The Atoning Blood of Isaac
- samshmn
- 11 hours ago
- 10 min read
Remarkably, there is a tradition within Judaism, which claims that Isaac was actually killed/slaughtered and then raised back to life. There are also traditions that even go as far as to connect Isaac’s willingness to be bound and slaughtered with atonement for sins. For instance, the belief that God forgives Israel because of what Isaac went through, is actually quite vast and widespread within rabbinic Judaism.
In other words, the binding (Akedah in Hebrew) of Isaac merited the salvation of his descendants, the Israelites.
I cite some of these varied traditions for the benefit of the readers. All emphasis will be mine.
And Abraham lifted up his eyes and saw, and, behold, a certain ram which had been created between the evenings of the foundation of the world, was held in the entanglement of a tree by his horns. And Abraham went and took him, and offered him an offering instead of his son. And Abraham gave thanks and prayed there, in that place, and said, I pray through the mercies that are before Thee, O Lord, before whom it is manifest that it was not in the depth of my heart to turn away from doing Thy decree with joy, that when the children of Izhak my son shall offer in the hour of affliction, this may be a memorial for them; and Thou mayest hear them and deliver them, and that all generations to come may say, In this mountain Abraham bound Izhak his son, and there the Shekina of the Lord was revealed unto him.
[JERUSALEM. And Abrahm prayed in the name of the Word of the Lord, and said, Thou art the Lord who seest, and art not seen. I pray for mercy before Thee, O Lord. It is wholly manifest and known before Thee that in my heart there was no dividing, in the time that Thou didst command me to offer Izhak my son, and to make him dust and ashes before Thee; but that forthwith I arose in the morning and performed Thy word with joy, and I have fulfilled Thy word. And now I pray for mercies before Thee, O Lord God, that when the children of Izhak offer in the hour of need, the binding of Izhak their father Thou mayest remember on their behalf, and remit and forgive their sins, and deliver them out of all need. That the generations who are to arise after him may say, In the mountain of the house of the sanctuary of the Lord did Abraham offer Izhak his son, and in this mountain of the house of the sanctuary was revealed unto him the glory of the Shekinah of the Lord.] (The Targums of Onkelos and Jonathan Ben Uzziel On the Pentateuch With The Fragments of the Jerusalem Targum From the Chaldee, by J. W. Etheridge, M.A. First Published 1862, 18-22)
אָמַר רַבִּי אֲבָהוּ: לָמָה תּוֹקְעִין בְּשׁוֹפָר שֶׁל אַיִל? אָמַר הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא: תִּקְעוּ לְפָנַי בְּשׁוֹפָר שֶׁל אַיִל, כְּדֵי שֶׁאֶזְכּוֹר לָכֶם עֲקֵידַת יִצְחָק בֶּן אַבְרָהָם, וּמַעֲלֶה אֲנִי עֲלֵיכֶם כְּאִילּוּ עֲקַדְתֶּם עַצְמְכֶם לְפָנַי.
Similarly, Rabbi Abbahu said: Why does one sound a blast with a shofar made from a ram’s horn on Rosh HaShana? The Holy One, Blessed be He, said: Sound a blast before Me with a shofar made from a ram’s horn, so that I will remember for you the binding of Isaac, son of Abraham, in whose stead a ram was sacrificed, and I will ascribe it to you as if you had bound yourselves before Me. (Rosh Hashanah 16a, The William Davidson Talmud (Koren - Steinsaltz))
“He shall slaughter the young bull before the Lord, and Aaron’s sons, the priests, shall present the blood, and cast the blood all around on the altar that is at the entrance of the Tent of Meeting” (Leviticus 1:5).
“He shall slaughter the young bull…” Regarding the ram it says: “To the north…before the Lord” (Leviticus 1:11). [The Sages] said: When Abraham our patriarch bound Isaac his son, the Holy One blessed be He prepared two sheep, one for the morning and one for the evening. God decided to command Israel to bring the daily offering of a sheep in the morning and a sheep in the evening. Why to that extent? It is because when Israel would sacrifice a daily offering on the altar and read this verse: “To the north…before the Lord,” There was no obligation to read this verse upon the offering of the sacrifice. The point is that they fulfilled that verse. Alternatively, when Israel reads the verse today, when they cannot bring the offering (Etz Yosef). the Holy One blessed be He would remember the binding of Isaac.
