.
Rabbis are quite divided as to the true meaning of Gen 22:2. Some
feel Abraham was supposed to kill Isaac, and some feel he wasn't. There are
some who feel that the angel stopped Abraham at this point because he was
making a big mistake-- that Abraham misunderstood the instructions God
gave to him back in verse 2; which were: And He said, “Take your son, your
favored one, Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer
him there as a burnt offering...
Targums, which were commonly taught in the synagogues prior to, during,
and after Jesus' day, paraphrased that verse to mean just exactly what it
implies: that Isaac was supposed to die.
T. And He said: Take now thy son, thy only one whom thou lovest, Izhak,
and go into the land of worship, and offer him there, a whole burnt offering,
upon one of the mountains that I will tell thee. (Targum Jonathan)
The word "offer" is from 'alah (aw-law') which means: to ascend. Yosef
Hallel, a rabbi who lived one or two generations before the Common Era,
noted that 'alah is the same verb used with reference to a qorbanot offering,
and does, in fact, imply "to slaughter" (e.g. Lev 17:8).
Here's a rendering of Gen 22:2 that closely follows Rashi (S
mo Yitzchaki
1040-1105 c.e.)
And He said, "Please take your son, your only son, your only one, whom you
love-- Isaac-- and go to the land of Moriah; bring him up there as an offering
upon one of the mountains which I shall tell you." (Stone Tanach)
By leaving out the word "burnt" Rashi's rendering makes it appear that
Abraham was merely supposed to bring his son up and dedicate him to
God but not kill him in the process.
Another rabbi, Zalman Sorotzkin, who lived in pre war Poland and post war
Israel, said: "Abraham's going joyfully to slay his son [pre] atoned for his
descendants refusal to go to the Holy Land." There are Midrash
commentaries very similar to that line of thought.
Some ancient Jewish commentators did in fact credit the father, Abraham,
for slaying his boy and they also credited the son, Isaac, for not only
willingly offering his body, which was implied turned to ashes, but also for
offering ¼ of his blood too. (Midrash HaGadol on Gen 22:19), (Sifra, 102c;
b. Ta'anit 16a) and also (Mekhilta d'Rashbi, p.4; Tanh. Vayerra, sec.23)
For what, or for whom, did Isaac willingly offer his body and blood? Was it
for himself? Was it for his father Abraham? According to the Targums, it was
for his future progeny, the people of Israel.
T. And Abraham prayed in the name of the Word of the Lord, and said: Thou
art The Lord who seest, and art not seen. I pray for mercy before Thee, O
Lord. It is wholly manifest and known before Thee that in my heart there
was no dividing, in the time that Thou didst command me to offer Izhak my
son, and to make him dust and ashes before Thee; but that forthwith I arose
in the morning and performed Thy word with joy, and I have fulfilled Thy
word.
. . . And now I pray for mercies before Thee, O Lord God, that when the
children of Izhak offer in the hour of need, the binding of Izhak their father
Thou mayest remember on their behalf, and remit and forgive their sins, and
deliver them out of all need. That the generations who are to arise after him
may say, In the mountain of the house of the sanctuary of the Lord did
Abraham offer Izhak his son, and in this mountain of the house of the
sanctuary was revealed unto him the glory of the Shekinah of the Lord.
(Jerusalem Targum)
in another Targum:
T. Now I pray for mercy before You, O Lord God, that when the children of
Isaac come to a time of distress You may remember on their behalf the
Binding Of Isaac their father, and loose and forgive them their sins and
deliver them from all distress. (Fragmentary Targum)
This concept-- mitatan shel tsaddiqim mekapperet (the death of the
righteous atones) --is deeply imbedded in ancient Jewish tradition and has
been extremely helpful in giving a degree of sanity to horrors like the
Holocaust. The six million Jews who died under the heels of Fascist
oppression are reckoned by many pious Jews as effecting the salvation of
the world.
