Did Adonai Test Abraham?

Sermon for Rosh Hashanah 5765

When God Tested Abraham… Or did God?

Chapter 22

1. And it came to pass after these things, that God tested Abraham,

With these words, a very troubling depiction of God’s relationship with humanity ensues. We wonder? Why did God need to test Abraham? Was God trying to win a bet with Satan, just as in the story of Job? What kind of being would ask a father to sacrifice his son?

It matters not at all, in my mind, whether or not God would allow Abraham to go through with it. In my mind, the text could just as easily read, “And God tortured Abraham.” To ASK was torturous.

Historically, among rabbis, there has been no end to the diversity of explanations of this story, of apologies for God’s desires, or excuses for the actions of a father who seemingly was ready to carry them out.

Some of the rabbis believe that Abraham was prophetic, when he said, “My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering,” rather than lying to his son so that he would continue on. Abraham knew that a lamb would be provided. But if that is the case, what kind of test would it have been for God to ask this of Abraham? Surely God would have known that Abraham knew that he would not have to sacrifice his son. God would have been testing Abraham by asking him a question for which God already knew that Abraham had the answer. In other words, this test would not in fact be a test at all.

There is a big problem with that argument and that is that the Torah itself would be misrepresenting what was going on. The value of the entire story would be undermined. Abraham could not prove his fear of God by almost going through with the sacrifice of his son if he knew that he would never go through with it. No angel would have been needed to stay the execution. No blessing would have been conferred for not withholding a son for which God asked.

Moreover, prophesy is granted by God, according to our tradition. No human being knows that which God does not. Therefore, if Abraham knew that a lamb would be provided, it would have been God that made that known to him. This explanation of Abraham’s behavior then makes no sense. Instead, the story seems to flow in the following way.

God asked Abraham to sacrifice his son.
Abraham agreed without any hesitation, in fact, rising early in the morning and saddling his own donkey. Why? Because he believed that this is what God wanted him to do and he was obedient to God.
Abraham asked his servants to not to go with him to the place for the sacrifice, seemingly because they might move to stop him, preventing him from fulfilling God’s desire. This is why he told the servants that they would both return soon.
Abraham took the implements for the sacrifice, had Isaac help him carry the wood, and when questioned, lied about the nature of his actions; insisting that he would be sacrificing a lamb that would be provided by God. This was so that Isaac would not be combative and prevent him from fulfilling God’s desire.
Abraham built the altar and bound Isaac upon it. Then he took hold of his knife and prepared to sacrifice his son as God had commanded him.

This is the story as it appears on its surface. God asked Abraham to carry out the sacrifice of his son and Abraham went about doing it.

11. And the angel of the Lord called to him from heaven, and said, Abraham, Abraham; and he said, Here I am.
12. And he said, Lay not your hand upon the lad, nor do anything to him; for now I know that you fear God, seeing that you did not withheld your son, your only son from me.
13. And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked, and beheld behind him a ram caught in a thicket by his horns; and Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt offering in place of his son.

Then, after seeing Abraham about to go through with the sacrifice, having fulfilled the test of his devotion to God, an angel stops the sacrifice. Only then is the ram seen and substituted for Isaac.

According to this version of the story, in my mind, both Abraham and God appear immoral. God actually tortures Abraham to prove his devotion and Abraham actually follows the decree to the point of nearly murdering his son in order to prove his devotion to God. Neither God nor Abraham deserves praise here. It matters not that God never intended for Abraham to go through with the sacrifice, because the charade, the torturous test of Abraham’s devotion, is not benevolent in and of itself.

I cannot avoid mentioning the fact that there are even rabbinic texts that argue that Abraham actually did sacrifice Isaac in fulfillment of God’s command and that the angel resurrected him after the deed was done. Why did rabbis feel the need to argue this?

Because Abraham could not have fulfilled God’s commandment without actually sacrificing Isaac, something particularly important when later authorities argued that Abraham knew that he would not need to go through with it. In other words, the argument that Isaac was actually killed is a response to those who argued that Abraham knew that he would not have to kill him. It re-establishes the test of Abraham as a test and not a game he knew that he could not lose.

Further, the argument that Abraham went through with it is in line with the belief that God never gives commands without the expectation that they be fulfilled. For if it could be argued that God might not intend for us to fulfill a certain commandment, it would cast doubt on every commandment, therefore undermining the entirety of Torah.

I do not like the traditional interpretations of the story. I am troubled by their depiction of God. No explanation in our Tradition seems to be able to explain the problematic action of commanding Abraham to sacrifice his son. I wondered why and began my own analysis of the Hebrew text.

