ABRAHAM & ISAAC: BELOVED SON TO BE BURNT OFFERING

ABRAHAM & ISAAC:

BELOVED SON TO BE BURNT OFFERING

Genesis 22:1 And it came to pass after these things, that God did tempt⁵²⁵⁴ Abraham, and said unto him, Abraham: and he said, Behold, here I am.

Susie: “After these things” indicates that time has passed since the events recorded in Genesis chapter twenty-one. By this time, Isaac would probably have been a teenager.

Susan: The word translated “tempt” could also mean to “test” or “prove.” God set up an opportunity for Abraham to prove his trust in and love and loyalty for the Lord.

Susie: God called Abraham by name, and he answered immediately.

Genesis 22:2 And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of.

Susan: Abraham had waited over twenty-five years for the birth of the son God had promised to make into a great nation. Suddenly God said He wanted Abraham to give Isaac as a sacrifice to God, a burnt offering which would definitely mean the boy would die.

Susie: The Jews still read the Akedah, the account of Abraham’s test, at Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish new year.

Susan: They read the biblical account along with this blessing:

Complete Jewish Study Bible

Remember in our favor, O Lord our God, the oath which you have sworn to our father Abraham on Mt. Moriah; consider the binding of his son Isaac upon the altar when he suppressed his love in order to do your will with a whole heart.”  

Susan: This verse is actually the first time the word “love” is found in the Bible, the love of a father for his son. Not just any son, but the one who God had selected as Abraham’s heir, the son promised. This is a foreshadowing of the promised Messiah, Jesus, whose Father suppressed His love and allowed Jesus to be sacrificed on the cross for our sin.

Susie: The land of Moriah would later become Jerusalem and the sight of Solomon’s temple.

Genesis 22:3 And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and saddled his ass, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son, and clave the wood for the burnt offering, and rose up, and went unto the place of which God had told him.

Susie: Abraham wasted no time. He got up the next morning, gathered the supplies needed to make an offering, and set off with Isaac and two of his young, male servants.

Susan: Unlike Jonah, who Susie and I recently studied, Abraham obeyed immediately and headed to the exact place God told him to go with no detours in between. True obedience is immediate, complete, and without complaining.

Genesis 22:4-5 Then on the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes, and saw the place afar off. And Abraham said unto his young men, Abide ye here with the ass; and I and the lad will go yonder and worship, and come again to you.

Susie: God did not make it easy for Abraham. The journey was at least three days long, plenty of time for Abraham to think about all the ramifications of sacrificing his cherished son.

Susan: Abraham declared to the young servants that he and Isaac would go up the mountain and worship and that they would return afterward. This demonstrated that Abraham’s faith in God was without condition, and he believed that God would be faithful to fulfill His promise concerning Isaac, to make him the father of a great nation.

Susie: This is confirmed in the book of Hebrews:

Hebrews 11:17-19 By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, Of whom it was said, That in Isaac shall thy seed be called: Accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead; from whence also he received him in a figure.

Susan: Abraham had faith that God could resurrect someone from the dead even though at that time, there had been no recorded incident of it happening.

Genesis 22:6-7 And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering, and laid it upon Isaac his son; and he took the fire in his hand, and a knife; and they went both of them together. And Isaac spake unto Abraham his father, and said, My father: and he said, Here am I, my son. And he said, Behold the fire and the wood: but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?

Susan: Isaac, who apparently had not been informed of the purpose of this journey, saw the wood, the fire, and the knife and logically asked, “Where is the sacrifice?” I would not have wanted to be in Abraham’s sandals trying to answer my son.

Susie: He may have thought Abraham was slipping in his old age and forgot the lamb, the most important element for the ceremony.

Genesis 22:8 And Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so they went both of them together.

Susan: Notice he did not say that God would provide a lamb for them. He stated that God would provide Himself a lamb.

Susie: When it came to a sacrifice for our sins, God provided Himself the perfect lamb. We did not have to bring the sacrifice.

Susan: In fact, God provided Himself, in the person of Jesus, to be the Lamb. Jesus served as both priest and sacrifice:

Hebrews 7:27 Who needeth not daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifice, first for his own sins, and then for the people's: for this he did once, when he offered up himself.

Susie: Abraham’s answer must have satisfied Isaac because they continued up the path together.

Genesis 22:9 And they came to the place which God had told him of; and Abraham built an altar there, and laid the wood in order, and bound Isaac his son, and laid him on the altar upon the wood.

Susan: Abraham had to gather large stones and build the altar. All the while, he must have been praying, wondering how the Lord could command him to kill the son of promise, the child of the covenant. I am certain it made his brain go tilt. Isaac could have overpowered his father, but he was willingly, submissively obedient to his father and ultimately to God.