In a widely known Talmudic discussion (b. Mo'ed Qatan 28a) the question is
asked why the book of Numbers records the death of Miriam immediately
after the section on the Red Heifer (Num 19:1-20:1). The answer is: that
just as the Red Heifer atones, so also the death of the righteous atones. (see
also Rashi on Numbers 20:1) And why, the Talmud asks, is the death of
Aaron recorded in conjunction with the Torah's reference to the priestly
garments? (Num 20:25-28) The answer is: that just as the garments of the
high priest atone (Ex 28; especially the 38th verse) so also the death of the
righteous atones.
Mitatan shel tsaddiqim mekapperet, (the death of the righteous atones) is a
fairly common principle in rabbinical literature. At Leviticus Rabbah 20:12,
repeated elsewhere verbatim ( y. Yoma 2:1, Pesika deRav Kahana 26:16)
Rabbi Hiyya Bar Abba said: The sons of Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, died the
first day of Nisan. Why then does the Torah mention their death in
conjunction with the Day Of Atonement? (which occurred on the tenth of
Tishrei; Lev 16:1) It is to teach that just as the Day Of Atonement atones,
so also the death of the righteous atones.
It's stated in Midrash Assereth Memrot: The Messiah, in order to atone for
them both, [for Adam and David] will make his soul a trespass offering, as it
is written next to this, in the [scriptural passage] Behold My servant 'shm
['shm = guilt offering]
The "servant" that the midrash refers to is the servant of Isaiah 52:13-53:12
whom the midrash attests is none other than Messiah and whom the
midrash also attests is to be a human sacrifice for both guilt and
trespasses.
Rabbinical scholar Solomon Schechter summarizes the Talmudic teaching
that human suffering and death atone for sin:
"The atonement of suffering and death is not limited to the suffering person.
The atoning effect extends to all the generation. This is especially the case
with such sufferers as cannot either by reason of their righteous life or by
their youth possibly have merited the afflictions which have come upon
them. The death of the righteous atones just as well as certain sacrifices
[with reference to b. Mo'ed Qatan 28a] They are caught (suffer) for the sins
of the generation. If there are no righteous, the children of the schools (that
is, the innocent young school children) are caught for the sins of the
generation. [b. Shabbat 32b]
. . .There are also Scriptural words-- And he bore the sins of many (Isa
53:12) --applied to Moses because of his offering himself as an atonement
for Israel's sin with the golden calf, being ready to sacrifice his very soul for
Israel when he said: And if not, blot me, I pray thee, out of thy book (that
is, from the Book Of The Living) which thou has written. (Ex 32:32, b.Sotah
14a; b. Berakhoth 32a)
This readiness to sacrifice oneself for their countrymen is characteristic of all
the great men of Israel-- the Patriarchs, and the Prophets acting in the same
way --whilst also some Rabbis would, on certain occasions, exclaim: Behold,
I am the atonement of Israel. [Mekhilta 2a; m. Negaim 2:1] "
The same thought is also carried over in a prayer, still included in the
additional service for the Jewish new year, Rosh Hashanah, which culminates
with these words: Remember today the Binding Of Isaac with mercy to his
descendants.
The rabbis attested that the final resurrection of the dead would take place
"through the merits of Isaac, who offered himself upon the altar." (Pesikta
deRav Kahana, 32)
Note : that comment asserts Isaac was consenting; which is probably very
true.
Rabbi Shem Klingberg-- known among his followers as the Zalosh-itzer
Rebbe --when led out to be slaughtered by the Nazis, an instant before his
death lifted up his eyes to heaven and cried out in a piercing voice: Let me
be an atonement for Israel! To this very day, when a leading rabbi dies, it is
quite common for his mourners to say: May his death serve as an atonement
for us.
Some, completely ignoring Tradition, Midrashim, and the Talmud, have
really gone off the deep end by claiming Gen 22:2 should be translated like
this: And He said; “Take your son, your favored one, Isaac, whom you love,
and go to the land of Moriah, and offer [with] him there a burnt offering."
Doctoring the Scripture like that impugns Abraham's intellect as a man
whom God testified in Gen 20:7 to be a prophet. Abraham no doubt
understood his Master perfectly and knew just what he was expected to do.
He had three days to pray about it and ask for confirmation. Abraham was
supposed to kill Isaac, and that is exactly what he tried to do.
Cont.
