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Genesis chapter 22

English Standard Version

1After these things God tested Abraham and said to him, "Abraham!" And he said, "Here I am." 2He 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 of which I shall tell you." 3So Abraham rose early in the morning, saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him, and his son Isaac. And he cut the wood for the burnt offering and arose and went to the place of which God had told him. 4On the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes and saw the place from afar. 5Then Abraham said to his young men, "Stay here with the donkey; I and the boy will go over there and worship and come again to you." 6And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it on Isaac his son. And he took in his hand the fire and the knife. So they went both of them together. 7And Isaac said to his father Abraham, "My father!" And he said, "Here I am, my son." He said, "Behold, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?" 8Abraham said, "God will provide for himself the lamb for a burnt offering, my son." So they went both of them together.
9When they came to the place of which God had told him, Abraham built the altar there and laid the wood in order and bound Isaac his son and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. 10Then Abraham reached out his hand and took the knife to slaughter his son. 11But the angel of the Lord called to him from heaven and said, "Abraham, Abraham!" And he said, "Here I am." 12He said, "Do not lay your hand on the boy or do anything to him, for now I know that you fear God, seeing you have not withheld your son, your only son, from me." 13And Abraham lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, behind him was a ram, caught in a thicket by his horns. And Abraham went and took the ram and offered it up as a burnt offering instead of his son. 14So Abraham called the name of that place, "The Lord will provide"; as it is said to this day, "On the mount of the Lord it shall be provided."
15And the angel of the Lord called to Abraham a second time from heaven 16and said, "By myself I have sworn, declares the Lord, because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, 17I will surely bless you, and I will surely multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven and as the sand that is on the seashore. And your offspring shall possess the gate of his enemies, 18and in your offspring shall all the nations of the earth be blessed, because you have obeyed my voice." 19So Abraham returned to his young men, and they arose and went together to Beersheba. And Abraham lived at Beersheba.
20Now after these things it was told to Abraham, "Behold, Milcah also has borne children to your brother Nahor: 21Uz his firstborn, Buz his brother, Kemuel the father of Aram, 22Chesed, Hazo, Pildash, Jidlaph, and Bethuel." 23(Bethuel fathered Rebekah.) These eight Milcah bore to Nahor, Abraham 's brother. 24Moreover, his concubine, whose name was Reumah, bore Tebah, Gaham, Tahash, and Maacah.
New International Version

1Some time later God tested Abraham. He said to him, "Abraham!" "Here I am," he replied.
2Then God said, "Take your son, your only son, whom you love—Isaac—and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on a mountain I will show you."
3Early the next morning Abraham got up and loaded his donkey. He took with him two of his servants and his son Isaac. When he had cut enough wood for the burnt offering, he set out for the place God had told him about. 4On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. 5He said to his servants, "Stay here with the donkey while I and the boy go over there. We will worship and then we will come back to you."
6Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac, and he himself carried the fire and the knife. As the two of them went on together,
7Isaac spoke up and said to his father Abraham, "Father?" "Yes, my son?" Abraham replied. "The fire and wood are here," Isaac said, "but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?"
8Abraham answered, "God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son." And the two of them went on together.
9When they reached the place God had told him about, Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood on it. He bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. 10Then he reached out his hand and took the knife to slay his son.
11But the angel of the Lord called out to him from heaven, "Abraham! Abraham!" "Here I am," he replied.
12"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."
13Abraham looked up and there in a thicket he saw a ram caught by its horns. He went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son. 14So Abraham called that place The Lord Will Provide. And to this day it is said, "On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided."
15The angel of the Lord called to Abraham from heaven a second time 16and said, "I swear by myself, declares the Lord, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, 17I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies, 18and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me."
19Then Abraham returned to his servants, and they set off together for Beersheba. And Abraham stayed in Beersheba.
20Some time later Abraham was told, "Milkah is also a mother; she has borne sons to your brother Nahor: 21Uz the firstborn, Buz his brother, Kemuel (the father of Aram), 22Kesed, Hazo, Pildash, Jidlaph and Bethuel." 23Bethuel became the father of Rebekah. Milkah bore these eight sons to Abraham’s brother Nahor. 24His concubine, whose name was Reumah, also had sons: Tebah, Gaham, Tahash and Maakah.
New American Standard Bible

