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| 1 And it cometh to pass after these things that God hath tried Abraham, and saith unto him, 'Abraham;' and he saith, 'Here [am] I.' |
Did tempt Abraham – Tried or proved his character. R1623:3
For his good. R5702:1
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| 2 And He saith, 'Take, I pray thee, thy son, thine only one, whom thou hast loved, even Isaac, and go for thyself unto the land of Moriah, and cause him to ascend there for a burnt-offering on one of the mountains of which I speak unto thee.' |
Take now thy son – God's final test upon Abraham's faith. R4574:1
Abraham was 125 years old, and Isaac was the son who would be the channel for all the blessings promised. R5180:1
Offer him – Only a person very intimately acquainted with the Almighty, very sympathetic and trustful, could possibly have endured such a test. R5180:1
By prompt obedience Abraham gave proof of his loyalty, "accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead." (Heb. 11:19) R5702:1
Thus he was counted worthy of a better resurrection. R4574:2
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| 3 And Abraham riseth early in the morning, and saddleth his ass, and taketh two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son, and he cleaveth the wood of the burnt-offering, and riseth and goeth unto the place of which God hath spoken to him. |
Abraham – Type of the Almighty. F170; R5180:3
Isaac – Type of The Christ, Head and Body. F170; R5180:3
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| 4 On the third day Abraham lifteth up his eyes, and seeth the place from afar; |
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| 5 and Abraham saith unto his young men, 'Remain by yourselves here with the ass, and I and the youth go yonder and worship, and turn back unto you.' |
And worship – Abraham's frequent drawing near to God in private prayer and communion was the secret of his unwavering faith and obedience. R1624:1
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| 6 And Abraham taketh the wood of the burnt-offering, and placeth on Isaac his son, and he taketh in his hand the fire, and the knife; and they go on both of them together. |
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| 7 And Isaac speaketh unto Abraham his father, and saith, 'My father,' and he saith, 'Here [am] I, my son.' And he saith, 'Lo, the fire and the wood, and where the lamb for a burnt-offering ' |
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| 8 and Abraham saith, 'God doth provide for Himself the lamb for a burnt-offering, my son;' and they go on both of them together. |
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| 9 And they come in unto the place of which God hath spoken to him, and there Abraham buildeth the altar, and arrangeth the wood, and bindeth Isaac his son, and placeth him upon the altar above the wood; |
And bound Isaac – Isaac was a man at the time, full of health and vigor, and evidently offered no resistance; typifying Christ Jesus' submission to the Father's will. R2861:1
On the altar – Typifying Christ's death as the blood of the original covenant. R4320:1
Supposedly the very rock upon which Isaac was bound became the location for the Brazen altar. (2 Chron. 3:1) R5180:2, R2510:6
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| 10 and Abraham putteth forth his hand, and taketh the knife to slaughter his son. |
Took the knife – The offering was complete in the sight of heaven. R5180:2
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| 11 And the messenger of Jehovah calleth unto him from the heavens, and saith, 'Abraham, Abraham;' and he saith, 'Here [am] I;' |
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| 12 and He saith, 'Put not forth thine hand unto the youth, nor do anything to him, for now I have known that thou art fearing God, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only one, from Me.' |
Thou fearest God – Abraham's entire life was a life of faith, of trust in God, and of reliance upon the divine promises. R5180:1
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| 13 And Abraham lifteth up his eyes, and looketh, and lo, a ram behind, seized in a thicket by its horns; and Abraham goeth, and taketh the ram, and causeth it to ascend for a burnt-offering instead of his son; |
A ram – Type of Christ. Q557:3; R5180:5
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| 14 and Abraham calleth the name of that place 'Jehovah-Jireh,' because it is said this day in the mount, 'Jehovah doth provide.' |
Jehovah-jireh – Jehovah's providence. E43
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| 15 And the messenger of Jehovah calleth unto Abraham a second time from the heavens, |
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| 16 and saith, 'By Myself I have sworn the affirmation of Jehovah that because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only one |
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| 17 that blessing I bless thee, and multiplying I multiply thy seed as stars of the heavens, and as sand which [is] on the sea-shore; and thy seed doth possess the gate of his enemies; |
In blessing – A spiritual promise which the Jews at that time could not appreciate. R5295:5
Seed as the stars – The heavenly seed, Christ and the Church. A292; F355; T34; R4682:3, R4931:1, R5178:5, R5273:4, R5809:5; OV156:3, OV428:3; SM368:1
The Little Flock and Great Company. R2067:4
The favor of the Lord now comes to us as the spiritual seed, to the extent of our faithfulness to the Lord. R4606:4
The spiritual portion was hidden until God's due time-at the first advent. R5285:3
These are the heirs of Gal. 3:29 and 1 Cor. 15:41, 42, R5178:5
Jesus was the first, the Captain, the forerunner. R4646:2
And as the sand – The earthly seed. A292; F355; T34; R4606:4, R4682:3, R5809:5; CR157:5
All who during the Millennial age attain to human perfection. R2854:1, R4646:1, R5273:4, R5836:5
Necessitating the awakening of the entire race from the tomb. R5533:4
In resemblance, not necessarily in numbers. R2067:4
Possess the gate – Place of power and control. R4370:4
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| 18 and blessed themselves in thy seed have all nations of the earth, because that thou hast hearkened to My voice.' |
And in thy seed – The glorified Christ. F72; R5301:4, R5818:1; CR269:6
God's agency in blessing the world. CR460:5; R4442:4, R5181:3, R5761:4; OV201:1
All of God's blessings come under the Abrahamic covenant, either directly or indirectly. Q165:4; OV9:1; PD35/46
Isaac did not fulfill the promise, he was merely a type. SM530:T
Referred to by Paul as the oath-bound covenant. (Heb. 6:10-14). OV9:3
Every mother amongst the Israelites hoped she could be the mother of the promised child. R4963:2
At first the Jews thought of this promise as being fulfilled in them as a nation. R4714:3
The Jews will be first in prominence in the time of blessing. OV118:1
The earthly seed cannot have its share in the work of blessing others until first the heavenly seed shall have been perfected in the first resurrection. HG667:6
The Jews were in darkness in respect to God's plan. R5769:5
All of God's dealings with Israel were in accord with his covenant with Abraham. R5285:3
All the nations – Not only Israel but, through Israel, all families of the earth. A58; R4442:4, R5818:1; OV118:2, 5, OV143:T, SM368:1
Implies a resurrection from the dead. R5608:2
Be blessed – With an opportunity both of returning to harmony with God, and for everlasting life. R4557:3, R4537:6, R4806:1; SM530:T
"In becoming thy seed shall all the families of the earth bless themselves." R5836:5; SM590:T
God's promise was that the seed of Abraham would be the great king who would bless Israel and, through Israel, bless the world. HG273:5
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| 19 And Abraham turneth back unto his young men, and they rise and go together unto Beer-Sheba; and Abraham dwelleth in Beer-Sheba. |
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| 20 And it cometh to pass after these things that it is declared to Abraham, saying, 'Lo, Milcah hath borne, even she, sons to Nahor thy brother: |
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| 21 Huz his first-born, and Buz his brother; and Kemuel father of Aram, |
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| 22 and Chesed, and Hazo, and Pildash, and Jidlaph, and Bethuel; |
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| 23 and Bethuel hath begotten Rebekah;' these eight hath Milcah borne to Nahor, Abraham's brother; |
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| 24 and his concubine, whose name [is] Reumah, she also hath borne Tebah, and Gaham, and Tahash, and Maachah. |
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