Chapter Twenty-Two
The Binding and Offering of Isaac
22:1 After these things God tested Abraham and said to him, “Abraham!” And he said, “Here I am.” 2 He said, “Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.”
This chapter is sandwiched between two time references. In chapter 21 we read that Sarah had weaned Isaac, giving us an approximate age of Isaac around two years old. In chapter 23 we hear about Sarah’s death when Isaac was 37 years old. This gives us an approximately 35-year window for the story in this chapter to occur. Based on the narrative and the use of words like, boy (or ‘lad’ in KJV), it is often taught that Isaac was just a little boy. The Hebrew word ‘nǎ’·ǎr’[1] (translated ‘boy’ in verses 5 and 12) is a masculine noun referring to either a young man, boy, or even servant. Previously in Genesis 14:24 it was used to refer to young men old enough to go into battle (see 1 Samuel 21:2-3; 30:17). To understand this story, Isaac should not be thought of being a naive little boy, instead it might be best to consider him in his thirties.
The key to this chapter is the Hebrew word ‘nis·sā(h)’,[2] which means “to test.” This is the first appearance of this word, it can also be translated as ‘try’, ‘tempt’ (KJV) or ‘prove’. We learned earlier that Abraham, “believed the LORD, and he counted it to him as righteousness,” (Genesis 15:6) and now that same faith was going to be tested. Did Abraham know this was only a test? Possibly, since any killing was an abomination to God (see Genesis 9:5-6) and that He had never requested a human sacrifice before; Abraham may have understood that this was going to be a test. Some believe that Isaac began to represent everything sacred in Abraham’s heart, possibly even eclipsing God, so God tested him.
There is no indication in the text whether Abraham had any further interactions with God since he had called out to God in Beersheba many years earlier. Now, when God breaks His silence, He asks Abraham to do something unthinkable, gruesome, and evil (in our minds and certainly out of character for God), that is to sacrifice his son as a burnt offering. Abraham’s response is not recorded, although we see him obediently responding in the following verse.
God referred to Isaac as Abraham’s only son. We know that Abraham had two sons and that he did love both of them, however, there was to be only one lineage in the covenant. The line of Isaac was the line that would produce the Messiah. The next word that is now seen for the first time in Scriptures, is the Hebrew word ‘ā·hǎḇ’·tā’,[3] translated here as ‘love’. If the word ‘test’ is the key to this event, then we can consider the word ‘love’ to be the key to the entire Bible. If we manage to misunderstand that word, we may miss completely the purpose of God’s plan of salvation. The Bible reminds us that God is love (see 1 John 4:8); that love is the greatest gift (see 1 Corinthians 13:13); and it is the first fruit we bear as Christians (see Galatians 5:22). So what can we learn from the first usage of the word in Scripture? It is used to describe the relationship of a father’s love for his son. The lesson is for us to help us understand the incredible love of God the Father for His Son Jesus (see Matthew 3:17), and the Father who was willing to offer His only Son because He also loves us (see John 3:16).
This is the second time the Hebrew word ‘ō·lā(h)’,[4] referring to “that which goes up” (see Genesis 8:20 for previous use), is a reference to a voluntary sacrificial offering that will be later defined and codified in the first chapter of Leviticus. There is no reason to think this was any different than what will be described in the book of Leviticus. Just as the name implies, it requires the killing of the entity being sacrificed and then burned.
22:3 So Abraham rose early in the morning, saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him, and his son Isaac. And he cut the wood for the burnt offering and arose and went to the place of which God had told him. 4 On the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes and saw the place from afar. 5 Then Abraham said to his young men, “Stay here with the donkey; I and the boy will go over there and worship and come again to you.” 6 And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it on Isaac his son. And he took in his hand the fire and the knife. So they went both of them together. 7 And Isaac said to his father Abraham, “My father!” And he said, “Here I am, my son.” He said, “Behold, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?” 8 Abraham said, “God will provide for himself the lamb for a burnt offering, my son.” So they went both of them together.
