It happened after these events: God tested Abraham and said to him: “Abraham, Abraham!” He said, “Here I am.” And God said: “Take your beloved son, whom you love, Isaac, and go to a high place, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains that I will tell you about.” Abraham got up in the morning, saddled his donkey, took with him two servants and Isaac his son, and, having split wood for the burnt offering, he got up and went, and on the third day he came to the place that God had told him about. Abraham raised his eyes and saw this place from afar. And Abraham said to his servants: “Stay here with the donkey, and I and my son will go there and, having bowed, we will return to you.” And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it on Isaac his son, took fire and a knife in his hands, and they both went away together. And Isaac said to Abraham his father: “Father!” He said: “What, child?” He said, “Here is the fire and the wood, where is the lamb for the burnt offering?” And Abraham said: “God will see for Himself a lamb for a burnt offering, child.” And they both went together. And they came to the place that God told him about.
And Abraham built an altar there, and laid the wood, and bound Isaac his son, and laid him on the altar on top of the wood. And Abraham stretched out his hand to take the knife and slay his son. And the angel of the Lord called him from heaven and said: “Abraham, Abraham!” And he said: “Here I am!” And the angel said: “Do not raise your hand against the boy and do nothing to him, for now I have learned that you fear God and have not spared your beloved son for My sake.” And Abraham lifted up his eyes and saw: behold, a ram was entangled by its horns in a shevek plant; and Abraham went and took a ram, and offered it as a burnt offering in place of Isaac his son. And Abraham called the name of that place: “The Lord saw,” so that even now they say: “The Lord appeared on the mountain.” And the angel of the Lord called Abraham from heaven again. And he said: “I swear by myself, says the Lord: because you did this deed and did not spare your beloved son for my sake, I will truly bless you and multiply I will multiply your seed like the stars of heaven and like the sand on the seashore, and your seed will inherit the cities of enemies.
And through your seed all the nations of the earth will be blessed, for you have obeyed My words.”
Reading the prophecies of Isaiah (Is.61:1–9).
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, to anoint me, to bring good news to the poor, to send me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach release to the captives, and recovery of sight to the blind. Call the summer of the Lord pleasant and the day of recompense, to comfort all who mourn. Give glory to those who mourn Zion; instead of ashes, anointing; joy to those who cry; an ornament of glory instead of a spirit of despondency; and the planting of the Lord will be called the generational righteousness for glory. And they will create eternal deserts, which were desolate before they were raised up, and they will renew the empty cities that were desolate during the generations. And the foreigners who tend your sheep, and the foreigners who shout, and your winegrowers, will come. You will be called priests of the Lord, servants of your God. It is said to you: you will destroy the fortress of the tongue and in their wealth you will be wondrous. They will inherit their land again, and eternal joy will be upon their head. For I am the Lord, who loves righteousness and hates the spoils of unrighteousness: and I will give their labor to the righteous, and I will make an everlasting covenant with them.
And their seed will be known among the nations, and their offspring among the people: everyone who sees me will know that these are blessed seed from God, and they will rejoice in the Lord with joy.
Reading the prophecy of Isaiah [61:1–9]
The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, for He has anointed Me to preach good news to the poor, He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to preach the acceptable time of the Lord and the day of retribution to our God, to comfort all who mourn, to give to those who mourn in Zion glory instead of ashes, an anointing of joy to those who mourn, a glorious adornment instead of a dispirited spirit; and they will be called a righteous people, and a plant of the Lord to His glory. And they will build up the centuries-old deserts, restore those previously devastated, and restore the deserted cities, devastated from ancient generations. And foreigners will come to feed your sheep, and foreigners will be your farmers and vinedressers. And you will be called priests of the Lord, ministers of our God. They will tell you: “You will feed on the wealth of the nations and you will be famous for their wealth. Instead of your deep shame and instead of shame, a part of them will rejoice.” So they will inherit their land a second time, and eternal joy will be over their heads.
For I am the Lord, who loves righteousness and hates robbery and unrighteousness, and I will give their labor to the righteous, and I will establish an everlasting covenant with them. And their seed and their descendants will be known among the nations among men, and everyone who sees them will know them, that they are a seed blessed by God, and they will rejoice joyfully in the Lord.
Reading of the Fourth Kings (2 Kings 4:8–37).