/
Rabbis are quite divided as to the true meaning of Gen 22:2. Some
feel Abraham was supposed to kill Isaac, and some feel he wasn't. There are
some who feel that the angel stopped Abraham at this point because he was
making a big mistake-- that Abraham misunderstood the instructions God
gave to him back in verse 2; which were: And He said, “Take your son, your
favored one, Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer
him there as a burnt offering...
Targums, which were commonly taught in the synagogues prior to, during,
and after Jesus' day, paraphrased that verse to mean just exactly what it
implies: that Isaac was supposed to die.
T. And He said: Take now thy son, thy only one whom thou lovest, Izhak,
and go into the land of worship, and offer him there, a whole burnt offering,
upon one of the mountains that I will tell thee. (Targum Jonathan)
The word "offer" is from 'alah (aw-law') which means: to ascend. Yosef
Hallel, a rabbi who lived one or two generations before the Common Era,
noted that 'alah is the same verb used with reference to a qorbanot offering,
and does, in fact, imply "to slaughter" (e.g. Lev 17:8).
Here's a rendering of Gen 22:2 that closely follows Rashi (S
mo Yitzchaki1040-1105 c.e.)
And He said, "Please take your son, your only son, your only one, whom you
love-- Isaac-- and go to the land of Moriah; bring him up there as an offering
upon one of the mountains which I shall tell you." (Stone Tanach)
By leaving out the word "burnt" Rashi's rendering makes it appear that
Abraham was merely supposed to bring his son up and dedicate him to
God but not kill him in the process.
Another rabbi, Zalman Sorotzkin, who lived in pre war Poland and post war
Israel, said: "Abraham's going joyfully to slay his son [pre] atoned for his
descendants refusal to go to the Holy Land." There are Midrash
commentaries very similar to that line of thought.
Some ancient Jewish commentators did in fact credit the father, Abraham,
for slaying his boy and they also credited the son, Isaac, for not only
willingly offering his body, which was implied turned to ashes, but also for
offering ¼ of his blood too. (Midrash HaGadol on Gen 22:19), (Sifra, 102c;
b. Ta'anit 16a) and also (Mekhilta d'Rashbi, p.4; Tanh. Vayerra, sec.23)
For what, or for whom, did Isaac willingly offer his body and blood? Was it
for himself? Was it for his father Abraham? According to the Targums, it was
for his future progeny, the people of Israel.
T. And Abraham prayed in the name of the Word of the Lord, and said: Thou
art The Lord who seest, and art not seen. I pray for mercy before Thee, O
Lord. It is wholly manifest and known before Thee that in my heart there
was no dividing, in the time that Thou didst command me to offer Izhak my
son, and to make him dust and ashes before Thee; but that forthwith I arose
in the morning and performed Thy word with joy, and I have fulfilled Thy
word.
. . . And now I pray for mercies before Thee, O Lord God, that when the
children of Izhak offer in the hour of need, the binding of Izhak their father
Thou mayest remember on their behalf, and remit and forgive their sins, and
deliver them out of all need. That the generations who are to arise after him
may say, In the mountain of the house of the sanctuary of the Lord did
Abraham offer Izhak his son, and in this mountain of the house of the
sanctuary was revealed unto him the glory of the Shekinah of the Lord.
(Jerusalem Targum)
in another Targum:
T. Now I pray for mercy before You, O Lord God, that when the children of
Isaac come to a time of distress You may remember on their behalf the
Binding Of Isaac their father, and loose and forgive them their sins and
deliver them from all distress. (Fragmentary Targum)
This concept-- mitatan shel tsaddiqim mekapperet (the death of the
righteous atones) --is deeply imbedded in ancient Jewish tradition and has
been extremely helpful in giving a degree of sanity to horrors like the
Holocaust. The six million Jews who died under the heels of Fascist
oppression are reckoned by many pious Jews as effecting the salvation of
the world.
