The Morning Psalm
Names of God

El Roi

The God Who Sees Me

Pronounced el ROH-ee

And she called the name of the LORD that spake unto her, Thou God seest me: for she said, Have I also here looked after him that seeth me?
Genesis 16:13, KJV

El Roi — “the God who sees” — is a name given not by a patriarch or prophet, but by Hagar, a mistreated servant girl, alone and pregnant in the desert. She is the first person in the Bible to give God a name.

Running from cruelty, feeling utterly overlooked, Hagar met God in the wilderness and discovered he had seen her all along. She said in wonder, “Thou God seest me.”

This name is tender comfort for anyone who feels invisible — unnoticed in their pain, their work, their loneliness. The God of the universe is not too busy or too grand to see one hurting person in a desert.

El Roi sees you. Not just your circumstances, but you — your tears, your longing, your unspoken need. You have never once been overlooked by God.

See also

Genesis 16:13 — verse card
Free verse card & wallpaper

Make this verse yours

Save Genesis 16:13 as a free card or phone wallpaper — pick a colour, then download it or share straight to Instagram, Pinterest, and more.

Create & share