The Sacrifice of Isaac

Genesis 22.1-14

JAN 31

Let’s read this passage as a whole.

What would you say the theme of this passage is?

- obedience to the command of God forms the fabric of this chapter

- it begins by pointing out that sometime later God tested Abraham

[Note: Some translations use the word tempt and others use prove. In any case, Abraham’s faith in God’s absolute righteous judgment was put on the line]

- Abraham’s trust was to be weighed in the balance against common sense, human affection, and life-long ambition; an act against everything earthly

Anyone remember anything about this mountain Mount Moriah?

- Mount Moriah enters the text of Scriptures and grows in importance throughout the history of the Jews

- it appears again in 2 Chronicles 3:1 during a crisis in David’s life

- it became the location for the ancient temple

- today the area holds the famous Dome of the Rock built in A.D. 691, the third most holy place of Islam (after Mecca and Medina).

Verse 1. Why did God test Abraham? Why does he test us?

- God tested Abraham to deepen his capacity to obey God and thus to develop his character

- Just as fire refines ore to extract precious metals, God refines us through difficult circumstances

- when we are tested, we cancomplain, or we can try to see how God is stretching us to develop our character

How was God trying to change Abraham’s heart in this passage?

- had Isaac grown perhaps too dear to Abraham?

- had he begun to take God’s place in the patriarch’s thinking?

We cannot be sure of this, but if it was the case, this should remind us of many things that become too precious for us.

Verse 2. Did Abraham have other sons?

- Abraham had one son by Hagar (ch. 16)

- we learn later he had six sons by Keturah (ch. 25)

- only Isaac was uniquely born (the same idea is in the description of Jesus as the “only begotten,” John 1:18)

- the point is not that Abraham had no other children, but that

this was the unique child in whom all the promises of God resided

- but that wasn’t the only reason God’s command would test Abraham’s faith;

- this was Isaac, the son who had brought God’s “laughter” to Abraham and Sarah (21:12).

Moriah: “Where the Lord Provides” or “Where the Lord Appears.”

“burnt offering”

- Abraham was not simply to strike his son and wound him, and then nurse him back to health, he was commanded to go through the steps of offering a sacrifice that burned an animal or person entirely

- the toll of this command on Abraham and Sarah must have been enormous

- what a poignant picture of what our God did to His unique Son for us!

Verse 2. Try to imagine how this felt for Abraham. How would you put it into words?

- this was not only the son of his old age but the one designated to be his “seed.”

- Was this the demand of a rational God? Surely old Abraham, bubbling with emotion, longed to talk it over with someone. Why not Sarah?

- had he discussed it with anyone, “he would be dissuaded and prevented from carrying out the request.”

Note: The story of Abraham’s “sacrifice” of Isaacsuggests that Abraham was familiar with human sacrifice and was not surprised by Yahweh’s demand

Note: The story also provides a model for the substitute of an animal for a human sacrifice that clearly draws a distinction between Israelite practice and that of other cultures

“And Abraham rose up early in the morning... and went unto the place of which God had told him” (v. 3).

- God spoke! Abraham did not confer with “flesh and blood”

- he didn’t consider his own sympathies, his own insight, or anything that is not based on his personal relationship with God

- these are things that compete with & hinder our obedience to God

Abraham did not choose the sacrifice, so consider these suggestions:

- guard yourself against self-chosen service for God; self-sacrifice may be a disease

- if God has made your cup sweet, drink it with grace; if He has made it bitter, drink it in communion with Him

- if the providential order of God for you is a hard time of difficulty, go through with it, but never choose the scene of your martyrdom

- God chose the crucible for Abraham, and Abraham went steadily through

- if you are not living in touch with God, it is easy to pass a crude verdict on God

- you must go through the crucible before you have any right to pronounce a verdict, because in the crucible you learn to know God better

- God is working for His highest ends until His purpose and man’s purpose become one

Verse 3. What do you admire about Abraham here?

- initial obedience; even more astounded by his immediate obedience

- no hesitation whatsoever

Verse 4. How long was this trip? How long did Abraham have to talk to God about this?