The next day Abraham rose early to prepare for the trip God had requested. He saddled (Hebrew word ‘yǎ·ḥǎḇōš’,[5] meaning “to bind on”) his donkey, cut the wood he would need for the sacrifice and gathered Isaac and two other young men to go with him. The young men walked while Abraham rode on a donkey as they headed out towards Moriah. On the third day Abraham saw that they were close to where God had wanted them to be, so he ordered the young men to stay there and wait while he and his son would go to a spot to worship (Hebrew word ‘nišet·tǎ·ḥǎwě(h)’,[6] previously translated as ‘bowed’, see Genesis 18:2; 19:1).
Abraham was not lying about when he said that the two would be back there, knowing he was going to sacrifice Isaac. After everything he has gone through and seeing the hand of God perform many wonders, Abraham now understood what it meant to trust God in His promises. If God said that Isaac was going to be a great nation, to him that meant either God was going to stop him from killing Isaac or raise him from the dead, in either case, Isaac would be coming back (see Hebrews 11:17-19). Abraham then placed the wood on Isaac, probably on his back, took the fire (flame of some kind, possibly a torch), the knife and the two of them continued towards Mount Moriah. As they walked, Isaac realized that something was missing, so he asked his father, “where is the lamb for a burnt offering?” Abraham tells him that God will provide for Himself the sacrifice. This was not some quick response to keep Isaac from being frightened, listen carefully to his words, perhaps it would be easier to follow using the King James Version, “God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering.” While it is true that God does provide a ram (see verse 13), the text seems to be pointing to a future event where God provides His Son, Jesus, as a sacrifice for our sins.
One question that is often asked, is why did God have Abraham travel so far to offer a sacrifice? The text here in Genesis does not offer an answer. However, the Bible does provide several clues as to why. In chapters 21 and 22 of the book of First Chronicles, we read about God’s judgment of Israel due to King David’s pride, one that required David to purchase the threshing floor property from Ornan the Jebusite to build an altar, which later became the site where the Temple was built. What does this have to do with the location where Abraham was to offer his son? Mount Moriah is the location where the Temple was built, “Then Solomon began to build the house of the LORD in Jerusalem on Mount Moriah, where the LORD had appeared to David his father, at the place that David had appointed, on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite.” (2 Chronicles 3:1) On the same hill that Abraham was to sacrifice his son, the Temple where the coming law will require sacrifices be offered for atonement, will be built. However, more importantly, it is the same hill where the ultimate sacrifice would be offered, the location where God will sacrifice His own Son, which will end the need for further sacrifices. Mount Moriah will later be referred to as Mount Zion. This action of Abraham is a model of the future event of Jesus’ crucifixion.
22:9 When they came to the place of which God had told him, Abraham built the altar there and laid the wood in order and bound Isaac his son and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. 10 Then Abraham reached out his hand and took the knife to slaughter his son. 11 But the angel of the LORD called to him from heaven and said, “Abraham, Abraham!” And he said, “Here I am.” 12 He said, “Do not lay your hand on the boy or do anything to him, for now I know that you fear God, seeing you have not withheld your son, your only son, from me.” 13 And Abraham lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, behind him was a ram, caught in a thicket by his horns. And Abraham went and took the ram and offered it up as a burnt offering instead of his son. 14 So Abraham called the name of that place, “The LORD will provide”; as it is said to this day, “On the mount of the LORD it shall be provided.”
After traveling for three days, they arrived where they needed to be on Mount Moriah and were now ready to do as God had instructed. The altar is constructed, and the wood is placed on the altar and Isaac was put into position on top of the wood. If there was any question as to what was about to occur, it would have been answered quickly by these actions. Emotions would have been beyond the ability to put into words as Abraham took hold of the knife (the text refers to a ‘mǎ·ǎḵě’·lěṯ’,[7] which is considered a large butcher form of knife, the word only appears four times in Scripture, twice in this story) and was ready to thrust the knife into Isaac, then he was suddenly stopped by the Angel of the LORD. When the angel called out to Abraham, he quickly responded, “Here I am!” (Hebrew “hin ę’·nî,”[8] being an emphatic response), he was more than willing to stop or delay the slaughter. The angel would not allow Abraham to do anything more to Isaac. The angel essentially tells him that he passed the test, saying that He now knows that Abraham had faith in Him. The wording makes it clear (“I know” and “from me”) that the angel was not just an angel but was in fact a Christophany, an appearance of Jesus (see commentary under Genesis 3:8-10 for discussion regarding Jesus in the Old Testament).