In a widely known Talmudic discussion (b. Mo'ed Qatan 28a) the question is
asked why the book of Numbers records the death of Miriam immediately
after the section on the Red Heifer (Num 19:1-20:1). The answer is: that
just as the Red Heifer atones, so also the death of the righteous atones. (see
also Rashi on Numbers 20:1) And why, the Talmud asks, is the death of
Aaron recorded in conjunction with the Torah's reference to the priestly
garments? (Num 20:25-28) The answer is: that just as the garments of the
high priest atone (Ex 28; especially the 38th verse) so also the death of the
righteous atones.
Mitatan shel tsaddiqim mekapperet, (the death of the righteous atones) is a
fairly common principle in rabbinical literature. At Leviticus Rabbah 20:12,
repeated elsewhere verbatim ( y. Yoma 2:1, Pesika deRav Kahana 26:16)
Rabbi Hiyya Bar Abba said: The sons of Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, died the
first day of Nisan. Why then does the Torah mention their death in
conjunction with the Day Of Atonement? (which occurred on the tenth of
Tishrei; Lev 16:1) It is to teach that just as the Day Of Atonement atones,
so also the death of the righteous atones.
It's stated in Midrash Assereth Memrot: The Messiah, in order to atone for
them both, [for Adam and David] will make his soul a trespass offering, as it
is written next to this, in the [scriptural passage] Behold My servant 'shm
['shm = guilt offering]
The "servant" that the midrash refers to is the servant of Isaiah 52:13-53:12
whom the midrash attests is none other than Messiah and whom the
midrash also attests is to be a human sacrifice for both guilt and
trespasses.
Rabbinical scholar Solomon Schechter summarizes the Talmudic teaching
that human suffering and death atone for sin:
"The atonement of suffering and death is not limited to the suffering person.
The atoning effect extends to all the generation. This is especially the case
with such sufferers as cannot either by reason of their righteous life or by
their youth possibly have merited the afflictions which have come upon
them. The death of the righteous atones just as well as certain sacrifices
[with reference to b. Mo'ed Qatan 28a] They are caught (suffer) for the sins
of the generation. If there are no righteous, the children of the schools (that
is, the innocent young school children) are caught for the sins of the
generation. [b. Shabbat 32b]
. . .There are also Scriptural words-- And he bore the sins of many (Isa
53:12) --applied to Moses because of his offering himself as an atonement
for Israel's sin with the golden calf, being ready to sacrifice his very soul for
Israel when he said: And if not, blot me, I pray thee, out of thy book (that
is, from the Book Of The Living) which thou has written. (Ex 32:32, b.Sotah
14a; b. Berakhoth 32a)
This readiness to sacrifice oneself for their countrymen is characteristic of all
the great men of Israel-- the Patriarchs, and the Prophets acting in the same
way --whilst also some Rabbis would, on certain occasions, exclaim: Behold,
I am the atonement of Israel. [Mekhilta 2a; m. Negaim 2:1] "
The same thought is also carried over in a prayer, still included in the
additional service for the Jewish new year, Rosh Hashanah, which culminates
with these words: Remember today the Binding Of Isaac with mercy to his
descendants.
The rabbis attested that the final resurrection of the dead would take place
"through the merits of Isaac, who offered himself upon the altar." (Pesikta
deRav Kahana, 32)
Note : that comment asserts Isaac was consenting; which is probably very
true.
Rabbi Shem Klingberg-- known among his followers as the Zalosh-itzer
Rebbe --when led out to be slaughtered by the Nazis, an instant before his
death lifted up his eyes to heaven and cried out in a piercing voice: Let me
be an atonement for Israel! To this very day, when a leading rabbi dies, it is
quite common for his mourners to say: May his death serve as an atonement
for us.
Some, completely ignoring Tradition, Midrashim, and the Talmud, have
really gone off the deep end by claiming Gen 22:2 should be translated like
this: And He said; “Take your son, your favored one, Isaac, whom you love,
and go to the land of Moriah, and offer [with] him there a burnt offering."
Doctoring the Scripture like that impugns Abraham's intellect as a man
whom God testified in Gen 20:7 to be a prophet. Abraham no doubt
understood his Master perfectly and knew just what he was expected to do.
He had three days to pray about it and ask for confirmation. Abraham was
supposed to kill Isaac, and that is exactly what he tried to do.
Cont.
/
