As I stated last week, I hope this can be a serious study of the Christian Bible, and I only ask that those who participate try to stay away from personal-level attacks. All pertinent comments are welcome, regardless of whether you are a believer or not.
This week, we move a bit further into the book of Genesis. Lots of good material to look at there, and we'll only be hitting a few of the "highlights."
Gen 22:1-3 – After these things God tested Abraham. He said to him, "Abraham!" And he said, "Here I am." He said, "Take 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 that I shall show you." So Abraham rose early in the morning, saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him, and his son Isaac; he cut the wood for the burnt offering, and set out and went to the place in the distance that God had shown him.
Gen 22:7-10 – Isaac said to his father Abraham, "Father!" And he said, "Here I am, my son." He said, "The fire and the wood are here, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?" Abraham said, "God himself will provide the lamb for a burnt offering, my son." So the two of them walked on together. When they came to the place that God had shown him, Abraham built an altar there and laid the wood in order. He bound his son Isaac, and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood.
Gen 22:15-18 – The angel of the Lord called to Abraham a second time from heaven, and said, "By myself I have sworn, says the Lord: Because you have done this, and have not withheld your son, your only son, I will indeed bless you, and I will make your offspring as numerous as the stars of heaven and as the sand that is on the seashore. And your offspring shall possess the gate of their enemies, and by your offspring shall all the nations of the earth gain blessing for themselves, because you have obeyed my voice."
I have always thought (even when I was a believer) that this was a reprehensible event. God decides to test this person Abraham. This is after he's given several unconditional promises for the future, so one would have to wonder what's the point of testing him now? Did the writer think that God wasn't omniscient, and so had to test people to find out how they react in strange conditions? Or is this supposed to be a matter of an omniscient being arranging a scenario to show Abraham how far he's willing to go in order to serve God? If this were the case, I'd have thought that the outcome (showing a fanaticism that would extend to killing his own son) would have resulted in at least an admonishment, not the reward of a blessing.
Comments?
