On the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes, and saw the place far off.
Parallel Translations
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On the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes, and saw the place far off.
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Then on the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes, and saw the place afar off.
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On the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes, and saw the place afar off.
Cross-references (17)
Passages linked to Genesis 22:4 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Hosea 6:2 After two days he will revive us. On the third day he will raise us up, and we will live before him.
- Matthew 17:23 and they will kill him, and the third day he will be raised up.” They were exceedingly sorry.
- Luke 13:32 He said to them, “Go and tell that fox, ‘Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I complete my mission.
- 1 Corinthians 15:4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,
- 1 Samuel 26:13 Then David went over to the other side, and stood on the top of the mountain afar off; a great space being between them;
- 2 Kings 20:5 “Turn back, and tell Hezekiah the prince of my people, ‘Yahweh, the God of David your father, says, “I have heard your prayer. I have seen your tears. Behold, I will heal you. On the third day, you will go up to Yahweh’s house.
- Esther 5:1 Now on the third day, Esther put on her royal clothing, and stood in the inner court of the king’s house, next to the king’s house. The king sat on his royal throne in the royal house, next to the entrance of the house.
- Exodus 5:3 They said, “The God of the Hebrews has met with us. Please let us go three days’ journey into the wilderness, and sacrifice to Yahweh, our God, lest he fall on us with pestilence, or with the sword.”
- Exodus 15:22 Moses led Israel onward from the Red Sea, and they went out into the wilderness of Shur; and they went three days in the wilderness, and found no water.
- Exodus 19:11 and be ready for the third day; for on the third day Yahweh will come down in the sight of all the people on Mount Sinai.
- Exodus 19:15 He said to the people, “Be ready by the third day. Don’t have sexual relations with a woman.”
- Leviticus 7:17 but what remains of the meat of the sacrifice on the third day shall be burned with fire.
- Numbers 10:33 They set forward from the Mount of Yahweh three days’ journey. The ark of Yahweh’s covenant went before them three days’ journey, to seek out a resting place for them.
- Numbers 19:12 He shall purify himself with water on the third day, and on the seventh day he shall be clean; but if he doesn’t purify himself the third day, then the seventh day he shall not be clean.
- Numbers 19:19 The clean person shall sprinkle on the unclean on the third day, and on the seventh day. On the seventh day, he shall purify him. He shall wash his clothes and bathe himself in water, and shall be clean at evening.
- Numbers 31:19 “Encamp outside of the camp for seven days. Whoever has killed any person, and whoever has touched any slain, purify yourselves on the third day and on the seventh day, you and your captives.
- Joshua 1:11 “Pass through the middle of the camp, and command the people, saying, ‘Prepare food; for within three days you are to pass over this Jordan, to go in to possess the land which Yahweh your God gives you to possess.’ ”
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (11 sources)
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John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain 4. And saw the place. He saw, indeed, with…
4. And saw the place. He saw, indeed, with his eyes, the place which before had been shown him in secret vision. But when it is said, that he lifted up his eyes, Moses doubtless signifies, that he had been very anxious during the whole of the three days. In commanding his servants to remain behind, he does it that they may not lay their hands upon him, as upon a delirious and insane old man. And herein his magnanimity appears, that he ties his thoughts so well composed and tranquil, as to do nothing in an agitated manner. When, however, he says, that he will return with the boy, he seems not to be free from dissimulation and falsehood. Some think that he uttered this declaration prophetically; but since it is certain that he never lost sight of what had been promised concerning the raising up of seed in Isaac, it may be, that he, trusting in the providence of God, figured to himself his son as surviving even in death itself. And seeing that he went, as with closed eyes, to the slaughter of his son, there is nothing improbable in the supposition, that he spoke confusedly, in a matter so obscure.
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain Gen 22:4 Then on the third day Abraham lifted…
Gen 22:4 Then on the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes, and saw the place afar off.
