EGW WritingsGenesis 16
Ellen G. White
Read Genesis 16 in the BibleGenesis 16:12
Patriarchs and Prophets
Chapter 15—The Marriage of Isaac
PP 174.1
Abraham’s early teachings had not been without effect upon Ishmael, but the influence of his wives resulted in establishing idolatry in his family. Separated from his father, and embittered by the strife and contention of a home destitute of the love and fear of God, Ishmael was driven to choose the wild, marauding life of the desert chief, “his hand” “against every man, and every man’s hand against him.” Genesis 16:12. In his latter days he repented of his evil ways and returned to his father’s God, but the stamp of character given to his posterity remained. The powerful nation descended from him were a turbulent, heathen people, who were ever an annoyance and affliction to the descendants of Isaac.From Eternity Past
Chapter 15—Isaac’s Marriage: The Happiest in the Bible
EP 110.2
Abraham’s early teachings had not been without effect upon Ishmael, but the influence of his wives resulted in the establishment of idolatry in his family. Separated from his father and embittered by the strife and contention of a home destitute of the love and fear of God, Ishmael was driven to choose the wild, marauding life of the desert chief, “his hand against every man, and every man’s hand against him.” Genesis 16:12. In his latter days he repented and returned to his father’s God, but the stamp of character given to his posterity remained. The powerful nation descended from him were a turbulent, heathen people.Genesis 16:13
Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 7 (1891-1892)
Ms 19, 1891
7LtMs, Ms 19, 1891, par. 12
Let God be kept ever before you. Let Him be recognized in every transaction that takes place between man and his fellow man. Keep the way of the Lord, to do justice and judgment. If you are ready to hear and to do the words of Christ, if you are much upon your knees in humble prayer, saying from the heart, “Thou, God, seest me” [Genesis 16:13], great evils will be averted. I beg of you for Christ’s sake to take heed to these words. Then the soul will be fortified with heavenly principles.Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 7 (1891-1892)
Ms 19a, 1891
7LtMs, Ms 19a, 1891, par. 12
Let God be kept ever before you, and let Him be recognized in every transaction that takes place between man and his fellow man. Keep the way of the Lord, to do justice and judgment. If you are much upon your knees in humble prayer, saying from the heart, “Thou God seest me” [Genesis 16:13]; if you are ready to hear and to do the words of Christ, great evils will be averted, the soul will be fortified with heavenly principles.Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 10 (1895)
Ms 51, 1895
10LtMs, Ms 51, 1895, par. 8
Let God be recognized as the supreme Ruler of His Heritage. Let every man place himself under His control. Let Him be recognized in all our assemblies, in every business meeting, every council, every committee. He sees all that is done, and hears all that is said. “Thou God seest me.” [Genesis 16:13.] Let these words be kept ever in mind. They will be a safeguard against imprudent, passionate speeches, against all desire to domineer. They will repress words that should never be spoken and resolutions that men have no right to make—resolutions that restrict the liberty of human beings.Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 10 (1895)
Lt 47, 1895
10LtMs, Lt 47, 1895, par. 39
Let every selfish desire to distinguish yourselves be set aside; take every suggestion from humanity to God, trusting in the guidance of the Holy Spirit; every unholy ambition should be blotted out, lest the Lord shall say, “I saw the foolish taking root: but suddenly I cursed his habitation.” [Job 5:3.] Every one should move so that he can say, “Thou, O Lord, knowest me: thou hast seen me, and tried mine heart toward thee.” [Jeremiah 12:3.] “Thou God seest me.” [Genesis 16:13.] The Lord weighs every motive. He is a discerner of the thoughts and intents and purposes of the heart. Without God we are without hope; therefore let us fix our faith upon Him. “Thou art my hope, O Lord God: thou art my trust from my youth.” [Psalm 71:5.]Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 10 (1895)
Ms 10a, 1895
10LtMs, Ms 10a, 1895, par. 45
Let every selfish desire to distinguish yourselves be set aside; take every suggestion from humanity to God, trusting in the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Every unholy ambition should be blotted out, lest the Lord shall say: “I have seen the foolish taking root: but suddenly I cursed his habitation.” [Job 5:3.] Every one should move so that he can say: “Thou, O Lord, knowest me: Thou hast seen me, and tried mine heart toward Thee.” [Jeremiah 12:3.] “Thou God seest me.” [Genesis 16:13.] The Lord weighs every motive. He is a discerner of the thoughts and intents and purposes of the heart. Without God we are without hope; therefore let us fix our faith upon Him. “Thou art my hope, O Lord God; Thou art my trust from my youth.” [Psalm 71:5.]Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 10 (1895)
Lt 96, 1895
10LtMs, Lt 96, 1895, par. 9
Do not speak one cheap word, or perform an unseemly act. Let the thought, “Thou God seest me,” be ever in your mind. [Genesis 16:13.] Never by word or action place yourself in opposition to orderly, cleanly habits. Let all your influence be on the right side; respect authority, and practice undeviating obedience to home rules; seek to make home as pleasant and cheerful, as holy and happy, as it is possible. Everyone should feel a sacred responsibility to act his part in making his abiding place a home where the honor of God shall dwell. The home should be a sanctuary where God is welcomed and worshiped.Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 12 (1897)
Lt 80, 1897
12LtMs, Lt 80, 1897, par. 11
The men handling sacred responsibilities have been faithfully warned off the ground they were travelling upon. Had they heeded the warnings and counsel to let God be recognized as a party in all their business transactions with their brethren and fellow men, they would have kept ever before them as their maxim, “Thou God seest me,” as sacredly as when bowed before God in prayer. [Genesis 16:13.] In keeping the Lord ever before us, we shall be warned and fortified. He who forgets the just and holy principles of truth in the days of busy activity is like the man who feels that he needs no pilot, and casts himself overboard in the most dangerous seas.Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 13 (1898)
Ms 143, 1898
13LtMs, Ms 143, 1898, par. 24
If human beings would consider that they are on test and trial, on a probation granted only through the suffering and death of the Son of God, they would put a restraint upon themselves. If men would consider that the Lord sees every act of their lives, that an unseen Watcher is taking cognizance of every evidence for good, every action of evil, that they cannot escape from the record borne of every development, right or wrong, they would put a restraint upon their evildoings. If all would consider this, how much iniquity would be banished from the world. If the mind were clear to take in the words, “Thou God seest me” [Genesis 16:13]; if each as he went to his business, as he returned to his home, would realize that all his actions are under the scrutinizing eye of Jehovah, and that it is at the peril of his soul that he violates the precepts of God’s law, he would be afraid to sin.Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 13 (1898)
Lt 46, 1898
13LtMs, Lt 46, 1898, par. 10
From the light which the Lord has been pleased to give me, I must tell you that your soul is in peril. Standing where you are, you are under temptation. You need to draw nigh to God, and He will draw nigh to you. Humble yourself in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up. It is not best for you to stand alone and in discouragement. Remember the words, “Thou God seest me.” [Genesis 16:13.]Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 17 (1902)
Ms 223, 1902
17LtMs, Ms 223, 1902, par. 18
In this life ever remember “Thou God seest me.” [Genesis 16:13.] Do nothing you would not like God to see. Speak nothing you would not like God to hear. [Write nothing] you would not like God to read. Your time is precious. Read no books of which you would not like God to say, Show it to me. Spend not your time in any foolish action that would bring condemnation to your soul if you considered, The Lord is looking upon me.The Upward Look
Let the Holy Spirit Control, August 1
UL 227.6
“Thou God seest me” (Genesis 16:13). Let these words be kept ever in mind. They will be a safeguard against imprudent, passionate speeches, against all desire to domineer. They will repress words that should never be spoken, and resolutions that men have no right to make—resolutions that restrict the liberty of human beings....Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 18 (1903)
Ms 182, 1903
18LtMs, Ms 182, 1903, par. 12
We must all come to our senses. One action under false showing is leaven that will work badly. Trust in God; walk and work under His immediate eye. “Thou God seest me.” [Genesis 16:13.] All who shall be overcomers and sit with Christ upon His throne are those who have looked to no human pattern as perfection, but to Him who is invisible, who is the author and finisher of our faith. We need now, individually, intense watchfulness and rigid examination of every work, for false impressions will be made.Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 22 (1907)
Ms 188, 1907
22LtMs, Ms 188, 1907, par. 5
God is in earnest with us. He says, “according to their works.” [Revelation 20:12.] So God knows the works, and it is for every one of us to place ourselves in right relation to God that we will realize His presence. We need to realize “Thou God seest me.” [Genesis 16:13.] Thou God seest all my works and my actions.Jesus, Name Above All Names
Witness, December 2
JNN 354.1
Then she called the name of the LORD who spoke to her, You-Are-the-God-Who-Sees; for she said, “Have I also here seen Him who sees me?”—Genesis 16:13Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 3 (1876 - 1882)
Lt 58, 1880
3LtMs, Lt 58, 1880, par. 16
“Thou God seest me” [Genesis 16:13], will be the watchword, the guard of the life. Joseph’s faithful integrity led to the loss of his reputation and his liberty. This is the severest test that the virtuous and God-fearing are subjected to—that vice seems to prosper while virtue is trampled in the dust.Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 4 (1883 - 1886)
Lt 34, 1886
4LtMs, Lt 34, 1886, par. 24
It has been repeatedly presented before me that God was observing every transaction in that office. “Thou God seest me” [Genesis 16:13] should be ever in the mind, and there should be with every one who bears responsibilities in the office courtesy and Christian politeness exercised. They should have a sense of the ever-abiding presence of Christ which will prevent the encroachment upon others’ rights which is so common in the world’s practice, but which is an offense to God. The board of directors should ever act as under the divine eye, and with a continual sense that they are only finite men, and are liable to make mistakes in judgment and in decisions and plans, unless they are closely connected with God. As they are only weak and erring men themselves, they should feel kindness and pity for others who may err. The divine standard must be met. You should take the Lord with you into every one of your councils. If you sense that God is in your assemblies, every transaction will be conscientiously, carefully, and prayerfully considered. Every unprincipled act will be repressed and uprightness characterize the dealings in small as well as great matters. There should be the cultivation of universal kindness with every worker. Seek counsel of God first, for this is necessary in order for you to properly counsel together.Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 4 (1883 - 1886)