Once Isaac was off the altar, Abraham noticed when he looked up (perhaps looking up to God in thanksgiving) that a ram was trapped nearby, caught in a thicket (Hebrew ‘seḇǎḵ’,[9] referring to a dense growth of shrubs or underbrush), was a suitable animal provided by God for sacrifice. In response, Abraham named the location. “The LORD will provide,” (Hebrew “YHWH yir·ě(h)”)[10] an appropriate name considering that the Lord will provide the ultimate sacrifice many years later the same ridge will be called Golgotha (“place of the skull” or ‘calvary’ in Latin).
22:15 And the angel of the LORD called to Abraham a second time from heaven 16 and said, “By myself I have sworn, declares the LORD, because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, 17 I will surely bless you, and I will surely multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven and as the sand that is on the seashore. And your offspring shall possess the gate of his enemies, 18 and in your offspring shall all the nations of the earth be blessed, because you have obeyed my voice.” 19 So Abraham returned to his young men, and they arose and went together to Beersheba. And Abraham lived at Beersheba.
To emphasize the desire to fulfill an oath it was, and still is to some degree, common to acknowledge a higher power and then requesting their ability to aid them in that endeavor. A modern-day equivalent would be a courtroom oath like, “so help me God,” emphasizing that one means as they are saying. But what if there was no higher power than yourself? Would you swear to yourself? The answer is yes that is exactly what God is doing when He said from heaven, “By myself I have sworn,” meaning it will absolutely be done (see Hebrews 6:13-18). God then reaffirmed His previous promises to Abraham: He will surely bless Abraham; then using the previously used metaphors of the number of stars in the sky and sand on the seashore, He said he will surely multiply Abraham’s offspring; He will then grant Abraham’s offspring the ability to take possession of their enemy’s gates (take possession of their enemy cities); and will also grant Abraham’s offspring to be a blessing to all of the nations on earth. Why? Because Abraham obeyed His instructions? Didn’t Abraham already have a covenant where these things were already promised? God did indeed make an unconditional covenant with Abraham; however, this was a confirmation of Abraham’s faith in God. The epistle writer, James, helps us understand, “Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up his son Isaac on the altar? You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by his works; and the Scripture was fulfilled that says, ‘Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness’—and he was called a friend of God. You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. And in the same way was not also Rahab the prostitute justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way? For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead.” (James 2:21-26) Every day we do things based on our beliefs, for example when we sit in a chair we have faith that the chair will hold us. The same is true with our relationship with God, would we pray if we did not believe that He would answer? Faith without action is not very useful, Abraham’s actions set the standard for all who seek God and desire to please Him.
Once all was completed, Abraham and Isaac returned to the young men who had been waiting. Together, they all returned to Beersheba where Abraham now lived.
Considerations
The Jews have many customs and one of those customs is to read certain passages during certain celebrations, events, and gatherings. Most of their readings are named using a key word of the text, such as ‘Shema’ (meaning ‘hear’), referring to the reading of Deuteronomy 6:4-9. During the celebration of the Feast of Trumpets, the reading of Genesis 22:1-19 is called the ‘Akedah’ (or Akeidah), based on the Hebrew word[11] meaning, “the binding.” While many rabbis and prominent members of the Jewish community, for many years, have attempted to explain and develop several ways to interpret Abraham’s binding of Isaac, none of them are very rational. However, a Christian that recognizes this story as being a model of Jesus’ crucifixion would immediately see the correlation between the bindings and Jesus being bound to the cross.
Even though at this point the forbidding of human sacrifice had not yet been recorded, it is clear that human life was very valuable. Perhaps stated best in Genesis 9:6, “Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed, for God made man in his own image.” Any slaughter of a human being would be considered an abomination in God’s eyes. The law that will be later given to Moses, further clarifies that not only is human sacrifice unacceptable to God, it associates the concept with pagan worship practices (see Leviticus 18:21; 20:1-5; Deuteronomy 12:31; 18:10; see also 2 Kings 17:31; 21:6; Jeremiah 7:31; 19:5).
