Isaac: Type and Shadow of Christ

Scriptural passages compare Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his beloved son Isaac to God’s offering of His beloved son, Jesus. Paul wrote, “By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, Of whom it was said, That in Isaac shall thy seed be called: Accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead; from whence also he received him in a figure” (Heb. 11:17–19; see also Gal. 3:16; Heb. 1:16). The just-cited passage explains that Abraham believed that if he sacrificed his son God would raise him from the dead, “accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead.”

There are a number of striking and significant parallels between Isaac and Jesus that demonstrate that Isaac was a type of Jesus Christ and His sacrifice, as listed in the accompanying chart.