I call the heavens and the earth to testify for me *This statement is attributed to Elijah the prophet (Tanna d’Vei Eliyahu 7). that both gentile and Israelite, both man and woman, both slave and maidservant, when they read this verse: “To the north…before the Lord,” the Holy One blessed be He remembers the binding of Isaac, as it is stated: “To the north…before the Lord.” (Vayikra Rabbah 2:11, The Sefaria Midrash Rabbah, 2022)
דָּבָר אַחֵר: "וְרָאִיתִי אֶת הַדָּם", רוֹאֶה אֲנִי דַּם עֲקֵדָתוֹ שֶׁלְּיִצְחָק, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: (בראשית כב,יד) "וַיִּקְרָא אַבְרָהָם שֵׁם הַמָּקוֹם הַהוּא יי יִרְאֶה, אֲשֶׁר יֵאָמֵר הַיּוֹם בְּהַר יי יֵרָאֶה." וּלְהַלָּן הוּא אוֹמֵר: (דברי הימים א כא,טו) "וַיִּשְׁלַח הָאֱלֹהִים מַלְאָךְ לִירוּשָׁלִַם לְהַשְׁחִיתָהּ, וּכְהַשְׁחִית רָאָה יי וַיִּנָּחֶם עַל הָרָעָה, וַיֹּאמֶר לַמַּלְאָךְ הַמַּשְׁחִית: רַב! עַתָּה, הֶרֶף יָדֶךָ! וּמַלְאַךְ יי עֹמֵד עִם גֹּרֶן אָרְנָן הַיְבוּסִי." מָה רָאָה? רָאָה דַּם עֲקֵדָתוֹ שֶׁלְּיִצְחָק, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: "אֱלֹהִים יִרְאֶה לּוֹ הַשֶּׂה לְעֹלָה בְּנִי".
Variantly: "And I shall see the blood": I shall see the "blood" of the binding of Isaac, as it is written (Genesis 22:14) "And Abraham called the name of the place 'The L–rd will see.'" And elsewhere it is written (I Chronicles 21:15) "But as he was about to destroy, the L–rd saw and He repented Himself of the evil." What did He see? The blood of the binding of Isaac. (Mekhilta DeRabbi Yishmael, Tractate Pischa 7 Mechilta, translated by Rabbi Shraga Silverstein)
Rabbi Joshua says: The Holy One, blessed be He, said to Moses, "I am trustworthy to reward Isaac, son of Abraham, who offered a quarter of his blood upon the altar. I said to him (Psalms 89:19), 'With My sacred oil I have anointed him.' Now I seek to bring them out of Egypt, and you say to Me, 'Please send by the hand of whom You will send.'"
(Mekhilta DeRabbi Shimon Ben Yochai, Chapter 6, Sefaria Community Translation)
And why do they place ashes upon the head of each and every individual? Rabbi Levi bar Ḥama and Rabbi Ḥanina disagree with regard to this matter. One said that this is as though to say: We are considered like ashes before You. And one said that these ashes are placed in order to remind God of the ashes of our forefather Isaac, on our behalf. The Gemara asks: What is the practical difference between these two explanations? The Gemara answers that the practical difference between them is in a case where one placed ordinary earth upon the heads of the individuals instead of ashes. Although earth does symbolize self-nullification and may be used according to the first explanation, it has no connection to the sacrifice of Isaac, and therefore it does not satisfy the second explanation. (Taanit: 16a - Talmud; Taanit 16a)
Sh'lach, Siman 14
What is the meaning of (Eccl 9:7, cont.), “God has already approved your works?” It is with reference to Abraham. When the Holy One, blessed be He, said to him (in Gen. 22:2), “Please take your son,” Abraham rose early, took him promptly, led him on, and brought him up to Mount Moriah. The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him (in Gen. 22:12), “Do not raise your hand against the lad.” Abraham said to the Holy One, blessed be He, “Master of the world, did you tell me (in vs. 2), ‘Please take your son,’ for no reason?” He said to him, “No! Rather [it was] to make your character known in the world.” Thus it is stated (in Gen. 18:19), “For I have made him known, so that he may charge [his children and his household after him to keep the way of the Lord].” R. Simeon ben Johay said, “The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him, ‘By your life, I ascribe [your obedience] to you [as proof] that, if I had told you to take your own life, you would not have refrained [from doing so] for the sake of My name, and would have obeyed [the command] to be killed for the sake of My name.’” Where is it shown? R. Simeon ben Johay said, “As so is it written (in Gen. 22:16), ‘and you have not withheld your son, your only one.’ See, [‘your son’] has already specified Isaac. [So] what is the meaning of ‘your only one?’ It is to imply Abraham's life. Thus the soul is called only one, where it is stated (in Ps. 22:21) ‘Deliver my life from the sword, [my only one from the power of the dog].’” Abraham said to the Holy One, blessed be He, “Is it possible for me to go from here with no sacrifice?” The Holy One, blessed be He, said to Abraham, “Here is your sacrifice. [It has been] prepared for you from the six days of creation.” (According to Gen. 22:13), “Then Abraham lifted his eyes to look, and there was a ram […].” As so did our masters teach, “The ram of Abraham was created from the six days of creation on the Sabbath eve at twilight.” So at that time, Abraham took it and (according to Gen 22:13, cont.) “he offered it up as a burnt offering in place of his son.” Once it said, “he offered it up as a burnt offering,” was the verse missing anything? [So] what is the meaning of “in place of his son?” At that time Abraham said