Jan 23

Abraham agrees to God’s request, because he trusts God fully.  God has promised Abraham that he will have many descendants, and Abraham trusts God that this promise will still be fulfilled even if he does sacrifice Isaac to God.  He so fully trusts and loves God that, even though he loves Isaac, he is willing to sacrifice him to show God how much he loves and trusts Him.  I don’t think Abraham is lying in Gen 22:5 and 22:8 by saying that both he and Isaac will return, and God will send a ram for them to sacrifice. While Abraham might not know these things for sure, his trust in God is so complete that he firmly believes that these things will happen.  God had previously promised that through Isaac Abraham would have numerous descendants, so how could that covenant come to completion if Abraham was really forced to sacrifice Isaac?  I think Abraham was able to have complete trust in God, believing that somehow God would make everything right, and he projected this belief in his statements in these verses.

God’s intention in making Abraham go through this ordeal is to reaffirm Abraham’s absolute trust in and love Him.  By asking Abraham to sacrifice is son, through whom the covenant would be fulfilled, God is asking him to trust that somehow God’s promises would still be kept.  He is also asking Abraham to reaffirm his love for God by asking him to sacrifice his only son, Isaac.  I think Abraham is praiseworthy, because, although he does not know what God’s plan is or why He is asking him to sacrifice his son, he trusts God, submits himself to His will, and completely believes.  I am probably just missing an interpretation of the story, but I cannot see how God’s actions praiseworthy in this story.  I don’t think God’s actions were wrong, but I don’t really understand how God could be praise for putting Abraham through this ordeal.