The Sacrifice of Isaac

Isaac, the son of the promise, was born when Abraham was a hundred years old. One day, God tests Abraham: “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.” Abraham rises early in the morning and sets out with Isaac and two servants. On the third day, he sees the place from afar. Isaac carries the wood; his father, the fire and the knife. “Where is the lamb for a burnt offering?” the boy asks. “God will provide himself a lamb,” Abraham answers. At the top, he builds an altar, binds his son, and takes the knife. Then the angel of the LORD calls to him: “Lay not thine hand upon the lad . . . now I know that thou fearest God.” Abraham sees a ram caught in a thicket by its horns and offers it in place of his son. He names that place Jehovah-jireh: “In the mount of the LORD it shall be provided.”