What was it like for Abraham and Isaac on the return journey from Moriah? In a previous post, I speculated about the inbound leg to Mount Moriah and the associated faith test that Abraham passed with flying colors (see Genesis 22). So what mixture of relief and high fives propelled the journey back to Beersheba?
The biblical text is somewhat terse: So Abraham returned to his young men, and they arose and went together to Beersheba; and Abraham lived at Beersheba (Gen. 22:19). Alas, there are no details. But the return destination is named - Abraham established himself at Beersheba. It was here that Abraham had taken his faith to a new level before the whole Moriah challenge. Genesis 21 recalls, Abraham planted a tamarisk tree at Beersheba, and there he called on the name of the Lord, the Everlasting God (Gen. 21:33). Abraham's choice of a tent site after Moriah affirmed that calling on the name of the Lord was a good idea in the first place.
And well it should be! After passing the Moriah Test, God made His intentions clear. Genesis 22:15-18 recounts, Then the angel of the Lord called to Abraham a second time from heaven, and said, “By Myself I have sworn, declares the Lord, because you have done this thing and have not withheld your son, your only son, indeed I will greatly bless you, and I will greatly multiply your seed as the stars of the heavens and as the sand which is on the seashore; and your seed shall possess the gate of their enemies. In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice.” What a promise! God vowed to profoundly bless Abraham because he had declared, "God matters more to me than even the life of my son."
I am grateful that God is allowing me and my son to return from Moriah. Although Austin had a large mass in his chest, and has been (and will continue) receiving treatment, his latest scan came back "completely normal." From over four inches across to nothing in two months seem miraculous to me. The Doctor has declared this a "textbook case" of how treatment should work. I consider it a textbook case of how the goodness of God works. We are grateful for treatment, but overwhelmed by God's goodness.
I have sought to emulate Abraham and hope that the God who reads hearts has seen in mine echoes of Abraham's faith. Should God find in what He sees a reason to bless me, I cannot say. But I am grateful that we are walking away from Moriah and that I am already so profoundly blessed. High fives all around!
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