📖 Biblical Definition
Sarah is the wife of Abraham, the mother of Isaac, and the matriarch of the covenant people. She is honored in Scripture not for independence or self-assertion, but for her faith and her role in the covenant promise. Though she laughed at the promise of a son in her old age, God fulfilled His word — "Is anything too hard for the LORD?" (Genesis 18:14). Isaac was born when Sarah was ninety and Abraham one hundred, proving that the covenant child comes by divine power, not human ability. Paul uses Sarah and Hagar as an allegory of the two covenants — Sarah representing the free woman, the covenant of promise, the Jerusalem above (Galatians 4:22-31). Peter holds her up as a model of godly womanhood — she adorned herself with "the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit" and called Abraham "lord" (1 Peter 3:5-6). She is listed in the hall of faith: "By faith Sarah herself received power to conceive" (Hebrews 11:11).
📜 Webster 1828 Definition
The wife of Abraham and mother of Isaac; a princess among the faithful.
expand to see more
SA'RAH, n. [Heb. שרה, princess.] The wife of Abraham, originally named Sarai. She bore Isaac in her old age according to the promise of God. She is held up by the apostles as an example of faith and of godly feminine submission, adorning herself with the beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit.
📖 Key Scripture
• Genesis 18:14 — "Is anything too hard for the LORD? At the appointed time I will return to you, and Sarah shall have a son."
• Genesis 21:6 — "Sarah said, 'God has made laughter for me; everyone who hears will laugh over me.'"
• Galatians 4:26-28 — "But the Jerusalem above is free, and she is our mother... Now you, brothers, like Isaac, are children of promise."
• Hebrews 11:11 — "By faith Sarah herself received power to conceive, even when she was past the age."
• 1 Peter 3:5-6 — "This is how the holy women who hoped in God used to adorn themselves, by submitting to their own husbands, as Sarah obeyed Abraham."
⚠️ Modern Corruption
Sarah is recast as a victim of patriarchy rather than honored as a model of faith and godly womanhood.
expand to see more
Feminist theology reads Sarah's story through a lens of oppression — portraying her as a woman silenced and controlled by a patriarchal culture. Her calling Abraham "lord" (1 Peter 3:6) is treated as embarrassing rather than exemplary. The Hagar incident is weaponized to portray Sarah as cruel and Abraham as exploitative. But Scripture's own evaluation is clear: Sarah is honored for her faith, not pitied for her circumstances. She is the free woman in Paul's allegory, representing the covenant of grace. Peter explicitly presents her as a model — not because she was perfect, but because she hoped in God and adorned herself with inner beauty rather than external display. To impose modern feminist categories on Sarah is to reject the Holy Spirit's own assessment of her character and significance. Her honor lies in her role within the covenant — she is the mother of the promised seed, and through her line came the Savior of the world.
Usage
• "Sarah represents the covenant of promise — the free woman whose son Isaac was born by the power of God, not the effort of man."
• "Peter holds Sarah up as a model not of cultural conformity but of faith — a woman whose beauty was the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit."
• "Is anything too hard for the LORD? The birth of Isaac to ninety-year-old Sarah answers once and for all — nothing is impossible with God."