Genesis 22:11 - Printer Friendly

ESV: But the angel of the LORD called to him from heaven and said, “Abraham, Abraham!” And he said, “Here I am.”

NIV: But the angel of the LORD called out to him from heaven, 'Abraham! Abraham!' 'Here I am,' he replied.

NASB: But the angel of the Lord called to him from heaven and said, 'Abraham, Abraham!' And he said, 'Here I am.'

CSB: But the angel of the Lord called to him from heaven and said, "Abraham, Abraham! "He replied, "Here I am."

NLT: At that moment the angel of the Lord called to him from heaven, 'Abraham! Abraham!' 'Yes,' Abraham replied. 'Here I am!'

KJV: And the angel of the LORD called unto him out of heaven, and said, Abraham, Abraham: and he said, Here am I.

NKJV: But the Angel of the Lord called to him from heaven and said, “Abraham, Abraham!” So he said, “Here I am.”

In the instant before this verse, Abraham was poised to kill his beloved son, Isaac (Genesis 22:9–10). This was in obedience to a command given directly from God. Of course, this would have seemed as unthinkable to Abraham as it does to us. Abraham's obedience comes as a result of his trust in God. Abraham has seen, first-hand, how God can prove His righteousness, even when limited people cannot understand what is happening. Abraham is not blindly obeying for no reason. He is acting for the best possible reason: because he has experienced God's goodness enough to trust Him!

The repetition of Abraham's name and the cry of the voice from heaven indicates the urgency of the moment. Abraham responds as he did when God first spoke to him in verse 1, and as he did when Isaac asked him about the lamb: "Here I am." Once more, none of Abraham's emotion is revealed to us. He appears to be ready to do next whatever the Lord asks of him. He was certainly prepared to commit the act God had asked of him, right up until the moment he is stopped by this voice.

Genesis 22:1–19 takes place over the course of a few days, when Isaac is perhaps a teenager. God commands Abraham to sacrifice his beloved son as a burnt offering. Abraham sets out to obey without hesitation, acting in complete trust that God, somehow, will make all things right. Abraham stops the sacrifice only when the Lord intervenes. For his deep trust and obedience, the Lord renews and emphasizes His blessing on Abraham and his offspring, as well as promising to bless all nations through Abraham's descendants.

In a test of Abraham's faith and obedience, God commands Abraham to do a terrible thing: kill and offer his son Isaac, whom he loves, as a burnt offering. Abraham sets out to obey without hesitation, having finally learned to trust God's goodness over his own misunderstandings. Instead of allowing the boy to be sacrificed, the Lord calls out to Abraham moments before he kills Isaac, laying bound on an altar. Because of Abraham's obedience, God renews and emphasizes His promises of blessing, multiplied offspring, and victory over future enemies.

In the previous chapter, the long-promised Isaac was finally born to Sarah and Abraham, while Abraham's other beloved son, Ishmael, was sent away to be cared for by God apart from them. Now God tests Abraham's faith and obedience by commanding him to offer his precious son Isaac as a burnt offering. Abraham sets out to obey without hesitation, stopping only when the Lord cries out to him. For Abraham's obedience, God renews and emphasizes the blessing on him and his offspring. This marks the beginning of the end of Abraham's story, as the book of Genesis transitions to focus on Isaac and his descendants.

The book of Genesis establishes fundamental truths about God. Among these are His role as the Creator, His holiness, His hatred of sin, His love for mankind, and His willingness to provide for our redemption. We learn not only where mankind has come from, but why the world is in its present form. The book also presents the establishment of Israel, God's chosen people. Many of the principles given in other parts of Scripture depend on the basic ideas presented here in the book of Genesis. Within the framework of the Bible, Genesis explains the bare-bones history of the universe leading up to the captivity of Israel in Egypt, setting the stage for the book of Exodus.

Accessed 5/5/2024 6:14:18 AM