Volume 19, Number 3 July Summer 2024
The Testing of Abraham
Gen. 22:1-24
“And it came to pass after these things, that God did tempt Abraham, and said unto him, Abraham: and he said, Behold, here I am. 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. 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. 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. 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? And Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so they went both of them together. 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. And Abraham stretched forth his hand, and took the knife to slay his son. And the angel of the LORD called unto him out of heaven, and said, Abraham, Abraham: and he said, Here am I. And he said, Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou any thing unto him: for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from me. 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. And Abraham called the name of that place Jehovahjireh: as it is said to this day, In the mount of the LORD it shall be seen. 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. So Abraham returned unto his young men, and they rose up and went together to Beersheba; and Abraham dwelt at Beersheba. And it came to pass after these things, that it was told Abraham, saying, Behold, Milcah, she hath also born children unto thy brother Nahor; Huz his firstborn, and Buz his brother, and Kemuel the father of Aram, And Chesed, and Hazo, and Pildash, and Jidlaph, and Bethuel. And Bethuel begat Rebekah: these eight Milcah did bear to Nahor, Abraham's brother. And his concubine, whose name was Reumah, she bare also Tebah, and Gaham, and Thahash, and Maachah.”
Introduction
Many years ago, when growing up and attending school, I remember our teacher announcing that we needed to study and be prepared for a test on a given date and time. I also remember such things as a pop quiz, when the teacher would surprise us with an unannounced test to see if we had done our home work. It was a way of testing us to see if we were paying attention and learning the assigned material. In fact, there are some test that come our way that may determine the future of our lives in a major way.
“Abraham” had been learning some valuable lessons of “faith” from God for many years (Heb. 11:8-19). From time to time, God gave him a test that revealed his spiritual progress. In fact, the spiritual history of “ABRAHAM” is marked by Four Great Test that involved the surrender of something very near and dear to his heart. First, he was called to separate himself from his native pagan “country” and “kindred” (Gen. 12:1). Secondly, he was called to separate himself from his beloved nephew by the name of “Lot” (Gen. 13:9). Thirdly, he was called to abandon his plan for his son, “Ishmael,” who was born of “Hagar” (Gen. 21:14). Fourthly, he was called to willingly sacrifice “Isaac,” the son of promise through which the Messiah would come.
From “Abraham,” we need to learn that Christian character can only be developed by godly discipline and surrender. Just like it was in the life of “Abraham,” a believer’s life is a series of TEST. Through refining us, God polishes our testimony that we might shine bright for His glory as lights in this spiritually dark world (Matt. 5:14-16). The testings of God will reveal if we are gold plated or made of pure “gold” (I Pet. 1:7). The story in our text records how “Abraham” beautifully passed his test of “faith” with flying colors. If “faith” is taken away from this story, then “Abraham” appears as no more than a madman or a murderer. But, when “faith” is taken into account, then “Abraham” is seen as a devoted worshipper. This chapter is truly one of the greatest recorded in the pages of the Old Testament. It records not only the supreme test of “Abraham” and God’s last recorded appearance to him, but it’s an Old Testament picture of what Almighty God has done in sacrificing “his only begotten Son” (Jh. 3:16) for those who place their trust in Him for the forgiveness of their sins.
God Required “Abraham” to Willingly Offer “Isaac” for a Sacrifice
v.1-10
The opening words of this chapter, “after these things,” points to the many years after the birth of “Isaac” when God put “Abraham” to the greatest test of his life. The Hebrew word, “tempt” (NACAH [naw-saw] found in the KJV and translated “tested” in the ESV) doesn’t refer to an enticement to do evil, but it simply means to test, try, prove, or put to the proof. Satan tempts us to bring out the worst in us, while God test us to bring out the best in us (Jam. 1:2-4). God never entices or tempts people to do “evil” (Jam. 1:12-15). The most severe test of life do not come from men, but from the Lord and they become the refining fires that develop our Christian character. “Abraham” had reached a stage in his spiritual growth where he was to take a special examination.
