Abraham—Heeding God's call to sacrifice (Gen 22:1-14)

HINENI: HEEDING THE CALL OF GOD (Gen 22:1-14)

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Dr. Paul Manuel—2002

When adults are kidding, sometimes children take them seriously. The opposite is also true. When children are kidding, sometimes adults take them seriously.

The boss of a big company needed to call one of his employees about an urgent problem, dialed the employee's home phone number, and was greeted with a child's whisper, "Hello." Is your daddy home?" he asked. "Yes," whispered the small voice. "May I speak with him?" The child whispered, "No." Surprised and wanting to talk with an adult, the boss asked, "Is your mommy there?" "Yes." "May I talk with her?" Again the small voice whispered, "No." Hoping there was somebody with whom he could leave a message, the boss asked, "Is anybody else there?" "Yes," whispered the child, "a policeman." Wondering what a cop would be doing at his employee's home, the boss asked "May I speak with the policeman?" "No, he's busy", whispered the child. "Busy doing what?" "Talking to Daddy and Mommy...and the fireman," came the whispered answer. Growing concerned and even worried as he heard what sounded like a helicopter, the boss asked, "What is that noise?" "A hello-copper" answered the whispering voice. "What is going on there?" asked the boss, now alarmed. In an awed, whispering voice the child answered, "The search team just landed the hello-copper." Alarmed, concerned, and even more then just a little frustrated the boss asked, "What are they searching for?" Still whispering, the young voice replied along with a muffled giggle: "ME."

Hide-and-Seek is not a game to play with God. (The prophet Jonah tried that and became fish food.) Not only is there no place you can hide from God, when you hear His voice, you had best answer, Heeding the Call of God.

There is a little Hebrew word that appears in scripture well-over 1000 times. Because of its frequent occurrence, many readers tend to overlook it. Even modern translations often ignore it. When we encounter this word in the KJV, our impression is of a quaint, archaic form of speech. No one uses it today, but in the biblical period it had several practical functions. The Hebrew word is traditionally rendered "behold." One of its common uses was in response to a call, in which case the word adds at the end, which means "I," The result is: Hineni. Try it. This is something you can use to answer people and to impress them at the same time. So, when someone asks, "Where are you?" You can respond..

This word is particularly significant in answer to God's call, and there are only six people in scripture who hear the divine summons and respond in this way: Abraham, Jacob, Moses, Samuel, Isaiah, and, in the New Testament, Ananias. It sounds like an exciting prospect—to get a call from God. ("Wouldn't you like to get a call from God?") For these men it is exciting...until they hear what God has to say. Then it is probably distressing, even frightening. What He expects of them is not easy, but the Lord apparently regards it as essential to His program. The only question is: Will they heed the call?

The first instance involves Abraham—Heeding God's Call to Sacrifice. The patriarch has encountered God on previous occasions, and God has already expected much from him.

• In Gen 12, God told Abraham to leave home, but gave only a general direction for the journey, no specific destination.
• In Gen 17, God told Abraham to be perfect, but offered no details about what perfection entails, no way of measuring his progress.
• In Gen 18, God told Abraham about Sodom's impending destruction, but did not allow the patriarch to warn his nephew, who lived there.
• In Gen 21, God told Abraham to expel Ishmael, his first son, even though his wife's jealousy seemed hardly the proper motivation for such action.

Despite the difficulties these incidents presented, Abraham obeyed God. Please turn to Gen 22, where God announces His most difficult expectation yet. In fact, it appears that...

I. The order is severe: "Sacrifice your son." (Gen 22:1-8)

Gen 22:1 Some time later God tested Abraham. He said to him, "Abraham!" [He replied: Hineni,] 2 Then God said, "Take your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love, and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about."

Abraham has made animal sacrifices to God before, probably more often than scripture records. They include...

• When Abraham first entered Canaan and God promised to give his descendants the land;
• When Abraham traveled through Canaan, surveying what he would eventually acquire;
• When Abraham returned to Canaan after becoming prosperous in Egypt;
• When God repeated His promise, adding that Abraham would have innumerable descendants.