Susie: Isaac had observed his father’s complete trust in God all his life and had been told the miraculous nature of his birth. I am confident Abraham had shared the promise that his descendants would outnumber the stars with his son. Abraham may have had questions but was confident God was in control of the situation. Apparently, Isaac trusted not only his father’s judgment but the will of God as well, because as a teenaged boy he could have easily overpowered his elderly father had he chosen to do so.

Susan: In the same manner, Jesus could have called down armies of angels to rescue Him in the garden of Gethsemane; but He surrendered to His Father’s will.

Luke 22:42 Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done.

Susie: One of the main themes of the Christmas story is the surrender of a person’s will to the will of God. Jesus’s mother Mary submitted to the Lord even though His plan was frightening:

Luke 1:38 And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her.

Genesis 22:10 And Abraham stretched forth his hand, and took the knife to slay his son.

Susie: He was fully prepared to slay Isaac—knife in hand, hand raised to slit his son’s throat.

Susan: Abraham held nothing back from God, even his promised son, his only acceptable heir.

Genesis 22:11 And the angel of the Lord called unto him out of heaven, and said, Abraham, Abraham: and he said, Here am I.

Susan: The angel of the Lord called his name, and like a school boy, Abraham answered, “Here!”

Susie: Abraham stopped his hand in mid-air and breathlessly awaited the command given by the angel of the Lord.

Susan: Isaac may have been closing his eyes and holding his breath at this point, waiting for the pain of the knife before death. Then he, also, hears the angel of the Lord.

Susie: “Angel of the Lord” many times refers to the pre-incarnate Jesus. Therefore, Jesus, God Himself, stopped Abraham from actually sacrificing Isaac.

Genesis 22:12 And he said, Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou anything unto him: for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from me.

Susan: The only other time we see the phrase “only begotten son” is to describe Jesus as the Son of God.

Susie: The near sacrifice of Isaac is what is called a “type,” a foreshadowing of another event. Abraham’s willingness to offer his only official heir to the Lord foreshadows God’s sending His Son Jesus as our perfect sacrificial Lamb.

Susan: What relief and sheer joy must have enveloped Abraham as the Lord told him not to sacrifice Isaac.

Susie: I’m sure Isaac was more than pleased, too!

Genesis 22:13 And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold behind him a ram caught in a thicket by his horns: and Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt offering in the stead of his son.

Susan: Just as Abraham had proclaimed earlier to Isaac, God did provide Himself a sacrifice.

Susie: God even made sure Abraham did not have to chase after the ram by having its horns stuck in the thicket. I’m sure Isaac was happy to assist in tying up the ram to be sacrificed in his place.

Genesis 22:14 And Abraham called the name of that place Jehovahjireh³⁰⁷⁰: as it is said to this day, In the mount of the Lord it shall be seen.

Susie: Jehovahjireh means “the Lord will see to it” or “the Lord will provide.” This is another name for Mt. Moriah or the temple mount in Jerusalem.

Genesis 22:15-18 And the angel of the Lord called unto Abraham out of heaven the second time, And said, By myself have I sworn, saith the Lord, for because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son: That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies; And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice.

Susie: Now that God had tested Abraham and, in a sense, Isaac as well, He reiterated His covenant to make them into a great nation, conquering their enemies, and possessing the promised land.

Susan: When God saw that Abraham was willing to give back to God all that He had promised him, the son of the promise, God could trust Abraham to be a blessing to the entire world.

Susie: Abraham was the father of the Israelites. Jesus was born an Israelite. Through Jesus, people all over the world receive salvation. Christmas!

QUESTIONS

1.          What are two other words that could be used instead of “tempt” in Genesis 22:1?

2.          Why does God refer to Isaac as Abraham’s only son?

3.          Were you surprised to find that Genesis 22:2 is the first time “love” is used in the Bible? Why do you think this is significant?

4.          How long did Abraham ponder God’s command to sacrifice his son before obeying?

5.          Why is it significant that Abraham told his servants he and Isaac would go worship and would both return?

6.          A. What question did Isaac ask his father on the way up the mountain?

B. How did Abraham reply?

C. How does this relate to Hebrews 7:27?

7.          Do you believe Isaac demonstrated faith along with his father? Why or why not?

8.          What happened just as Abraham raised the knife to slay Isaac?

9.          What had Abraham proved by his obedience in being willing to sacrifice his son?

10.      In what way did God provide His own sacrifice?

11.      Who would be blessed through Abraham’s seed?