Abraham assured his servants: I AND THE BOY will go over there and worship and COME AGAIN to you

[TonyChanYT]

God told Abraham in Gen 22:

2He said, “Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.”

Abraham took some servants and Isaac and headed for Moriah.

4On the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes and saw the place from afar. 5Then Abraham said to his young men, “Stay here with the donkey; I and the boy will go over there and worship and come again to you.”

In Abraham's head, what did he mean by that?

Here is one possibility:

6And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it on Isaac his son. And he took in his hand the fire and the knife. So they went both of them together. 7And Isaac said to his father Abraham, “My father!” And he said, “Here I am, my son.” He said, “Behold, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?” 8Abraham said, “God will provide for himself the lamb for a burnt offering, my son.” So they went both of them together.

God will provide the lamb in place of Isaac. That's exactly what transpired next:

9When they came to the place of which God had told him, Abraham built the altar there and laid the wood in order and bound Isaac his son and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. 10Then Abraham reached out his hand and took the knife to slaughter his son.

At the last second:

11But the angel of the LORD called to him from heaven and said, “Abraham, Abraham!” And he said, “Here I am.” 12He said, “Do not lay your hand on the boy or do anything to him, for now I know that you fear God, seeing you have not withheld your son, your only son, from me.”

Abraham passed the test.

13 And Abraham lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, behind him was a ram, caught in a thicket by his horns.

There is another possibility, Heb 11:

17By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises was in the act of offering up his only son, 18of whom it was said, “Through Isaac shall your offspring be named.” 19He considered that God was able even to raise him from the dead, from which, figuratively speaking, he did receive him back.

Even if Abraham had gone ahead and slaughtered his son, he believed that God could resurrect him. In either case, Abraham had great faith in God.

 

[Randy Kluth]

God told Abraham in Gen 22:


Abraham took some servants and Isaac and headed for Moriah.


In Abraham's head, what did he mean by that?

Here is one possibility:


God will provide the lamb in place of Isaac. That's exactly what transpired next:


At the last second:


Abraham passed the test.


There is another possibility, Heb 11:


Even if Abraham had gone ahead and slaughtered his son, he believed that God could resurrect him. In either case, Abraham had great faith in God.

One of the most stunning, awful stories in the Bible. The God who promised Abraham greatness through his son, who had been so hard to come by, now calls for Abraham to kill that son!

I don't think Abraham could deny that it was the same voice on both occasions. He suspended reason to follow the voice. Many of us could hardly have done that. We would've reasoned the voice away.

I think Abraham simply lied to his men, unable to tell them what God had said. They would not have believed in the voice. He had trust in the voice, despite what it had said.

He didn't know what to believe--he just knew he had to obey. It turned out, and Abraham's knowledge of God was vindicated. God was not a cold-blooded killer, disguised as a good God.

At any rate, the Almighty God is to be obeyed. There is no nice way to put this--not anymore than the fact God told Israel to put to death every man, woman, child, and perhaps beast in the 7 nations of Canaan.