Right away, I noticed something. The name of God, Yod-Hay-Vav-Hay, is mentioned in the text, but not until the angel appears to stop Abraham. This struck me as significant.

Your rabbi is not one to accept without question the dictates of Tradition. My studies have led me to believe that there has been a development, an evolution, of belief from ancient times until today and that in ancient times our people not only believed in the existence of many gods, but worshipped many gods. The Orthodox Tradition denies this. It insists instead that from the time of Abraham, our people have been monotheistic, not only worshipping only one God, but believing in only one God. It occurred to me that if the term “Ha’elohim,” generally translated as “God” in our texts, were instead translated with its alternate meaning, “the gods,” we might find a solution to our problems with the story of the binding of Isaac. I believe that I am correct.

So let me share with you an Un-Orthodox approach to the story if you will. What follows is a new translation of the Hebrew text based upon the assumption that Ha’Elohim does not mean Yod-Hay-Vav-Hay.

Our story then begins:

Ha’Elohim, the gods, tested Abraham. They told him to take his son to sacrifice him on a mountain that they would point out to him. Abraham set out for the place which Ha’Elohim, the gods, had told him. Abraham and Isaac took what they needed for the sacrifice, the wood, the knife, and the kindling stone. Isaac then inquires of Abraham about the lamb. Abraham’s response is that Elohim will see to the lamb. Here the term could be interpreted as “the gods,” meaning the same as Ha’Elohim, but if that were the case then the text should read “Ha’elohim.” Instead, I would translate this Elohim as either “a god” singular or as something more akin to divine providence. That is to say this verse should either be translated “A god will see to the lamb,” or “Divine providence will see to the lamb.” Whether or not you wish to see Abraham as prophetic or as lying is up to you.

The text remains consistent with its use of Ha’Elohim in the following line, when we are told that they arrived at the place which Ha’Elohim told Abraham, something reinforcing the argument that the term Elohim is not to be translated in the same way as Ha’Elohim.

Abraham then bound Isaac and prepared to sacrifice him. At that moment an angel of Adonai, of Yod-Hay-Vav-Hay, calls out to stop him. The angel says, “Do not raise your hand against the boy, or do anything to harm him. For now I know that you fear Elohim, fear God.” Then the ram appears, Abraham sacrifices it, and calls the place Yod-Hay-Vav-Hay will See.

The Hebrew grammar of the story does not quite work with this explanation, but that problem is easily explained. Once the story needed to be monotheistic, “the gods” becoming “God,” the verbs and adjectives were also changed. Considering that the tradition has been monotheistic for more than 2500 years, a lack of evidence of this change is not surprising. This argument is one that no Orthodox Jew would make since it argues not only that Abraham believed in the existence of other gods, but also that the Torah itself has been modified, correcting the language to meet the religious needs of later generations.

The significance of this interpretation of the story, however, is profound. This story becomes the founding story of our belief in Adonai, our belief in Yod-Hay-Vav-Hay. Adonai, our God, is the God who does not want us to sacrifice our children, unlike many of the gods that were worshipped at the time and in the area where Abraham lived. Adonai, a benevolent God, a God in whom we can believe without hesitation, steps in and prevents Abraham from carrying out a standard practice among his people, sacrificing to the gods. While our people may have believed in and worshipped other gods for some time afterwards, through almost the entirety of the First Temple Period, they primarily worshipped one God, Yod-Hay-Vav-Hay.

Our story takes on an entirely new light. Abraham’s devotion to the divine will is confirmed, having been prepared to carry out the command of Ha’Elohim, the gods, perhaps not aware of any other option, and Adonai, Yod-Hay-Vav-Hay, the God in whom we believe, is seen as a benevolent savior, saving the life of Isaac and granting to Abraham, his father, the life of his son, against the customs of the time and against the will of the other gods.

On Rosh Hashanah now, rather than thinking about what kind of God would ask such a thing of a father, we may be reminded of why we believe in Adonai and why our people ceased to believe in the gods of their ancestors.

This story, the binding of Isaac, is the lighting of our torch as a people, the torch that makes us a light unto the nations. Our God is different. We are different. We, in the image of our God, challenge others. We are Yisrael, those who struggle with God, who struggle with the divine.

As we enter this new Jewish year, 5765 according to our traditional calendar, let us make a renewed commitment to being a light unto the nations. Let us strive to stand up for what we believe in. Let us help others to withstand the pressure to conform against their will. Perhaps, we may help someone in real need, and in our own way, take on the role of a Malakh Adonai, an angel of Adonai…….. Shana Tovah.