Many scholars have pointed out that the inclusion of the Hebrew word ‘nā’,[12] which relays the desire of an action (such as “please do this now”) in verse two, reduces the command to that of being only a request. Although, while it is most often not directly translated in most English Bibles (found between “take your son” and “your only son Isaac”), it could convey a want rather than an absolute command. Those scholars then conclude that Abraham could have declined without any retribution or guilt.
So why would God request Abraham to offer a human sacrifice? First of all, we know that He did stop Abraham from committing the act and secondly, we also know that God was testing Abraham’s faith. Still, it seems like a strange way for God to test someone, referring to a vile pagan ritual. God, while testing the faith of Abraham, was also making a dramatic statement that human sacrifice is not acceptable. In lessons like these, we can see in contrast the love of someone, who knows the value of human life, willing to ‘sacrifice’ themselves on behalf of someone else. Just as Jesus did and said, “Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.” (John 15:13)
Engineers and designers have for a very long time incorporated testing as one way to evaluate product or material performance. Materials are often “proof tested,” to verify their ability to withstand the required design load. But testing is not limited to just physical objects, testing can also be applied to a person’s values, obedience, ethics, beliefs, and faith. In the Bible, God regularly allowed scenarios that would test, and often expose, the true nature of a person’s heart. For example, immediately after the story of creation, we saw a test of Adam’s obedience in the Garden of Eden (see Genesis 2:9, 15-17; 3:1-13).
Even though someone might have the best of intentions by claiming something to be true, it is not until those proclaimed traits or points of view are manifested or verified, that they may be considered real, as everyone knows, words alone can be deceptive.
While the book of Job is perhaps the most well-known story of “proof testing” through intense suffering in the Bible, this story about God requiring Abraham to sacrifice his son is perhaps the most chilling. Can you think of a more horrific way for someone’s faith in God to be proof tested? Christians can also be proof tested and, since they are being watched by the world, how they deal with issues, stress, etc., can either be a positive or negative witness to others.
For some this idea of proof testing raises some questions, like does God need to test our faith to know it is legitimate? Isn’t God omnipotent, all knowing? Yes! So, why the test? The test is not for His enlightenment, it is for our growth. In the book of Romans, Paul referred to the story of Abraham’s faith being counted to him as righteousness (see Romans 4:13-22), concluding, “But the words ‘it was counted to him’ were not written for his sake alone, but for ours also. It will be counted to us who believe in him who raised from the dead Jesus our Lord, who was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification. Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.” (Romans 4:23-5:5) Note the progression, suffering produces endurance (just as a long-distance runner can endure longer runs), endurance produces character (focusing on God, not ourselves), and character produces hope, a stronger faith. Proof testing improves our usefulness in the kingdom while we are here on earth and it brings us closer to God.
The Bible often refers to a three-day period, perhaps the most important mention of a three-day period is in regard to Jesus being in a tomb for three days. Many people when they read: “For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures,” (1 Corinthians 15:3-4), forget that the apostle Paul was referring to the Old Testament when he speaks of the Scriptures. So what was Paul referring to when he said, “raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures?” The Old Testament has several references to three-day periods, several of them may apply.
