Christ in the Old Testament

Genesis 22:16-17a

I swear by myself, declares the Lord, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. (NIV)

Today’s Reading: Genesis 22:1-19 and Hebrews 11:17-19

God made a promise to Abraham that he would have a son through his wife Sarah named Isaac. Through this son, God promised Abraham that all peoples on earth would be blessed. The writers of the New Testament letters show us that this blessing would come true in Jesus. But there’s more to this story and also more symbology between Jesus and Isaac. Let’s explore!

By the time we get to Genesis 22, Abraham has sent Hagar and her son Ishmael away because Sarah didn’t want Ishmael to share in Isaac’s inheritance. Abraham and Isaac are living in Beersheba, the land of the Philistines. Sarah is still alive but we don’t know where she lives. She might live with Abraham in Beersheba or she might be living in Hebron where she dies at the age of 127 when Isaac is 37 years old. It’s likely that Isaac was somewhere between 20-30 years old at this point. More on that in a bit!

God asks Abraham to take his “only son” and go to the region of Moriah (Jerusalem) and sacrifice him on a mountain that God will show him when he gets there. So Abraham loads up his donkey with wood for the offering and sets out for Moriah with Isaac and two servants. It was a three-day journey that passed through Hebron where Sarah would be buried interestingly enough. When they get close to the mountain, Abraham and Isaac park the caravan and set off alone with Isaac carrying all the wood for the sacrifice.

So how old do you think Isaac would need to be in order to carry all the wood up a mountain for an animal sacrifice? He probably was a grown man. I think this is significant because when they reached the place God told them about, Abraham built and alter and “bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood.” If Abraham is about 125 years old and Isaac is about 25 years old, there’s no way Abraham took Isaac by force. Abraham is an old man and Isaac is a strong young man. Isaac climbed up on that alter himself and allowed himself to be bound as the sacrifice. So begins the symbology of Isaac to Christ!

Here’s my list of some similarities between Isaac and Jesus:

• Both were miraculously conceived (Gen 17:17, Luke 1:31)
• Both are an “only son” (Gen 22:2, John 3:16)
• Both are offered as a sacrifice by their father (Gen 22:12, 1 John 4:10)
• Both carried the wood for their sacrifice (Gen 22:6, John 19:17)
• Both were obedient to become the sacrifice (Gen 22:9, Matt 26:39)
• Both were “resurrected” on the third day (Gen 22:4, Luke 24:7)
• Both were “raised from the dead” (Gen 22:13, Heb 11:19)

Also it’s interesting to note that Mount Moriah is the same location as the Temple Mount in Jerusalem which is also in the same area where Jesus was crucified. We don’t know the exact location of Abraham and Isaac’s sacrifice but it’s certainly within a few hundred yards of the site of the crucifixion if not the exact same location. Pretty awesome!

I’m just amazed by the faith and obedience of both Abraham and Isaac. I hope that no matter what God asks of me that I’m found faithful. We all long to hear God say, “Well done, good and faithful servant!” (Matt 25:23). I pray that when called I have the faith to obey!

Today’s Prayer: Lord help us to have the faith and obedience of Abraham and Isaac! Even in the little things, give us the strength to be faithful.