1Now it came about after these things, that God tested Abraham, and said to him, 'Abraham!' And he said, 'Here I am.' 2Then He said, 'Take now your son, your only son, whom you love, Isaac, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I will tell you.' 3So Abraham got up early in the morning and saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him and his son Isaac; and he split wood for the burnt offering, and set out and went to the place of which God had told him. 4On the third day Abraham raised his eyes and saw the place from a distance. 5Then Abraham said to his young men, 'Stay here with the donkey, and I and the boy will go over there; and we will worship and return to you.' 6And Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and laid it on his son Isaac, and he took in his hand the fire and the knife. So the two of them walked on together. 7Isaac spoke to his father Abraham and said, 'My father!' And he said, 'Here I am, my son.' And he said, 'Look, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?' 8Abraham said, 'God will provide for Himself the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.' So the two of them walked on together.
9Then they came to the place of which God had told him; and Abraham built the altar there and arranged the wood, and bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. 10And Abraham reached out with his hand and took the knife to slaughter his son. 11But the angel of the Lord called to him from heaven and said, 'Abraham, Abraham!' And he said, 'Here I am.' 12He said, 'Do not reach out your hand against the boy, and do not do anything to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me.' 13Then Abraham raised his eyes and looked, and behold, behind him was a ram caught in the thicket by its horns; and Abraham went and took the ram and offered it up as a burnt offering in the place of his son. 14And Abraham named that place The Lord Will Provide, as it is said to this day, 'On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided.'
15Then the angel of the Lord called to Abraham a second time from heaven, 16and said, 'By Myself I have sworn, declares the Lord, because you have done this thing and have not withheld your son, your only son, 17indeed I will greatly bless you, and I will greatly multiply your seed as the stars of the heavens and as the sand, which is on the seashore; and your seed shall possess the gate of their enemies. 18And in your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice.' 19So Abraham returned to his young men, and they got up and went together to Beersheba; and Abraham lived in Beersheba.
20Now it came about after these things, that Abraham was told, saying, 'Behold, Milcah also has borne children to your brother Nahor: 21Uz his firstborn, Buz his brother, Kemuel (the father of Aram), 22Chesed, Hazo, Pildash, Jidlaph, and Bethuel'— 23and it was Bethuel who fathered Rebekah. These eight Milcah bore to Nahor, Abraham’s brother. 24His concubine, whose name was Reumah, also gave birth to Tebah, Gaham, Tahash, and Maacah.
Christian Standard Bible

1After these things God tested Abraham and said to him, "Abraham!" "Here I am," he answered.
2"Take your son," he said, "your only son Isaac, whom you love, go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about."
3So Abraham got up early in the morning, saddled his donkey, and took with him two of his young men and his son Isaac. He split wood for a burnt offering and set out to go to the place God had told him about. 4On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. 5Then Abraham said to his young men, "Stay here with the donkey. The boy and I will go over there to worship; then we’ll come back to you." 6Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and laid it on his son Isaac. In his hand he took the fire and the knife, and the two of them walked on together.
7Then Isaac spoke to his father Abraham and said, "My father." And he replied, "Here I am, my son." Isaac said, "The fire and the wood are here, but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?"
8Abraham answered, "God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son." Then the two of them walked on together.
9When they arrived at the place that God had told him about, Abraham built the altar there and arranged the wood. He bound his son Isaac and placed him on the altar on top of the wood. 10Then Abraham reached out and took the knife to slaughter his son.
11But the angel of the Lord called to him from heaven and said, "Abraham, Abraham!" He replied, "Here I am."
12Then he said, "Do not lay a hand on the boy or do anything to him. For now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your only son from me." 13Abraham looked up and saw a ram caught in the thicket by its horns. So Abraham went and took the ram and offered it as a burnt offering in place of his son. 14And Abraham named that place The Lord Will Provide, so today it is said: "It will be provided on the Lord’s mountain."
15Then the angel of the Lord called to Abraham a second time from heaven 16and said, "By myself I have sworn," this is the Lord’s declaration: "Because you have done this thing and have not withheld your only son, 17I will indeed bless you and make your offspring as numerous as the stars of the sky and the sand on the seashore. Your offspring will possess the city gates of their enemies. 18And all the nations of the earth will be blessed by your offspring because you have obeyed my command."
19Abraham went back to his young men, and they got up and went together to Beer-sheba. And Abraham settled in Beer-sheba.
20Now after these things Abraham was told, "Milcah also has borne sons to your brother Nahor: 21Uz his firstborn, his brother Buz, Kemuel the father of Aram, 22Chesed, Hazo, Pildash, Jidlaph, and Bethuel." 23And Bethuel fathered Rebekah. Milcah bore these eight to Nahor, Abraham’s brother. 24His concubine, whose name was Reumah, also bore Tebah, Gaham, Tahash, and Maacah.
New Living Translation

