-
†. Gen 22:13 . .When Abraham looked up, his eye fell upon a ram,
caught in the thicket by its horns. So Abraham went and took the
ram and offered it up as a burnt offering in place of his son.
The covenant that Yhvh's people agreed upon with God as per Exodus,
Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy a few centuries later would not have
allowed Abraham to substitute a ram for Isaac. (Lev 27:28-29, cf. Jgs
11:30-35)
According to a documentary I recently watched on NetFlix; approximately
2,000 Muslim butchers assemble for Mecca every year and slaughter
something like 700,000 to 800,000 sheep to commemorate the ram that
Abraham sacrificed in his son's stead. Islam of course believes the son was
Ishmael instead of Isaac.
The animals aren't consumed by the hajis. Instead; they're processed,
packaged, and shipped to poor people around the world. Well; it would be
nice if some of the people of Somalia and North Korea got a number of those
sheep because they could sure use them. Ironically, Islamic militants have
been thwarting efforts to get aid to the Somalian people. Where's the spirit
of Mecca in that?
†. Gen 22:14 . . And Abraham named that site Adonai-yireh, whence
the present saying: On the mount of God there is vision.
One of Webster's definitions of "vision" is: unusual discernment or foresight.
For example: it was men of vision who crafted the United States
Constitution, and men of vision who built railroads, and more men of vision
who pushed for construction of New York City's central park, and a man of
vision who persuaded the Oregon legislature to preserve all of Oregon's
beaches as public domain so nobody could fence portions of it off for their
own private use.
Men of no vision think only of the here and now; while men of vision think of
the future.
†. Gen 22:15-18 . .The angel of God called to Abraham a second time
from heaven, and said: By Myself I swear, God declares; because you
have done this and have not withheld your son, your favored one, I
will bestow My blessing upon you and make your descendants as
numerous as the stars of heaven and the sands on the seashore; and
your descendants shall seize the gates of their foes. All the nations
of the earth shall bless themselves by your seed, because you have
obeyed My command.
Abraham obtained God's oath because "you have obeyed My command".
What command was that? The command to offer his son as a burnt offering
(Gen 22:2). See? Abraham didn't make a mistake. He understood God
perfectly; and would have slit Isaac's throat and burned him to ashes had
not God pushed the stop button in the final moments.
Far from being scolded for offering a human sacrifice, Abraham is highly
commended for complying; and the promises God made in previous chapters
are now reaffirmed. He lost nothing; but the rather, gained a spiffy bonus:
the Almighty's oath.
Concerning those promises: the first time around, God merely gave His word
(which is normally good enough, and in and of itself quite immutable).
Another time He passed between the pieces; thus notarizing the promises
(double whammy). But this time, God anchored the promises with an oath
(grand slam). That is extremely notable.
Would Abraham have failed to obtain the promises had he refused to offer
his son? No. He would still have obtained them because the original
promises-- made prior to the oath --are unconditional and guaranteed by the
immutability of God's integrity. What Abraham would have failed to obtain
was the oath.
So then, God has gone to every possible length to assure Abraham's seed of
the certainty of those original promises with: 1) His testimony, 2) His
passing between the pieces, and 3) His oath. You won't find God taking
oaths very often in the Bible.
This particular oath is part and parcel of the covenant that Yhvh's people
agreed upon with God as per Deut 29:9-15.
†. Gen 22:19 . . Abraham then returned to his servants, and they
departed together for Beer-sheba; and Abraham stayed in Beer
sheba.
Isaac isn't specifically named in either the return or the departure, except
that the words "departed together" are highly suggestive of the very same
togetherness of verses 6 and 8. And back in verse 5, Abraham told the
servants that he and Isaac would both return. If Isaac had not been with
Abraham on the return trip, the servants would have surely asked where he
was.
The Targums have a pretty interesting postscript at this point.
T. And the angels on high took Izhak and brought him into the school
(medresha) of Shem the Great; and he was there three years. And in the
same day Abraham returned to his young men; and they arose and went
together to the Well of the Seven, and Abraham dwelt at Beira-desheva. And
it was after these things, after Abraham had bound Izhak, that Satana came
and told unto Sarah that Abraham had killed Izhak. And Sarah arose, and
cried out, and was strangled, and died from agony. (Targum Jonathan)
†. Gen 22:20 . . Some time later, Abraham was informed: Milcah too
has borne children to your brother Nahor:
Just exactly how much time had passed after The Akedah until this
announcement is uncertain.
Nahor was one of Abraham's brothers and Milcah was Abraham's niece
through Haran, another brother: who was also Lot's dad. Milcah was Nahor's
real wife. He also had a concubine named Reumah.
†. Gen 22:21-24 . . Uz the first-born, and Buz his brother, and
Kemuel the father of Aram; and Chesed, Hazo, Pildash, Jidlaph, and
Bethuel”-- Bethuel being the father of Rebecca. These eight Milcah
bore to Nahor, Abraham's brother. And his concubine, whose name
was Reumah, also bore children: Tebah, Gaham, Tahash, and
Maacah.
Bethuel and Rebecca are the only two who really stand out in that list.
