But the Angel of the LORD called to him from Heaven and said, ‘Abraham! Abraham!’ So he said, ‘Here I am.’ And He said, ‘Do not lay your hand on the lad, or do anything to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from me.’ Genesis 22:11-12
This scene may seem bizarre, but it’s crucial to understand the setting and context, for there is so much more here than meets the eye. At the beginning of the chapter, Abraham was commanded by God to offer his promised son, Isaac, as a sacrifice. Even though it doubtlessly tormented him to do so, Abraham journeyed with Isaac to Moriah (the land that would later become Jerusalem) as God instructed him, bringing everything needed for a normal sacrifice EXCEPT a sheep. When queried by Isaac, Abraham replies that God would provide a suitable animal; after God’s Angel stops him, he is shown a nearby ram (caught by its horns in a thorn bush) and Abraham offers the ram instead of Isaac.
Here are some thoughts of note regarding this passage and the surrounding verses:
God has led Abraham through a test involving his priorities; Abraham must show that he loves God first and foremost. Remember, Abraham had waited all his life for Isaac (born when Abraham was 100!), and while he had trusted God to provide him with the son of the Promise, it was important that Abraham did not value the blessing more than the One who gives blessings. This is an essential quality for a godly man and father to have – if he doesn’t honor God above all else, then everything important about being a man will fall apart.
Abraham is also being tested regarding his trust in God’s promise for the future. Isaac is a fulfillment of God’s promise, and if Abraham kills him, there will be (from a human POV) no hope for the future. However, we learn elsewhere in Scripture that Abraham believed that God could resurrect Isaac if he were to die (Hebrews 11:19). Even in one of the most trying moments of his faith, Abraham shows that he has not lost sight of God’s goodness and power to accomplish all things that He sets forth to do.
The “Angel” denotation is a detail VERY worthy of note. It is a title that, according to scholarly debates, points to one of three possible identities: 1) a specially chosen angel who acts on God’s command, 2) a reference to Jesus as the pre-Incarnate Christ, or 3) God the Father assuming a human form. The second is a popular theory, and this would not have been the first time that Abraham would have encountered the Angel when the judgment on the wicked cities of Sodom and Gomorrah was about to happen (Genesis 18). He would have been familiar with God’s character and commands as a man who followed/obeyed Him (John 10:27), so he would have known that this command to spare Isaac was truly from God and not a deception from the Enemy.
The scene is a prophetic image; it is symbolic/a foretelling of Jesus’ ultimate sacrifice on the Cross. The sacrifice represents the necessary judgment for humanity’s sinful state (Hebrews 9:22); Abraham is God the Father, Isaac is humanity, and Jesus is the ram (caught in the thorns) that takes our place (John 1:29). In this, we see a classic example of the unity/continuity of God’s Word (the Old is the New “concealed,” while the New is the Old “revealed”).
May your week be a blessed one!