Ver. 4. Then on the third day.] A great while for him to be plodding, ere he came to the place. But we must conceive that his brains were better busied, than many of ours would have been therewhile. We must not weigh the cross, for then it will prove heavy: we must not chew the pill, but swallow it whole, else it will prove bitter. We must not plod too much, but ply the throne of grace for a good use and a good issue of all our trials and tribulations.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain Probably on the beginning of the third day. It…
Probably on the beginning of the third day. It is true, Moriah was not three days’ journey from Beer-sheba. But it must be considered that the ass, upon which he rode, is a dull and slow creature, and that Abraham went no faster than the rest of his company, who, for aught appears, were on foot; and that the provisions which they carried along with them, both for their own and the ass’s subsistence, and for sacrifice, must needs retard them.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain Then on the third day,.... After he had received…
Then on the third day,.... After he had received the command from God, and from his setting out on his journey; for he had now travelled two days, Mount Moriah being forty miles from Beersheba, where Abraham dwelt (s); or, as others compute it, forty: Hebron (t) was twenty miles from Beersheba, and Jerusalem twenty two from Hebron; and to travel twenty miles a day on foot, as Isaac and the servants seem to have done, there being but one ass among them, was far enough in those hot countries. Now all this while Abraham had time to reconsider things in his mind, and deliberate thoroughly what he was going about; and by proceeding in it, after he had such leisure to revolve things in his mind, it appears that he was satisfied it was not an illusion, but an oracle of God he was going to obey; and that he did not do this rashly and hastily, and that his faith and obedience were sufficiently tried, and found genuine. The Jews (u) take great notice of this third day, and compare the passage with Hos 6:2; and which they interpret of the third day of the resurrection; and the deliverance of Isaac on this third day was doubtless typical of Christ's resurrection from the dead on the third day; for from the time that Abraham had the command to offer up his son, he was reckoned no other by him than as one dead, from whence he received him in a figure on this third day, Heb 11:19,
Abraham lift up his eyes, and saw the place afar off; where he was to offer his Son. Baal Hatturim says, the word "place", by gematry, signifies Jerusalem: it seems by this, that as God had signified to Abraham that he would tell him of the place, and show it to him, where he was to sacrifice, so that he gave him a signal by which he might know it, which some of the Jewish writers (w) say was a cloud upon the mount; with which agrees the Targum of Jonathan,"and Abraham lift up his eyes and saw the cloud of glory smoking upon the mountain, and he knew it afar off.''And others say (x), he saw the glory of the divine Majesty standing upon the mount, in a pillar of fire, reaching from earth to heaven; and they further observe, that the place where he was, when he saw this, was Zophim, a place not far from Jerusalem; and from hence, when the city and temple were built, a full view might be taken of them (y), from whence it had its name.
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(s) Bunting's Travels, p. 57. (t) Reland. Palestina illustrata, tom. 2. p. 620. (u) Bereshit Rabba, sect. 56. fol. 49. 3. (w) Bereshit Rabba, sect. 56. fol. 49. 3. Jarchi in loc. (x) Pirke Eliezer, ut supra. (c. 31.) (y) Gloss. in T. Bab. Beracot, fol. 49. 2. Schulchan Aruch, par. 1. Crach Chayim, c. 3. sect. 6.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 4. The third day] "As the number SEVEN,"…
Verse 4. The third day] "As the number SEVEN," says Mr. Ainsworth, "is of especial use in Scripture because of the Sabbath day, Ge 2:2, so THREE is a mystical number because of Christ's rising from the dead the third day, Mt 17:23; 1Co 15:4; as he was crucified the third hour after noon, Mr 15:25: and Isaac, as he was a figure of Christ, in being the only son of his father, and not spared but offered for a sacrifice, Ro 8:32, so in sundry particulars he resembled our Lord: the third day Isaac was to be offered up, so it was the third day in which Christ also was to be perfected, Lu 13:32; Isaac carried the wood for the burnt-offering, Ge 22:6, so Christ carried the tree whereon he died, Joh 19:17; the binding of Isaac, Ge 21:9, was also typical, so Christ was bound, Mt 27:2.
"In the following remarkable cases this number also occurs. Moses desired to go three days' journey in the wilderness to sacrifice, Ex 5:3; and they travelled three days in it before they found water, Ex 15:22; and three days' journey the ark of the covenant went before them, to search out a resting place, Nu 10:33; by the third day the people were to be ready to receive God's law, Ex 19:11; and after three days to pass over Jordan into Canaan, Jos 1:14; the third day Esther put on the apparel of the kingdom, Es 5:1; on the third day Hezekiah, being recovered from his illness, went up to the house of the Lord, 2Kg 20:5; on the third day, the prophet said, God will raise us up and we shall live before him, Ho 6:2; and on the third day, as well as on the seventh, the unclean person was to purify himself, Nu 19:12: with many other memorable things which the Scripture speaks concerning the third day, and not without mystery. See Ge 40:12-13; Ge 42:17-18; Jon 1:17; Jos 2:16; unto which we may add a Jew's testimony in Bereshith Rabba, in a comment on this place: There are many THREE DAYS mentioned in the Holy Scripture, of which one is the resurrection of the Messiah." - Ainsworth.
