Separation from the Father – VaYeira – Oct. 31

Over the course of Abraham’s life God revealed Himself to Abraham seven distinct times (Gen. 12:1. 12:7. 13:14. 15:1. 17:1. 18:1. 22:1), which began with the call of Abraham to go to the Promised Land.  In this week’s Torah Portion we read of the final two instances where the LORD came to Abraham and spoke with him.

This week’s Torah Portion begins with the sixth encounter of God to Abraham.  It is a very unique encounter where the LORD Himself appeared to Abraham in the form of a man, along with two other men who were angels (19:1).  The LORD and the two angels actually became Abraham’s guests for a full Middle Eastern meal (Gen. 18:1-8).  During this afternoon visit, the LORD communicated to Abraham two specific messages:

1. Sarah would bear Abraham a son within a year’s time (Gen. 18:9-15)
2. God was going to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah (Gen. 18:16-21)

The LORD fulfilled His Word to Abraham on both accounts.  Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed the following day (Gen. 19:27-29) and Sarah bore a son to Abraham the following year, according to the Word of the LORD (Gen. 21:1-2).

The Seventh Visit

The seventh and final time that the LORD came and spoke with Abraham is found in Genesis 22.  The Bible tells us that God came to Abraham to test him:

Now it came about after these things, that God tested Abraham, and said to him, “Abraham!” And he said, “Here I am.” 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.” – Gen. 22:1-2

When God spoke these words to Abraham it must have been like a knife piercing his own soul.  Why would God make such an unreasonable request of Abraham, who was a friend of God? (Isaiah 41:8)

The LORD used very specific language in commanding Abraham to take his son.   God literally said to Abraham, “Take now your son, your only son, whom you love, Isaac…” and by doing so God used four different phrases to instruct Abraham to take his son and to do the unthinkable to him.  I want to look at these words in Hebrew and cause us to think about what God was really asking Abraham to do here.

The “Unique One”

The first phrase that God used in speaking with Abraham was “קח נא את בנך” – “kak na et binchah” – “take now your son.”  The first phrase was simple and straightforward but God didn’t leave it at that.  God wanted to remind Abraham what this son meant to him.

God continued with the second phrsae by saying, “את יחידך” – “et yechidecha” – “your only son.”  The Hebrew word “יחיד” – “yachid” can mean “only” or “beloved” and has the connotation of “a unique one.”   The root word of “יחיד” – “yachid” is “יחד” – “yachad,” which means “together” or “jointly” (as a unit).  God was emphasizing the fact that this son was the beloved son, a unique child who was inseparable from his father.  This was the son of whom God commanded him to sacrifice.

This same word “yachid” is used in the book of Zechariah when referring to the Messiah as the “only son” who is mourned over: “…so that they will look on Me whom they have pierced; and they will mourn for Him, as one mourns for an only son, and they will weep bitterly over Him like the bitter weeping over a firstborn” (Zech. 12:10).  The connection between Isaac and the Messiah appear to be very closely related.

The Beloved Son

In continuing to describe this son of Abraham, God told Abraham in the third phrase to take the son whom he loved; “אשר אהבת” – “asher ahavta.”  Abraham had waited twenty-five years for this son of promise to come into his life and he had finally received this miracle child through his wife Sarah (Gen. 17:9-14).  Abraham had raised this beloved child over the years, who was now old enough to join him on this three-day journey.  The last thing that Abraham would want to do is harm this child whom he loved, but God commanded him to offer him up as a sacrifice.

Isaac

And fourthly, God said to Abraham, “את יצחק” – “et Yitzak” – “Isaac.”  The word “et” in Hebrew indicates a direct object.  God was clearly indicating that He was speaking of Isaac and no one else.  God was very specific in his explaining to Abraham the description of his son, however, so as not to confuse him with Ishmael, God reiterated that he was referring to Isaac.  Isaac was the unique, beloved son with whom God was asking Abraham to do the unthinkable.

The End of the Journey – Sacrifice

God spoke and Abraham obeyed.   Abraham set out early the next morning with his son Isaac and two of his young men for the land of Moriah (Gen. 22:3).  On the third day they arrived and Abraham commanded the two young men with him to stay at a certain location while Abraham and Isaac would go further to offer the sacrifice.  Abraham had spoken in faith to the young men saying that they would go to worship and then return (Gen. 22:5).

