2. Sarai remains silent for two main reasons: she is a good wife who obeys her husband, and she she has a lot to gain here.  She will not lose her husband for starters, and through God's plan she can be reunited with him again.  Although it may seem misogynistic that Sarai do as Abram pleases, it is not necessarily meant like this.  Abram was very good to Sarai and she realized that.  Out of respect for him as a person, a good provider, a follower of God, and a wise man, she listened obeyed his wishes.  She probably thought this was a good plan, and trusted that Abram knew what he was doing.  In the end, the plan did work, and Sarai got to be with Abram again, reaffirming is wise decisions.

3. The most obvious human problem is jealousy.  Sarai is jealous that Hagar could conceive and Sarai could not.  Hagar may or may not have looked at Sarai in contempt.  Sarai was just so disgusted by her and jealous that she wanted to send Hagar away.  In terms of gender, Hagar and Sarai are both women.  Many people have theories about women's emotions and actions vs. those of men.  This is the first time we see two women pinned against each other and how they react to it.  Class is an issue in this story because since Sarai is of a higher class and Hagar is just a slave, Hagar has to do what Sarai wants.  Sarai uses this power in a wretched way to dismiss Hagar and send her off into the desert wandering.  Ethnicity may be related to class.  I am not sure that at this time all Egyptians were slaves or if the Pharaoh was still the main ruler.  The story also reveals that God takes pity and sympathy on those who suffer.  Because of Hagar's unjust suffering, he promised her many, many descendants.


4. God knows that Abraham will do anything he asks, but he also knows that Abraham loves his son more than anything, too, maybe even more than God.  God feels the need to test this to make sure that Abraham's loyalty is still with God rather than his son.  This story shows that Abraham loves God more than any person or thing in the world, and will do whatever it takes to prove it.  Another interesting point is when the Angel says that Abraham "fears" the Lord.  Could this mean fear or love?  Many people interpret this differently.  If it does actually mean fear then it changes the whole context of the writing.  Maybe, in this case, Abraham fears what God will do to him if he doesn't kill Isaac.  He has seen God to some pretty bad things to others who did not obey Him, and does not want to be the next to face God's smite.