The Akedah (binding of Isaac) takes place on a mountain in the obscure land of Moriah. When a Judahite scribe later revised the story to have the angel of YHWH stop Abraham from killing his son, he connected Moriah with the Jerusalem Temple, thereby giving it a new hieros logos—a sacred founding legend, to compete with the northern worship site Beth-El.
Prof.
Rami Arav
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The story of the Akedah appears to present Abraham’s actions in a uniformly positive light. However, Isaac’s absence at the end of the story, and Sarah’s death immediately afterwards, suggested to some traditional and modern commentators a criticism of Abraham.
Prof.
Aaron Koller
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A look at the the practice and prohibition of child sacrifice in the Bible and the ambivalence underlying the stories of Jephthah’s daughter, Agamemnon’s daughter, and the binding of Isaac.[1]
Dr. Rabbi
Samuel Z. Glaser
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The earliest version of the birth and sacrifice of Isaac account questioned the identity of the boy’s father and concluded with Abraham sacrificing him to God.
Dr. Rabbi
Tzemah Yoreh
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The story of Jephthah’s daughter is famous as an example of child sacrifice, yet certain clues in the biblical text imply she may have suffered a very different fate.
Prof. Rabbi
Jonathan Magonet
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Exodus 22:28 commands Israel to give its firstborn sons to God, and makes no mention of redeeming them. What exactly is being commanded?
Dr.
Eve Levavi Feinstein
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