When God referred to “Isaac” as Abraham’s “only son,” He was speaking of him as the only son of promise that would be born to the aged “Sarah” (Gen. 18:11-15, 21:2-3). “Isaac” had a status above any other child whom “Abraham” would ever father into this world. He was, no doubt, the dearest thing in the world to “Abraham” and God’s promises depended upon “Isaac” staying alive and bearing children (Gen. 15:5). However, the offering of “Isaac” shows us that God demands our all, even that which we might dearly cherish the most. For the first time in Scripture, the word “lovest” (or reference to love in v. 2) is mentioned and it’s used in association with a father’s LOVE for his “son” (Lk. 3:22, Jh 17:24). The story of “Abraham” and “Isaac” is a beautiful picture, or Old Testament TYPE, of God the Father and God the Son (Rom. 8:32). Keep in mind, that an Old Testament TYPE is a divine illustration while the New Testament ANTI-TYPE is a fulfillment of the TYPE. Therefore, a TYPE is a representation or a “shadow” or “example” (Col. 2:17, Heb. 8:5, 10:1) of the real object (the ANTI-TYPE). In this chapter, God acted out in picture form the doctrine of REDEMPTION by divine sacrifice. The obedience of “Isaac” to “Abraham” typifies (depicts) the unquestioning obedience of Christ to the Father’s will (Matt 26:42). As much as “Abraham” loved his “son,” He willingly submitted to the command of God to “offer him … for a burnt” sacrifice.
In the case of “Abraham,” God never intended for him to actually slay “Isaac.” God told “Abraham” to “offer … Isaac,” but God alone knew that He would prevent a killing. The Lord didn’t want “Isaac” slain, but He wanted a demonstration of Abraham’s love, obedience, and commitment. It’s believed that human sacrifices were not unusual among the heathen nations at this time in history. God wanted to see if “Abraham” loved the Lord as much as the heathens loved their false gods. Almighty God didn’t want the sacrifice of “Isaac,” but the surrendered will of “Abraham.” God wasn’t endorsing human sacrifice, but He was foreshadowing the cost of sin in the future coming of Christ to take our place of judgement. The first thing that God requires of us is not intellect, talents, or money, but a surrendered “heart” (Deut. 6:5, Prov. 3:5). Today, God requires of us “a living sacrifice” (Rom. 12:1-2) as we learn to become dead to the things of this world and alive to the holiness of Christ (I Pet. 1:13-16).
Without reluctance, “Abraham” obeyed God and “went unto the place of which God had told him … Moriah.” This mountain range that we know as “Moriah” is the “place” where the Jewish temple would eventually be built (II Chron. 3:1-3). The offering of “Isaac” did not merely foreshadow all the sacrifices that would eventually be offered upon this mount, but most of all the all-sufficient sacrifice of Christ, as Calvary itself was one of the mountains in the “land of Moriah.” It was about a 50-mile trip from “Beesheba” (21:33) to “Moriah,” making it a three day journey for them. They arrived on the “third day” on which “Isaac” would not only be offered, but figuratively raised up alive just as Christ arose on the “third day” (I Cor. 15:3). Even though “Abraham” didn’t fully understand what was happening at the time, it’s apparent that he placed his trust in God and even believed that God could “raise” his son from the “dead” (Heb. 11:17-19). From the wording in our text, it sounds like “Abraham” believed that both he and his son would “come again” back down the mountain following their time of “worship.” This Hebrew word “worship” (SHACHAH), means to bow down and until we learn to submit to God’s will, then we’ve not learned to “worship” Him. God had promised that “Isaac” would become a great nation and this could not be if “Isaac” were “dead.” All “Abraham” was going to do was OBEY and leave the results with God. In an age when no one had ever come back from the grave, “Abraham” believed that “if Isaac” were slain that God would “raise him up, even from the dead.”
It’s believed that by this time, “Isaac” was not a little boy, but a grown young man, who had the strength to resist his father. However, in “Isaac” we never read of any resistance nor do we hear any voice of protest which lets us know that he became a willing victim. In fact, the “wood” that was “laid … upon Isaac” is a perfect picture of the cross that was laid upon the back of Christ as He bore it up to “Golgotha” (Matt. 27:33). The “fire” and the “knife” in the “hand” of “Abraham,” speaks of JUDGMENT, reminding us of how much God hates and will not tolerate sin. Your penalty of sin will be paid either in the Person of Jesus Christ or in an eternal hell which is called “the lake of fire” (Rev. 20:14). As this father and son in our text traveled up the mountain, “Isaac” very humbly asked, “where is the lamb for a burnt offering?” Abraham’s answer was simply, “God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering.” As we place emphasis on the word “HIMSELF,” the truth of what “Abraham” said comes alive because God alone could provide the only acceptable payment for the judgement of man’s sin (Jh. 1:29). Once this father and son “came to the place which God had told him … Abraham … built an altar.” Upon that “altar” the father “laid the wood” and then “bound Isaac his son.” Yielding to the “will” of his father, “Isaac” allowed him to bind him and probably watched as “Abraham stretched forth his hand and took the knife to slay” him. Never before and never since has such a loving human father or obedient human son been put to such a test.