Lt 34a, 1886
4LtMs, Lt 34a, 1886, par. 23
It has been repeatedly presented before me that God is observing every transaction in that office. “Thou God seest me” [Genesis 16:13], should be ever in mind; courtesy and Christian politeness should be exercised by every one who bears responsibilities in the office. They should have a sense of the everabiding presence of Christ. This would prevent the encroachment upon others’ rights which is so common in the world’s practice, but which is an offense to God. The Board of Directors should ever act as under the divine eye, with a continual sense that they are finite men and are liable to make mistakes in judgment, decisions, and plans, unless they are closely connected with God and seeking to have every deficiency removed from their characters. As they are only weak and erring men themselves, they should feel kindness and pity for others who may err. The divine standard must be met. You should take the Lord with you into every one of your councils.Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 5 (1887-1888)
Lt 22, 1887
5LtMs, Lt 22, 1887, par. 11
(Your present wife has had no deep religious experience in self-denial, in self-sacrifice, and in communion with God, and belief in the truth. She would easily be led from obedience to God to transgressing. Your children will follow when their father leads the way, and unless some special providence should rescue these, their disobedience and transgression will be laid upon your soul.) And the Judge of all the earth confronts you with that holy law, whose claims you were not ignorant of. Your character, the character of your wife, and of your children are to be judged by that holy standard of righteousness. The characters of those you have led to transgress the holy law of God charge their ruin upon you. Through various devices with which Satan is fully acquainted, you have worked for time and for eternity, trying to make others believe you are an honest man in leaving the light of truth. Are you so? No, no. It is a deception, a terrible deception. What can you answer to God in that day? You have then a terrible dread and fear of your Creator. You try to frame some excuse for your course, but everything seems to evade you. You stand guilty and condemned. You may feel angry with me because I thus put the case; but so it is, so it will be to every transgressor of God’s holy law. Keep ever before you this truth, Wheresoever I am, and whatsoever I do, “Thou, O God, seest me.” [Genesis 16:13.] It is not possible that the least item of our conduct will escape the eye of the One who says, “I know thy works.” [Revelation 3:15.] The depths of every heart is open to the inspection of God.Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 5 (1887-1888)
Lt 32, 1888
5LtMs, Lt 32, 1888, par. 12
With every follower of Christ, “Thou God seest me” [Genesis 16:13], may be inscribed upon tablets [on] every side where the eye may rest. There may be quotations of Scriptures on cards on every side of the room, but if these are not inscribed upon the soul and woven into the very daily life experience, it is not of the least value to them. “I am a Christian” should ever be borne in mind, and then demonstrated by revealing Christ in the character.Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 6 (1889-1890)
Lt 5, 1890
6LtMs, Lt 5, 1890, par. 9
Brother Baker, the law of God must be written in the heart or, in truth, you will never obey it. Keep your soul with all diligence. Merely the commandments written on tables of stone could not guide the Hebrews. Neither can the truth of God profit or illume the soul while it is merely assented to by the understanding and is not graven on the soul by the Spirit of God. How few men know the guilt that lurks in the human heart ready to spring into action at the first favorable opportunity. The truth of God may be of no value to the one who claims to receive it unless it sanctifies the soul temple. Those who connect with the Health Retreat cannot retain selfish ideas and feelings and plan for the lifting up of self and the tearing down of others. God sees the heart, the deeds, and the purposes of the mind. It should be written on the conscience as with a pen of iron upon a rock, that the man who expects true success, in violating the eternal principles of right as written in the books of heaven, is not only foolish but wicked. Can men forget, “Thou God seest me”? [Genesis 16:13.] Will you, my brother, turn away from idols? Your moral sense is clouded. Pray to God to bring all things to your remembrance that you may see things in their true bearing. Wear not the religion of Christ as a cloak, but put on the Lord Jesus Christ.Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 7 (1891-1892)
Ms 42, 1891
7LtMs, Ms 42, 1891, par. 23
Let God be kept ever before you, and let Him be recognized in every transaction that takes place between man and his fellow man. Keep the way of the Lord, to do justice and judgment. If you are much upon your knees in humble prayer, saying from the heart, “Thou God seest me” [Genesis 16:13], if you are ready to hear and to do the words of Christ, great evils will be averted; the soul will be fortified with heavenly principles.EGW Writings — Ellen G. White. Ellen G. White Estate · all rights reserved
Genesis 16:1-16
Daughters of God
Sarah, Wife of Abraham, Mother of Nations
DG 25.3
There was given to Abraham the promise, especially dear to the people of that age, of a numerous posterity and of national greatness: “I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing.” And to this was added the assurance, precious above every other to the inheritor of faith, that of his line the Redeemer of the world should come: “In thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.” Yet, as the first condition of fulfillment, there was to be a test of faith; a sacrifice was demanded.DG 25.4
The message of God came to Abraham, “Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee.” In order that God might qualify him for his great work as the keeper of the sacred oracles, Abraham must be separated from the associations of his early life. The influence of kindred and friends would interfere with the training which the Lord purposed to give His servant. Now that Abraham was, in a special sense, connected with heaven, he must dwell among strangers. His character must be peculiar, differing from all the world. He could not even explain his course of action so as to be understood by his friends. Spiritual things are spiritually discerned, and his motives and actions were not comprehended by his idolatrous kindred.DG 26.1
“By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went.” Hebrews 11:8....DG 26.2
Besides Sarah, the wife of Abraham, only Lot, the son of Haran long since dead, chose to share the patriarch’s pilgrim life....DG 26.3
During his stay in Egypt, Abraham gave evidence that he was not free from human weakness and imperfection. In concealing the fact that Sarah was his wife, he betrayed a distrust of the divine care, a lack of that lofty faith and courage so often and nobly exemplified in his life. Sarah was fair to look upon, and he doubted not that the dusky Egyptians would covet the beautiful stranger, and that in order to secure her, they would not scruple to slay her husband. He reasoned that he was not guilty of falsehood in representing Sarah as his sister, for she was the daughter of his father, though not of his mother.DG 26.4
But this concealment of the real relation between them was deception. No deviation from strict integrity can meet God’s approval. Through Abraham’s lack of faith, Sarah was placed in great peril. The king of Egypt, being informed of her beauty, caused her to be taken to his palace, intending to make her his wife. But the Lord, in His great mercy, protected Sarah by sending judgments upon the royal household. By this means the monarch learned the truth in the matter, and, indignant at the deception practiced upon him, he reproved Abraham and restored to him his wife, saying, “What is this that thou hast done unto me? ... Why saidst thou, She is my sister? So I might have taken her to me to wife: now therefore behold thy wife, take her, and go thy way”....DG 26.5
Abraham returned to Canaan “very rich in cattle, in silver, and in gold.” Lot was still with him, and again they came to Bethel, and pitched their tents by the altar which they had before erected....DG 26.6
In a vision of the night the divine Voice was again heard. “Fear not, Abram” were the words of the Prince of princes; “I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward.” But his mind was so oppressed by forebodings that he could not now grasp the promise with unquestioning confidence as heretofore. He prayed for some tangible evidence that it would be fulfilled. And how was the covenant promise to be realized, while the gift of a son was withheld? “What wilt Thou give me,” he said, “seeing I go childless?” “And, lo, one born in my house is mine heir.” He proposed to make his trusty servant Eliezer his son by adoption, and the inheritor of his possessions. But he was assured that a child of his own was to be his heir. Then he was led outside his tent, and told to look up to the unnumbered stars glittering in the heavens; and as he did so, the words were spoken, “So shall thy seed be.” “Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness.” Romans 4:3....DG 27.1
Abraham had accepted without question the promise of a son, but he did not wait for God to fulfill His word in His own time and way. A delay was permitted, to test his faith in the power of God; but he failed to endure the trial. Thinking it impossible that a child should be given her in her old age, Sarah suggested, as a plan by which the divine purpose might be fulfilled, that one of her handmaidens should be taken by Abraham as a secondary wife. Polygamy had become so widespread that it had ceased to be regarded as a sin, but it was no less a violation of the law of God, and was fatal to the sacredness and peace of the family relation. Abraham’s marriage with Hagar resulted in evil, not only to his own household, but to future generations....DG 27.2
When Abraham was nearly one hundred years old, the promise of a son was repeated to him, with the assurance that the future heir should be the child of Sarah. But Abraham did not yet understand the promise. His mind at once turned to Ishmael, clinging to the belief that through him God’s gracious purposes were to be accomplished. In his affection for his son he exclaimed, “O that Ishmael might live before thee!” Again the promise was given, in words that could not be mistaken: “Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou shalt call his name Isaac: and I will establish my covenant with him”....DG 27.3
The birth of Isaac, bringing, after a lifelong waiting, the fulfillment of their dearest hopes, filled the tents of Abraham and Sarah with gladness....DG 28.1
