Commenting through Genesis 22

Genesis 22 – God Tests Abraham

Does God test us? Is this test fair?

After these things God tested Abraham’s faith. God said to him, “Abraham!” And he answered, “Here I am.” 2 Then God said, “Take your only son, Isaac, but this is certainly not his only son the son you love. Did not Abraham love Ishmael as well? Go to the land of Moriah. Then kill him and offer him as a whole burnt offering. Do this on one of the mountains I will tell you about. A sacrifice is first killed humanely and then burnt. No animal is burned alive. Abraham is offering his son in the same way descendants will offer animals. What kind of an offering is this? It’s not an offering for sin. An important part of the process for making meat kosher is to certify that the animal is killed humanely. The rabbi inspecting the killing makes sure that the animal has no fear when he is killed. Would this be applicable to Isaac? Would it be important that he have no fear?

Early in the morning Abraham got up and saddled his donkey. He took Isaac and two servants with him. He cut the wood for the sacrifice. Then they want to the place God had told them to go. On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. He said to the servants, “Stay here with the donkey. My son and will go over there and worship. Then we will come back to you.” DW and CL both mentioned that Abraham expected Isaac to somehow be alive when they were done. Or was he just saying that not to cause alarm with the servants? Surely they knew this was a pilgrimage to offer sacrifice.

Abraham took the wood for the sacrifice and gave it to his son to carry. Abraham took the knife and the fire. So he and his son went on together.
Isaac said to his father Abraham, “Father!” Abraham answered, “Yes, my son.” Isaac said, “We have the fire and the wood. But where is the lamb we will burn as a sacrifice?”

This is an emotional scene. Why is this part added to the story? Surely this could have been left out and we would still get the point? Why is this part included? We can read into this Abraham’s care for his son. He has not told his son what he intends. So his son is not to be given a choice in the matter. Yet Isaac is probably an older boy, possibly a teenager. He could make a run for it. But where would he go? Trying to live alone would be suicide.

We can possibly conclude that Isaac is beginning to understand what is about to happen. He is the lamb. He is old enough to understand about sacrifice. Others around him may sacrifice children to their gods. And yet he never tries to escape. Would you try to escape in a similar situation?

Abraham answered, “God will give us the lamb for the sacrifice, my son.” Is this unintentionally prophetic?” Or does Abraham believe that eventually he will sacrifice a lamb instead of his son? Surely not.

So Abraham and his son went on together. They came to the place God had told him about. There Abraham built an altar. He laid the wood on it. Then he tied up his son Isaac. And he laid Isaac on the wood on the altar. Then Abraham took his knife and was about to kill his son. Notice the literary effect. The writer repeatedly uses “son” and his name to personalize the act.


But the angel of the Lord called to him from heaven. The angel said, “Abraham! Abraham!” Abraham answered, “Yes?” The angel said, “Don’t kill your son or hurt him in any way. Now I can see that you respect God. I see that you have not kept your son, you only son, from me.” What does it mean “not kept him from me”?

Then Abraham looked up and saw a male sheep. Its horns were caught in a bush. So Abraham went and took the sheep and killed it. He offered it as a whole burnt offering to God. Abraham’s son was saved. So Abraham named the place The Lord Gives. Even today people say, “On the mountain of the Lord it will be given.”

Genesis 31:42 Except the God of my father, the God of Abraham, and the Fear of Isaac, had been with me, surely now hadst thou sent me away empty. God hath seen mine affliction and the labor of my hands, and rebuked thee yesternight.

The angel of the Lord called to Abraham from heaven a second time. The angel said, “The Lord says, ‘You did not keep back your son, your only son from me. Because you did this, I make you this promise by my own name” I will surely bless you and give you many descendants. They will be as many as the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore. And they will capture the cities of their enemies. Through your descendents all the nations of the world will be blessed. This is because you obeyed me.’” We take this “all the nations of the world will be blessed to be an allusion to the savior of the world Jesus.

Then Abraham returned to his servants. They all traveled back to Beersheba, and Abraham stayed there. This is a sign of his obedience. He stayed where God had put him. To me this is analogous to the statement by Abraham, when asked where Sarai was to say, “In the tent.” She was where she was supposed to be. He was proud of it. Here this comment tells us Abraham is where he is supposed to be. Often we are to wait. We are not to be busy doing, just for doing’s sake.

Why does this passage show Abraham talking to the "angel of the Lord" and no God himself? In other places Abraham speaks to God directly. Why not here?