Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac. He himself carried the fire and the sacrificial knife, and the two of them walked on together.
Parallel translations
- WEB Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it on Isaac his son. He took in his hand the fire and the knife. They both went together.
- KJV And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering, and laid it upon Isaac his son; and he took the fire in his hand, and a knife; and they went both of them together.
- NKJV So Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it on Isaac his son; and he took the fire in his hand, and a knife, and the two of them went together.
- NASB And Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and laid it on his son Isaac, and he took in his hand the fire and the knife. So the two of them walked on together.
- NLT So Abraham placed the wood for the burnt offering on Isaac’s shoulders, while he himself carried the fire and the knife. As the two of them walked on together,
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Abraham lays the wood on Isaac, takes the fire and knife, and the two walk on together. Isaac carries the wood for his own sacrifice.
Overview
The image of Isaac bearing the wood up the mountain has long been seen as a striking foreshadowing of Christ carrying His cross to Calvary. Father and son walking 'together' heightens the poignancy and the shared submission of the moment. The scene unites obedience and sacrifice in a way that points forward to the willing self-offering of the Son of God.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 5
- John 19:17Carrying His own cross, He went out to The Place of the Skull, which in Hebrew is called Golgotha.
- 1 Pet 2:24He Himself bore our sins in His body on the tree, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. “By His stripes you are healed.”
- Isa 53:6We all like sheep have gone astray, each one has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid upon Him the iniquity of us all.
- Matt 8:17This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah: “He took on our infirmities and carried our diseases.”
- Luke 24:26–27Was it not necessary for the Christ to suffer these things and then to enter His glory?”
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
From the first promise that the seed of the woman would crush the serpent (3:15), through Abraham's blessing to all nations and Judah's coming ruler, Genesis sows every seed that flowers in Christ — the true offspring, the better Adam, the ram caught for Isaac.
How Genesis 22:6 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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