The instruction given to Abraham touching the sacredness of the marriage relation was to be a lesson for all ages. It declares that the rights and happiness of this relation are to be carefully guarded, even at a great sacrifice. Sarah was the only true wife of Abraham. Her rights as a wife and mother no other person was entitled to share. She reverenced her husband, and in this she is presented in the New Testament as a worthy example. But she was unwilling that Abraham’s affections should be given to another, and the Lord did not reprove her for requiring the banishment of her rival. Both Abraham and Sarah distrusted the power of God, and it was this error that led to the marriage with Hagar.DG 28.2
God had called Abraham to be the father of the faithful, and his life was to stand as an example of faith to succeeding generations. But his faith had not been perfect. He had shown distrust of God in concealing the fact that Sarah was his wife, and again in his marriage with Hagar.—Patriarchs and Prophets, 125-147 (1890).DG 28.3
The heritage that God has promised to His people is not in this world. Abraham had no possession in the earth, “no, not so much as to set his foot on.” Acts 7:5. He possessed great substance, and he used it to the glory of God and the good of his fellow men; but he did not look upon this world as his home. The Lord had called him to leave his idolatrous countrymen, with the promise of the land of Canaan as an everlasting possession; yet neither he nor his son nor his son’s son received it. When Abraham desired a burial place for his dead, he had to buy it of the Canaanites. His sole possession in the Land of Promise was that rock-hewn tomb in the cave of Machpelah.—Patriarchs and Prophets, 169 (1890).DG 28.4
[“Sarah lived one hundred and twenty-seven years; these were the years of the life of Sarah. So Sarah died in Kirjath Arba (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan, and Abraham came to mourn for Sarah and to weep for her.DG 28.5
[“Then Abraham stood up from before his dead, and spoke to the sons of Heth, saying: ‘I am a foreigner and a visitor among you. Give me property for a burial place among you, that I may bury my dead out of my sight’....DG 28.6
[“Hear us, my lord: You are a mighty prince among us; bury your dead in the choicest of our burial places. None of us will withhold from you his burial place, that you may bury your dead.”—Genesis 23:1-6, NKJV].From Eternity Past
The Promise to Abraham Repeated
EP 95.2
“Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness: and he was called the Friend of God.” James 2:23. And Paul says, “They which are of faith, the same are the children of Abraham.” Galatians 3:7. But Abraham’s faith was made manifest by his works. “Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar? Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect?” James 2:21, 22.EP 95.3
Many fail to understand the relation of faith and works. They say, “Only believe in Christ, and you are safe. You have nothing to do with keeping the law.” But genuine faith will be manifest in obedience. Concerning the father of the faithful the Lord declares, “Abraham obeyed My voice, and kept My charge, My commandments, My statutes, and My laws.” Genesis 26:5. Says the apostle James, “Faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.” James 2:17. And John, who dwells so fully upon love, tells us, “This is the love of God, that we keep His commandments.” 1 John 5:3.EP 95.4
God “preached before the gospel unto Abraham.” Galatians 3:8. And the patriarch’s faith was fixed upon the Redeemer to come. Said Christ, “Your father Abraham rejoiced that he should see My day; and he saw it, and was glad.” John 8:56. The ram offered in place of Isaac represented the Son of God, who was to be sacrificed in our stead. The Father, looking upon His Son, said to the sinner, “Live: I have found a ransom.”EP 96.2
“He that spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?” Romans 8:32.From Eternity Past
Lesson Book of the Universe
EP 97.1
When the command was given Abraham to offer his son, all heavenly beings with intense earnestness watched each step in the fulfillment of this command. Light was shed upon the mystery of redemption, and even the angels understood more clearly the wonderful provision that God had made for man’s salvation. See 1 Peter 1:12.Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 4 (1883 - 1886)
Lt 47, 1886
4LtMs, Lt 47, 1886, par. 13
The counsels are of God, and His Word was not given in a few days on a high-pressure plan. It took a long space of time to bring out the Bible history. Under the inspiration of the Spirit of God, a chapter was written, a psalm was composed, a proverb penned, a vision from God recorded, and so down through the ages the will and purposes of God were brought out. About fifteen hundred years were occupied from the time Moses began to write the book of Genesis down to the completion of the Revelation by the beloved John. God would not have us so excitable, in such a hurry; and yet there are some who need to be taught diligence.Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 4 (1883 - 1886)
Lt 47a, 1886
4LtMs, Lt 47a, 1886, par. 14
The Lord would not have us be so excitable, in such a hurry. The counsels of God in His Word were not given in a few days, on the high-pressure plan. It took a long period of time to bring out the Bible history. Under the inspiration of the Spirit of God, a chapter was written, a psalm composed, a proverb penned, a vision recorded, and so down through the ages the will and purposes of God were brought out. About fifteen hundred years passed from the time Moses began to write the book of Genesis, down to the completion of the Revelation by the beloved John.Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 5 (1887-1888)
Ms 16, 1888
5LtMs, Ms 16, 1888, par. 13
Men should let God take care of His own Book, His living Oracles, as He has done for ages. They begin to question some parts of revelation and pick flaws in the apparent inconsistencies of this statement and that statement. Beginning at Genesis, they give up that which they deem questionable, and their minds lead on, for Satan will lead to any length they may follow in their criticism and they see something to doubt in the whole Scriptures. Their faculties of criticism become sharpened by exercise, and they can rest on nothing with a certainty. You try to reason with these men, but your time is lost. They will exercise their power of ridicule even upon the Bible. They even become mockers, and they would be astonished if you put it to them in that light.Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 9 (1894)
Ms 40, 1894
9LtMs, Ms 40, 1894, par. 17
From Genesis to Revelation the conditions upon which eternal life is promised are made plain. God requires that those who shall enter heaven shall be without spot or wrinkle or any such thing. “Keep My commandments and live” is the requirement of God. [Proverbs 4:4.] But one says, “My conscience does not condemn me in not keeping the commandments of God.” But in the Word of God we read that there are good and bad consciences, and the fact that your conscience does not condemn you in not keeping the law of God does not prove that you are uncondemned in His sight. Take your conscience to the Word of God, and see if your life and character are in accordance with the standard of righteousness which God has revealed in His Word. You can then determine whether or not you have an intelligent faith, and what manner of conscience is yours.Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 10 (1895)
Lt 67, 1895
10LtMs, Lt 67, 1895, par. 14
Christ came in the form of humanity to live the law of God. He was the Word of life. He came to be the gospel of salvation to the world, and to fulfill every specification of the law. Jesus is the Word, the guidebook, which must be received and obeyed in every particular. How necessary that this mine of truth be explored, and the precious treasures of truth be discovered and secured as rich jewels. The incarnation of Christ, His divinity, His atonement, His wonderful life in heaven as our Advocate, the office of the Holy Spirit—all those living, vital themes of Christianity are revealed from Genesis to Revelation. The golden links of truth form a chain of evangelical truth, and the first and staple link is found in the great teachings of Christ Jesus. Why, then, should not the Scriptures be ennobled and exalted in every school in our land? How little children are educated to study the Bible as the Word of God, and feed upon its truths, which are the flesh and blood of the Son of God! “Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his blood, ye have no life in you. Whoso eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood” (that is, continue to receive the words of Christ, and practice them) “hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day. For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. He that eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him.” [John 6:53-56.] “And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us.” [1 John 3:24.]Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 12 (1897)
Ms 75, 1897
12LtMs, Ms 75, 1897, par. 1
Those who accept Christ will follow on to know the Lord. This acceptance means conversion through the Holy Spirit’s power and efficiency. The working of the Holy Spirit upon the human agent brings to him a conviction of sin, makes him susceptible to truth, [and] enables him to discern and make earnest application of it to his own heart. This power preserves him from falling under temptation, and imparts to him wisdom in winning souls to Christ. And every true believer who will follow on to know the Lord will have this power working in him. He will discern in Christ not only the Alpha of Genesis, but the Omega of Revelation. He will learn by personal experience that Christ is the Root and the Offspring of David, the Bright and Morning Star, and that it is through His church, His people in their unity, that He is to shine in undimmed luster to the world. He beholds himself as the work of Christ. Having the mind of Christ, he walks in His footsteps, and his good works and love for others testify to the world that He is Christ, that God has sent His Son to impart His Spirit to His people, and that they may represent Christ in their love for one another.Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 12 (1897)
Ms 52, 1897
12LtMs, Ms 52, 1897, par. 2
After His crucifixion and resurrection, thousands would be led to open the Scriptures with an intense desire to study the prophecies, from Genesis to Revelation. And they would see with anointed eyes the predictions in the prophetic Roll of the advent of a divine Teacher. In Christ crucified they would see the very work done which the prophecies declared He would do to proclaim the gospel, the Word of life to a world that was shadowed and corrupted by transgression and sin. And the words of Christ would be gathered up; the New Testament would declare to them a work which would thrill the world.Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 12 (1897)
Ms 33, 1897
12LtMs, Ms 33, 1897, par. 30
