Genesis 22:1–19

THE SACRIFICE OF ISAAC

22After these things God tested Abraham^m and said to him, “Abraham!”

“Here I am,” he answered.

²“Take your son,” he said, “your only son Isaac, whom you love,ⁿ go to the land of Moriah,^o and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about.”

³So Abraham got up early in the morning,^p saddled his donkey, and took with him two of his young men and his son Isaac. He split wood for a burnt offering and set out to go to the place God had told him about. ⁴On the third day^q Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. ⁵Then Abraham said to his young men, “Stay here with the donkey. The boy and I will go over there to worship; then we’ll come back to you.” ⁶Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and laid it on his son Isaac.^r In his hand he took the fire and the knife,^s and the two of them walked on together.

⁷Then Isaac spoke to his father Abraham and said, “My father.”

And he replied, “Here I am, my son.”

Isaac said, “The fire and the wood are here, but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?”

⁸Abraham answered, “God himself will provide^At the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.” Then the two of them walked on together.

⁹When they arrived at the place that God had told him about, Abraham built the altar there and arranged the wood. He bound his son Isaac^B and placed him on the altar^a on top of the wood. ¹⁰Then Abraham reached out and took the knife to slaughter his son.

¹¹But the angel of the Lord called to him from heaven and said, “Abraham, Abraham!”

He replied, “Here I am.”

¹²Then he said, “Do not lay a hand on the boy or do anything to him. For now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your only son from me.”^{b 13}Abraham looked up and saw a ram^C caught in the thicket by its horns. So Abraham went and took the ram and offered it as a burnt offering in place of his son. ¹⁴And Abraham named that place The Lord Will Provide,^D so today it is said, “It will be provided^E on the Lord’s mountain.”

¹⁵Then the angel of the Lord called to Abraham a second time from heaven ¹⁶and said, “By myself I have sworn,”^c this is the Lord’s declaration: “Because you have done this thing and have not withheld your only son, ¹⁷I will indeed bless you^d and make your offspring as numerous as the stars of the sky^e and the sand on the seashore.^f Your offspring will possess the city gates of their^F enemies.^{g 18}And all the nations of the earth will be blessed^G by your offspring^h because you have obeyed my command.”

¹⁹Abraham went back to his young men, and they got up and went together to Beer-sheba. And Abraham settled in Beer-sheba.