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About this book

Apocalypse of Abraham

About this book

The Revelation and the Command to Sacrifice

Chapter 9

1 Then a voice spoke to me twice: "Abraham, Abraham!"⁠ 2 And I said: "Here I am!" 3 And He said: "Look, it is I; do not be afraid, for I existed before the worlds, and I am a mighty God who has created the light of the world. 4 I am a shield over you, and I am your helper. 5 Go, bring me a young three-year-old heifer, and a three-year-old female goat, and a three-year-old ram, and a turtledove and a pigeon,⁠ and bring me a pure sacrifice. And in this sacrifice I will show you the ages (to come),⁠ 6 and tell you what has been kept in reserve, and you will see great things which you have not seen (until now); because you have loved searching for me, and I have named you my Friend. 7 But avoid every kind of food cooked over fire, and drinking wine, and rubbing (yourself) with oil for forty days,⁠ 8 and then offer me the sacrifice I have commanded you to make, in the place which I will show you, on a high mountain,⁠ 9 and there I will show you the ages which have been created and established, made and renewed, by my Word, 10 and I will tell you what will happen during them to those who have done evil and (practiced) righteousness among the human race.

Texts in conversation

Compare Genesis 22:11 and Apocalypse of Abraham 9:1

Hebrew Bible · Pseudepigrapha, Apocalypses

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Summary

The Apocalypse of Abraham imitates the style of Genesis by repeating the double call of Abraham’s name. This emphasizes the divine encounter, following a pattern found throughout the Hebrew Bible and connecting the Apocalypse with those traditions.

Passages

Genesis 22:11

Hebrew Bible
9 When they came to the place God had told him about, Abraham built the altar there and arranged the wood on it. Next he tied up his son Isaac and placed him on the altar on top of the wood. 10 Then Abraham reached out his hand, took the knife, and prepared to slaughter his son. 11 But the angel of the Lord called to him from heaven, “Abraham! Abraham!” “Here I am!” he answered. 12 “Do not harm the boy!” the angel said. “Do not do anything to him, for now I know that you fear God because you did not withhold your son, your only son, from me.”
750–400 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in Genesis

Apocalypse of Abraham 9:1

Pseudepigrapha, Apocalypses
1 Then a voice spoke to me twice: "Abraham, Abraham!" 2 And I said: "Here I am!" 3 And He said: "Look, it is I; do not be afraid, for I existed before the worlds, and I am a mighty God who has created the light of the world. 4 I am a shield over you, and I am your helper. 5 Go, bring me a young three-year-old heifer, and a three-year-old female goat, and a three-year-old ram, and a turtledove and a pigeon, and bring me a pure sacrifice. And in this sacrifice I will show you the ages (to come),
70–150 CE (scholarly estimate) Read in the Apocalypse of Abraham

References

"... The repetition of Abraham’s name in Genesis 22:11 has been traditionally interpreted as a reflection of the angel’s cry of urgency. However, based on similar examples of the double vocative in the Hebrew bible, it may perhaps reflect the hesitancy, arising from the right fear of God, of the addressee. Since the addressee fails to respond the first time out of sheer fear of the divine presence, the divine being is forced to repeat the name. Therefore, God calls out the names of Jacob, Moses, and Samuel twice. Consequently, the name repetition in the story of the Aqedah may actually be a sign of Abraham’s fearful disposition rather than the urgency of the situation. If this reading is correct, then Abraham may not have demonstrated the right fear initially in verse 1, where he responds after God calls him once, “Abraham.” It is only with the test to offer his precious son, Isaac, that Abraham comes to experience the fear of God. This is why the angel had to call out his name twice before Abraham was able to respond ..."
Samantha Joo, “‘Abraham! Abraham!’: Re-Analysis of Gen. 22:11,” Korea Presbyterian Journal of Theology 42 (2011): 66–79.

References are not endorsements of their contents. Read each reference in full to understand its author's intentions in using these texts.

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Genesis 22:11 and Apocalypse of Abraham 9:1

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