Abraham placed the wood on his son Isaac and took the knife and the fire and the two of them walked on together (Gen. 22:6).  It was at this time that Isaac began to wonder about the sacrifice:

Isaac spoke to Abraham his father and said, “My father!” And he said, “Here I am, my son.” And he said, “Behold, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?” Abraham said, “God will provide for Himself the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.” So the two of them walked on together. – Gen. 22:7-8

As Abraham and Isaac were preparing for the sacrifice Isaac realized that something was missing, the sacrificial lamb.  Abraham’s response to Isaac was as follows in Hebrew: “אלהים יראה לו השה לעלה” – “elohim yireh lo ha’seh le’olah” and can be literally translated as “God will see Himself for a burnt offering” or “God will provide Himself for a burnt offering” It can also be translated as “God will seek out for Himself the lamb for the offering.”  whatever the exact rendering, God Himself was to be responsible for the sacrifice.

After providing a reasonable answer to Isaac’s question, the end of verse eight tells us, “So the two of them walked on together.”  The last word in this sentence is the word “together.”  This word in Hebrew is the word “יחד” – “yachad.”  As mentioned earlier, “yachad” means “together,” “jointly,” or “a unit.”  Abraham and Isaac walked together as one, as father and son.

We all know that in the end God sent His angel and prevented Abraham from carrying out this act of sacrificing Isaac (Gen. 22:11-12), however, the question of why God would even ask someone to do such a thing still haunts us with each reading of this Scripture.  God had commanded Abraham to take his unique and beloved son, with whom he had a binding relationship, and lay it all on the altar as an offering to God.  How could God ask such a thing from anyone?

What was the Reason for the Test?

The Bible clearly tells us that God was testing Abraham in this sacrifice of Isaac, however, it seems strange that God would go through this long scenario of making a promise to Abraham about a son through Sarah, fulfill the promise, and then command Abraham to sacrifice this son of promise.  Humanly speaking it seems like an insane request.  Why would God command Abraham to sacrifice his son?

The Orthodox Jewish resources that I researched struggled to find a unified answer to the questions of why God would test Abraham in this way, dividing his very soul regarding his beloved son.  One Jewish commentary presented the following statement and questions regarding this odd scenario:

(Genesis) chapter 22, dealing with the near sacrifice of Isaac, is one of the most theologically difficult chapters of the Bible.  Did God actually order Abraham to sacrifice his son?  Isn’t it wrong to imagine that God would even think of doing such a thing?  Didn’t God know that Abraham loved and trusted Him – so why test him? – Jonas, Irwin. Onkelos on the Torah. Genesis p. 133

What was God really intending through this test of commanding Abraham to offer Isaac as a sacrifice?

Separation from the Father

I believe that the answer to this question is to illustrate a principle of “death and resurrection through separation from the father.”  Beginning with the life of Abraham we see a consistent call of God on the people whom He chose to separate themselves from their fathers.

Abraham

God called Abraham to leave his father’s house, his relatives, and his homeland and to go to a new land (Gen. 12:1).  When God called Abraham to make this move, his father, Terach, was still alive.  We read that Terach was 70 years old when Abraham was born to him (Gen. 11:26).  Abraham was 75 years old when he left his father and arrived in the Promised Land (Gen. 12:4).  Terach lived to be 205 years old (Gen. 11:32).  So we can conclude that Terach was only 145 years old at the time when Abraham left and that he continued to live another 60 years.

In the New Testament book of Acts, Stephen stated that God brought Abraham into the Promised Land after his father died (Acts 7:4).  Since it is clear that Terach hadn’t yet died, I wonder if this is a picture of separating from the father and dying to any inheritance by leaving early?  Abraham chose to leave his father’s house and trust God to provide for him.

Jacob

Jacob, Isaac’s son, left his father and homeland. Jacob left because his brother Esau wanted to kill him.  Rebecca, Jacob’s mother, persuaded Isaac to send Jacob away.  Jacob left his father’s house and went to the land of his mother’s birth.