1Some time later, God tested Abraham’s faith. 'Abraham!' God called. 'Yes,' he replied. 'Here I am.'
2Take your son, your only son — yes, Isaac, whom you love so much — and go to the land of Moriah. Go and sacrifice him as a burnt offering on one of the mountains, which I will show you.'
3The next morning Abraham got up early. He saddled his donkey and took two of his servants with him, along with his son, Isaac. Then he chopped wood for a fire for a burnt offering and set out for the place God had told him about. 4On the third day of their journey, Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. 5Stay here with the donkey,' Abraham told the servants. 'The boy and I will travel a little farther. We will worship there, and then we will come right back.'
6So Abraham placed the wood for the burnt offering on Isaac’s shoulders, while he himself carried the fire and the knife. As the two of them walked on together,
7Isaac turned to Abraham and said, 'Father?' 'Yes, my son?' Abraham replied. 'We have the fire and the wood,' the boy said, 'but where is the sheep for the burnt offering?'
8God will provide a sheep for the burnt offering, my son,' Abraham answered. And they both walked on together.
9When they arrived at the place where God had told him to go, Abraham built an altar and arranged the wood on it. Then he tied his son, Isaac, and laid him on the altar on top of the wood. 10And Abraham picked up the knife to kill his son as a sacrifice.
11At that moment the angel of the Lord called to him from heaven, 'Abraham! Abraham!' 'Yes,' Abraham replied. 'Here I am!'
12Don’t lay a hand on the boy!' the angel said. 'Do not hurt him in any way, for now I know that you truly fear God. You have not withheld from me even your son, your only son.'
13Then Abraham looked up and saw a ram caught by its horns in a thicket. So he took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering in place of his son. 14Abraham named the place Yahweh-Yireh (which means 'the Lord will provide'). To this day, people still use that name as a proverb: 'On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided.'
15Then the angel of the Lord called again to Abraham from heaven. 16This is what the Lord says: Because you have obeyed me and have not withheld even your son, your only son, I swear by my own name that 17I will certainly bless you. I will multiply your descendants beyond number, like the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will conquer the cities of their enemies. 18And through your descendants all the nations of the earth will be blessed — all because you have obeyed me.'
19Then they returned to the servants and traveled back to Beersheba, where Abraham continued to live.
20Soon after this, Abraham heard that Milcah, his brother Nahor’s wife, had borne Nahor eight sons. 21The oldest was named Uz, the next oldest was Buz, followed by Kemuel (the ancestor of the Arameans), 22Kesed, Hazo, Pildash, Jidlaph, and Bethuel. 23(Bethuel became the father of Rebekah.) In addition to these eight sons from Milcah, 24Nahor had four other children from his concubine Reumah. Their names were Tebah, Gaham, Tahash, and Maacah.
King James Version