to the Holy One, blessed be He, “Master of the world, see that I am slaughtering the ram; You should so see it as if my son is slaughtered in front of You.” When he took its blood, he said, “You should so see it as if the blood of Isaac is sprinkled before You.” When he took the ram and flayed it, he said to Him, “You should so see it as if Isaac is flayed in front of You on the altar.” When he burnt it, he said to Him, “You should so see it as if his ashes were gathered in front of You on the altar.” [Once it said,] “he offered it up as a burnt offering,” was the verse missing anything? [So] what is the meaning of “in place of his son?” The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him, “By your life, it is your son that is sacrificed first, but it is simply that this ram is after him.” At that time Abraham said to the Holy One, blessed be He, “Master of the world, I am not moving from here until You swear to me that You will never test me again; for if, heaven forbid, I had not obeyed you, I should have destroyed everything I had accomplished during my lifetime.” R. Hanin said, “The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him, ‘By your life, so it is; for if you had not obeyed Me, you would have possessed nothing.’” At that time the Holy One, blessed be He, swore to him that He would never test him again. Thus it is stated (in Gen. 22:16), “And he said, ‘I by Myself have sworn,’ says the Lord.” The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him, “By your life, severe afflictions and other trials had been designated to come upon you, but now they shall not come.” These were the same afflictions which came upon Job. They had been designated to come upon Abraham, for the following has been joined to the parashah (in Gen. 22:20–21), “And it came to pass after these things, that it was told to Abraham [saying, ‘Behold Milcah, she also has borne sons to your brother Nahor,] Uz his first-born….’” And this is Job, according to what is stated (in Job 1:1), “There was a man in the land (belonging to) Uz.” At that time, The Holy One, blessed be He, said to Abraham (in Eccl. 9:7), “Go, eat your bread with gladness, [… for God has already approved your works].” (Midrash Tanchuma, Sh'lach 14:1)
Isaac’s binding also emboldened the Jewish martyrs during the time of the Maccabees to die valiantly and beseech God to accept their deaths as an atonement for the sins of Israel:
“While one said, ‘Courage, brother,’ another said, ‘Bear up nobly,’ and another reminded them, ‘Remember whence you came, and the father by whose hand Isaac would have submitted to being slain for the sake of piety.’ Each of them and all of them together looking at one another, cheerful and undaunted, said, ‘Let us with all our hearts consecrate ourselves to God, who gave us our lives, and let us use our bodies as a bulwark for the law. Let us not fear him who thinks he is killing us, for great is the soul’s contest and the danger of eternal torment lying before those who transgress the commandment of God. Therefore let us put on the full armor of mastery of the passions that divine reason provides. For if we so die, Abraham and Isaac and Jacob will welcome us, and all the fathers will praise us.’ Those who were left behind said to each of the brothers who were being dragged away, ‘Do not put us to shame, brother, or betray the brothers who have died before us.’” 4 Maccabees 13:11-18
“For his sake also our father Abraham was zealous to sacrifice his son Isaac, the ancestor of our nation, and when Isaac saw his father’s hand wielding a knife and descending upon him, he did not cower.” 4 Macc. 16:20
“And through the blood of those pious ones and their death as an atoning sacrifice, divine Providence preserved Israel that previously had been mistreated.” 4 Macc. 17:22
“When they saw that he was so courageous in the face of the afflictions and that he had not been changed by their compassion, the guards brought him to the fire. There they burned him with maliciously contrived instruments, threw him down, and poured stinking liquids into his nostrils. When he was now burned to his very bones and about to expire, he lifted up his eyes to God and said, ‘You know, O God, that, though I might have saved myself, I am dying in burning torments for the sake of the law. Be merciful to your people, and let our punishment suffice for them. Make my blood their purification, and take my life in exchange for theirs.’ After he said this, the holy man died nobly in his tortures; even in the tortures of death he resisted, by virtue of reason, for the sake of the law.” 4 Macc. 6:24-30
The foregoing proves that the New Testament proclamation that Jesus Christ’s death was an atoning sacrifice for the forgiveness of the sins of the world is a thoroughly Jewish concept. It is not alien to Judaism. This is especially the case when we keep in mind that the binding of Isaac by his father was meant to be a foreshadowing of God offering up his only begotten and beloved Son for the salvation of the world.
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