use Hager as a sort of surrogate mother to bear her a child that Sara afterward would take as her own.
“Abraham consented to the plan. Verse four records that when Hagar ‘. . . learned that she was pregnant, she became proud and despised Sara.’ Because of this, Sara treated Hagar so harshly that she ran away into the desert where she met the angel of the Lord by a spring of water. The angel told her to return to her mistress. He promised, ‘I will give you so many descendents that no one will ever be able to count them. You will have a son and you will name him Ishmael, because the Lord has heard your cry of distress. Ishmael will live as a wild man. He will be against everyone, and everyone will be against him.’
“Brad, it may provide insight into current world events to realize that Ishmael was the forefather of the Arab races; they descended directly from him. Also of highest importance is the fact that Mohammed, the founder if Islam, was a direct descendent of Ishmael. So you see, Brad, the world unrest occurring in our generation is a continuation of the fulfillment of the angel’s prediction to Hagar that Ishmael would be against everyone and everyone would be against him.”
“Wow, that angel sure called it like it’s happening, didn’t he!” Brad exclaimed, massaging his forehead in consternation, “How long ago was that?”
“Hmmm, let’s see,” Rich responded, flipping through the pages of a Bible concordance. Arriving at the page he wanted, he studied it for an instant then said, “This gives an approximate date of 1911 B.C.”
Brad did some mental arithmetic. “That’s almost four thousand years ago! How could that angel know what would happen four thousand years in the future?”
“He was a messenger from God, Brad. He was carrying God’s message to Hagar. I need not tell you that God is omniscient – He knows all things - past, present and future.”
“I suppose so. Kinda scary, though.”
“Only for those who sin and do not repent and ask His forgiveness.”
“Yeah, I suppose. What happened to Hagar after she went back to her mistress?”
“Hagar had her child and, for a while, Sara treated him like her own son. But, several years later, God gave Abraham and Sara a son of their own and they named him Isaac. Abraham was the supreme chief of a powerful desert tribe; to celebrate Sari’s weaning of Isaac, he put on a big feast. During the festivities, Sara thought Ishmael was ridiculing the celebration and this infuriated her.
“Send away this slave girl and her son,” she demanded of her husband, “Her son must not inherit anything from you. Only my son, Isaac, must be your heir.”
Brad expressed surprised. “Sara certainly wasn’t a very nice woman, was she? She strikes me as a person who was selfish and cruel.”
“With the exception of the Lord Jesus, the people of the Bible were imperfect human beings, just as we are, Brad.”
“What did Abraham do about her demand?”
“At first he refused. After all, Ishmael also was his son. But he finally relented after . . .”
“Ahaa! Even Abraham was a henpecked husband!” Brad quipped.
Rich chuckled. “He consented only after God instructed him not to worry about Ishmael or Hagar. I’ll read it to you. “It is through Isaac I will give you the descendents I have promised. I will also give many children to the son of the slave girl, because he also is your son.’”
Brad had been following along in his Bible. He heaved a deep sigh. “It says here that Abraham sent them into the desert with some food and a leather bag filled with water. Some guy! He didn’t even provide donkeys for them to ride. Hagar had to carry the bag of water and her son on her back. The poor guys just wandered around till they ran out of water. The kid grew so thirsty he almost died! What kind of a man of God could do such a cruel act?!”
“But they didn’t die did they, Brad? God took care of them. He showed Hagar where she could find water.”
“Okay, okay. So Ishmael is the ancestor of the Arabs, and his brother, Isaac, is the ancestor of the Israelis. The Arabs and the Israelis are practically kissing cousins, so they always battle each other because Isaac inherited all his father’s possessions and Ishmael only inherited a skin-bag full of water and a sack of food that wasn’t all for him."
"Sounds pretty bad, doesn’t it, but you've got it. You'll also find it of interest that each of Ishmael's twelve sons became the forefather of an Arab nation in existence in our time. In other words, Ishmael's twelve sons founded twelve tribes that evolved into twelve Arab nations. That fact fulfills the angel's promise to Hagar that she'd have countless descendents; so many in fact, that no one will ever be able to count them."
“I’ve had enough for now, Rich. I’ll have to absorb what we just discussed. Maybe we can get together some time next week and talk about how Persia developed into Iran and Iraq. I know I’d find that very interesting.”
“Sure, Brad. In the meantime, I’ll research the subject. Perhaps you’d be willing to find books on the topic in the public library and do some research of your own.”
“Okay, I can do that.”
The friends shook hands and Brad left.
Continued
Author Resource:-
Josprel is an ordained minister, who resides with his wife, Maria, in New York State, across from Canada. Though brought by devout parents, at an early age, he abandoned the Church and religion in general, not returning to them until several years later. He served three years in the Far East as a sergeant of operating engineers with the U.S. Air Force. Josprel was among the first Air Force troops to enter Japan after W.W. II. He then was separated from active duty and placed on a ten-year reserve status. He studied for the ministry under the G.I Bill of Rights, and holds a Master of Theology degree. During his many years of ministry, Josprel pastored three churches, including one in Attica, New York, the location of America's bloodiest prison riot. The Attica Prison administration requested Josprel to conduct weekly, three-hour-long Bible studies for the inmates. Josprel did so for some four years, before turning them over to another pastor, due to heavy demands on his time. Josprel ministers with the evangelical denomination of his youth. He is a prolific writer, whose stories and articles have appeared in print and on the Internet. He is authoring two novels: “Beloved Apostate” and “Kanfal.”
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