Prophets & prophecy
Abraham’s sacrifice: Isaac or Ishmael?
Genesis and the Qur’an both tell how God tested Abraham by asking him to sacrifice his son. Genesis says “thine only son Isaac”, but Abraham had two sons. The Qur’an does not name the son, and most Muslims hold it was Ishmael. This topic sets out the texts, the dates Genesis itself gives, and the meaning each faith finds in the story.
1The question
Which of Abraham’s two sons was he asked to sacrifice, which of them could be called his “only son”, and why does the answer matter to Jews, Christians and Muslims?
2What Christians believe
Christians follow Genesis 22, which names the son as Isaac, the child of the promise born to Sarah. God had said that his covenant would continue through Isaac (Genesis 17:19; 21:12), so the test was whether Abraham would trust God even with the son on whom every promise depended.
Christians read “only son” in that sense: Isaac was the only son of the promise, and by the time of Genesis 22 Ishmael had been sent away (Genesis 21:14), so Isaac was the only son left in Abraham’s house. Hebrews 11:17 names Isaac as the son Abraham offered, calls him “his only begotten son”, and praises Abraham’s faith that God could raise the dead. Christians also see the story as a picture of the cross: a father offering his beloved son, and God providing the lamb.
3What the texts say
The command
And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of.
And he said, Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou any thing unto him: for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from me.
Abraham’s two sons and their ages
And Abram was fourscore and six years old, when Hagar bare Ishmael to Abram.
And Abraham was an hundred years old, when his son Isaac was born unto him.
And his sons Isaac and Ishmael buried him in the cave of Machpelah, in the field of Ephron the son of Zohar the Hittite, which is before Mamre;
The promises about Isaac
And God said, Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou shalt call his name Isaac: and I will establish my covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his seed after him.
And God said unto Abraham, Let it not be grievous in thy sight because of the lad, and because of thy bondwoman; in all that Sarah hath said unto thee, hearken unto her voice; for in Isaac shall thy seed be called.
Where Ishmael lived
And he dwelt in the wilderness of Paran: and his mother took him a wife out of the land of Egypt.
The New Testament reading
By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son,
4What scholars say
Gordon J. Wenham (Genesis 16–50, 1994) reads “only son” as meaning the one irreplaceable son now that Ishmael had gone. Jon D. Levenson (The Death and Resurrection of the Beloved Son, 1993) shows how the theme of the beloved son runs through the Bible, and how often the younger son is chosen over the elder, from Isaac and Jacob to Joseph and David.
Reuven Firestone (Journeys in Holy Lands, 1990) studies how Jewish and Islamic traditions retold the story of Abraham. He shows that the earliest Muslim scholars were divided over which son was meant, and that the view that it was Ishmael became the majority over time.
Scholars agree on what Genesis says about the dates: Abraham was 86 when Ishmael was born and 100 when Isaac was born, so for about 14 years Ishmael was his only son.
5The Islamic perspective
The Qur’an tells the story in Surah 37 without naming the son. Abraham prays for a righteous son and is given good news of a gentle boy. When the boy is old enough, Abraham tells him of his dream, and the son agrees. God ransoms him with a great sacrifice. Only after this does the Qur’an give the good news of Isaac:
So We gave him tidings of a gentle son.
And when (his son) was old enough to walk with him, (Abraham) said: O my dear son, I have seen in a dream that I must sacrifice thee. So look, what thinkest thou? He said: O my father! Do that which thou art commanded. Allah willing, thou shalt find me of the steadfast.
Then We ransomed him with a tremendous victim.
And we gave him tidings of the birth of Isaac, a prophet of the righteous.
Muslims read “thine only son” as fitting Ishmael, who was Abraham’s only son for 14 years, and the order of Surah 37 as showing that the son who was tested came before the good news of Isaac. They also note that God had already promised children through Isaac, which would make a command to sacrifice him a strange test.
Muslims connect the story to Mecca, where the Qur’an says Abraham and Ishmael raised the foundations of the Kaaba together (Qur’an 2:127), and remember it every year at Eid al-Adha. For Muslims the heart of the story is surrender to God: in the Qur’an the son is asked and agrees, so the test belongs to both of them. The Qur’an’s telling and the link with Mecca each have their own topic.
6Objections and responses
“Genesis names Isaac in the very verse that gives the command.”
Response: Muslims answer that the name stands beside the words “thine only son”, which never described Isaac, since Ishmael was alive throughout Isaac’s life and stood with him at Abraham’s burial (Genesis 25:9). They read the name as an identification added later. The Qur’an leaves the son unnamed.
“Ishmael had been sent away, so Isaac was the only son left at home.”
Response: Being sent away did not stop Ishmael being Abraham’s son: Genesis still names Ishmael among “his sons” who buried Abraham (Genesis 25:9). Isaac was never, at any point in his life, Abraham’s only son, while Ishmael was for 14 years.
7Conclusion
Both faiths honour Abraham as the friend of God who was ready to give up his son, and both agree that God stopped him and provided a sacrifice. Christians follow Genesis in naming Isaac, read “only” as the son of the promise, and see a picture of Christ. Muslims read “only” literally, and find that it, the order of Surah 37 and the link with Mecca all point to Ishmael.
Read Genesis 16, 21 and 22 in order, keeping track of Abraham’s age and his sons, then Qur’an 37:99–113.
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Sources
- Bible, King James Version:Genesis 22:2Genesis 22:12Genesis 16:16Genesis 21:5Genesis 25:9Genesis 17:19Genesis 21:12Genesis 21:21Hebrews 11:17
- Qur’an, translated by M. Pickthall:Qur’an 37:101Qur’an 37:102Qur’an 37:107Qur’an 37:112
- Gordon J. Wenham, Genesis 16–50 (1994)
- Jon D. Levenson, The Death and Resurrection of the Beloved Son (1993)
- Reuven Firestone, Journeys in Holy Lands (1990)
- F. E. Peters, The Hajj (1994)