Chapter 14: God Tests Abraham

Q1 - Why did Abraham carry wood with him on his journey when he could have gathered it later as he came to the site of his sacrifice?

A1 - Abraham made a deliberate decision to obey God and committed himself fully to carrying out His command. By taking with him wood that was already chopped, split, and ready to burn, he made sure he would not be distracted or delayed at the site of the sacrifice by having to collect and prepare wood.

Q2 - Before he departed, do you think Abraham told Sarah that God had commanded him to offer Isaac as a sacrifice? What do you think he told her when he returned?

A2 - It’s doubtful that Abraham told anybody that God had commanded him to offer Isaac as a sacrifice. He obviously didn’t want his two servants to know because he left them behind where they could not witness what he intended to do. Isaac didn’t know until the end that he was the intended sacrifice.

If Abraham had confided in Sarah what God had commanded him to do, her reaction might well have complicated the whole situation. She could have resisted and tried to prevent Abraham from making the journey. Even if she resigned herself to what must be done, she likely could not have concealed the heaviness of her heart.

Q3 - What impact do you think the incident at Moriah had upon Abraham’s life from that point forward? Just as importantly, what impact do you think it had upon Isaac’s life?  Who do you think exhibited the greater faith—Abraham in his Heavenly Father, or Isaac in his earthly father?

A3 - While Isaac proved his faith to his earthly father by submitting to his will, both Abraham and Isaac showed their unwavering faith in God, their heavenly Father. When Abraham told Isaac that God would provide, both of them believed He would. Then when God came through for them and stayed Isaac’s execution, their faith had to have been sealed forever at that point. It must have had an impact on both of them for the rest of their lives. Abraham knew without a doubt that God would do what He said He would do, and Isaac must have understood at that point that God had big plans for his life and his descendants.

This incident likely impacted Isaac for the rest of his life. Perhaps his being bound and almost slain as a sacrifice to God is why his son Jacob would later refer to God as “the fear of Isaac.” This incident had to have been fearful for both Abraham and Isaac. In fact, the angel of the Lord said this to Abraham when staying his hand from killing Isaac: “'Do not lay a hand on the boy,’ he said. ‘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’” (Genesis 22:12, NIV). (See Genesis 31:42, 53 for Jacob referring to God as “the fear of Isaac.”)