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, ca. 359 AD.]] Isaac or '''Yitzchak''' ( and Sarah , and the father of Jacob and Esau as described in the Hebrew Bible . His story is told in the Book Of Genesis . Isaac was the longest-lived of the patriarchs, and the only Biblical Patriarch whose name was not changed. Isaac was the only patriarch who did not leave Canaan , although he once tried to leave and God told him not to do so. Compared to other patriarchs in the Bible, his story is less colorful, relating few incidents of his life. The New Testament contains few references to Isaac. The Early Christian Church viewed Abraham's willingness to follow God's command to sacrifice Isaac as an example of faith and obedience. Isaac is a Prophet in Islam . A few narratives of Isaac appear in the Qur'an . The Qur'an views Isaac as a righteous man, Servant Of God and the father of Jews. The Qur'an states that Isaac and his progeny are blessed as long as they uphold their covenant with God. Some early Muslims believed that Isaac was the son who was supposed to be sacrificed by Abraham . Some academic scholars have described Isaac as "a legendary figure" while others view him "as a figure representing tribal history, though as a historical individual" or "as a seminomadic leader, or as the founder of a cult." ETYMOLOGY AND MEANING The English name Isaac is a translation of the Hebrew term '''' which literally means "may God smile." The term conforms to a well-known Northwest Semitic linguist type, but is not known from elsewhere. The Ugaritic texts from Thirteenth Century BCE refer to the benovolent smile of the Canaanite god El ; the Bible (i.e. the canonical collections of sacred writings of Judaism ), however, ascribes the laugher to be Isaac's mother ( Sarah ) rather than the Canaanite god El . The reason for Sarah's laughing, according to the Bible, was that God gave the news of the birth of Isaac to his parents. Since they were beyond the age of having children, they privately laughed at the prediction. HEBREW BIBLE Isaac is mentioned by name more than 70 times in the book of Genesis but only mentioned 33 times elsewhere. The phrase "Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob" occurs 23 times in the Hebrew Bible. Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible, ''Isaac'', p.647 Chapters 17-28 of the book of Genesis contain the stories of Isaac. Historian s and Academic s in the fields of Linguistic s and Source Criticism believe that the stories of Isaac largely belong to the J, or Yahwist source (See Documentary Hypothesis ). The beginnings of and the end from to is however believed to belong to the P, or Priestly Source while and is considered to be the E, or Elohist source. Encyclopedia of Christianity(Ed. John Bowden), ''Isaac'' ;The account of the life of Isaac according to the Hebrew Bible God gave the news of the birth of Isaac to Abraham and Sarah. Sarah was beyond the age of having children and privately laughed at the prediction. Britannica Encyclopedia, ''Sarah'' When the child was born, she said "God had made me to laugh, so that all that hear will laugh with me". Genesis 21:6 Isaac was the only child that Abraham and Sarah had together. Sarah saw Ishmael mocking Isaac and urged her husband to banish Hagar and her child so that Isaac would be the only heir of Abraham. Abraham was hesitant but at God's order he listened to his wife's request. Abraham Circumcised his son Isaac when the boy was eight days old. According to the book of Genesis, a great feast was held for his being weaned. Several years later, God tested Abraham by commanding him to sacrifice his son. Jewish Encyclopedia , ''Isaac'' Abraham obeyed and took Isaac to the mount Moriah . Catholic Encyclopedia , ''Isaac'' Without murmuring, Isaac let Abraham bind him and lay him upon the altar as a sacrifice. Abraham took the knife and raised his hand to kill his son. At the last minute, an angel of the Lord prevented him from doing so. Instead of Isaac, Abraham sacrificed a ram that was trapped in a thicket nearby. When Isaac was forty years of age, Abraham sent Eliezer , his steward, into Mesopotamia to find a wife for him, from Bethuel , his brother-in-law's family. Rebekah was sent and became the wife of Isaac. She was barren, so Isaac prayed for her and God granted her the favour of conception. She gave