The sages note that the phrase “lekh-lekha” (לֶךְ־לְךָ) is used in two places in the Torah: first, when God asked Abraham to leave everything behind to go (lekh-lekha) to a land where he would become a great nation that would ultimately bless the world (Gen. 12:1-3); and second, when God later asked Abraham to go (lekh-lekha) to the land of Moriah to offer up his beloved son as a burnt offering sacrifice (Gen. 22:2). There is a connection.
In the first case note that after Abraham left his homeland God led him to land of Canaan, directly to a “teaching tree” (אֵלוֹן מוֹרֶה) in Shechem (see Gen. 12:6). Some have said this “teaching tree” symbolizes the wisdom of Torah, the tree of life (עֵץ־הַחַיִּים) that brings happiness to those who take hold of it (Prov. 3:18), though it also symbolizes the cross of Yeshua, as we shall see.
In the second case note that “Moriah” (מֹּרִיָּה) means either the “Awe of the LORD” (i.e., מוֹרָא + יָהּ), the “Vision of the LORD” (i.e., רָאָה + יָהּ), or the “Teaching of the LORD” (i.e., מוֹרֶה + יָהּ) regarding the cross, or “the tree of atonement” (עֵץ־הַכַּפָּרָה), given in Yeshua our Messiah (the site of the Temple in Jerusalem was also called Moriah; see 2 Chron. 3:1).
The Akedah, or the offering of Isaac, exemplified the meaning of sacrificial love, and indeed the word “love” (i.e., ahavah: אַהֲבָה) is first used in the Torah in this connection (Gen. 22:2). The offering of the lamb that God provided in exchange of Isaac (Gen. 22:13) pictures Yeshua the Passover Lamb of God (שֵׂה הָאֱלֹהִים) who was offered by the Father for the healing and deliverance of the world. And just as Isaac pictured the surrender of the son to the will of his father, so Abraham’s willingness to give up his beloved son (בְּנוֹ יְחִידוֹ) reveals the passion of the Father’s heart to give up everything for the sake of our salvation (John 3:16). So “lekh-lekha” – go for yourself – and receive the love of God given in Yeshua!
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