How Isaac Foreshadowed both the Cross and Resurrection
Genesis 22 records one of the most troubling stories in the Bible: God calling Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac. This story has had no shortage of interpretation, criticism, and debate from scholars and philosophers throughout history.
For this blog, we’re going to focus specifically on the typology of the story, and how it connects to the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The author of Hebrews, as well as multiple Church Fathers, saw this connection. But is this a fair interpretation of what is happening with Isaac in the story?
We will briefly go over the incident recorded in Genesis 22, highlight some of the details the early Church connected to Jesus, and discuss some of the different interpretations Jewish theologians have made about the story over history. My argument is that when one sees how the Hebrew Bible connects the story of Genesis 22 to later Scripture, as well as learning Jewish tradition during the 2nd Temple Period, it is a reasonable interpretation for the Church to see how Isaac foreshadows the cross and resurrection of Christ.
Genesis 22:1-19 Recap
After a long period of waiting, trials, and mistakes, Abraham and Sarah finally see God’s promise for them come true with the birth of their son, Isaac. However, in the beginning of Genesis 22, God calls Abraham to take his son, whom Abraham loves, and offer him as a sacrifice to God.
The text details Abraham taking Isaac and going up a mountain to sacrifice the boy. Abraham tells his servants to stay behind, as he and Isaac will return. Isaac asks his father where the lamb for the offering is, to which Abraham states that God will provide the lamb offering.
After building an altar, Abraham ties up Isaac, and is prepared to kill him when God intervenes and orders him not to harm his son. God praises Abraham for his radical obedience and a ram is sacrificed in Isaac’s place. After this, God blesses Abraham and promises him that his offspring will be blessed and all nations will be blessed by them.
Isaac and the Crucifixion of Christ
Multiple Church Fathers noticed parallels between Isaac and Jesus. Jesus is the only begotten Son of God. While Isaac was not Abraham’s first and only son, he was the exclusive chosen son from Sarah. Both Isaac and Jesus are the beloved sons given up to be sacrificed. Just as Jesus carried His cross to His execution, Irenaeus and Tertullian note how Isaac is also described as carrying the wood that would be prepared for his death. (Genesis 22:6)
Clement of Rome makes a strange comment about Isaac’s attitude toward the situation:
“Isaac, with perfect confidence, as if knowing what was to happen, cheerfully yielded himself as a sacrifice.”
Interpreting Isaac as being a faithful, willing sacrifice also parallels Jesus, as the Son was willing to lay His life down to save humanity. (John 10:17-18) But where is Clement getting this idea from? Is he just forcing a Christian idea into the text?
Understanding Isaac as a willing sacrifice was actually not a foreign concept in Jewish theology during the time of Clement. 1st century Jewish writer Josephus comments about Isaac willingly allowing himself to be sacrificed. (Antiquities of the Jews 1.232) It’s possible Clement drew inspiration from Josephus, or both writers drew from the same Jewish tradition.
Isaac and the Resurrection
Despite Isaac not actually being killed, there are some interesting implications of resurrection hope being found in Genesis 22. The author of Hebrews certainly sees Abraham as having faith that God would not allow Isaac to stay dead. (Hebrews 11:17-19)
The text in Genesis 22 isn’t explicit enough to absolutely affirm this interpretation, but it can be implied. The fact that Abraham tells his servants that he and Isaac will return may be interpreted as Abraham lying, but it could also be interpreted as Abraham having faith that God will make a way for Isaac to live on.
James Hamilton argues that the author of Kings interprets the Isaac sacrifice in Genesis 22 to symbolize resurrection, as it is typologically repeated in 2nd Kings 4. The story of the Shunammite Woman bears heavy similarities in the Hebrew text to Sarah in Genesis 17-18. Hamilton also connects parallels to Isaac in Genesis 21-22 and the Shunammite’s son in 2nd Kings 4. (Hamilton, 2022, Pg. 109-111)
Unlike Isaac, the Shunammite’s son physically dies. However, we see Elisha miraculously raise the son from the dead. (2nd Kings 4:18-36) In the Hebrew Scriptures, we see the sacrifice of Isaac repeated through the Shunammite woman and her son, with a physical death and resurrection.
Another connection to the resurrection of Christ is the day that Abraham’s sacrifice of Isaac occurs, the third day. (Genesis 22:4) Michael L. Brown has pointed out how the “third day” is used repeatedly throughout the Hebrew Scriptures as a day of restoration and healing. Examples other than Isaac in Genesis 22 can be found in Hosea 6:1-2, 2nd Kings 20:5, and Jonah 1:17. (Brown, 2003, Pg. 182)
It is worth noting that in Jonah’s prayer in Jonah 2 he specifically describes being in Sheol, the realm of the dead. (Jonah 2:2) Hence, when Jonah is spat out, he has been delivered from Sheol (a.k.a. death). This is partially why Jesus refers to His resurrection on the third day in Matthew 12:39-40 as the “sign of Jonah”.
Genesis 22 and the Great Commission
After blessing Abraham, God then brings a promised blessing to his offspring:
“And all the nations of the earth will be blessed by your offspring because you have obeyed my command.”
Authors Postell, Bar, and Soref have noted similarities between this blessing in Genesis 22 and Psalm 72, a psalm of Solomon:
“May his name endure forever, as long as the sun shines, may his fame increase. May all nations be blessed by him and call him blessed.”
The authors state:
“It is quite clear that Psalm 72:17 is a nearly verbatim allusion to Genesis 22:18, and as such the psalmist looks at ‘his enemies’ in the prior verse as referring to an individual ‘seed’ of Abraham, and thus interprets the seed through whom all nations will be blessed in Genesis 22:18 as an individual king.”
In other words, Psalm 72 being a psalm of Solomon, an anointed king of God, gives the Psalm Messianic implications. While God’s blessing to Abraham in Genesis 22:18 no doubt initially referred to what would become the nation of Israel, Psalm 72 repeats this blessing of offspring to refer to an individual Messianic King.
As a Christian, I would argue this Messianic Son of Solomon, (and therefore also Son of David) was lived out by Jesus, the Son of God. And the promise of all nations being blessed by the Messiah Jesus was initiated when He gave out the Great Commission:
“Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
Conclusion
It’s important to recognize when reading Genesis how the stories set the stage for the rest of the Bible’s story. Events and circumstances are repeated over and over again, and point to God’s love, grace, and victory. As a Christian, I believe the story of Abraham sacrificing Isaac is one of those moments that points forward to when the Son of God sacrificed Himself for Abraham’s offspring and all nations, and resurrected from the grave, conquering death.
Bibliography
Schaff, P. (2016). The Complete Ante-Nicene, Nicene, and Post-Nicene Collection of Early Church Fathers. Toronto, Canada.
Hamilton, J. (2022). Typology: Understanding the Bible’s Promise-Shaped Patterns. Grand Rapids, MI. Zondervan Academic.
Brown, M.L. (2003). Answering Jewish Objections to Jesus Vol. 3: Messianic Prophecy Objections. Grand Rapids, MI. Baker Books.
Postell, Bar, & Soref. (2017). Reading Moses, Seeing Jesus: How the Torah fulfills its purpose in Yeshua. ONE FOR ISRAEL Ministry.
Grant & Graham. (1965). The Apostolic Fathers: A New Translation and Commentary Volume 2: First and Second Clement. Eugene, OR. Wipf & Stock Publishers.
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