So Abraham rose early in the morning and saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son; and he split the wood for the burnt offering, and arose and went to the place of which God had told him. Then on the third day Abraham lifted his eyes and saw the place afar off. (Gen 22,3-4)
With what heart was Abraham walking toward the announced goal? Some believe that he essentially knew that God would not ask him to do such a thing. But we have explained that he may not have known about the unacceptability of human sacrifice; he had no other source of knowledge (oral or written theology) besides his own experience with God, and he had probabaly never dealt with the question himself. So, on the contrary, he prepared everything for the long journey, taking wood and servants with him. Obviously, he did not leave the door open to the possibility that the sacrifice would not take place. The whole story would not have made sense if he thought it was just a game.
After all, even the interpretation of the Epistle to the Hebrews speaks clearly of Abraham having been prepared to sacrifice his son. If he had any hope, it was not that the sacrifice would not take place, but that it would, yet God would later resurrect Isaac (Heb. 11:17-19).
Nevertheless one must work his way to such a faith. It's easy to imagine it vividly when we read this story in the Bible, but let's try to put ourselves in Abraham's frame of mind as he walks behind his servants for three days, still looking back at his beloved son who is just about to die. To have faith in the resurrection in such a situation is different than having it in the warmth of home sitting over a book.
Abraham had to say goodbye forever in his heart to Isaac, whom he had miraculously begotten and loved. It is hard to imagine what he was going through in those moments. His only hope of being reunited with Isaac was the resurrection. Thus he would receive from God's hand back a son who had tasted death, died and been resurrected. But is God capable of such a thing? Yet as he was putting together the picture he had obtained of God over the years and the promises God had made to him, he cautiously asked himself: but would God be able not do this after all?
Today we know what Abraham did not know along the way: that God did not really want the sacrifice of Isaac. From God's perspective, the test of Abraham consisted just in the three days of wandering when Abraham found himself in this immense internal struggle.
In his heart played out what would play out again centuries later in the same place, on this mount: another father would lose here for three days his beloved son.