Those sacrifices Abraham offered were all expressions of devotion to God, probably whole-burnt offerings. They were all voluntary, and they were all animal sacrifices. What God expects here is different. It is still an expression of devotion, but it is compulsory, not voluntary, and it entails the death of a person not an animal. To make matters worse, the sacrifice is not a captured enemy soldier or even one of the patriarch's own servants—it is his son, his only son, Isaac, whom he loves—and Abraham himself will have to do the deed? What kind of God raises grandiose hopes of a great nation only to dash them. It is capricious...

A. It is cruel to the patriarch.

Moreover...

B. It is contrary to the promise.

For Abraham to kill Isaac is counterproductive to what God has said He will do.

• God said Canaan would go to Abraham's innumerable descendants.
• God said Abraham's innumerable descendants would come from one son.
• God said that son is Isaac.

If Isaac dies, the promise dies with him. God is undermining His own word.

What is most astonishing is that this turn of events, this apparent reversal of the promise, does not shake Abraham's confidence in God's integrity. The patriarch could refuse this order. He could point out the obvious discrepancy between this proposal and the promise. He could say, "I appreciate what You have done for me, God, but this is where we part company. Nothing is worth the life of my son." At that point, God might allow Abraham to keep his son, but at what cost? So, what does this father do?

Gen 22:3 Early the next morning Abraham got up and saddled 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. 4 On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance.

Abraham does not try to change God's mind, nor does he procrastinate, hoping that God will forget. Abraham displays his alacrity, his ready willingness to do God's bidding, however difficult it may be, "early the next morning." The destination is what will eventually become the temple mount in Jerusalem. The journey is not an easy one: forty-three miles on foot over rough terrain. What is Abraham thinking during the trip? Upon reaching their destination...

Gen 22:5 He 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." 6 Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac, and he himself carried the fire and the knife. [And] the two of them went on together[.] 7 Isaac spoke up and said to his father Abraham, "Father?" [Abraham replied, "my son?"] "The fire and wood are here," Isaac said, "but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?" 8 Abraham answered, "God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son." And the two of them went on together.

Whatever doubts Abraham may entertain privately on the trip from Beersheba, he displays unwavering confidence in God publicly upon reaching Moriah.

• To his servants, who wonder when he will return, Abraham says, "we will come back" (v. 5).
• To his son, who wonders where the sacrifice is, Abraham says, "God...will provide" (v. 8).

Somehow, Abraham's earlier experiences with the Lord have convinced the patriarch that, despite appearances, God is just and merciful.

Many things that happen in life can shake your confidence in the Lord's goodness.

• It may be a crippling financial loss, despite your faithful support of God's work.
• It may be a debilitating and prolonged illness, despite your persistence in prayer.
• It may be a damaged family relationship, despite your best efforts to do the right thing.

The list of possibilities is almost endless. Has God not promised to bless you, to help you, to protect you, to reward you, if you remain loyal to Him? Surely, any of these events would constitute a failure of that promise. Yet Abraham does not regard it so, and neither should you. A seemingly desperate predicament may actually be a defining moment for your relationship with God, a moment you will lose if you refuse to heed His call.

When Abraham left for Moriah, he may have hoped for the best. He may even have believed that God would somehow spare Isaac, but Abraham could not be certain. This is uncharted territory. Never before has God made such a request, and this seems totally out of character. The order is clear, though, and so is Abraham's resolve. To his relief...

II. The outcome is satisfying: "Spare your son." (Gen 22:9-14)

Gen 22:9 When 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. 10 Then he reached out his hand and took the knife to slay his son. [Notice the suspense here.] 11 But the angel of the LORD called out to him from heaven, "Abraham! Abraham!" [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." 13 Abraham 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. 14 So 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."

At the last possible moment, God intervenes and countermands the order to kill Isaac, and doubtless...

A. It is comforting to the patriarch.

Abraham can now breathe easier, because his son is out of danger. Moreover...

