Through the Bible: Day #22

It is vital that we spend time in God’s Word.

But it’s not always easy.

We read a chapter and we don’t know what to get out of it or even how to start to understand it.

I thought I could try to help you get a little something out of what you are reading by providing you with some questions to ask as you look at the text.  Good questions are a good start to understanding. Sometimes there will be more questions, sometimes less.

You can do this!

So, get a notebook, a pen, your Bible, and if you would like some help, take some time to answer the questions, and you may be surprised by all God teaches you.

Genesis 22

1. What does Moses tell us in verse 1 that God was about to do with Abraham? That’s important to remember, because the rest of the chapter is going to be hard to understand without that fact.
2. How does God describe Isaac?
3. What does God tell Abraham to do with him?
4. This is obvious, but what are some of the things that would have made this a difficult command?
5. One of the things that would have made this a very difficult command is that it came after years and years of waiting for Isaac, and God made it very clear that Isaac was the fulfillment of His promise to Abraham. So what does it seem like God is doing here?
6. What does Abraham do? When does he do it? What do you think is significant about that?
7. On what day does Abraham set up the sacrifice of Isaac?
8. What does Abraham tell his young men he is going to do?
9. What is Abraham confident will happen after he worships? Think about the sentence in verse 5 carefully. What hint is there here that he has faith?
10. When Isaac asks about the lamb, how does Abraham respond?
11. What stands out to you about Abraham and Isaac’s reactions in verses 9-10? What did Abraham’s actions reveal about him according to God?
12. What did God provide in verse 13 for Abraham and what did Abraham call that place?
13. Now, put yourself in Abraham’s place. It looks like God is going back on His promise. It looks like God is messing with him. But Abraham obeys in spite of the way things look. Why? How does Hebrews 11:17-19 shed light on what was going on in Abraham’s mind?
14. Abraham shows us what faith looks like. True faith trusts God to keep His promises even when everything seems to be telling you the opposite!
15. This story is about a Father being asked to sacrifice the promised seed? In what way does this story set you up for a better understanding of what God was doing through Jesus?
16. What encouragement does God give Abraham after he has demonstrated his faith in God? Each time God repeats His promise to Abraham, it seems like he adds one extra detail that is important for understanding what God is doing through Abraham. What is the extra detail here at the end of verse 17? And what is going to be the result of that for the rest of the world in verse 18?