When Hagar fled the household of Abram, she was headed back toward Egypt when God sent a messenger ("the angel of the Lord") to intercept her (Gen 16:7).
The identity of this messenger has been the source of much speculation. The angel seemed to distinguish himself from God ("the Lord has given heed to your affliction"--v 11--and also identify himself with God ("I will so greatly multiply your offspring..."---v 10). After the incident Hagar believed that she had survived an encounter with God (v 13).
Some Christians believe that this appearance of the angel of the Lord was a Christophany, an appearance of Jesus before his Incarnation. Others argue that this angel spoke as God in verse 10 because he was authorized to do so as God's agent. (See this article for further discussion.)
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