B. It is confirming the promise.

Any nagging suspicion Abraham may have had that God was ready to scuttle His plan is now laid to rest. Whatever may yet be lacking to fulfill the promise, "The LORD will provide" (lit, the LORD will see [to it] )

Will God test you as He did Abraham? The answer is yes...and no. If you want to reach your full spiritual stature, then, yes, God will test you as He did Abraham, because...

• All tests have the same potential (Jms 1:3).

...to develop a perseverance that leads to maturity. James says...

Jms 1:3 ...the testing of your faith develops perseverance 4 [and p]erseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

This test surely developed Abraham's perseverance, because he continued to remain loyal to God even when he did not see the fulfillment of the promise in his lifetime.

God will also test you as He did Abraham, because...

• All tests have the same priority (Exod 16:4).

...which is a preference for God's wishes. To pass his test, Abraham had to give God's wishes preference over his own wishes, even if that meant the death of his son. In the wilderness, the Israelites had to give God's wishes preference over their wishes, even if that meant a revision of their schedule, spending a good part of each day gathering manna. As the Lord said to Moses...

Exod 16:4b-c The people are to go out each day and gather enough for that day. In this way I will test them and see whether they will follow my instructions.

Spending the whole day at the mall was simply not an option, if they were to give God's wishes preference over their own. When God tests you, it will be to prove that your devotion to Him is greater than your devotion to anything or anyone else.

While Abraham's test and Israel's test—indeed, all tests—have the same potential and priority, they are not identical. God will not test you as He did Abraham, in that...

• All tests do not have the same concern. (comp. Gen 22:2; Exod 16:4; Matt 19:21)

God tests different things with different people. With Abraham, it concerned his son. With the Israelites, it concerned their schedule. With the rich young ruler, it concerned his savings. Jesus said to him...

Matt 19:21 "If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor...

With you, God may test whatever competes with Him for your devotion. It may concern your job, your hobbies, your time in front of the TV, your dog. God wants to make sure that nothing has a greater claim on your life. All tests do not have the same concern.

If you know the rich young ruler's story, then you can guess the next difference, which is that...

• All tests do not have the same conclusion (comp. Gen 22:12; Matt 19:22).

The patriarch passed his test because he was willing to surrender his son. The ruler failed his test because he was unwilling to surrender his savings. As the first gospel records,

Matt 19:22 ...he went away sad, because he had great wealth.

Notice that God does not determine the result. The patriarch and the ruler determined the results of their tests. Likewise, you determine whether you pass or fail your test. All tests do not have the same conclusion.

There is one more difference to note. At the end of Abraham's ordeal, the Lord reveals the reason for the test, which was to certify that he truly fears God. But...

• All tests do not have the same closure (comp. Gen 22:12; Job 42:7-8, 10, 12).

Job, for example, never learned that Satan was behind his suffering or that his misery was a test of his integrity. Like Abraham, Job passed the test, but, unlike Abraham, he remained in the dark as to the reason for his anguish. Job eventually receives God's commendation and restoration but no explanation. There is also a good possibility that you will not know when something is a test, even after it is over. What you may notice, though, is an increasing ease at facing the difficulties of life, an ability to trust God even when others would be pulling out their hair in frustration or wringing their hands in despair. All tests do not have the same closure.

There is a good possibility that, in some manner, God will test you, and probably more than once. In a sense, every challenge you face tests your faith, offering a chance to prove that your devotion to God is greater than any other claim...on your time, your money, your energy, your relationships, your life. How do you prepare for such a test? Because there is rarely any warning, there is no such thing as cramming. Only by ordering your program to God's program each day will you be ready for whatever test He may bring your way.

With one little word, "Here I am," Abraham begins a difficult journey, Heeding God's Call to Sacrifice his son. Will his confidence in God survive this command from God? When he finishes the difficult journey, not only is his faith intact, it is stronger than ever. That same strengthening of faith is available to you, and it begins the same way, by your saying Hineni: Heeding the Call of God.

For the Bibliography and Endnotes see the pdf here.