1And it came to pass after these things, that God did tempt Abraham, and said unto him, Abraham: and he said, Behold, here I am. 2And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of.
3And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and saddled his ass, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son, and clave the wood for the burnt offering, and rose up, and went unto the place of which God had told him.
4Then on the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes, and saw the place afar off. 5And Abraham said unto his young men, Abide ye here with the ass; and I and the lad will go yonder and worship, and come again to you.
6And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering, and laid it upon Isaac his son; and he took the fire in his hand, and a knife; and they went both of them together. 7And Isaac spake unto Abraham his father, and said, My father: and he said, Here am I, my son. And he said, Behold the fire and the wood: but where is the lamb for a burnt offering? 8And Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so they went both of them together.
9And they came to the place which God had told him of; and Abraham built an altar there, and laid the wood in order, and bound Isaac his son, and laid him on the altar upon the wood. 10And Abraham stretched forth his hand, and took the knife to slay his son. 11And the angel of the Lord called unto him out of heaven, and said, Abraham, Abraham: and he said, Here am I. 12And he said, Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou any thing unto him: for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from me.
13And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold behind him a ram caught in a thicket by his horns: and Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt offering in the stead of his son. 14And Abraham called the name of that place Jehovahjireh: as it is said to this day, In the mount of the Lord it shall be seen.
15And the angel of the Lord called unto Abraham out of heaven the second time, 16And said, By myself have I sworn, saith the Lord, for because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son: 17That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies; 18And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice.
19So Abraham returned unto his young men, and they rose up and went together to Beersheba; and Abraham dwelt at Beersheba.
20And it came to pass after these things, that it was told Abraham, saying, Behold, Milcah, she hath also born children unto thy brother Nahor; 21Huz his firstborn, and Buz his brother, and Kemuel the father of Aram, 22And Chesed, and Hazo, and Pildash, and Jidlaph, and Bethuel. 23And Bethuel begat Rebekah: these eight Milcah did bear to Nahor, Abraham's brother. 24And his concubine, whose name was Reumah, she bare also Tebah, and Gaham, and Thahash, and Maachah.
New King James Version

1Now it came to pass after these things that God tested Abraham, and said to him, “Abraham!” And he said, “Here I am.”
2Then He said, “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.”
3So Abraham rose early in the morning and saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son; and he split the wood for the burnt offering, and arose and went to the place of which God had told him. 4Then on the third day Abraham lifted his eyes and saw the place afar off. 5And 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.”
6So Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it on Isaac his son; and he took the fire in his hand, and a knife, and the two of them went together.
7But Isaac spoke to Abraham his father and said, “My father!” And he said, “Here I am, my son.” Then he said, “Look, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?”
8And Abraham said, “My son, God will provide for Himself the lamb for a burnt offering.” So the two of them went together.
9Then they came to the place of which God had told him. And Abraham built an altar there and placed the wood in order; and he bound Isaac his son and laid him on the altar, upon the wood. 10And Abraham stretched out his hand and took the knife to slay his son.
11But the Angel of the Lord called to him from heaven and said, “Abraham, Abraham!” So he said, “Here I am.”
12And He said, “Do not lay your hand on the lad, or do anything to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me.”
13Then Abraham lifted his eyes and looked, and there behind him was a ram caught in a thicket by its horns. So Abraham went and took the ram, and offered it up for a burnt offering instead of his son. 14And Abraham called the name of the place, The-Lord-Will-Provide; as it is said to this day, “In the Mount of the Lord it shall be provided.”
15Then the Angel of the Lord called to Abraham a second time out of heaven, 16and said: “By Myself I have sworn, says the Lord, because you have done this thing, and have not withheld your son, your only son— 17blessing I will bless you, and multiplying I will multiply your descendants as the stars of the heaven and as the sand which is on the seashore; and your descendants shall possess the gate of their enemies. 18In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice.” 19So Abraham returned to his young men, and they rose and went together to Beersheba; and Abraham dwelt at Beersheba.
20Now it came to pass after these things that it was told Abraham, saying, “Indeed Milcah also has borne children to your brother Nahor: 21Huz his firstborn, Buz his brother, Kemuel the father of Aram, 22Chesed, Hazo, Pildash, Jidlaph, and Bethuel.” 23And Bethuel begot Rebekah. These eight Milcah bore to Nahor, Abraham’s brother. 24His concubine, whose name was Reumah, also bore Tebah, Gaham, Thahash, and Maachah.