In the Midrash known as the Bereishit (Genesis) Rabbah (a commentary on the book of Genesis),[13] it is interesting to note that chapter 56 begins with a discussion about Scripture’s use of three-day periods:
“On the third day, Abraham lifted up his eyes…” (Genesis 22:4) It is written “He will revive us from the two days, on the third day He will set us up, and we will live before Him.” (Hoshea 6:2) On the third day of the tribes it is written “On the third day, Joseph said to them…” (Genesis 42:18) On the third day of the spies, as it says “…and hide yourselves there three days…” (Joshua 2:16) On the third day of the giving of the Torah, as it says “It came to pass on the third day…” (Exodus 19:16) On the third day of Jonah, as it is written “…and Jonah was in the belly of the fish for three days and three nights.” (Jonah 2:1) On the third day of those who came up from exile, as it is written “…and stayed there three days.” (Ezra 8:32) On the third day of the resurrection of the dead, as it is written “He will revive us from the two days, on the third day He will set us up, and we will live before Him.” (Hoshea 6:2) On Esther’s third day “Now it came to pass on the third day, that Esther clothed herself regally…” (Esther 5:1) The royalty of her father’s house. In what merit? This is an argument of the Rabbis and R’ Levi. The Rabbis say: in the merit of the third day of the giving of the Torah, as it says “It came to pass on the third day when it was morning…” (Exodus 19:16) R’ Levi said: in the merit of the third day of our father Avraham, as it says "On the third day, Abraham lifted up his eyes and saw the place from afar.” (Genesis 22:4) What did he see? He saw a cloud attached to the mountain. He said: it appears that this is the place where the Holy One told me to offer up my son.[14]
Perhaps the most noteworthy point is the rabbi’s recognition of a three-day gap for the resurrection of the dead. However, one can also see, that Isaac was “dead” to Abraham for three days—from the time the commandment came until he was freed by the angel.[15]
The Genesis Rabbah chapter 56 also comments that having Isaac carrying the wood on his back would be comparable to the Roman practice of condemned prisoners carrying their own cross, like what Jesus did just before His crucifixion. An interesting comment from Rabbinic Literature.
News from Home
22:20 Now after these things it was told to Abraham, “Behold, Milcah also has borne children to your brother Nahor: 21 Uz his firstborn, Buz his brother, Kemuel the father of Aram, 22 Chesed, Hazo, Pildash, Jidlaph, and Bethuel.” 23 (Bethuel fathered Rebekah.) These eight Milcah bore to Nahor, Abraham’s brother. 24 Moreover, his concubine, whose name was Reumah, bore Tebah, Gaham, Tahash, and Maacah.
Abraham’s brother Nahor remained in the Mesopotamia area, and more than likely Abraham had not seen him since he left for Canaan over 60 years ago. The text does not provide the source of the information, some scholars believe this information was added by the author. Abraham may have heard it from a messenger, friend, or some traveling trader.
We read that Nahor had eight sons with his wife Milcah. The first son was Uz (see Genesis 10:23; 36:28), who may have been the founder of the city of Uz, the city where Job was from (see Job 1:1, the land of Uz is also mentioned in Jeremiah 25:20). The second son was Buz (see Jeremiah 25:23), who may have founded the city or region where Elihu lived (see Job 32:2-5). The third son Kemuel is referenced as the father of Aram (see Genesis 10:22). The fourth son is Chesed, who was considered the ancestor of Kassdim (or Chaldeans, see Job 1:17). The fifth son was Hazo, who was followed by Pildash, Jidlaph, and Bethuel. Then perhaps the reason why this section is included here, is that Betheul fathered Rebekah, an important figure later in Genesis chapter 24. Bethuel was also the father of Laban, Rebekah’s brother (see Genesis 24:29).
In addition to having sons with his wife Milcah, Nahor also had four sons with his concubine Reumah. The first son was Tebah (see 2 Samuel 8:8; 1 Chronicles 18:8), the second son was Gaham, the third was Tahash and the fourth was Maacah, who was the progenitor of the Maacathites, who settled in the southern regions of Syria (see Deuteronomy 3:14; Joshua 12:5; 2 Samuel 10:6-8; 1 Chronicles 19:6).
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[1] Strong’s Hebrew 5288.
[2] Strong’s Hebrew 5254.
[3] Strong’s Hebrew 157.
[4] Strong’s Hebrew 5930.
[5] Strong’s Hebrew 2280.
[6] Strong’s Hebrew 7812.
[7] Strong’s Hebrew 3979.
[8] Strong’s Hebrew 2009 and 589.
[9] Strong’s Hebrew 5442.
[10] Strong’s Hebrew 3070.
[11] Pronounced Yǎ·ǎqōḏ, Strong’s Hebrew 6123.
[12] Strong’s Hebrew 4994.
[13] See Considerations under Genesis 10:19-20 regarding ancient Jewish literature.
[14] Bereishit Rabbah. Judaica Press. http://www.jtsa.edu/Conservative_Judaism/JTS_Torah_Commentary/Va-yishlah_Between_5772.xml?ss=print
[15] Missler, Dr. Chuck (1999) Cosmic Codes (p. 194). Koinonia House. <http://www.khouse.org/>