In their book Urban Legends of the Old Testament, David Croteau and Gary Yates discuss 40 common misconceptions about biblical passages. One of the misconceptions they address is the idea that today's Middle East conflicts have their roots in strife within Abraham's family, and that today's jihadists are motivated by a "spirit of Ishmael."
To our ears, the angel of the Lord's prophecy about Ishmael in Genesis 16:12---"He shall be a wild donkey of a man:---does not sound like a blessing. However, Croteau and Yates point out that it is similar to Jacob's blessings for the tribes of Israel recorded in Geneis 49. There, for example, Judah is compared to a lion's cub, Issachar to a strong donkey, Dan to a serpent, and Benjamin to a "ravenous wolf." The imagery of the wild donkey probably connotes independence and strength. The descendants of Ishmael would not be city dwellers, but desert nomads, not following other people's rules. Hagar was a slave, but her children would not be anybody's slaves.
Certainly there was friction between Sarah and Hagar, leading to a parting of the ways (Gen 21), but there are also indications that Abraham and Isaac maintained a close relationship with Hagar and Ishmael. For example, Isaac and Ishmael came together to bury their father (Ge 25:9-10).
A certain amount of conflict between Israel and Ishmaelites is mentioned in the Bible. It was to Ishmaelite traders that Joseph was sold (Ge 37:28), although of course it was Joseph's brothers who were responsible for the sale. Gideon's forces did battle with some Ishmaelites (Jdg 8:24). And Ishmaelites are among the antagonists enumerated in Psalm 83 (see verse 6). But in the end there will be a coming together of Israel and Ishmael in the messianic kingdom (Isa 60:6-8).
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