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Commentary Index | Return to PrayerRequest.com | DownloadPaul Kretzmann Commentary - Genesis 22:1 - 22:8
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The Journey to Moriah
v. 1. 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. After these happenings at Beersheba God tempted, or tested, Abraham, not by giving him an occasion to sin, Jam_1:13, but by trying his faith as to its soundness and strength. Upon the Lord's calling to him, probably in a dream-vision, Abraham promptly signifies his eagerness to hear.
v. 2. 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. The Lord makes His proposal with deliberate, detailed emphasIsaiah Abraham was to take his son, not Ishmael, but his only son, the darling of his old age, the one whom he loved dearly, namely, Isaac. Him he was to offer up as a sacrifice in the land of Moriah, the mountain range in the neighborhood of what was afterward Jerusalem, on one of the mountains which the Lord would indicate to him.
v. 3. 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. There is not a word about excitement or turmoil in the heart of Abraham. Quietly and deliberately he made his preparations for a literal fulfillment of God's command, girding the beast that was to bear the wood for the sacrifice and the food for the trip, ordering two of his young men, probably house-slaves, to accompany him, even splitting the wood which he would need for the sacrifice, and then setting out for Moriah. He did not consult with flesh and blood, for his faith was active in obedience.
v. 4. Then on the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes, and saw the place a far off. The distance from Beersheba to Jerusalem was forty-five to fifty miles and therefore required about two and one-half days of steady traveling.
v. 5. 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. Although the servants of Abraham were devoted to him, they were hardly prepared to witness the scene which would be enacted on the mountain that lay before them. In spite of the fact that the outcome of his act of worship was hidden from Abraham, his faith clung to the promise of the Lord, accounting that God was able to raise up Isaac, even from the dead, Heb_11:17-19. For that reason he confidently says: We shall return to you. True faith trusts in God even when He seems harsh and angry, when the believer feels only His displeasure in his heart; for it is an easy matter for God to replace everything that He sees fit to take away, to bring back even that which was lost.
v. 6. 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. Abraham personally carried the knife for the slaughter and the fire, a glimmering coal or a bit of tinder wood in a kettle, while he laid the wood on Isaac, who thus became the type of the immeasurably greater sacrifice, Jesus Christ, who likewise bore the wood of His cross willingly and patiently and bore our sins in His body on the cross.
v. 7. 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? Isaac broke the oppressive silence with a question of childish curiosity. He had noted that everything else had been provided, but the absence of a sheep, a lamb, or a kid which was to serve for the sacrifice caused him to ask. Naturally, the innocent question must have increased the distress of Abraham considerably; but with unwavering steadfastness he walked on.
v. 8. And Abraham said, My son, God will provide Himself a lamb for a burnt offering. So they went both of them together. It was not Abraham's intention, as Luther remarks, to torture his son with the details of the divine command; and the quiet answer of his father satisfied Isaac.