What does Genesis chapter 22 mean?

Genesis 22 contains one of the most iconic stories in all of literature: Abraham's near-sacrifice of his son, Isaac. It's a troubling story for many, mostly because it is so often misunderstood. When read as part of the long, detailed story of Abraham, this is an event which reveals the depth of Abraham's trust in God, one of the qualities God values most in His people.

Sometime after the birth of Isaac, while Abraham is still living in Beersheba, God speaks to him again. This time, God comes to test Abraham's faithfulness and obedience with a very specific command. Abraham is to take Isaac to the land of Moriah. There, he is to offer him as a burnt offering on one of the mountains (Genesis 22:1–2). God makes the command especially poignant by acknowledging up front that Abraham loves Isaac, his only son.

Most criticisms of this story start and end here: with the idea that Abraham would ever obey such a command from God. It's important to realize, however, that this is not the first time Abraham has heard from God. Nor is it the first time Abraham has been presented with a situation he does not fully understand. However, God faithfully provided a son to Abraham, even though Abraham could not see how it was possible (Genesis 17:17; 21:1–2). God was righteous in His destruction of Sodom, saving Lot, even though Abraham didn't understand how this could happen (Genesis 18:22–23; 19:15–16). Now, Abraham has to decide if he trusts God enough to obey a seemingly impossible command, even when he does not fully understand how God plans to make things right.

Abraham doesn't hesitate. He gets up early, summons two of his servants, along with Isaac, collects enough wood for a burnt offering, and loads up the donkey. We don't know exactly how old Isaac is at this point, but he is capable of travelling without his mother (Genesis 22:3–4), asking intelligent questions (Genesis 22:7) and carrying wood for his father (Genesis 22:6). Most likely, Isaac is a teenager. The small group immediately heads out on the three-day trip to Moriah. Once there, Abraham leaves the servants and donkey behind and heads up into the hills with Isaac and the wood (Genesis 22:3–6).

Does Abraham expect God to stop him before he kills Isaac? Perhaps, but perhaps not. Hebrews 11:19 gives us a clue: "Abraham reasoned that God could even raise the dead." In any case, Abraham doesn't slow down even when Isaac asks where the lamb is. Abraham simply replies that the God will provide the lamb. Isaac, for his part, seems willing to cooperate with his father (Genesis 22:6–8).

After building the altar, Abraham binds Isaac and lays him on it. Before he can kill his son, though, the Lord's voice rings out from heaven commanding Abraham not to harm Isaac. The test is over. Abraham has passed: "'…now I know that you fear God, seeing you have not withheld your son, your only son, from me'" (Genesis 22:12).

A substitute sacrifice is provided in the form of a ram caught in a thicket right behind Abraham. The ram is offered, and Abraham names the mountain "The Lord will provide." Then the Lord renews and emphasizes His promises to Abraham once more, swearing by Himself. Because of Abraham's obedience, the Lord promises to bless Abraham, to multiply his offspring exponentially, and to give Abraham's offspring victory over their enemies (Genesis 22:15–17).

The Lord adds another promise: All the nations of the earth will be blessed through Abraham's offspring, something that happens unequivocally when Abraham's descendant, Jesus, becomes the means by which all may come into God's blessing of grace through faith (Genesis 22:18–19).

Genesis 22 ends with a list of the 12 children of Abraham's brother Nahor. One of those children, Bethuel, will become the father of Rebekah. Abraham's son Isaac will eventually marry Rebekah (Genesis 24), and they will father Jacob, whose children will form the tribes of God's chosen people, Israel.
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