Holy Hormones Bible Study: Teaching — not Entertainment
DID THE GOD OF ABRAHAM, ISAAC, AND JACOB DEMAND HUMAN BLOOD SACRIFICE?
Why should He get so upset about abortion? He demanded a child to be murdered.
Does Yehovah demand human blood sacrifice?
The account of the Offering of Isaac (known in Hebrew as the Akedah, Genesis 22:1–12) causes the blood of some people to boil because it seems to speak of human sacrifice — child sacrifice, at that.
1 Now it came to pass after these things that God (Elohim) tested Abraham, and said to him, “Abraham!” 2 Then He (Elohim) said, “Take now 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.” … … 12 And He (Elohim) said, “Do not lay your hand on the lad, or do anything to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me.”
In my part of town the Naysayers jump on this as an example of God being hypocritical about abortions when He calls for murder of children.
Also, it is not unknown for some of those who call themselves by The Name to use this verse to justify abortion from the Bible. The use of this single verse theology is not new. Shakespeare (has he been cancelled, yet?) was well aware of it.
In religion, what damned error but some sober brow will bless it, and approve it with a text, hiding the grossness with fair ornament?
(Bassanio, in The Merchant of Venice, act 3, sc. 2, l. 77–80.)“The devil can cite Scripture for his purpose”
(The Merchant of Venice, I, iii, 93)
Then again there are even more Saints who just hope that no one will broach the subject with them.
But perhaps all is not as it seems?
The Akedah, occurring in Genesis 22, did not happen out of the blue. There is information available to those who are interested. The promise of Isaac was introduced in Genesis 15:1–5.
Progressively, Yehovah told Abram:-
• “One who will come from your own body shall be your heir.”
• “Look now toward heaven, and count the stars if you are able to number them.” And He (God) said to him, “So shall your descendants be.”
- And he (Abram) believed Yehovah, and He (Yehovah) accounted it to him (Abram) for righteousness.
Things progress further in Genesis 17:1–19
• Yehovah renames childless Abram to very fruitful Abraham, the father of many nations, and establishes a covenant with the latter’s descendants for the generations to come.
° Yehovah changes the name of barren Sarai to Sarah and promises her and Abraham a son, to be named Isaac. There is no mention of any Ishmael.
° God promises a covenant with Isaac, identical to that promised to Abraham.
° Isaac is the Child of the Promise.
But Isaac was Abraham’s second son
Actually not so. Reading carefully it is noticed that the Hagar/Ishmael caper occurred in Genesis 16 before Abram became Abraham. In Genesis 22, Elohim calls, “Abraham.” The venerated Jewish Sage, Rashi, cleared up the controversy of Isaac being Abraham’s second son back in the Middle Ages. He pointed out that the only four stake-holders in the Covenant were Yehovah, Abraham, Sarah, and Isaac.
NOTE: In changing the names of both Abram and Sarai, Yehovah inserts a ח (hay — a breath) into their name. This falls into the pattern of Yehovah Elohim breathing Life into Adam in Genesis 2:7 || And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being; and New Life into those born again (John 3:3) in 2 Corinthians 5:17 || Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.
Abraham and Sarah were a new stage in the Redemption Plan. The ח symbolised a new life. What they had done in the Flesh in their old life was not part of God’s Plan in the Spirit.
What is the logic of God wanting Abraham to kill Isaac?
The pattern of Isaac and his place in the redemption plan has been established. So now Yehovah demands that this lynch-pin be killed off? Was He just teasing us?
Anyone would think He could do miracles.
Perhaps there is something deeper going on here?
It is written in Isaiah 55:8–9 || “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” says the Lord. “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts.”
Could it possibly be that God is smarter than the atheists who don’t believe and theists who don’t read?
As usual, having no theological qualifications, I’m open to correction but it seems obvious to me that Yehovah’s Redemption Plan did not have Isaac’s death in mind — even though the episode was a type of another Father actually offering up His Son at the same place.
There is something going on here that is beyond limits of our comprehension. At least my comprehension. Please inform me if you can understand everything God does.
So what was learned here?
An incomplete list in no particular order of importance:-
• The danger of comparing Yehovah, His Abilities and Attributes, to we mere mortals. One techno-atheist (who teaches maths at a Community College in the USA) on the Medium Platform based his logic and conclusions on the assumption that The Father, existing as a Spirit (having no mass), was subject to the same laws of Physics as humans (having mass). In doing so, he demonstrated that his understanding of General Relativity was even less than mine.
• The naïveté of not appreciating that not every language is exactly the same as English.
• The importance of specific grammar and definitions peculiar to every different language.
• Importance of different systems of logical thinking patterns in different Cultures.
• Stopping at the plausible and letting it hide the Truth.
• Reading every word and keep up with the Patterns within the Narrative.
- It seems unnecessary to point out that the Bible is written following Hebrew thinking patterns; unfortunately, it is necessary. We, in the West, are trained in Greek logic and many Hebraisms do not translate cleanly. It is up to us, today, to decipher what was written so long ago. Not to paint yesterday with today’s popular colour. For those who lay aside their arrogance there is much to be learned when ignorance is admitted.
But there is a bigger fish to fry in the episode of the Akedah
It is hoped that this presentation has cleared up confusion that God condones human blood sacrifice. He doesn’t! (If not, I haven’t done a good job.) It would be nice if the Naysayers would believe that but they will believe what they will (always the worst, as though no one else can see what is obvious to them) and there is nothing I can do about that. I am more concerned about Those Who Call themselves by His Name.
But there is a far more important discovery in this episode that has slipped by the Pulpits and the Pews — The implication that God doesn’t know everything! Or does He? That is coming up next.
The forgoing evidence has not been presented to convince any reader but to allow a personal decision to be made. There is much more to know about this subject. Perhaps you’ll pay another visit, sometime.
All Glory to the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
(We all have a plank in our eye. It’s bigger than we think.)