God Restrained “Abraham” at the Precise Moment
v. 11-14
As the “knife” was about to descend upon “Isaac,” the “angel of the Lord” (Christophany) called out to “Abraham” declaring that he had passed his test. At this point, the TYPE (divine illustration) of Christ passes from “Isaac” to the “ram.” “In the stead of his son,” the “ram caught in a thicket by his horns” took the place of “Isaac” and became his SUBSTITUTE. This “ram” teaches us that man needs a SUBSTITUTIONARY sacrifice to pay the penalty of our sin. Like “Isaac,” lost sinners are in the place of death with God’s “knife” of judgment hovering over them and the only way of escape is by divine SUBSTITUTION. In the case of “Isaac,” a “ram” was used in place of a “lamb” because complete fulfillment of Isaac’s TYPE would only be found in “the Lamb of God” (Isa. 53:7, Jh. 1:29, I Cor. 5:7). When “Isaac” asked, “where is the lamb?,” he didn’t know that it would be nineteen hundred years later that “Christ” would “provide HIMSELF” as the “lamb without blemish and without spot” (I Pet. 1:19).
“Abraham” named this particular “place” on the mount, “Jeovah-jireh,” meaning God sees and will provide. Not only did God provide a sacrifice for “Abraham” on Mt. Moriah, but a sacrifice for sinful man on Mt. Calvary. To complete this wonderful picture of TYPOLOGY, we not only see “Isaac” upon the “altar,” but off the “altar” in celebration of a victorious “faith.” Christ journeyed up the mount of Calvary to hang on a cruel Roman cross and die as a willing sacrifice, in payment for our sin. That SUBSTITUTIONARY ATONEMENT alone could satisfy God’s wrath against sinners. But, three days after JESUS died, He arose the Mighty Conqueror over sin, death, hell, and the grave. Only by “grace … through faith” (Eph. 2:8-9) can a sinner pass from death to life with the hope of an eternal home in heaven.
God Reaffirmed His Promise to “Abraham”
V. 15-24
Following the greatest test of His life, God reaffirmed His promise to “Abraham” that he would produce a nation of people. God promised to “bless” him, “multiply” His “seed” (offspring), cause him to be as numerous as the “stars of the heavens and as the sand which is upon the sea shore,” cause him to prevail over “his enemies,” and bless “all the nations of the earth.” As “Isaac” was now a grown man, “Abraham” must have wondered how he was going to secure a wife for him if his “seed” (offspring) was ever going to populate the way God had promised. A proper wife is so very important and there were no good candidates among his neighbors. It’s just as important today for young people to be very selective about their future spouses.
“Isaac” needed a wife, and “Abraham” was going to trust God to give him the wife of His choosing. The closing verses of this chapter lists the genealogy from which “Rebekah” was found. “Nahor” was Abraham’s brother who fathered at least twelve children between his wife and his “concubine.” “Rebekah” was born to Isaac’s cousin, “Bethuel,” and she becomes a primary character in future chapters. Like young people today, “Isaac” needed a “Rebekah” and by “faith … Abraham” was going to believe God to supply the need. “Isaac” lived in heathen surroundings, but he let God do his picking and choosing for His own divine reasons. In a day when it’s getting harder and harder to find a Christian mate, we need to take heart from the story of “Isaac.”
Closing
After passing such a difficult test, God promised to bless and reward both “Abraham” and “Isaac” beyond measure. The only way that we’ll ever learn the reality of God’s grace, steadfastness, and sufficiency is by enduring the trials of life through “faith.” Always remember when you face a testing experience, that your unquestioning “faith” in God will victoriously bring you through with a refined testimony that will cause you to glow for His glory. “Abraham” was called out of paganism and it was not “Abraham” who went looking for God (Gen. 15:5, Rom. 4:1-3), just as it wasn’t “Adam” who went looking for God after he sinned in the Garden of Eden (Gen. 3:1-21). It was God Who pursued the both of them and granted “faith” to believe His divine promises. That’s the way it’s always been with genuine “faith,” and that’s the only way it can be in living life victoriously for God’s Glory with the hope of eternal life.
The Christian life begins with “faith” and that same God-given “faith” will sustain us all the way home just like it did “Abraham” (Gen. 25:8). You can not pump “faith” nor “repentance” (Acts 11:18, II Tim. 2:25) out of your depraved heart like you can water out of a well. Saving “faith” is a “gift” of God; therefore, it’s a supernatural “grace … gift …lest any man should boast” (Eph. 2:8-9). The question for the professing Christian today is, “Are you living a life of “faith” founded on God’s “gift,” or are you coasting along on you own merit and trusting in something that you’ve done?” For a true genuine “born again” (Jh. 3:16) Christian (which is the only kind), wherever we find ourselves, we must learn to practice the patience of “faith” in our Risen Victorious Savior and trust Him every step of life’s journey. “Abraham” is an example of a person who “believed God and it was accounted to him for righteousness” (Gal. 3).