When the students of prophecy shall set their hearts to know the truths of Revelation, they will realize what an importance is attached to this search. Christ Jesus is the Alpha and the Omega, the Genesis of the Old Testament, and the Revelation of the New. Both meet together in Christ. Adam and God are reconciled by the obedience of the second Adam, who accomplished the work of overcoming the temptations of Satan and redeeming Adam’s disgraceful failure and fall. The two Adams will meet in Paradise and embrace each other, while the dragon, the beast, and the false prophet, and all who have refused the opportunities and privileges given to them at such an infinite cost, and have not returned to their loyalty, will be shut out of Paradise.Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 12 (1897)
Ms 21, 1897
12LtMs, Ms 21, 1897, par. 29
Here we have the Alpha of Genesis and the Omega of Revelation. The blessing is promised to all those who keep the commandments of God, and who co-operate with Him in the proclamation of the third angel’s message. “I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning Star.” [Revelation 22:16.] That which Christ has spoken in the Old Testament is for all the world. What He has said in reference is His commandments is not Yea and Nay, but Yea and Amen.Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 12 (1897)
Ms 69, 1897
12LtMs, Ms 69, 1897, par. 15
Our youth must have well-conducted schools, where they can gain an all-round education. From Genesis to Revelation the gospel shines forth with no uncertain light. From the time when God talked with Adam and Eve in Eden, giving them heavenly instruction, the light has continued to shine down through the ages. Christ appeared to His servant John, and gave him a revelation of the closing events of this earth’s history.Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 12 (1897)
Lt 98a, 1897
12LtMs, Lt 98a, 1897, par. 49
All who join the ranks of Sabbathkeepers should become diligent Bible students, that they may know the pillars and ground work of the truth. They should study prophetic history, which has brought us down point by point to where we are at the present time. This is God’s plan for our school. Young men should attend who desire to become educated for any line of work, who have capabilities and see the necessity of learning more and still more where we stand today in prophetic history, uniting link after link in the prophetic chain, even from Genesis to Revelation. Christ is the Alpha, the first link, and the Omega, the last link, of the gospel chain, which is welded in Revelation. These young men will not have fixed habits of wrong, or defects in disposition and character that will make them inflexible.Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 13 (1898)
Ms 54, 1898
13LtMs, Ms 54, 1898, par. 8
Perfection of character is required by God, and this is kept before us in His Word from Genesis to Revelation. “When Abram was ninety years old and nine, the Lord appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God; walk before me, and be thou perfect.” [Genesis 17:1.] To Israel God said, “I am the Lord your God: ye shall therefore sanctify yourselves, and ye shall be holy for I am holy. ... For I am the Lord your God that bringeth you out of the land of Egypt, to by your God: ye shall therefore be holy, for I am holy.” “And the Lord spake unto Moses saying, Speak unto all the congregation of the children of Israel, and say unto them, Ye shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy. Ye shall fear every man his mother and his father, and keep my sabbaths: I am the Lord your God.” [Leviticus 11:44, 45; 19:1-3.]Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 13 (1898)
Ms 117, 1898
13LtMs, Ms 117, 1898, par. 12
The uneducated heathen then learns his lessons through nature, and through his own necessities; and, dissatisfied with darkness, he is reaching out for light, searching for God in the first great cause. There is recorded in Genesis various ways in which God speaks to the heathen. But the contrast between the revelation of God in Genesis and the ideas of the heathen is striking. Pagan philosophers, many of them, had a knowledge of God which was pure, but degeneracy, the worship of created things, began to obscure this knowledge. The handiwork of God in the natural world, the sun, the moon, the stars, were worshipped.Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 14 (1899)
Ms 12, 1899
14LtMs, Ms 12, 1899, par. 2
The Word of God is to be the great lesson book in all our schools. From Genesis to Revelation it is full of instruction in practical godliness.Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 14 (1899)
Ms 85, 1899
14LtMs, Ms 85, 1899, par. 12
The history of the world from the beginning is contained in Genesis. There it is revealed that all nations who forget God and discard His way and His sign of obedience, which distinguishes between the just and the unjust, the righteous and the wicked, the saved and the unsaved, will be destroyed. The first books of the Bible, which trace down the history of nations, including the destruction of the old world, show the overruling providence of God, which from generation to generation has provided for the education of a chosen people. The plainly written Word in regard to the just and the unjust is a living testimony in regard to those whom the Lord will sanctify. None who live in disobedience can receive His blessing. Only those who are obedient can receive this.Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 14 (1899)
Ms 153, 1899
14LtMs, Ms 153, 1899, par. 32
We cannot know God and Jesus Christ until we search the Scriptures, beginning with Genesis. In this Word we find out why it was necessary for Christ to leave His high command in heaven, to separate Himself from the angelic family, laying off His royal robe and kingly crown, and clothe His divinity with humanity. For our sake He became poor, that by His poverty He might make many rich, securing for them eternal riches. That He might work in our behalf, He came to live among fallen humanity, in a world marred by sin and misery.Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 15 (1900)
Ms 68, 1900
15LtMs, Ms 68, 1900, par. 15
The whole gospel from Genesis to Revelation is the means appointed and specified of God through which to reveal His will to the people, and it is to be appreciated, respected, and heeded.Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 16 (1901)
Ms 110, 1901
16LtMs, Ms 110, 1901, par. 6
While they were talking thus of their crucified and buried Lord, “Jesus himself drew near, and went with them. But their eyes were holden that they should not know him. And he said unto them, What manner of communications are these that ye have one to another, as ye walk, and are sad?” [Luke 24:15-17.] “Have ye not heard,” they answered, “that the prophet mighty in deed and word has been taken and crucified by cruel hands, and is now buried?” Beginning at Genesis, the Stranger told them what had been prophesied from the first concerning Jesus. While He was comforting their hearts, they came to the house where they lived, and invited their Companion to come in. He acted as though He were going further, but they constrained Him to tarry with them.Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 16 (1901)
Ms 70, 1901
16LtMs, Ms 70, 1901, par. 9
The sacrifice of Christ as an atonement for sin is the great truth around which all other truths cluster. In order to be rightly understood and appreciated, every truth in the Word of God, from Genesis to Revelation, must be studied in the light which streams from the cross of Calvary, and in connection with the wondrous, central truth of the Saviour’s atonement. Those who study the Redeemer’s wonderful sacrifice grow in grace and knowledge.Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 19 (1904)
Ms 170, 1904
19LtMs, Ms 170, 1904, par. 19
I have not been able to sleep since 12 o’clock, but I have a message from the Lord to bear to our people. Present to the people everywhere at this time the perpetuity of the law of Jehovah. Present to them that the only foundation for Sunday observance has its origin not in the Word of God, but in the papal authority. Now let all consider that the time has come to reason from cause to effect. We must, as ministers of the Word, delay not to impress the people more decidedly in defining our authority for keeping the original Sabbath of Jehovah. Please read the word in Genesis.Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 22 (1907)
Ms 67, 1907
22LtMs, Ms 67, 1907, par. 17
The message of the gospel, from Genesis to Revelation, is God’s appointed means through which to reveal His will to men. It is to be appreciated, respected, and carefully studied. In a humble, prayerful spirit, Scripture is to be compared with Scripture. In the fourth chapter of Ephesians, the plan of God is so plainly and simply revealed, that all His children may lay hold upon the truth. Here the means which He has appointed to keep unity in His church, that its members may reveal to the world a healthy religious experience, is plainly declared. Those who conform their lives to obedience to the commandments of God, and are united in the faith of the Scriptures; those who are bound together as one in Christ Jesus, their lives hid with Christ in God, will practice the golden rule, doing to others as they would have others do to them. They will bear a living, abiding testimony that the Father loves them even as He loves His Son, and their testimony will have a powerful influence with the unbelieving world. These souls appreciate the great gift of God to our world; their course in life testifies that Christ has not died for them in vain. They make use of the provision made by heaven at infinite cost to draw souls to obedience to the law of God. Co-operating with the great Master Worker, they become laborers together with God. They become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. Their consistent Christian lives magnify the law of God and make it honorable before the gainsaying world. Their deportment in courtesy and unwavering fidelity, their justice and mercy demonstrate to the world that the law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul.Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 25 (1910 - 1915)
Ms 69, 1912
25LtMs, Ms 69, 1912, par. 42
The Old Testament, containing the prophecies of the coming of Christ, is now made of small account. The cry now is, “The Christ, the Christ! The gospel, the gospel!” But the gospel is taught all the way through the Bible, from Genesis to Revelation. The gospel is revealed in all the prophecies of the first advent of Christ as the Saviour of men. Every act of the old dispensation to turn men away from sin or to bring them forgiveness was done with reference to the Saviour who was to come. He was the steppingstone by which man was to be exalted.Patriarchs and Prophets
Chapter 13—The Test of Faith
PP 145.1
Abraham had accepted without question the promise of a son, but he did not wait for God to fulfill His word in His own time and way. A delay was permitted, to test his faith in the power of God; but he failed to endure the trial. Thinking it impossible that a child should be given her in her old age, Sarah suggested, as a plan by which the divine purpose might be fulfilled, that one of her handmaidens should be taken by Abraham as a secondary wife. Polygamy had become so widespread that it had ceased to be regarded as a sin, but it was no less a violation of the law of God, and was fatal to the sacredness and peace of the family relation. Abraham’s marriage with Hagar resulted in evil, not only to his own household, but to future generations.PP 145.2