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Saw the place afar off.] He knew the place by seeing the cloud of glory smoking on the top of the mountain. - Targum.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain on the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes,…
on the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes, &c.--Leaving the servants at the foot [Gen 22:5], the father and son ascended the hill, the one bearing the knife, and the other the wood for consuming the sacrifice [Gen 22:6]. But there was no victim; and to the question so naturally put by Isaac [Gen 22:7], Abraham contented himself by replying, "My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering." It has been supposed that the design of this extraordinary transaction was to show him, by action instead of words, the way in which all the families of the earth should be blessed; and that in his answer to Isaac, he anticipated some substitution. It is more likely that his words were spoken evasively to his son in ignorance of the issue, yet in unbounded confidence that that son, though sacrificed, would, in some miraculous way, be restored (Heb 11:19).
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 4. Third day — Two days of journey and…
4. Third day — Two days of journey and reflection did not cause the faith of Abraham to waver, but must have deeply intensified the trial going on within him.
Afar off — These words do not necessarily imply a great distance. Moses’s sister stood afar off to watch the ark of bulrushes, (Exo_2:4,) and Job’s three friends “lifted up their eyes afar off, and knew him not,” (Job_2:12,) but the distances in each case were obviously not great.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 4. On the third day … afar off] The…
4. On the third day … afar off] The “place” was on a lofty eminence visible at a distance. Presumably “the third day” indicates a journey of 30 or 40 miles. The journey from Beer-sheba to Jerusalem is computed to take less than 24 hours.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (4) On the third day.—We may compare the patriarch’s…
(4) On the third day.—We may compare the patriarch’s feelings during these two weary days of travel with those of Hagar as she wandered in the wilderness, and each day felt the death of her child growing nearer and more certain. But hers were human sorrows only, while Abraham was giving up the son on whom his spiritual hopes depended.
Afar off.—The summit called the Mountain of the House, usually identified with Mount Moriah, cannot be seen by a traveller from Beer-sheba at a greater distance than three miles (Stanley, Sinai and Palestine, p. 251). Hence it has been argued that some more widely conspicuous hill-top must be meant. But the phrase afar off is used very indefinitely, and three miles exactly agrees with what Abraham did. For he left the servants at the spot, and laid the wood on Isaac, and went the rest of the way on foot. It must have sorely taxed the strength of the lad to be compelled to carry the wood a distance of three miles; while to have carried it from the spot where Gerizim becomes visible would have been impossible.
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In Isaac thus carrying the wood on which he was to be sacrificed, the Fathers discerned a type of Christ carrying his cross (Joh_19:17).
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain Then on the third day Jerusalem, being distant from…
Then on the third day Jerusalem, being distant from Beersheba about twenty and a half hours" journey according to Robinson, could easily; be within sight on the third dayAbraham lifted up his eyes, not implying that the object of vision was above him (cf. Gen_13:10) and saw the place (which Calvin conjectures he had previously beheld in vision) afar off. Though Mount Moriah cannot be seen by the traveler from Beersheba till within a distance of three miles (Stanley, "Sinai and Palestine," p. 251), the place or region where it is can be detected (Kalisch).
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On the third day
On the third day
The word "third" is the ordinal number for three. AT: "After traveling for three days" (See: Ordinal Numbers)
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saw the place afar off
"saw far away the place that God had spoken of"
young men
"servants"
We will worship
The word "we" refers only to Abraham and Isaac, but not to the young men. (See: Exclusive and Inclusive "We")
come again to you
"return to you"
put it on Isaac his son
"had Isaac, his son, carry it"
He took in his own hand
Here "his own hand" emphasizes that Abraham himself carried these things. AT: "Abraham himself carried" (See: Synecdoche)
the fire
Here "fire" stands for a pan containing burning coals or a torch or lamp. AT: "something for starting a fire" (See: Synecdoche)
they went both of them together
"they left together" or "the two of them went together"
translationWords
day
Abraham
worship
burnt offering
Isaac
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.