The calling of Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac is almost incomprehensible, but when we really understand it, it can propel our faith to extraordinary and perhaps unexpected measures.
In order for us to get a proper grip on this story we need to back up and see the bigger picture. We need to understand that this is not some isolated story in Genesis 22 that just appears out of nowhere.
In fact, the drama begins back in Genesis 12 and builds until the birth of Isaac in chapter 21, but in the next chapter, when Isaac has reached some age in his childhood, God tells Abraham to go and offer up Isaac as a sacrifice. Let’s take a brief survey starting back in Genesis 12 to set the stage for some powerful applications.
In Genesis 12, God instructed Abram to leave his homeland and go to a land that God would give him and build of him a great nation from his descendants, give him a land, and ultimately bless all the families of the world through him (see Gen. 12:1-3). Verse 3 also indicates that God would bless those who bless Abraham and curse those who curse him. It is easy to overlook this part of the promise God makes, but it quickly becomes an important element of the narrative.
Ironically, this great nation begins with the mother of this nation (Sarai) being barren or childless (see 11:30 – this is no doubt mentioned for a reason).
After his call, Abram immediately sets out “by faith” (Heb. 11:8) from his family and homeland. But though Abram was a good and reverent man, he was not a flawless man. This fact is seen in his immediate dishonesty in having Sarai lie (or, be deceitful) about who she is to Pharaoh (see 12:11-19). He concocted this scheme out of fear. He was afraid that the Egyptians would see his beautiful wife and decide that Pharaoh needed her and thus kill him. You have to wonder what Sarai thought about this, but she obliged. But when Sarai was taken into Pharaoh’s house, Pharaoh was afflicted for taking another man’s wife even though he did not know that he did. In this course of this affliction he realized that this was actually Abram’s wife and he rebukes Abram and sends them on their way.
During the course of time, God’s great promise is reiterated by the Lord to give assurance to Abram and Sarai (see 13:14-18 – “your offspring”), but yet the drama continues to build as Abram and Sarai remain without a single child. Since time is fleeing and Abram and Sarai are unable to have a child, Abram begins to believe that this blessing is going to come through a more distant relative by the name of Eliezer (see 15:2). But the Lord tells Abram in 15:4: “This man shall not be your heir; your very own son shall be your heir.” Notice how precise the Lord is concerning this heir of promise.
Yet, the drama continues in chapter 16:1 as we learn that the couple remains childless. This prompts Sarai to give her Egyptian servant, Hagar, to Abram to have a child by her. So Hagar ends up bearing a boy named Ishmael. Of course, this was not God’s design for the child of promise, and although God would bless this young man and his descendants, this scheme of Sarai, which Abram bought into, caused a great deal of grief going forward.
In chapter 17 God details a covenant with Abram, changing his name to Abraham (meaning: “father of a multitude”), and He reiterates His promise to Abraham, establishes the rite of circumcision on the eighth day, and He then specifically promises that Abram and Sarah will have a son by the name of Isaac at “this time next year” (see v. 21). But the thought of the couple bearing a child at this point caused both Abraham and Sarah to laugh, since he would be 100 years old and she would be 90 years old! The couple was persuaded that Ishmael was the promised son, but the LORD responded saying, “No, but Sarah your wife shall bear you a son, and you shall call his name Isaac…” (17:19).
GENESIS 20
Chapter 20 begins with Abraham and Sarah entering into the territory of the Negeb and sojourning in Gerar where they meet Abimilech the king, and Abraham lies to him about Sarah, thinking this will preserve his life.
Within the rebuke that Abimilech has for Abraham, Abraham shares his reasoning for deception. He believed his life to be in danger, and, after all, Sarah was indeed his half-sister. Of course, this was merely an excuse. First and foremost, Sarah was his wife! Later, in the Law of Moses, this sort of marriage would be strictly forbidden (see Lev. 18:9, 11; 20:17), but of course, as the human race preceded from two individuals, such “intermarrying” was unavoidable for a time.
GENESIS 21
Finally in chapter 21 we have the birth of the promised son, Isaac, born to Abraham and Sarah, born at the very time God had indicated (see v. 2). It is important to note that this was some 25 years after the original promise to Abraham in Genesis 12! What an incredibly slow start to this great innumerable nation that God promised to build through Abraham and Sarah! (see Gen. 22:17).
This long anticipated son was alluded to (or promised) in 12:2; 13:16; 15:4; 17:16 and 18:10. The entire plan and promise of God seemed to be severely stalled from the very beginning. There was no hope of a great nation without the birth of the very first son! But now Abraham and Sarah have a son, a single son, between them! And then, in chapter 22, God tells Abraham to offer that son as a sacrifice.
Lord willing, next week we will give brief attention to Genesis 22 and note some very significant applications we can make.
Daren Schroeder