Ishmael was the son of Abraham and the Egyptian slave Hagar. There were several other men in the Old Testament named Ishmael.
* The name "Ishmael" means "God hears."
* God promised to bless Abraham's son Ishmael, but he was not the son God had promised to establish his covenant with.
* God protected Hagar and Ishmael when they were sent into the desert.
* While Ishmael was living in the desert of Paran, he married an Egyptian woman.
* Ishmael son of Nethaniah was an army officer from Judah who led a group of men to kill a governor who had been appointed by the Babylonian king, Nebuchadnezzar.
* There were also four other men named Ishmael in the Old Testament.