|
Search over 100 encyclopedias and dictionaries: |
Research categories | Follow us on Twitter |
Research categories
View all topics in the newsView all reference sources at Encyclopedia.com |
|||
Isaac
Isaac Son of the aged Sarah and Abraham; born in accordance with the promise to Abraham of an eternal covenant (Gen. 17: 15–21). Abraham's faith was put to the test when he was ordered to sacrifice this instrument of the promise. In surviving the test by his obedience, Abraham recognized that God's promise was a sheer gift, not something to be possessed by legal entitlement. Isaac was spared at the last moment of the intended sacrifice by divine intervention, and a ram substituted for the lad. Some expositors have interpreted the narrative as a tale to define Israel's repudiation of pagan child sacrifice or as a stage in the evolution of religion. Paul treats the remarkable birth of Isaac in fulfilment of God's promise as paralleled by the choosing of the Galatians as children of the promise; it is given to those who have faith, without regard to their physical descent (Gal. 4: 28). The epistle to the Hebrews (11: 19) hints at the release of Isaac for the sacrifice as a ‘type’ of the resurrection of Christ, but it is not until the so-called epistle of Barnabas 7 at the end of the 1st cent. (and not in the NT) that the sacrifice of Isaac is used to prefigure Jesus' sacrifice on the cross. It then became a theme for many great artists, as in a mosaic of the 6th cent. in Ravenna. In Judaism the sacrifice of Isaac, called the aqedah (‘binding’), almost paralleled the significance of the crucifixion of Jesus in Christianity.
|
|
|
Cite this article
W. R. F. BROWNING. "Isaac." A Dictionary of the Bible. 1997. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. W. R. F. BROWNING. "Isaac." A Dictionary of the Bible. 1997. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O94-Isaac.html W. R. F. BROWNING. "Isaac." A Dictionary of the Bible. 1997. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O94-Isaac.html |
|
Isaac
Isaac [Heb.,=laughter], according to the patriarchal narratives of the Book of Genesis, Isaac was the only son of Abraham and Sara . He married Rebecca , and their sons were Esau and Jacob . Ishmael was his half brother. As a supreme act of faith Abraham offered him at an early age as a sacrifice to God—a deed prevented by divine intervention. The Philistine king Abimelech gave him shelter in time of famine, and he grew rich in lands and possessions. Before his death, Rebecca, by ruse, caused him to bless Jacob in place of Esau. Isaac is also attested in the Qur'an. Scholarship generally regards the patriarchal stories of Genesis, including those concerning Isaac, as having their origin in folk memories and oral traditions of the early Hebrew pastoralist experience. |
|
|
Cite this article
"Isaac." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Isaac." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-Isaac.html "Isaac." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-Isaac.html |
|
Isaac
Isaac. Son of the Hebrew patriarch Abraham by his wife Sarah. His name is derived from the fact that his mother laughed (z̳ahaka) when told that she would bear a child (Genesis 18. 12). See also ʿAKEDA.
In Islam, Isaac (Isḥāq) is listed in the Qurʾān among the prophets (e.g. 4. 163), and named as the son, a ‘prophet, one of the righteous’ (37. 112) promised to Ibrāhīm (Abraham) (cf. 6. 84, 21. 72). Later Muslim tradition held that the son demanded in sacrifice was Ismāʿīl, though the Quranic account (37. 100–9) does not specify his name. |
|
|
Cite this article
JOHN BOWKER. "Isaac." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. 1997. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. JOHN BOWKER. "Isaac." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. 1997. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O101-Isaac.html JOHN BOWKER. "Isaac." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. 1997. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O101-Isaac.html |
|
Isaac
Isaac ♂ Biblical name, borne by the son of Abraham, who was nearly sacrificed by his father according to a command of God which was changed at the last moment. A ram, caught in a nearby thicket, was sacrificed instead (Genesis 22:1–13). Isaac lived on to marry Rebecca and become the father of Esau and Jacob. The derivation of the name is not certain; it has traditionally been connected with the Hebrew verb meaning ‘to laugh’. It was borne by both Christians and Jews in the Middle Ages and was taken up by the Puritans in the 16th century.
short forms: Zack, Zak, Zac. Pet form: Ike. |
|
|
Cite this article
PATRICK HANKS, KATE HARDCASTLE, and FLAVIA HODGES. "Isaac." A Dictionary of First Names. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. PATRICK HANKS, KATE HARDCASTLE, and FLAVIA HODGES. "Isaac." A Dictionary of First Names. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O41-Isaac.html PATRICK HANKS, KATE HARDCASTLE, and FLAVIA HODGES. "Isaac." A Dictionary of First Names. 2006. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O41-Isaac.html |
|
Isaac
Isaac, OT Patriarch. He was the Divinely promised son of Abraham and Sarah after a long childless marriage. To try Abraham's faith God asked Isaac in sacrifice, but, satisfied with the obedience of father and son, accepted a ram instead (Gen. 22). By Christians the sacrifice of Isaac is seen as prefiguring the Passion of Christ.
|
|
|
Cite this article
E. A. LIVINGSTONE. "Isaac." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. E. A. LIVINGSTONE. "Isaac." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O95-Isaac.html E. A. LIVINGSTONE. "Isaac." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. 2000. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O95-Isaac.html |
|
Isaac
Isaac Character of the Old Testament, and one of the Patriarchs. He was the only son of Abraham and Sarah. As a test of faith in God, Abraham was prepared to sacrifice Isaac, but at the last minute, he was told to sacrifice a lamb instead. Isaac married Rebecca and became the father of Jacob and Esau.
|
|
|
Cite this article
"Isaac." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Isaac." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-Isaac.html "Isaac." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-Isaac.html |
|
Isaac
|
|
|
Cite this article
ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "Isaac." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "Isaac." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-Isaac.html ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "Isaac." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-Isaac.html |
|
Isaac
Isaac •elegiac • Newark • Lubbock
•Caradoc, haddock, paddock, shaddock
•Marduk • piddock • Norfolk • Suffolk
•charlock
•hillock, pillock
•lilac
•ballock, pollack, pollock, rowlock
•bullock • hammock
•hummock, slummock, stomach
•bannock, Zanuck
•Kilmarnock • Greenock • monarch
•eunuch
•arrack, barrack, Baruch, carrack
•cassock, hassock
•tussock • Taoiseach • mattock
•buttock, futtock
•havoc • bulwark • wazzock • Isaac
|
|
|
Cite this article
"Isaac." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Isaac." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-Isaac.html "Isaac." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-Isaac.html |
|