- that morning Abraham began one of the greatest acts of obedience in recorded history

- he traveled 50 miles to Mount Moriah near the site of Jerusalem

- over the years he had learned many tough lessons about the importance of obeying God

- this time his obedience was prompt and complete

Obeying God is often a struggle because it may mean giving up something we truly want. We should not expect our obedience to God to be easy or to come naturally

- Abraham’s experience had taught him that God could be trusted to have a resolution, which he himself would certainly disclose in due time; Abraham’s experience of God led him in this direction.

How old is Isaac at this time?

- we do not know how old Isaac is

- old enough to carry the wood; to logically reason and ask reasonable questions

- is he old enough to resist being sacrificed? We do not know

It is almost impossible to imagine sacrificing any son. Yet, it would have been even more difficult for Abraham and Isaac. Why?

- God specifically confirmed this son as the son of his promise: “I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his descendants after him” (Gen. 17:19).

- Abraham loved Isaac and was extremely proud of him, but more important, all of Abraham’s spiritual hopes were centered in him

- “Isaac was Abraham’s link with Christ.... he knew that his own hope of heaven was centered in God’s promise of the redeemer that was to come out of the line of Isaac.”

- to judge from the time references at the end of Genesis 21 and the beginning of Genesis 22, Abraham must have rested quietly in this hope for many years

Verse 14. You may have heard the song Jehovah-jireh. It comes from the name for God in this verse. What does it mean?

- two statements reveal the emphasis of this passage

- “God will provide Himself a lamb for a burnt offering’ (v. 8)

- “Jehovah-jireh” (22:14), which means, “The Lord will see to it,”

- that is, “The Lord will provide.”

- as he climbed Mount Moriah with his son, Abraham was confident that God would meet every need

When has God provided for you in an amazing way? Who has a story?

How did God save Isaac?

- what a traumatic event such sacrifices were!

- how serious the killing of a lamb for sacrifice and how destructive the reason for the sacrifice: Sin!

- if the killing of a pure white lamb seems horrendous, how immeasurably more was the crucifixion of the Lamb of God!

How does this story picture the coming Christ?

- if ever two suffering people revealed Jesus Christ, it was Abraham and Isaac on Mount Moriah

- their experience is a picture of the Father and the Son and the cross and is one of the most beautiful types of Christ found anywhere in the Old Testament

- Jesus said to the Jews, “Your father, Abraham, rejoiced to see My day; and he saw it, and was glad” (John 8:56)

- in Isaac’s miraculous birth, Abraham saw the day of Christ’s birth

- in Isaac’s marriage (Gen. 24), he saw the day of Christ’s coming for His bride

-but on Mount Moriah, when Isaac willingly put himself on the altar, Abraham saw the day of Christ’s death and resurrection

- so many truths about the atonement are seen in this event

Has God ever asked you to give up anything in following Him? Who has a story?

Abraham is known as a man of faith. We saw recently where he believed God and it was credited to him as righteousness. What does this story teach us about faith?

- he was prepared to do anything for God

- he was there to obey God, no matter what

- Abraham was not a devotee of his convictions, or he would have slain Isaac and said that the voice of the angel was the voice of the devil

- that is the attitude of a fanatic, if you will remain true to God, God will lead you straight through every barrier into the inner chamber of the knowledge of Himself

- but there is always this point of giving up convictions and traditional beliefs

- don’t ask God to test you as Peter did -”I will do anything, I will go to death with Thee.”

- Abraham did not make any such declaration; he remained true to God, and God purified his faith

Who have you known who was a dramatic example of obedience in our day?

- perhaps you have walked through such trials

- the death of a loved one, or the loss of a fortune—and found God faithful on the other side

- but notice, Abraham didn’t wake up one morning and find Isaac dead

- as testing as that may have been, God didn’t simply take Isaac from Abraham, God gave Abraham the option of whether or not to give Isaac up in obedience to the LORD, that’s a much greater test!

Being faithful to Christ means: well, pick a few scenarios!

That is why we need, so badly, to be tested!