Isaac
the son of the promise
Who was Isaac?
- Son of Abraham and Sarah. He was born when his parents were already old. Genesis 18:11; Genesis 21:2-3
- God put Abraham to the test and asked him to offer Isaac in sacrifice. An angel stopped Abraham. Genesis 22:1-2, 11-12
- He married Rebekah and was the father of the twins Esau and Jacob. Genesis 24:67; Genesis 25:24-26
- The name
- “Isaac” comes from a Hebrew word that means “he laughs.” Abraham and Sarah laughed when God announced this son to them. Genesis 17:17; Genesis 18:12; Genesis 21:6; NAB note on Gn 17, 17; Catholic Encyclopedia (1910), “Isaac”
- Occupation
- Shepherd and farmer: he had flocks and herds, and he sowed the land Genesis 26:12, 14
- Feast day
- December 24: Commemoration of all the holy ancestors of Jesus Christ
What the Bible says
Genesis 18:11; Genesis 21:2-3
Now they were both old, and far advanced in years, and it had ceased to be with Sara after the manner of women.
Genesis 22:1-2, 11-12
1After these things, God tempted Abraham, and said to him: Abraham, Abraham. And he answered: Here I am. 2He said to him: Take thy only begotten son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and go into the land of vision: and there thou shalt offer him for an holocaust upon one of the mountains which I will show thee. 11And behold an angel of the Lord from heaven called to him, saying: Abraham, Abraham. And he answered: Here I am. 12And he said to him: Lay not thy hand upon the boy, neither do thou any thing to him: now I know that thou fearest God, and hast not spared thy only begotten son for my sake.
Genesis 24:67; Genesis 25:24-26
Who brought her into the tent of Sara his mother, and took her to wife: and he loved her so much, that it moderated the sorrow which was occasioned by his mother’s death.
Douay-Rheims Bible (Challoner revision), public domain.
The path of Isaac
- Before Jesus. He was born when Abraham was a hundred years old. When he was eight days old, Abraham circumcised him. Genesis 21:4-5
- Before Jesus. On the day he was weaned, Abraham held a great feast. Genesis 21:8
- Before Jesus. He went up the mountain with his father, carrying the wood for the sacrifice. An angel stopped Abraham, and Abraham offered a ram in place of his son. Genesis 22:6, 11-13
- With Jesus. At forty he married Rebekah. With her he was comforted after the death of his mother, Sarah. Genesis 24:67; Genesis 25:20
- With Jesus. Rebekah could not have children, and Isaac prayed to the Lord for her. At sixty he had the twins Esau and Jacob. Genesis 25:21, 24-26
- With Jesus. Because of a famine he went to Gerar. There he sowed, reaped a hundredfold and reopened his father’s wells. Genesis 26:1, 12, 18
- Afterward. When he was old and blind, he blessed Jacob, thinking he was Esau. Genesis 27:1, 23
- Afterward. He died at one hundred and eighty, and his sons Esau and Jacob buried him. Genesis 35:28-29
Words of Isaac
“Behold fire and wood: where is the victim for the holocaust?” Genesis 22:7
On the way up the mountain, carrying the wood, when he spoke to his father, Abraham.
“Now hath the Lord given us room, and made us to increase upon the earth.” Genesis 26:22
When he dug a well that no one fought over anymore, and he named it “Wide Space.”
“The voice indeed is the voice of Jacob; but the hands are the hands of Esau.” Genesis 27:22
When he touched the hands of Jacob, who was pretending to be Esau.
“Who is he then that even now brought me venison that he had taken, and I ate of all before thou camest? and I have blessed him, and he shall be blessed.” Genesis 27:33
When Esau arrived, and Isaac understood that he had blessed someone else.
“And God almighty bless thee, and make thee to increase, and multiply thee: that thou mayst be a multitude of people.” Genesis 28:3
When he blessed Jacob again, now knowing who he was, before sending him to Mesopotamia.
What they were like
- On the way up the mountain he spoke to his father and asked about the lamb. Then the two of them went on together. Genesis 22:7-8
- He loved Rebekah, and with her he was comforted after his mother’s death. Genesis 24:67
- He prayed to the Lord for his wife, who could not have children, and the Lord heard him. Genesis 25:21
- He favored Esau, because he liked to eat the game Esau hunted. Genesis 25:28
- The herdsmen of Gerar quarreled with him over two wells. Isaac moved away and dug another. Genesis 26:20-22
The greatest thing they did
- God renewed to him the promise he had made to Abraham: in his descendants all the nations would be blessed. Genesis 26:3-4
- By faith he blessed Jacob and Esau, looking ahead to what was to come. Hebrews 11:20
Not to be confused with
- Both were sons of Abraham. Ishmael was the son of Hagar, Sarah’s Egyptian slave; Isaac was the son of Sarah. Genesis 21:3, 9; Genesis 25:12
In the Church today
Feast day: December 24, Commemoration of all the holy ancestors of Jesus Christ (commemoration). Roman Martyrology, December 24
In art, recognized by: With the wood on his shoulder, on the way up the mountain From Gn 22, 6; this is how Christian art shows him
What people ask
How old was Isaac when he went up the mountain with Abraham?
The Bible does not say: it calls him “the boy.” Flavius Josephus, a Jewish historian of the first century, wrote that he was twenty-five. Genesis 22:12; Flavius Josephus, Jewish Antiquities I, 13, 2
Did Isaac die in the sacrifice?
No. An angel stopped Abraham, and Abraham offered a ram in place of his son. Genesis 22:11-13
Why did Isaac bless Jacob and not Esau?
Because he could no longer see, and Jacob pretended to be Esau. Isaac blessed Jacob without recognizing him. Genesis 27:1, 18-23
How long did Isaac live?
Genesis says he lived one hundred and eighty years. His sons Esau and Jacob buried him. Genesis 35:28-29
Where is Isaac buried?
In the cave of Machpelah, facing Mamre, beside Rebekah. Abraham and Sarah are there too. Genesis 49:30-31
Daily life He sowed crops, and he had flocks of sheep, herds and many servants. Genesis 26:12, 14 One day he went out into the field as evening fell, and…
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