Why Would Abraham Sacrifice His Son?

Note: Abraham’s original name was Abram; God changed his name at a specific point in his life. For simplicity, I will use the name Abraham in this post.

The account in Genesis where God asks Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac baffles many people. One problem is that we approach this story with our own cultural bias, and therefore, the story confuses us. We are analyzing this story while wearing specific lenses. We are taking the things we know, such as the nature of God, the Ten Commandments (“thou shall not kill”), the revelation of Christ, and teachings of the Church, and refereeing the situation. Keep in mind, Abraham did not have any of these as a guide.

Abraham was not a Jew, he was a pagan from the city of Ur (ancient Mesopotamia; modern-day Iraq). For much of his life, he worshiped false gods. Human sacrifice was a common religious practice in ancient times throughout various cultures; the ancient people of Ur were no exception. Abraham lived within a culture that viewed human sacrifice as a common religious ritual. Sometimes, the victim would even volunteer! For Abraham, a normal, everyday response in order to please a god was to offer sacrifices to that god. This could include a human sacrifice.

Here is a short-short version of the narrative. God called the old, wealthy, and childless Abraham out of his homeland to live a nomadic life. God made promises to Abraham, fulfilled them, and blessed him. God blessed Abraham with a son named Isaac. God asked Abraham to offer his son has a sacrifice.

By attempting to sacrifice his own son to this “new” God (“new” in the sense that God was new to Abraham), Abraham demonstrated loyalty to the new God and abandoned the gods of his ancestors. Though God permitted Abraham to attempt a human sacrifice, God did not intend Abraham to kill Isaac. It may also be the case that Abraham even knew he wasn't going to have to sacrifice his son at all, or that he anticipated a resurrection. This idea can be demonstrated using the biblical text:

He said to his servants, “stay here with the donkey while I and the boy go over there. We will worship and then we will come back to you” (Genesis 22:5).

Isaac spoke up and said to his father Abraham, “Father?” “Yes, my son?” Abraham replied. “The fire and wood are here,” Isaac said, “but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?” Abraham answered, “God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son” (Genesis 22:7-8). 

By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises was ready to offer up his only son, of whom it was said, “Through Isaac shall your descendants be named.” He considered that God was able to raise men even from the dead; hence he did receive him back, and this was a symbol (Hebrews 11:17-19). 

Abraham told his servants that both he and his son would return after they worshiped God. And Abraham told his son that God would provide the sacrifice for worship. As we all know, God intervened and Abraham did not sacrifice his son.

It seems also that Isaac was not a little kid, as often depicted. It is more likely he was a grown youth. He trekked three days with his father on foot and carried the firewood on his back up a mountain. Also, at this point in the narrative, Abraham is over 100 years old, and thus Isaac was capable of overcoming his old man. All of this implies Isaac’s obedience to his father. It can be said that this story is as much about Isaac’s self-offering as it is about Abraham’s faithfulness.

God met Abraham where he was and spoke to him in a way that he would understand. God was never okay with human sacrifice, even though it was often practiced in the ancient world. God gradually formed the moral conscience of his people for the preparation of the Incarnation.