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This entry is part of the Blogging-the-Bible series. To see a list of passages, covered so far click here. |
I want to look at the Binding of Isaac. Because this story is all about detail, this post is just the text which I recommend reading even if you know what happens. I reckon my Hebrew might be passable enough to translate this one without too many errors. So, here goes:
And it happened after these things that God tested Abraham. He said “Abraham!” who answered “here I am!”.
He said: “Please take your son — your only one — whom you love — Isaac — go to the land of Moriah, and bring him up there as an elevation-offering, on one of the mountains I will show you.”
Abraham rose in the morning, saddled his donkey and took two [servant/slave] lads with him, as well as Isaac his son. He chopped trees for the offering, got up and went to the place God showed him. On the third day he lifted his eyes and saw the place from afar. Abraham said to the lads: “Stay here with the donkey. I and the boy will keep going and prostrate ourselves [there] and will return to you.”
Abraham took the wood for the offering and placed it on Isaac. He took the flint and knife. The two of them went together.
Isaac called out to Abraham his father, “father!”, who replied “here I am my son.” He said, “here is the wood and flint, but where is the lamb for the offering?” Abraham said “God will reveal the lamb for the offering, son”. And the two of them went together.
They came to the place God showed. Abraham built an altar there, raised the wood, bound Isaac his son, and placed him on the altar on the wood.
Abraham sent forth his hand — took the knife to slay his son and — an angel of YHWH called out to him from heavens, saying “Abraham! Abraham!”
He said, “here I am”. [The angel] said, “don’t lay your hand on the lad, and don’t do anything to him, for now I* know that you fear God and didn’t withhold your only son from me*“. Abraham raised his eyes and saw — behold, a ram! — caught in the bushes by the horns. Abraham went and took the ram and brought it up as an elevation-offering instead of his son. Abraham called this place “YHWH-Will-See” as it’s said today “on this mount, YHWH will be seen”.
The angel of YHWH called to Abraham once more from the heavens, and said, “I swear by the truth of YHWH that for the act that you’ve done (this very thing of not withholding your only son), I* will bless you exceedingly and multiply your Seed as the stars of the sky and the sand of the beach. Your offspring will inherit their enemies’ gate, and every nation in the land will perform the act of blessing through your offspring — because you’ve listened to my* voice.”
Abraham returned to the [servant/slave] lads and they went together to Beer Sheva. And Abraham stayed in Beer Sheva.
Discussion will follow in part 2.
*Just who does this angel think he is?
6 comments ↓
“*Just who does this angel think he is?”
That’s a relevant point. Is there any indication in the text as to which angel it is?
more on that in part 2 — but basically the bible is full of god switching between 1st and 3rd person at the drop of a hat and the narrator having trouble distinguishing between god and god’s mouthpiece.
the most stunning example from amos 4:11
“I have overthrown some of you, as God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah, and ye were as a brand plucked out of the burning; yet have ye not returned unto Me”, says YHWH
but on the text the angel’s probably meant to just be god’s mouthpiece and nothing else.
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מלאך is hardly a term exclusively used to refer to angels. It refers to messengers, or perhaps proxies is the better term.
But in this passage what is the advantage to translating it as messenger and not angel? Or do you think it refers to someone human here? It seems very much like a supernatural agent to me.
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