Genesis 22

God’s command to sacrifice Isaac (vs. 1-2)—We are not allowed to have any higher love or allegiance than that to God (Matt. 10:37). Abraham loved Isaac dearly—the son of his old age, by his legitimate wife Sarah, and apparently a very respectful lad (v. 7). Abraham was in danger, in a way that he probably didn’t recognize himself, of coming to the point of loving Isaac more than he loved God. That problem has to be consciously faced and worked through; we need to focus our minds on loving God supremely, regardless of the cost. God’s command was “Take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you" (v. 2)—“your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love”—sort of rubbing it in there. Isaac, of course, wasn’t Abraham’s only son, but again, he was his only real legitimate son. And the one he loved the most. The Lord is testing the patriarch; He had no intention of having Abraham kill Isaac. It was simply a priority issue that Abraham had to face. What a great story.

Abraham obeys (vs. 3-14)—Immediately, the very next morning, Abraham heads for the place God told him to go. When he got near enough, we see the real point of the patriarch’s faith: “And Abraham said to his young men, ‘Stay here with the donkey; the lad and I will go yonder and worship, and we will come back to you’" (v. 5). God had told Abraham that his descendents would be numberless through Isaac. Now Jehovah is commanding Abraham to kill that son. Did Abraham believe God’s prior promise? Indeed, he did, even to the point of having faith that God could raise Isaac from the dead, if necessary. Hebrews 11:19 makes this very point: “concluding that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead.” Abraham arrives at the appointed location, goes through with the preparations for the sacrifice (one wonders what Isaac was thinking), and even raises the knife to slay the boy. The angel of the Lord stops him: “now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me" (v. 12). Abraham would withhold nothing from the Lord. One of the greatest examples of faith and obedience known to mankind.

God repeats the promise (vs. 15-19)—Once more the Lord promises Abraham the wonderful blessing of his inheritance. It may seem to us that Jehovah is saying this a lot to the patriarch, but keep in mind that years are passing during all this time. God isn’t speaking to Abraham every day, and the godly man doesn’t have Scriptures he can turn to for comfort and solace. So no doubt these repetitions of the promise are a tremendous source of encouragement to Abraham. As great as he was, he was human.

The children of Nahor, Abraham’s brother (vs. 20-24)—We get a brief genealogy here of Abraham’s brother, Nahor, and nephew, Bethuel. One daughter of Bethuel was Rebekah, and she will soon be a major player in the story. More on that in chapter 24.