collected out of his story by the Hebrew writers: the first and last, of which ten, were the sorest of all.

The first is recorded in Gen. xii. 1. His being called and commanded of God to leave his own country, his kindred, and his father's house; and to go unto a land that he knew not. Which command, as unpleasant and grievous as it must needs have been to his flesh and blood, he did not in the least demur upon obeying but "by faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went."b

The last was his being commanded to take his only son Isaac, and to slay and offer him for a burnt-offering; than which, there could not be a greater trial. We have this command in Gen. xxii. 2. Every word of which hath a singular emphasis, and deserves attention: "take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt-offering, upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of."

Take now thy son.] Not a beast for a sacrifice, not any of the best of his great store of cattle, was to be taken; but his son.

Take now.] Forthwith, without any delay is the same here with any saith Aben Ezra.

Thy son Isaac.] Not Ishmael, but Isaac; his, and his wife Sarah's, delight and joy, as the name signifies.

Thine only son Isaac.] He and Sarah had no

b Heb. xi. 8.

other to solace themselves in; nor were they ever like to have any other. And besides there is another observable thing mentioned; "He that had received the promises, offered up his only begotten son of whom it was said, that in Isaac shall thy seed be called."a

Whom thou lovest.] That is, very dearly and passionately; as being the son of their old age, their only son, and "a son of the promise." These two go together, tender and the only one. "The only one and the choice one." To lose the only son is that which causeth bitter lamentation; and the mourning for such a one is used to express the most passionate and doleful mourning."

f

And get thee into the land of Moriah, and offer him there.] Abraham himself must offer him. He might not command his two servants to do it: and they went no farther than till they came within sight of the place where he was to be offered. The tender father must take his only son, whom he loved, and bind him with his own hands upon the altar; and take the knife to slay him as his eyes must behold him bleeding, gasping, and burning; so must he be himself the executioner.

And offer him there for a burnt-offering, upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of.] This was the place where the temple was to be built by Solomon; the place of offering sacrifices. And it was three days journey from Abraham's habitation ; which might make the command yet more grievous. As often as, in that journey, he looked upon the wood, or the fire, for burning the

a Heb. xi. 17, 18. b Rom. ix. 8. c Prov. iv. 3. d Cant. vi. 9. e Amos viii. 10. Zech. xii. 10. Jer. vi. 26. f Gen. xxii. 4, 5. 8 Ver. 4.

sacrifice; or the knife, that must do the execution; or the place where it was to be done, which he saw afar off; how could it be otherwise, but that his eye must most deeply affect his heart?

It follows in ver. 6. "And Abraham took the wood of the burnt-offering, and laid it upon Isaac his son; and he took the fire in his hand, and a knife and they went both of them together." What an affecting and heart-piercing sight was this! and herein Isaac was a figure of our blessed Saviour, who bore upon his shoulders the wood of the cross," whereon he was to be offered up for a sacrifice to God.

i

It is hence to be concluded, that Isaac was now no child, or weak stripling; in that he was able to travel with so great a burden: such a quantity of wood as was sufficient to burn his body to ashes, could be no small weight. Josephus makes Isaac to be now twenty-five years old; but a Hebrew tradition, about thirty-three. The word is used of one that is of an adult age; as of Joshua, when about fifty-three years old; of Benjamin, when he was thirty years old; and of Joseph, when about twenty-eight years old.' And the two servants accompanying Abraham are called " his young men, ver. 3. So that it should be rendered 'the young man,' not lad, ver. 5, 12. If so, (and for what end should they feign it?) he was in this circumstance also a figure of our Saviour, who was offered up at about the same age.

Now Isaac being at this time grown up to a good age and strength, it might make his father the more

h John xix. 17.

i Exod. xxxiii. 11.

1 Ibid. xli. 12.

R

Gen. xliii. 8.

unwilling to part with him; and considerably added to the greatness of his trial.

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My

And those words of Isaac, which he spoke in a strain of sweet innocence and simplicity, father, behold the fire and the wood; but where is the lamb for a burnt-offering?" ver. 7. they must needs cause a great colluctation within him, and yearning of bowels: no doubt, Abraham's affections did strangely work now; and he was pained at the very heart.

There is also one thing more, which we may take notice of, in this command of God: it is said, nbby "Offer him there for a burnt-offering." This kind of offering was a holocaust; all of which was to be consumed by fire: so that there was not the least relic to remain of him.

This was the command: And was it not a most difficult one? Could there have been a sorer trial? But, behold the signal resignation and obedience of Abraham to the will of God: he, without the least delay or demurring, betook himself to the performance of the divine pleasure. It is said, ver. 3. that "Abraham rose up early in the morning,"W" paa oma et manicavit Abraham in diluculo: or, as the vulgar Latin renders it, consurgens de nocte. It is likely, the command came secretly to him in a dream, or vision of the night; and at, or before, the first peep of day, he addressed himself to obey it. Thus he denied his natural, and very great affection to his son; and gave a most illustrious proof, that nothing was so dear to him, nothing so powerful with him, as the will of God. "Wisdom kept him strong against his tender compassion to

wards his son, Wisdom.

"a saith the author of the Book of

The completion of his obedience is set forth in ver. 9. "And they came to the place which God had told him of; and Abraham built an altar there, and laid the wood in order; and bound Isaac his son, and laid him on the altar, upon the wood."

By the way; not only Abraham, but Isaac too, was herein a rare example of resignation. To those words, " they went both of them together," ver. 8. the Jerusalem Targum adds, with a just and upright heart;' and Jonathan Ben Uziel, waba with a quiet, humble, and submissive heart.' Yea, both the Targum of Jerusalem and Jonathan make Isaac speak to Abraham, that he would bind him strongly ;' adding, that he meekly and quietly offered himself to become a sacrifice.' He was doubtless, as appears by what was said of his age and strength, able to have resisted his father, now stricken in years: but he expressed no reluctancy; he quietly and meekly suffered himself to be bound and laid upon the altar. And herein again, as in several other particulars, was he a figure of our Saviour; who, though he could have rescued himself from the power of the Jews and Romans, yet permitted them to take and bind him, to heap many vile indignities upon him, and at last to nail him to his cross.

It follows, "And Abraham stretched forth his hand, and took the knife to slay his son." ver. 10. This God accounted to him, as if he did it; completa voluntas pro facto æstimatur, because he fully purposed in his mind to do it, and had it not been

a Wisd. x. 5.