But, as he who was born according to the flesh then persecuted him who was born according to the Spirit, even so it is now. (Gal 4,29)

We do not find it surprising that Isaac was threatened by Ishmael and not the other way around. After all, at that time Isaac was a small child and Ishmael a teenage boy. But when we consider their later lives, though we don't have much mention of them, it is obvious that the same trend would have continued here. We have only fleeting mentions of Isaac's character, but it is clear from these that he was a gentle man, who, while experiencing God's great blessing, suffered oppression (we are reminded of his disputes with the Philistines, in which it was he who was in the right, but who yielded). On the other hand, the prophecy speaks of Ishmael's fierce, conflicted nature ("He shall be a wild man; his hand shall be against every man, and every man’s hand against him." 16:12). If he had not been sent far to the east, it would naturally have been he who would have attacked, not Isaac.

And so it has always been in this world. The seed of God experiences blessings from heaven, but oppression on earth. From people in the neighborhood, from the state, from members of other religions, from Christians who have not surrendered to God. The spirit of this world finds a way to vent its anger on God's dear people because they do not belong to it and it has no power over them.

And so it has been from the beginning. The first murder was committed by the strong brother Cain, kneading the earth with his plough, on his brother Abel, a bit dreamer who accompanied the sheep in the pasture and often slept with them. Abel's name means "vapor," and characterizes their race, their fragility and vulnerability.

Isaacs, the blessed seed of our age, may have many faults, but one they must not commit: to cause oppression to others, to persecute them. Should they do so, not only will their entire message be lost, but its very core will be irrevocably changed. They may unwittingly move from being the bride to being the harlot without noticing it. "After beginning by means of the Spirit, are you now trying to finish by means of the flesh?" (Gal. 3:3) The history of the Church is proof of this.