Flattered with the honor of her new position as Abraham’s wife, and hoping to be the mother of the great nation to descend from him, Hagar became proud and boastful, and treated her mistress with contempt. Mutual jealousies disturbed the peace of the once happy home. Forced to listen to the complaints of both, Abraham vainly endeavored to restore harmony. Though it was at Sarah’s earnest entreaty that he had married Hagar, she now reproached him as the one at fault. She desired to banish her rival; but Abraham refused to permit this; for Hagar was to be the mother of his child, as he fondly hoped, the son of promise. She was Sarah’s servant, however, and he still left her to the control of her mistress. Hagar’s haughty spirit would not brook the harshness which her insolence had provoked. “When Sarai dealt hardly with her, she fled from her face.”PP 145.3
She made her way to the desert, and as she rested beside a fountain, lonely and friendless, an angel of the Lord, in human form, appeared to her. Addressing her as “Hagar, Sarai’s maid,” to remind her of her position and her duty, he bade her, “Return to thy mistress, and submit thyself under her hands.” Yet with the reproof there were mingled words of comfort. “The Lord hath heard thy affliction.” “I will multiply thy seed exceedingly, that it shall not be numbered for multitude.” And as a perpetual reminder of His mercy, she was bidden to call her child Ishmael, “God shall hear.”PP 146.1
When Abraham was nearly one hundred years old, the promise of a son was repeated to him, with the assurance that the future heir should be the child of Sarah. But Abraham did not yet understand the promise. His mind at once turned to Ishmael, clinging to the belief that through him God’s gracious purposes were to be accomplished. In his affection for his son he exclaimed, “O that Ishmael might live before Thee!” Again the promise was given, in words that could not be mistaken: “Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou shalt call his name Isaac: and I will establish My covenant with him.” Yet God was not unmindful of the father’s prayer. “As for Ishmael,” He said, “I have heard thee: Behold, I have blessed him, ... and I will make him a great nation.”PP 146.2
The birth of Isaac, bringing, after a lifelong waiting, the fulfillment of their dearest hopes, filled the tents of Abraham and Sarah with gladness. But to Hagar this event was the overthrow of her fondly cherished ambitions. Ishmael, now a youth, had been regarded by all in the encampment as the heir of Abraham’s wealth and the inheritor of the blessings promised to his descendants. Now he was suddenly set aside; and in their disappointment, mother and son hated the child of Sarah. The general rejoicing increased their jealousy, until Ishmael dared openly to mock the heir of God’s promise. Sarah saw in Ishmael’s turbulent disposition a perpetual source of discord, and she appealed to Abraham, urging that Hagar and Ishmael be sent away from the encampment. The patriarch was thrown into great distress. How could he banish Ishmael his son, still dearly beloved? In his perplexity he pleaded for divine guidance. The Lord, through a holy angel, directed him to grant Sarah’s desire; his love for Ishmael or Hagar ought not to stand in the way, for only thus could he restore harmony and happiness to his family. And the angel gave him the consoling promise that though separated from his father’s home, Ishmael should not be forsaken by God; his life should be preserved, and he should become the father of a great nation. Abraham obeyed the angel’s word, but it was not without keen suffering. The father’s heart was heavy with unspoken grief as he sent away Hagar and his son.PP 147.1
The instruction given to Abraham touching the sacredness of the marriage relation was to be a lesson for all ages. It declares that the rights and happiness of this relation are to be carefully guarded, even at a great sacrifice. Sarah was the only true wife of Abraham. Her rights as a wife and mother no other person was entitled to share. She reverenced her husband, and in this she is presented in the New Testament as a worthy example. But she was unwilling that Abraham’s affections should be given to another, and the Lord did not reprove her for requiring the banishment of her rival. Both Abraham and Sarah distrusted the power of God, and it was this error that led to the marriage with Hagar.PP 147.2
God had called Abraham to be the father of the faithful, and his life was to stand as an example of faith to succeeding generations. But his faith had not been perfect. He had shown distrust of God in concealing the fact that Sarah was his wife, and again in his marriage with Hagar. That he might reach the highest standard, God subjected him to another test, the closest which man was ever called to endure. In a vision of the night he was directed to repair to the land of Moriah, and there offer up his son as a burnt offering upon a mountain that should be shown him.PP 147.3
At the time of receiving this command, Abraham had reached the age of a hundred and twenty years. He was regarded as an old man, even in his generation. In his earlier years he had been strong to endure hardship and to brave danger, but now the ardor of his youth had passed away. One in the vigor of manhood may with courage meet difficulties and afflictions that would cause his heart to fail later in life, when his feet are faltering toward the grave. But God had reserved His last, most trying test for Abraham until the burden of years was heavy upon him, and he longed for rest from anxiety and toil.PP 147.4
The patriarch was dwelling at Beersheba, surrounded by prosperity and honor. He was very rich, and was honored as a mighty prince by the rulers of the land. Thousands of sheep and cattle covered the plains that spread out beyond his encampment. On every side were the tents of his retainers, the home of hundreds of faithful servants. The son of promise had grown up to manhood by his side. Heaven seemed to have crowned with its blessing a life of sacrifice in patient endurance of hope deferred.PP 148.1
In the obedience of faith, Abraham had forsaken his native country—had turned away from the graves of his fathers and the home of his kindred. He had wandered as a stranger in the land of his inheritance. He had waited long for the birth of the promised heir. At the command of God he had sent away his son Ishmael. And now, when the child so long desired was entering upon manhood, and the patriarch seemed able to discern the fruition of his hopes, a trial greater than all others was before him.PP 148.2
The command was expressed in words that must have wrung with anguish that father’s heart: “Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, ... and offer him there for a burnt offering.” Isaac was the light of his home, the solace of his old age, above all else the inheritor of the promised blessing. The loss of such a son by accident or disease would have been heart rending to the fond father; it would have bowed down his whitened head with grief; but he was commanded to shed the blood of that son with his own hand. It seemed to him a fearful impossibility.PP 148.3
Satan was at hand to suggest that he must be deceived, for the divine law commands, “Thou shalt not kill,” and God would not require what He had once forbidden. Going outside his tent, Abraham looked up to the calm brightness of the unclouded heavens, and recalled the promise made nearly fifty years before, that his seed should be innumerable as the stars. If this promise was to be fulfilled through Isaac, how could he be put to death? Abraham was tempted to believe that he might be under a delusion. In his doubt and anguish he bowed upon the earth, and prayed, as he had never prayed before, for some confirmation of the command if he must perform this terrible duty. He remembered the angels sent to reveal to him God’s purpose to destroy Sodom, and who bore to him the promise of this same son Isaac, and he went to the place where he had several times met the heavenly messengers, hoping to meet them again, and receive some further direction; but none came to his relief. Darkness seemed to shut him in; but the command of God was sounding in his ears, “Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest.” That command must be obeyed, and he dared not delay. Day was approaching, and he must be on his journey.PP 148.4
Returning to his tent, he went to the place where Isaac lay sleeping the deep, untroubled sleep of youth and innocence. For a moment the father looked upon the dear face of his son, then turned tremblingly away. He went to the side of Sarah, who was also sleeping. Should he awaken her, that she might once more embrace her child? Should he tell her of God’s requirement? He longed to unburden his heart to her, and share with her this terrible responsibility; but he was restrained by the fear that she might hinder him. Isaac was her joy and pride; her life was bound up in him, and the mother’s love might refuse the sacrifice.PP 151.1
Abraham at last summoned his son, telling him of the command to offer sacrifice upon a distant mountain. Isaac had often gone with his father to worship at some one of the various altars that marked his wanderings, and this summons excited no surprise. The preparations for the journey were quickly completed. The wood was made ready and put upon the ass, and with two menservants they set forth.PP 151.2
Side by side the father and the son journeyed in silence. The patriarch, pondering his heavy secret, had no heart for words. His thoughts were of the proud, fond mother, and the day when he should return to her alone. Well he knew that the knife would pierce her heart when it took the life of her son.PP 151.3
That day—the longest that Abraham had ever experienced—dragged slowly to its close. While his son and the young men were sleeping, he spent the night in prayer, still hoping that some heavenly messenger might come to say that the trial was enough, that the youth might return unharmed to his mother. But no relief came to his tortured soul. Another long day, another night of humiliation and prayer, while ever the command that was to leave him childless was ringing in his ears. Satan was near to whisper doubts and unbelief, but Abraham resisted his suggestions. As they were about to begin the journey of the third day, the patriarch, looking northward, saw the promised sign, a cloud of glory hovering over Mount Moriah, and he knew that the voice which had spoken to him was from heaven.PP 151.4
Even now he did not murmur against God, but strengthened his soul by dwelling upon the evidences of the Lord’s goodness and faithfulness. This son had been unexpectedly given; and had not He who bestowed the precious gift a right to recall His own? Then faith repeated the promise, “In Isaac shall thy seed be called”—a seed numberless as the grains of sand upon the shore. Isaac was the child of a miracle, and could not the power that gave him life restore it? Looking beyond that which was seen, Abraham grasped the divine word, “accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead.” Hebrews 11:19.PP 152.1
Yet none but God could understand how great was the father’s sacrifice in yielding up his son to death; Abraham desired that none but God should witness the parting scene. He bade his servants remain behind, saying, “I and the lad will go yonder and worship, and come again to you.” The wood was laid upon Isaac, the one to be offered, the father took the knife and the fire, and together they ascended toward the mountain summit, the young man silently wondering whence, so far from folds and flocks, the offering was to come. At last he spoke, “My father,” “behold the fire and the wood: but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?” Oh, what a test was this! How the endearing words, “my father,” pierced Abraham’s heart! Not yet—he could not tell him now. “My son,” he said, “God will provide Himself a lamb for a burnt offering.”PP 152.2
