Expert: Thurman C. Petty, Jr. - 1/20/2009

Question
QUESTION: Some commentators and many Christians say that God already knew about Abraham’s faith but only tested him (Gen 22:1) for the following reasons:
1.   In order for Abraham to know about his own faith
2.   To have a memorable evidence of his faith/fear/obedience

But in Gen. 22:12 God says “Now I know that you fear God” which I can only intrepret as “God did not know about Abraham’s faith before the test”.  Is there a mistake in the translations of bible?

ANSWER: Dear Lenin,

Thank you for your question about Abraham, in Gen 22, and about God’s foreknowledge of the outcome. Also notice a few things we can learn from comparing this story with other Biblical information that actually open our understand of what happened.

First: God knows the end from the beginning. He knew ahead of time what Abraham would do: So it was not for God’s benefit.

Eccl 8:7  Since no man knows the future, who can tell him what is to come?

Isa 46:8  "Remember this, fix it in mind, take it to heart, you rebels.
Isa 46:9  Remember the former things, those of long ago; I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me.
Isa 46:10  I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say: My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please.

An in depth reading of Daniel 2, compared with history, shows clearly that God can foretell the future. Daniel, under God’s direction (Dan. 2:28), explained to the king that the image-dream gives information about future times. Nebuchadnezzar is the head of Gold, after him would come another kingdom (Dan 7 indicates that it would be Medo-Persia), followed by another world power (Dan 8 points out that Greece would follow Medo-Persia), followed again by another world power—which turned out to be Rome. But the feet of the image show Rome splitting up into several kingdoms—no more world powers like Rome! And history shows that this is exactly what happened. There are dozens of such God-inspired predictions in the Bible.

It is clear that when God says He knows “the end from the beginning,” Scriptures affirm just that: God knows the history of the world back to Creation, and He also knows the future of the world to the end of time.

So God knew that Abraham would be faithful. The test was not for God’s benefit.

Second: It may have been for the benefit of Abraham to know that His faith in God was real. But there is a far more important lesson in what God taught Abraham.

Abraham gave his only son (by Sarah, his only legitimate son) as an offering to God. But God offered a ram as a substitute in his place. Just so, God gave His only Son as an offering for all men—a Substitute in place of everyone who will accept His sacrifice. Sin pays wages to everyone who sins—death (Rom. 6:23). But God’s Son (Jesus) came as a substitute to take the death penalty for all mankind upon Himself, so that He could give those who accept Him eternal life.

Just so, the sacrifice of Abraham’s only (legitimate) son, taught him a life-changing lesson of what God intended to do for the entire world: and the substitute of the ram helped him to understand God’s plan of salvation through His Messiah.

Don’t think for a moment that these lessons fell on primitive ears. Abraham knew a great deal more about God than we might give him credit. After all, he talked with God face to face on a number of occasions (one such is chronicled in Gen. 18).

The command for Abraham to offer his son on the altar was not for the benefit of Abraham alone. All succeeding generations could have learned the same lessons so as to be ready for Messiah to come. It’s too bad that didn’t happen—that the majority of the people who knew the story didn’t stop to realize the lessons it taught.

And we too are indicted if we don’t take time to compare Scripture with Scripture in the Bible and learn the lesson too. It gives us greater faith in God to know that he predicted, 1900 years in advance, the coming of Messiah, His death as a substitute for all mankind, and His life beyond the tomb (Isaac lived beyond the sacrifice).

Have you learned the lesson? Have you accepted Messiah—Jesus—as your Substitute from Sin? Have you made Jesus your Savior?

If not, read the story of Jesus in the four gospels and take note that He died for you. And if you accept Him as you Substitute for your own sins to save you from the death you deserve, then He will give you everlasting life (John 3:16).

Thurman C. Petty, Jr.
Petty@hyperusa.com
www.PettyPress.com  (18 books, 40 Bible lessons and much more)


---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Dear Brother,

Thank you for your response.  

By His grace I am redeemed.  By His blood I am made clean.  Five years ago I accepted Christ as my saviour.  And I am happy to see that you are pointing the readers to the cross as you deem fit.

Now the purpose of my question is to know why the bible says in Gen 22:12 that God says “Now I know that you fear God".  Does it not mean that God did not know about Abraham's faith before the test?  

So my question is "Is there a mistake in the translation with regards to Gen. 22:12"?

Sincerely,
Lenin

Answer
Dear Lenin,

Thank you for the testimony of your relationship with Jesus. It gives me great pleasure to have correspondence with a fellow citizen of the Kingdom. And thank you for the clarification of your question.

I’m not a student of Hebrew, and cannot tell you if this is a correct rendering of the text. However I have access to a program that lays out about 15 different translations, and I have copies of other translations that are not of the group. I have to say that all of them, in essence, translate the phrase as the NIV: “Now I know that you fear God.” The word fear can be rendered “reverence” as well.

I think it would be good to keep in mind that the Bible, although thoroughly the Word of God, is written in human language and from a human point of view. In many places the Bible paints God as having human characteristics so as to make what He does more understandable to its readers. We see this in such phrases as found in the New Covenant, Jer. 31:34: "For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more."

By very nature God can never forget—He knows the end from the beginning—but He pictures Himself in human terms as remembering them no more so as to help us to realize that we need never worry about facing the consequences of our sins. Because of the sacrifice of Jesus, He can present us before God in His righteousness, and God will accept us as though we had never sinned!

It’s in this light that I see Gen. 22:12—“Now I know that you fear God.” God knew all along what Abraham would do, but for Abraham’s sake, and for all who read his story, God emphasizes that He, as we say, is convinced of Abraham’s loyalty to Him.

That’s as close as an answer as I can come to your question. I do have a friend and Bible scholar who lives in Maryland who could answer this question perhaps more precisely than I. If you’ll give me you e-mail address, I’ll get an answer from him, and zap it to you.

Always be ready for Jesus to come,

Thurman C. Petty, Jr.
Petty@hyperusa.com