28 February 2021

The angel of the Lord called to Abraham a second time from heaven, and said, ‘By myself I have sworn, says the Lord: Because you have done this, and have not withheld your son, your only son, I will indeed bless you, and I will make your offspring as numerous as the stars of heaven and as the sand that is on the seashore. And your offspring shall possess the gate of their enemies, and by your offspring shall all the nations of the earth gain blessing for themselves, because you have obeyed my voice.’
Genesis 22: 1-2, 9-13, 15-18, NRSV

In the preceding parts of this reading, we hear about how Abraham was instructed to sacrifice his only son Isaac. It was only as Abraham raised the knife to complete the sacrifice that God cancelled the instruction. We might well ask why a loving God would put anyone to such a painful test. As so often, it is helpful to understand the context in which this event happened. The whole idea of human sacrifice, which to us is abhorrent, was not uncommon in the ancient world. There are stories from ancient civilisations of how human sacrifices were made to appease the gods. Although Abraham was part of this culture, he must still have agonised over what he was told to do and yet he placed his total trust in God’s love. As a result of the trust shown by Abraham, God was able to show a new and radically different understanding. This was not a god who needed to be appeased but a God who wanted to work in relationship with people.

• • Why do you think Abraham was able to show the complete trust that he did?
  • Does anything hold you back from trusting in God?.

Pray for the grace to trust in God’s love to sustain you in any difficulties that you are living with.

Image – Abraham and Isaac Before the Sacrifice – Jan Victors – Wikimedia