At the appointed place they built the altar and laid the wood upon it. Then, with trembling voice, Abraham unfolded to his son the divine message. It was with terror and amazement that Isaac learned his fate, but he offered no resistance. He could have escaped his doom, had he chosen to do so; the grief-stricken old man, exhausted with the struggle of those three terrible days, could not have opposed the will of the vigorous youth. But Isaac had been trained from childhood to ready, trusting obedience, and as the purpose of God was opened before him, he yielded a willing submission. He was a sharer in Abraham’s faith, and he felt that he was honored in being called to give his life as an offering to God. He tenderly seeks to lighten the father’s grief, and encourages his nerveless hands to bind the cords that confine him to the altar.PP 152.3
And now the last words of love are spoken, the last tears are shed, the last embrace is given. The father lifts the knife to slay his son, when suddenly his arm is stayed. An angel of God calls to the patriarch out of heaven, “Abraham, Abraham!” He quickly answers, “Here am I,” And again the voice is heard, “Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou any thing unto him: for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son, from Me.”PP 153.1
Then Abraham saw “a ram caught in a thicket,” and quickly bringing the new victim, he offered it “in the stead of his son.” In his joy and gratitude Abraham gave a new name to the sacred spot—“Jehovah-jireh,” “the Lord will provide.”PP 153.2
On Mount Moriah, God again renewed His covenant, confirming with a solemn oath the blessing to Abraham and to his seed through all coming generations: “By myself have I sworn, saith Jehovah, for because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son, that in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the seashore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies; and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed My voice.”PP 153.3
Abraham’s great act of faith stands like a pillar of light, illuminating the pathway of God’s servants in all succeeding ages. Abraham did not seek to excuse himself from doing the will of God. During that three days’ journey he had sufficient time to reason, and to doubt God, if he was disposed to doubt. He might have reasoned that the slaying of his son would cause him to be looked upon as a murderer, a second Cain; that it would cause his teaching to be rejected and despised; and thus destroy his power to do good to his fellow men. He might have pleaded that age should excuse him from obedience. But the patriarch did not take refuge in any of these excuses. Abraham was human; his passions and attachments were like ours; but he did not stop to question how the promise could be fulfilled if Isaac should be slain. He did not stay to reason with his aching heart. He knew that God is just and righteous in all His requirements, and he obeyed the command to the very letter.PP 153.4
“Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness: and he was called the friend of God.” James 2:23. And Paul says, “They which are of faith, the same are the children of Abraham.” Galatians 3:7. But Abraham’s faith was made manifest by his works. “Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar? Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect?” James 2:21, 22. There are many who fail to understand the relation of faith and works. They say, “Only believe in Christ, and you are safe. You have nothing to do with keeping the law.” But genuine faith will be manifest in obedience. Said Christ to the unbelieving Jews, “If ye were Abraham’s children, ye would do the works of Abraham.” John 8:39. And concerning the father of the faithful the Lord declares, “Abraham obeyed My voice, and kept My charge, My commandments, My statutes, and My laws.” Genesis 26:5. Says the apostle James, “Faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.” James 2:17. And John, who dwells so fully upon love, tells us, “This is the love of God, that we keep His commandments.” 1 John 5:3.PP 154.1
Through type and promise God “preached before the gospel unto Abraham.” Galatians 3:8. And the patriarch’s faith was fixed upon the Redeemer to come. Said Christ to the Jews. “Your father Abraham rejoiced that he should see My day; and he saw it, and was glad.” John 8:56, R.V., margin. The ram offered in the place of Isaac represented the Son of God, who was to be sacrificed in our stead. When man was doomed to death by transgression of the law of God, the Father, looking upon His Son, said to the sinner, “Live: I have found a ransom.”PP 154.2
It was to impress Abraham’s mind with the reality of the gospel, as well as to test his faith, that God commanded him to slay his son. The agony which he endured during the dark days of that fearful trial was permitted that he might understand from his own experience something of the greatness of the sacrifice made by the infinite God for man’s redemption. No other test could have caused Abraham such torture of soul as did the offering of his son. God gave His Son to a death of agony and shame. The angels who witnessed the humiliation and soul anguish of the Son of God were not permitted to interpose, as in the case of Isaac. There was no voice to cry, “It is enough.” To save the fallen race, the King of glory yielded up His life. What stronger proof can be given of the infinite compassion and love of God? “He that spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?” Romans 8:32.PP 154.3
The sacrifice required of Abraham was not alone for his own good, nor solely for the benefit of succeeding generations; but it was also for the instruction of the sinless intelligences of heaven and of other worlds. The field of the controversy between Christ and Satan—the field on which the plan of redemption is wrought out—is the lesson book of the universe. Because Abraham had shown a lack of faith in God’s promises, Satan had accused him before the angels and before God of having failed to comply with the conditions of the covenant, and as unworthy of its blessings. God desired to prove the loyalty of His servant before all heaven, to demonstrate that nothing less than perfect obedience can be accepted, and to open more fully before them the plan of salvation.PP 155.1
Heavenly beings were witnesses of the scene as the faith of Abraham and the submission of Isaac were tested. The trial was far more severe than that which had been brought upon Adam. Compliance with the prohibition laid upon our first parents involved no suffering, but the command to Abraham demanded the most agonizing sacrifice. All heaven beheld with wonder and admiration Abraham’s unfaltering obedience. All heaven applauded his fidelity. Satan’s accusations were shown to be false. God declared to His servant, “Now I know that thou fearest God [notwithstanding Satan’s charges], seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from Me.” God’s covenant, confirmed to Abraham by an oath before the intelligences of other worlds, testified that obedience will be rewarded.PP 155.2
It had been difficult even for the angels to grasp the mystery of redemption—to comprehend that the Commander of heaven, the Son of God, must die for guilty man. When the command was given to Abraham to offer up his son, the interest of all heavenly beings was enlisted. With intense earnestness they watched each step in the fulfillment of this command. When to Isaac’s question, “Where is the lamb for a burnt offering?” Abraham made answer, “God will provide Himself a lamb;” and when the father’s hand was stayed as he was about to slay his son, and the ram which God had provided was offered in the place of Isaac—then light was shed upon the mystery of redemption, and even the angels understood more clearly the wonderful provision that God had made for man’s salvation. 1 Peter 1:12.The Story of Redemption
Chapter 10—Abraham and the Promised Seed
SR 75.1
The Lord selected Abraham to carry out His will. He was directed to leave his idolatrous nation and separate from his kindred. The Lord had revealed Himself to Abraham in his youth and given him understanding and preserved him from idolatry. He designed to make him an example of faith and true devotion for His people who should afterward live upon the earth. His character was marked for integrity, generosity, and hospitality. He commanded respect as a mighty prince among the people. His reverence and love for God, and his strict obedience in performing His will, gained for him the respect of his servants and neighbors. His godly example and righteous course, united with his faithful instructions to his servants and all his household, led them to fear, love, and reverence the God of Abraham.SR 75.2
The Lord appeared to Abraham and promised him that his seed should be like the stars of heaven for number. He also made known to him, through the figure of the horror of great darkness which came upon him, the long, servile bondage of his descendants in Egypt.SR 75.3
In the beginning God gave to Adam one wife, thus showing his order. He never designed that man should have a plurality of wives. Lamech was the first who departed in this respect from God’s wise arrangement. He had two wives, which created discord in his family. The envy and jealousy of both made Lamech unhappy. When men began to multiply upon the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them, they took them wives of all which they chose. This was one of the great sins of the inhabitants of the old world, which brought the wrath of God upon them. This custom was practiced after the Flood, and became so common that even righteous men fell into the practice and had a plurality of wives. Yet it was no less sin because they became corrupted and departed in this thing from God’s order.SR 76.1
The Lord said of Noah and his family, who were saved in the ark, “For thee have I seen righteous before Me in this generation.” Genesis 7:1. Noah had but one wife, and their united family discipline was blessed of God. Because Noah’s sons were righteous they were preserved in the ark with their righteous father. God has not sanctioned polygamy in a single instance. It is contrary to His will. He knew that the happiness of man would be destroyed by it. Abraham’s peace was greatly marred by his unhappy marriage with Hagar.SR 76.2
After Abraham’s separation from Lot the Lord said to him, “Lift up now thine eyes, and look from the place where thou art northward, and southward, and eastward, and westward: for all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever. And I will make thy seed as the dust of the earth: so that if a man can number the dust of the earth, then shall thy seed also be numbered.” “The word of the Lord came unto Abram in a vision, saying, Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward.... And Abram said, Behold, to me Thou hast given no seed: and, lo, one born in my house is mine heir.”SR 77.1
As Abraham had no son, he at first thought that his trusty servant, Eliezer, should become his son by adoption, and his heir. But God informed Abraham that his servant should not be his son and heir, but that he should really have a son. “And He brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and He said unto him, So shall thy seed be.”SR 77.2
