The Bible Book

52

easy to imagine. After a while,

however, Isaac speaks. “Father?”

he asks. “Here I am,” replies

Abraham for the second time in the

story. “The fire and wood are here,”

says Isaac, “but where is the lamb

for the burnt offering?” Abraham

replies, “God himself will provide

the lamb for the burnt offering, my

son” (22:8). Abraham’s speech here

THE TESTING OF ABRAHAM

shows that despite the enormity

God asks, he still trusts God to

provide for him.

When father and son reach the

designated place, Abraham builds

an altar from stones, takes the

wood his son has been carrying,

and places it on top of the altar. He

binds Isaac—hence the Jewish

name for the story, the Akedah,

from the Hebrew Akedat Yizhak,

“binding of Isaac”—and places

him on top of the wood ready for

the sacrifice.

Abraham reaches out his hand

and takes the knife to start the

process. At this moment, a voice

cries urgently to him from heaven:

“Abraham! Abraham!” For the

third time in the story, Abraham

replies, “Here I am,” the repetition

highlighting his unwavering

faithfulness. “Do not lay a hand on

the boy,” says the voice. “Do not do

anything to him. Now I know that

you fear God, because you have not

withheld from me your son, your

only son” (22:12). To fear God in the

Bible is not so much an emotion of

terror, but rather a profound respect

for God, implying obedience and

trust. Many Hebrew words for fear

A 6th-century mosaic in the Basilica

of San Vitale in Ravenna, Italy, depicts

Abraham preparing to sacrifice Isaac.

Three angels are in attendance and

Sarah hovers in the background.

Offerings to the Lord

Burnt offerings were common

to most ancient religions in the

Middle East. The meat was

burned on an altar, its smoke

rising as a pleasing odor to the

deity or deities. Once religious

rituals had become established

among the Israelites, such

offerings were made morning

and evening in the Jerusalem

Temple, along with offerings of

grain and drink. The Israelites

also believed that firstborn

males should be offered to God:

“The first offspring to open the

womb among the Israelites

belongs to me, whether human

or animal,” the Lord tells Moses

in Exodus 13:1. Scholars believe

the ancient Israelites, in

common with neighboring

peoples, such as the Phoenicians

and Egyptians, practiced child

sacrifice, though it had ceased

among the Israelites by the 7th

or 6th century bce. Instead,

parents made burnt offerings

of animals to “redeem” their

firstborn sons. There is an echo

of the abolition of child sacrifice

among the Israelites in the story

of Abraham and Isaac.

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