However, Genesis records everybody because God, apparently for reasons of
His own, thinks they're all important in some way.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
†. Gen 22:13 . .When Abraham looked up, his eye fell upon a ram,
caught in the thicket by its horns. So Abraham went and took the
ram and offered it up as a burnt offering in place of his son.
The covenant that Yhvh's people agreed upon with God as per Exodus,
Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy a few centuries later would not have
allowed Abraham to substitute a ram for Isaac. (Lev 27:28-29, cf. Jgs
11:30-35)
According to a documentary I recently watched on NetFlix; approximately
2,000 Muslim butchers assemble for Mecca every year and slaughter
something like 700,000 to 800,000 sheep to commemorate the ram that
Abraham sacrificed in his son's stead. Islam of course believes the son was
Ishmael instead of Isaac.
The animals aren't consumed by the hajis. Instead; they're processed,
packaged, and shipped to poor people around the world. Well; it would be
nice if some of the people of Somalia and North Korea got a number of those
sheep because they could sure use them. Ironically, Islamic militants have
been thwarting efforts to get aid to the Somalian people. Where's the spirit
of Mecca in that?
†. Gen 22:14 . . And Abraham named that site Adonai-yireh, whence
the present saying: On the mount of God there is vision.
One of Webster's definitions of "vision" is: unusual discernment or foresight.
For example: it was men of vision who crafted the United States
Constitution, and men of vision who built railroads, and more men of vision
who pushed for construction of New York City's central park, and a man of
vision who persuaded the Oregon legislature to preserve all of Oregon's
beaches as public domain so nobody could fence portions of it off for their
own private use.
Men of no vision think only of the here and now; while men of vision think of
the future.
†. Gen 22:15-18 . .The angel of God called to Abraham a second time
from heaven, and said: By Myself I swear, God declares; because you
have done this and have not withheld your son, your favored one, I
will bestow My blessing upon you and make your descendants as
numerous as the stars of heaven and the sands on the seashore; and
your descendants shall seize the gates of their foes. All the nations
of the earth shall bless themselves by your seed, because you have
obeyed My command.
Abraham obtained God's oath because "you have obeyed My command".
What command was that? The command to offer his son as a burnt offering
(Gen 22:2). See? Abraham didn't make a mistake. He understood God
perfectly; and would have slit Isaac's throat and burned him to ashes had
not God pushed the stop button in the final moments.
Far from being scolded for offering a human sacrifice, Abraham is highly
commended for complying; and the promises God made in previous chapters
are now reaffirmed. He lost nothing; but the rather, gained a spiffy bonus:
the Almighty's oath.
Concerning those promises: the first time around, God merely gave His word
(which is normally good enough, and in and of itself quite immutable).
Another time He passed between the pieces; thus notarizing the promises
(double whammy). But this time, God anchored the promises with an oath
(grand slam). That is extremely notable.
Would Abraham have failed to obtain the promises had he refused to offer
his son? No. He would still have obtained them because the original
promises-- made prior to the oath --are unconditional and guaranteed by the
immutability of God's integrity. What Abraham would have failed to obtain
was the oath.
So then, God has gone to every possible length to assure Abraham's seed of
the certainty of those original promises with: 1) His testimony, 2) His
passing between the pieces, and 3) His oath. You won't find God taking
oaths very often in the Bible.
This particular oath is part and parcel of the covenant that Yhvh's people
agreed upon with God as per Deut 29:9-15.
†. Gen 22:19 . . Abraham then returned to his servants, and they
departed together for Beer-sheba; and Abraham stayed in Beer
sheba.
Isaac isn't specifically named in either the return or the departure, except
that the words "departed together" are highly suggestive of the very same
togetherness of verses 6 and 8. And back in verse 5, Abraham told the
servants that he and Isaac would both return. If Isaac had not been with
Abraham on the return trip, the servants would have surely asked where he
was.
The Targums have a pretty interesting postscript at this point.
T. And the angels on high took Izhak and brought him into the school
(medresha) of Shem the Great; and he was there three years. And in the
same day Abraham returned to his young men; and they arose and went
together to the Well of the Seven, and Abraham dwelt at Beira-desheva. And
it was after these things, after Abraham had bound Izhak, that Satana came
and told unto Sarah that Abraham had killed Izhak. And Sarah arose, and
cried out, and was strangled, and died from agony. (Targum Jonathan)
†. Gen 22:20 . . Some time later, Abraham was informed: Milcah too
has borne children to your brother Nahor:
Just exactly how much time had passed after The Akedah until this
announcement is uncertain.
Nahor was one of Abraham's brothers and Milcah was Abraham's niece
through Haran, another brother: who was also Lot's dad. Milcah was Nahor's
real wife. He also had a concubine named Reumah.
†. Gen 22:21-24 . . Uz the first-born, and Buz his brother, and
Kemuel the father of Aram; and Chesed, Hazo, Pildash, Jidlaph, and
Bethuel”-- Bethuel being the father of Rebecca. These eight Milcah
bore to Nahor, Abraham's brother. And his concubine, whose name
was Reumah, also bore children: Tebah, Gaham, Tahash, and
Maacah.
Bethuel and Rebecca are the only two who really stand out in that list.
However, Genesis records everybody because God, apparently for reasons of
His own, thinks they're all important in some way.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=