If Abraham and Sarah had waited in confiding faith for the fulfillment of the promise that they should have a son, much unhappiness would have been avoided. They believed that it would be just as God had promised, but could not believe that Sarah in her old age would have a son. Sarah suggested a plan whereby she thought the promise of God could be fulfilled. She entreated Abraham to take Hagar as his wife. In this they both lacked faith and a perfect trust in the power of God. By hearkening to the voice of Sarah and taking Hagar as his wife Abraham failed to endure the test of his faith in God’s unlimited power, and brought upon himself and upon Sarah much unhappiness. The Lord intended to prove the firm faith and reliance of Abraham upon the promises He had made him.SR 77.3
Hagar was proud and boastful, and carried herself haughtily before Sarah. She flattered herself that she was to be the mother of a great nation God had promised to make of Abraham. And Abraham was compelled to listen to complaints from Sarah in regard to the conduct of Hagar, charging Abraham with wrong in the matter. Abraham is grieved and tells Sarah that Hagar is her servant, and that she can have the control of her, but refuses to send her away, for she is to be the mother of his child, through whom he thinks the promise is to be fulfilled. He informs Sarah that he should not have taken Hagar for his wife if it had not been her special request.SR 78.1
Abraham was also compelled to listen to Hagar’s complaints of abuse from Sarah. Abraham is in perplexity. If he seeks to redress the wrongs of Hagar he increases the jealousy and unhappiness of Sarah, his first and much-loved wife. Hagar flees from the face of Sarah. An angel of God meets her and comforts her and also reproves her for her haughty conduct, in bidding her return to her mistress and submit herself under her hands.SR 78.2
After the birth of Ishmael the Lord manifested Himself again to Abraham and said unto him, “I will establish My covenant between Me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant.” Again the Lord repeated by His angel His promise to give Sarah a son, and that she should be a mother of many nations. Abraham did not yet understand the promise of God. His mind immediately rested upon Ishmael, as though through him would come the many nations promised, and he exclaimed, in his affection for his son, “O that Ishmael might live before Thee!”SR 78.3
Again the promise is more definitely repeated to Abraham: “Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou shalt call his name Isaac: and I will establish My covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his seed after him.” Angels are sent the second time to Abraham on their way to destroy Sodom, and they repeat the promise more distinctly that Sarah shall have a son.SR 79.1
After the birth of Isaac the great joy manifested by Abraham and Sarah caused Hagar to be very jealous. Ishmael had been instructed by his mother that he was to be especially blessed of God, as the son of Abraham, and to be heir to that which was promised to him. Ishmael partook of his mother’s feelings and was angry because of the joy manifested at the birth of Isaac. He despised Isaac, because he thought he was preferred before him. Sarah saw the disposition manifested by Ishmael against her son Isaac, and she was greatly moved. She related to Abraham the disrespectful conduct of Ishmael to her and to her son Isaac, and said to him, “Cast out this bondwoman and her son; for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son, even with Isaac.”SR 79.2
Abraham was greatly distressed. Ishmael was his son, beloved by him. How could he send him away? He prayed to God in his perplexity, for he knew not what course to take. The Lord informed Abraham, through His angels, to listen to the voice of Sarah his wife, and that he should not let his affections for his son or for Hagar prevent his compliance with her wishes. For this was the only course he could pursue to restore harmony and happiness again to his family. Abraham had the consoling promise from the angel, that Ishmael, although separated from his father’s house, should not die nor be forsaken of God, that he should be preserved because he was the son of Abraham. God also promised to make of Ishmael a great nation.SR 80.1
Abraham was of a noble, benevolent disposition, which was manifested in his pleading so earnestly for the people of Sodom. His strong spirit suffered much. He was bowed with grief, and his paternal feelings were deeply moved as he sent away Hagar and his son Ishmael to wander as strangers in a strange land.SR 80.2
If God had sanctioned polygamy, He would not have thus directed Abraham to send away Hagar and her son. He would teach all a lesson in this, that the rights and happiness of the marriage relation are to be ever respected and guarded, even at a great sacrifice. Sarah was the first and only true wife of Abraham. She was entitled to rights, as a wife and mother, which no other could have in the family. She reverenced her husband, calling him lord, but she was jealous lest his affections should be divided with Hagar. God did not rebuke Sarah for the course she pursued. Abraham was reproved by the angels for distrusting God’s power, which had led him to take Hagar as his wife and to think that through her the promise would be fulfilled.SR 80.3
Again the Lord saw fit to test the faith of Abraham by a most fearful trial. If he had endured the first test and had patiently waited for the promise to be fulfilled in Sarah, and had not taken Hagar as his wife, he would not have been subjected to the closest test that was ever required of man. The Lord bade Abraham, “Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of.”SR 80.4
Abraham did not disbelieve God and hesitate, but early in the morning he took two of his servants and Isaac, his son, and the wood for the burnt offering, and went unto the place of which God had told him. He did not reveal the true nature of his journey to Sarah, knowing that her affection for Isaac would lead her to distrust God and withhold her son. Abraham did not suffer paternal feelings to control him and lead him to rebel against God. The command of God was calculated to stir the depths of his soul. “Take now thy son.” Then, as though to probe the heart a little deeper, He added, “Thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest”; that is, the only son of promise, “and offer him ... for a burnt offering.”SR 81.1
Three days this father traveled with his son, having sufficient time to reason and doubt God if he was disposed to doubt. But he did not distrust God. He did not now reason that the promise would be fulfilled through Ishmael, for God plainly told him that through Isaac should the promise be fulfilled.SR 81.2
Abraham believed that Isaac was the son of promise. He also believed that God meant just what He said when He bade him to go offer him as a burnt offering. He staggered not at the promise of God but believed that God, who had in His providence given Sarah a son in her old age, and who had required him to take that son’s life, could also give life again and bring up Isaac from the dead.SR 81.3
Abraham left the servants by the way and proposed to go alone with his son to worship some distance from them. He would not permit his servants to accompany them, lest their love for Isaac might lead them to prevent him from carrying out what God had commanded him to do. He took the wood from the hands of his servants and laid it upon the shoulders of his son. He also took the fire and the knife. He was prepared to execute the dreadful mission given him of God. Father and son walked on together.SR 82.1
“And Isaac spake unto Abraham his father, and said, My father: and he said, Here am I, my son. And he said, Behold the fire and the wood: but where is the lamb for a burnt offering? And Abraham said, My son, God will provide Himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so they went both of them together.” Firmly walked on that stern, loving, suffering father by the side of his son. As they came to the place which God had pointed out to Abraham, he built there an altar and laid the wood in order, ready for the sacrifice, and then informed Isaac of the command of God to offer him as a burnt offering. He repeated to him the promise that God several times had made to him, that through Isaac he should become a great nation, and that in performing the command of God in slaying him, God would fulfill His promise, for He was able to raise him from the dead.SR 82.2
Isaac believed in God. He had been taught implicit obedience to his father, and he loved and reverenced the God of his father. He could have resisted his father if he had chosen to do so. But after affectionately embracing his father, he submitted to be bound and laid upon the wood. And as his father’s hand was raised to slay his son, an angel of God, who had marked all the faithfulness of Abraham on the way to Moriah, called to him out of heaven, and said, “Abraham, Abraham: and he said, Here am I. And he said, Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou anything unto him: for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from Me.SR 83.1
“And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold behind him a ram caught in a thicket by his horns: and Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt offering in the stead of his son.”SR 83.2
Abraham had now fully and nobly borne the test, and by his faithfulness redeemed his lack of perfect trust in God, which lack led him to take Hagar as his wife. After the exhibition of Abraham’s faith and confidence, God renewed His promise to him. “And the angel of the Lord called unto Abraham out of heaven the second time, and said, By myself I have sworn, saith the Lord, for because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son: that in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies; and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed My voice.”From Eternity Past
Chapter 13—The Offering of Isaac: Test of Faith
EP 89.1
Abraham had accepted the promise of a son but did not wait for God to fulfill His word in His own time and way. A delay was permitted to test his faith, but he failed to endure the trial.EP 89.2
In her old age, Sarah suggested, as a plan by which the divine purpose might be fulfilled, that one of her handmaidens be taken by Abraham as a secondary wife. Polygamy had ceased to be regarded as a sin but was a violation of the law of God and was fatal to the sacredness and peace of the family. Abraham’s marriage with Hagar resulted in evil not only to his own household, but to future generations.EP 89.3
Flattered with her new position as Abraham’s wife and hoping to be the mother of the great nation to descend from him, Hagar became proud. Mutual jealousies disturbed the peace of the once happy home. Forced to listen to the complaints of both, Abraham vainly endeavored to restore harmony. Though it was at Sarah’s entreaty that he had married Hagar, she now reproached him as the one at fault. She desired to banish her rival. But Abraham refused to permit this, for Hagar was to be the mother of his child, as he fondly hoped, the son of promise. She was Sarah’s servant, however, and he still left her to the control of her mistress. “When Sarai dealt hardly with her, she fled from her face.”EP 89.4
