Genesis 22
God Tells Abraham to Kill Isaac
Sometime after Hagar was banished, God put Abraham to the test, telling him,
“Abraham, take Isaac, your one-and-only son whom you love, and go to the region of Moriah [which means “chosen by Jehovah”]. When you get there I’ll show you a specific mountain. Climb it and present Isaac to me there as a roasted offering.”
Abraham Prepares to Kill Isaac
So Abraham got up early the next morning, chopped some wood for the roast, saddled his donkey, and set out with Isaac and 2 young men. On the third day of their journey, Abraham saw the place God had specified. He told the 2 young men,
“Stay here with the donkey. I’ll take the boy over there where we’ll bow to God, and then I’ll meet you back here.”
Abraham took the wood and put it on Isaac’s back for him to carry, while Abraham carried the fire and the knife. While the two of them were walking along together, Isaac asked,
“Dad, I see we have the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for the roast?”
Abraham answered,
“God will make a lamb show up for His roast, my son.”
So the two of them continued walking together.
When they got to the place God had specified, Abraham built an altar, arranged the wood, tied up Isaac, and laid his son on top of the wood. Abraham reached out and grabbed the knife to slaughter his son.
God Shows Up
But then the Existing One’s representative shouted from the sky,
“Abraham, wait! Don't touch him! Now I know that you view God with a healthy level of fear, because you didn’t try to withhold your only son from me.”
Then Abraham looked up and saw a ram caught in the bushes by his horns. Abraham grabbed it and offered it as a roast in the place of his son. Abraham named that place “The Existing One Shows Up.” That’s why to this day we still use the saying, “On Jehovah’s mountain, it will show up.”
Then the Existing One’s representative shouted from the sky again, saying,
“I swear to myself, the Existing One, that I will bless you for not withholding your son. I will multiply your descendants to be like the stars in the sky and the sand on the beach. Your descendants will capture the towns of their enemies. Through your genes, all the countries on earth will be blessed, because you obeyed my instructions.”
So Abraham returned to his young men, and they traveled back to Beersheba where Abraham lived.
Abraham’s Nephews
Abraham’s brother, Nahor, had 8 sons with Milcah:
Uz [means “wooded”] was their oldest
Buz [means “contempt”]
Kemuel [means “raised of God”] who was the father of Aram [patriarch of Syria]
Chesed [means “increase”]
Hazo [means “vision”]
Pildash [means “flame of fire”]
Jidlaph [means “weeping”]
Bethuel [means “dweller in God”] who was the father of Rebekah [Rebekah eventually married Isaac]
Nahor (Abraham’s brother) also had a mistress named Reumah who gave him 4 other sons: Tebah, Gaham, Tahash, and Maacah.
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