birth to twin boys, Esau and Jacob . The New Encyclopedia of Judaism, ''Isaac'' Isaac favoured Esau, and Rebekah Jacob. Some years afterward, a famine obliged Isaac to move to Gerar , where Abimelech was king; and, as his father had done under similar circumstances, he referred to Rebekah as his sister. Abimelech, having discovered that she was his wife, reproved him for the deception. As Isaac grew very rich and his flocks multiplied, the Philistines of Gerar became so envious that they filled up all the wells which Isaac's servants had dug. At the desire of Abimelech he departed and pitched his tent in the valley of Gerar where he dug new wells, but was again put to some difficulties. At length, he returned to Beersheba where he fixed his habitation. Here the Lord appeared to him, and renewed the promise of blessing him. Also Abimelech visited him to form an alliance. Isaac grew very old (137 years) and became completely blind. He called Esau, his eldest son, and directed him to procure some venison for him. But while Esau was hunting, Jacob sneakily misrepresented himself as Esau to his blind father as obtained his father's blessing, making Jacob Isaac's primary heir, and leaving Esau in an inferior position. Isaac lived some time after this, and sent Jacob into Mesopotamia to take a wife of his own family. Jewish Encyclopedia , ''Isaac'' JEWISH TRADITIONS In rabbinical tradition the age of Isaac at the time of binding is taken to be 37 which contrasts with common portrayals of Isaac as a child. The Rabbi s also taught that the reason for the death of Sarah was the news of intended Sacrifice of Isaac. The sacrifice of Isaac was cited in appeals for the Mercy Of God in the later Jewish traditions. Britannica Encyclopedia, ''Isaac'' The post-biblical Jewish interpretations often elaborate the role of Isaac beyond the biblical description and largely focus on Abraham's intended Sacrifice Of Isaac , called the ''aqedah''("binding"). According to a version of these interpretations, Isaac died in the sacrifice and was revived. According to Many accounts of Haggadah , unlike the Bible, it is Satan who is testing Isaac and not God. Brock, Sebastian P., Brill's New Pauly, ''Isaac'' Isaac's willingness to follow God's command at the cost of his death has been a model for many Jews who preferred matrydom to violation of the Jewish Law . According to the Jewish tradition Isaac instituted the afternoon prayer. This tradition is based on ("Isaac went out to mediate in the field at the eventide") Isaac was the only Patriarch who stayed in Canaan during his whole life and though once he tried to leave, God told him not to do so(). Rabannic tradition gave the explanation that Isaac was almost sacrificed and anything dedicated as a sacrifice may not leave the Land Of Israel . Isaac is the longest-lived of the patriarchs, and the only biblical patriarch whose name was not changed. M.G. Easton, Illustrated Bible Dictionary, 3rd ed., ''Isaac'' Rabbinical Literature also linked Isaac's blindness in old age as stated in the Bible to the sacrificial binding: Isaac's eyes went blind because the tears of angels present at the time of his sacrifice fell on Isaac's eyes. NEW TESTAMENT The is associated with the Sinai covenant, while Sarah is associated with the covenant of grace (into which her son Isaac enters). James 2:21-24 argues that the sacrifice of Isaac shows that justification requires both faith and works. In the early , the idea of the sacrifice of Isaac being a prefigure of sacrifice of Jesus on the Cross dates back to the end of first Christian Century . It first appeared in the Apocryphal Epistle Of Barnabas and later became an important theme for many renowned artists. Browning (1996), p.187 ISLAM Isaac is a Like many other Hebrew prophets, the Qur'anic references to Isaac assume the audience is already familiar with him and his stories. There is little narrative of Isaac in the Qur'an. ''Isaac'', Encyclopedia of the Qur'an The Qur'an recalls that Isaac was given to Sarah , when she and her husband Abraham were both old.see 17 God gave Abraham the Good News of the birth of Isaac "a prophet, one of the Righteous," see 18 via messengers sent against the people of Lut . Sarah, however, is said to have laughed at the Glad Tidings of Isaac, and after him, of Jacob.
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