She made her way to the desert and as she rested beside a fountain, lonely and friendless, an angel appeared. Addressing her as “Hagar, Sarai’s maid,” he bade her, “Return to thy mistress, and submit thyself under her hands.” Yet with the reproof were mingled words of comfort: “The Lord hath heard thy affliction.” “I will multiply thy seed exceedingly, that it shall not be numbered for multitude.” She was bidden to call her child Ishmael, “God shall hear.”EP 90.1
When Abraham was nearly one hundred years old, the promise of a son was repeated: “Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou shalt call his name Isaac; and I will establish My covenant with him.” “As for Ishmael,” He said, “Behold, I have blessed him, ... and I will make him a great nation.”EP 90.2
The birth of Isaac filled the tents of Abraham and Sarah with gladness, but to Hagar this event was the overthrow of her fondly cherished ambitions. Ishmael had been regarded by all as the heir of Abraham’s wealth and the inheritor of the blessings promised his descendants. Now he was suddenly set aside. Mother and son hated the child of Sarah.EP 90.3
The general rejoicing increased their jealousy, until Ishmael dared openly to mock the heir of God’s promise. Sarah saw in Ishmael’s turbulent disposition a perpetual source of discord, and she appealed to Abraham that Hagar and Ishmael be sent away.EP 90.4
The patriarch was thrown into great distress. How could he banish Ishmael his son, still dearly beloved? In his perplexity he pleaded for divine guidance. Through a holy angel the Lord directed him to grant Sarah’s desire; only thus could he restore harmony and happiness to his family. The angel gave him the promise that Ishmael would not be forsaken by God and he would become the father of a great nation. Abraham obeyed, but not without keen suffering. The father’s heart was heavy as he sent away Hagar and his son.EP 90.5
The sacredness of the marriage relation was to be a lesson for all ages. The rights and happiness of this relation are to be carefully guarded, even at great sacrifice. Sarah was the only true wife of Abraham. Her rights no other person was entitled to share. She was unwilling that Abraham’s affections should be given to another, and the Lord did not reprove her for requiring the banishment of her rival.EP 91.1
Abraham was to stand as an example of faith to succeeding generations. But his faith had not been perfect. He had shown distrust of God in his marriage with Hagar. That he might reach the highest standard, God subjected him to another test, the closest which man was ever asked to endure. In a vision of the night he was directed to offer his son as a burnt offering upon a mountain that should be shown him.EP 91.2
Abraham had reached the age of a hundred and twenty years. The ardor of youth had passed. One in the vigor of manhood may with courage meet difficulties and afflictions that would cause his heart to fail later in life. But God had reserved His most trying test for Abraham until the burden of years was heavy upon him and he longed for rest.EP 91.3
The patriarch was very rich and was honored as a mighty prince by the rulers of the land. Heaven seemed to have crowned with blessing a life of sacrifice and patient endurance.EP 91.4
In the obedience of faith, Abraham had forsaken his native country and had wandered as a stranger in the land of his inheritance. He had waited long for the birth of the promised heir. At the command of God he had sent away Ishmael. And now, when the patriarch seemed able to discern the fruition of his hopes, a trial greater than all others was before him.EP 91.5
The command must have wrung with anguish that father’s heart: “Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, ... and offer him there for a burnt offering.” Isaac was the light of his home, the solace of his old age, the inheritor of the promised blessing; but he was commanded to shed the blood of that son with his own hand. It seemed a fearful impossibility.EP 92.1
Satan was at hand to suggest that he must be deceived, for the divine law commands, “Thou shalt not kill.” God would not require what He had forbidden. Going outside his tent, Abraham recalled the promise that his seed should be as innumerable as the stars. If this promise was to be fulfilled through Isaac, how could he be put to death? Abraham bowed upon the earth and prayed as he had never prayed before for some confirmation of the command if he must perform this terrible duty. He remembered the angels sent to reveal God’s purpose to destroy Sodom and who bore to him the promise of this same son Isaac. He went to the place where he had met the heavenly messengers, hoping to receive some further direction; but none came. The command of God was sounding in his ears, “Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest.” That command must be obeyed. Day was approaching, and he must be on his journey.EP 92.2
Isaac lay sleeping the untroubled sleep of youth and innocence. For a moment the father looked upon the dear face of his son, then turned tremblingly away. He went to Sarah, who was also sleeping. Should he awaken her? He longed to unburden his heart to her and share with her this terrible responsibility; but he was restrained. Isaac was her joy and pride; the mother’s love might refuse the sacrifice.EP 92.3
Abraham at last summoned his son, telling him of the command to offer sacrifice on a distant mountain. Isaac had often gone with his father to worship, and this excited no surprise. The wood was made ready and put upon the ass, and with two servants they set forth.EP 92.4
Father and son journeyed in silence, the patriarch pondering his heavy secret. His thoughts were of the proud, fond mother, and the day when he should return to her alone. He knew that the knife would pierce her heart when it took the life of her son.EP 93.1
That day—the longest Abraham had ever experienced—dragged slowly to its close. He spent the night in prayer, still hoping that some heavenly messenger might say that the youth might return unharmed to his mother. But no relief came to his tortured soul.EP 93.2
Another long day. Another night of humiliation and prayer. The command that was to leave him childless was ringing in his ears. Satan was near to whisper doubts and unbelief, but Abraham resisted his suggestions.EP 93.3
As they were about to begin the journey of the third day, the patriarch saw the promised sign, a cloud of glory hovering over Mount Moriah. He knew that the voice which had spoken was from heaven.EP 93.5
Yet none but God could understand how great was the father’s sacrifice in yielding up his son to death. Abraham desired that none but God should witness the parting scene. He bade his servants remain behind, saying, “I and the lad will go yonder and worship, and come again to you.”EP 93.6
The wood was laid upon Isaac, the father took a knife and the fire, and together they ascended toward the mountain summit. The young man at last spoke, “My father, ... behold the fire and the wood; but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?”EP 93.7
What a test was this! How the endearing words, “my father,” pierced Abraham’s heart! Not yet—he could not tell him now. “My son,” he said, “God will provide Himself a lamb for a burnt offering.”EP 94.1
At the appointed place they built the altar and laid the wood upon it. Then, with trembling voice, Abraham unfolded the divine message.EP 94.2
With terror and amazement Isaac learned his fate, but he offered no resistance. He could have escaped had he chosen. The old man, exhausted with the struggle of those three terrible days, could not have opposed the will of the vigorous youth. But Isaac had been trained from childhood to ready obedience, and as the purpose of God was opened before him, he yielded a willing submission. He was a sharer in Abraham’s faith, and he felt honored in being called to give his life as an offering to God.EP 94.3
And now the last words of love were spoken, the last tears shed, the last embrace given. The father lifted the knife. Suddenly an angel of God called out of heaven, “Abraham, Abraham!” He quickly answered, “Here am I.” Again the voice was heard, “Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou anything unto him: for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from Me.”EP 94.4
Then Abraham saw “a ram caught in a thicket,” and quickly he offered it “in the stead of his son.” In his joy and gratitude, Abraham gave a new name to the sacred spot—“Jehovah-jireh,” “the Lord will provide.”EP 94.5
On Mount Moriah God again confirmed with solemn oath the blessing to Abraham and to his seed: “Because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son: ... in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the seashore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies; and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed My voice.”EP 95.1
Abraham’s great act of faith stands like a pillar of light, illuminating the pathway of God’s servants in all succeeding ages. During that three days’ journey Abraham had sufficient time to reason and to doubt God. He might have reasoned that the slaying of his son would cause him to be looked upon as a murderer, a second Cain; it would cause his teaching to be rejected and despised, and thus destroy his power to do good to his fellowmen. He might have pleaded that age should excuse him from obedience. But the patriarch did not take refuge in excuses. Abraham was human; his passions and attachments were like ours; but he did not stay to reason with his aching heart. He knew that God is just and righteous in all His requirements.EP 96.1
The agony which Abraham endured during the dark days of that fearful trial was permitted that he might understand something of the greatness of the sacrifice made by God for man’s redemption. No other test could have caused Abraham such torture of soul as did the offering of his son. God gave His Son to a death of agony and shame. The angels were not permitted to interpose, as in the case of Isaac. There was no voice to cry, “It is enough.” To save the fallen race, the King of glory yielded up His life.EP 96.3
The sacrifice required of Abraham was not alone for his good nor for succeeding generations; it was also for the instruction of the sinless intelligences of heaven and other worlds. The field on which the plan of redemption is wrought out is the lesson book of the universe. Because Abraham had shown a lack of faith, Satan had accused him before angels and God. God desired to prove the loyalty of His servant before all heaven, to demonstrate that nothing less than perfect obedience can be accepted, and to open more fully before them the plan of salvation.EP 96.4
The trial brought upon Adam involved no suffering; but the command to Abraham demanded the most agonizing sacrifice. All heaven beheld with wonder and admiration Abraham’s unfaltering obedience. All heaven applauded his fidelity. Satan’s accusations were shown to be false. God’s covenant testified that obedience will be rewarded.From Eternity Past
Three Sad Days
EP 93.4
Even now he did not murmur against God. This son had been unexpectedly given; had not He who bestowed the precious gift a right to recall His own? Then faith repeated the promise, “In Isaac shall thy seed be called”—a seed numberless as the grains of sand upon the shore. Isaac was the child of a miracle, and could not the power that gave him life restore it? Abraham grasped the divine word, “accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead.” Hebrews 11:19.