Joseph

Joseph is another example as a son of the patriarchs who left his father and his homeland.  Joseph’s brothers wanted to kill him and they told their father that he was dead. Joseph was considered as dead to his father Jacob.

Death as Separation

There is a measure of death in each separation of the son from the father in each of the lives of the patriarchs.  There is a price to be paid in separating from the father.  Abraham, Jacob, and Joseph all paid a price by leaving their respective fathers and their fathers’ house.  Isaac is the only patriarch who never left his father or his father’s home.

Isaac’s Separation

Isaac remained with his father and stayed in his homeland (the Promised Land). It was only through Abraham’s obedience to the command of God to offer up Isaac as a sacrifice that Isaac experienced a period of separation from his father (Gen. 22).  Both Abraham and Isaac suffered the separation from each other during that dark journey to the place of sacrifice.  So in a sense, Isaac was offered up and separated from Abraham but given back and redeemed by God (Heb. 11:17-19).  There was certainly an element of death and separation through this event.

The Illustration of Separation

The account of Abraham being tested to offer up his beloved son Isaac as a sacrifice was more than a test.  It was an illustration of what God Himself would experience.  The unity between Abraham and Isaac illustrate the unity of God in both the Father and the Son.  Yeshua, the Son of God, chose to leave His Father in heaven along with His heavenly home (Philippians 2:7-8).  Through His obedience He was sacrificed as an offering to God and suffered separation through death on the cross:

Now from the sixth hour darkness fell upon all the land until the ninth hour. About the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?” that is, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” (Matt. 27:45-46).

Both the Father and the Son experienced separation from one another during that time.

The Provision of God

When the LORD stopped Abraham from sacrificing Isaac, God provided a ram to sacrifice in his place (Gen. 22:11-13).  After Abraham sacrificed the ram he made the following statement: 

“Abraham called the name of that place The LORD Will Provide, as it is said to this day, ‘In the mount of the LORD it will be provided.’” – Gen. 22:14

The word translated “provide” in this verse is an interpretation and not a translation.  This verse is more accurately translated as “And Abraham called the name of that place the LORD will see, as it is said this day, on the mountain the LORD will be seen.”  The last phrase in Hebrew is  “בהר יהוה יראה” – “behar Adonai yeraeh” and is literally translated as “on the mountain the LORD will be seen” or as translated in one Orthodox Jewish resource: “the LORD will be revealed on this mountain” (Jonas, Irwin. Onkelos on the Torah. Genesis p. 137).  I believe that this verse is a direct prophecy of how God Himself through the Messiah would be seen or revealed on this same mountain and become the final sacrifice offering.

Death and Resurrection

The testing of Abraham through the offering up of his son Isaac was the perfect illustration for God to show the world what would need to take place in the future in order for there to be complete redemption of human kind from the penalty of sin.  The unity of Abraham and Isaac was interrupted by the separation of the sacrifice of the son.  God Himself stopped Abraham and gave a ram for the sacrifice in place of Isaac and Isaac was given back to Abraham, as if from the dead.  Death and resurrection were perfectly illustrated through this test of Abraham.

We see this same scenario of death and resurrection played out in the correlating Scriptures from the prophets for this week’s Torah Portion.  The story involves Elisha and the Shunammite woman (2 Kings 4:1-37).  Elisha prophesied that the Shunammite woman would have a son.  She had a son and the son grew up. One day the son was working with his father in the field but he wasn’t feeling well so his father sent back to his mother.  The boy died but the Shunammite woman called to Elisha and he came.  Elisha prayed for the boy and he was resurrected from the dead.  Elisha then gave him back to his mother.

The testing of Abraham with the sacrifice of Isaac was a picture of death and resurrection.  Resurrection is the only true hope that we have through our faith in God.  If there is no resurrection than our faith in God is totally worthless (1 Cor. 15:12-19).  Yeshua died and was separated from the Father but was resurrected from the dead and reunited with the Father:

But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep. For since by a man came death, by a man also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive. 1 Cor. 15:20-22

Our faith stands on the Hope of the Resurrection!

Shabbat Shalom!

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Torah Portion: Gen. 18:1 – Gen. 22:24

Hafatara: 2 Kings 4:1-37

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