derful picture, observe how Gen. 22 anticipated, in type, the Ascension of Christ! It is very striking to note that after we read of Isaac being laid upon the altar (from which Abraham received him back) nothing further is said of him in Gen. 22. Mark carefully the wording of verse 19 "So Abraham returned unto his young men, and they rose up and went together to Beer-Sheba." Our type leaves Isaac up in the mount!

This article would not be complete did we say nothing about the remarkable trial of Abraham's faith and of the Divine grace which sustained him, yet, a very brief word is all we now have space for.

The spiritual history of Abraham was marked by four great crises, each of which involved the surrender of something which was naturally dear to him. First, he was called on to separate himself from his native land and kindred (Gen. 12:1); Second, he was called on to give up Lot (Gen. 13: 1-18); Third, he had to abandon his cherished plan about Ishmael (Gen. 17:17, 18); Fourth, God bade him offer up Isaac as a burnt offering. The life of the believer is a series of tests, for only by discipline can Christian character be developed. Frequently there is one supreme test, in view of which all others are preparatory. So it was with Abraham. He had been tested again and again, but never as here. God's demand is, "Son, give Me thine heart (Pro. 23:26). It is not our intellect, our talents, our money, but our heart, God asks for first. When we have responded to God's requirement, He lays His hand on something especially near and dear to us, to prove the genuineness of our response, for God requireth truth in the inward parts and not merely on the lips. Thus He dealt with Abraham. Let us consider now, The Time of Abraham's Trial.

It was "after these things" that God did try Abraham; that is, it was after the twenty-five years of waiting, after the promise of a seed had been frequently repeated, after hope had been raised to the highest point, yea, after it had been turned to enjoyment and Isaac had reached man's estate. Probably Abraham thought that when Isaac was born his trials were at an end; if so, he was greatly mistaken. Let us look now at, The Nature of Abraham's Trial. Abraham was bidden to take his son-and what? Deliver him to some other hand to sacrifice? No: be thou thyself the priest; go, offer him up for a burnt offering.

This was a staggering request! When Ishmael was thirteen years old, Abraham could have been well contented to have gone without another son, but when Isaac was born and had entwined himself around the father's heart, to part with him thus must have been a fearful wrench. Add to this, the three days' journey, Isaac having to carry the wood and Abraham the knife and fire up the mountainside, and above all, the cutting question of the son asked in the simplicity of his heart, without knowing he himself was to be the victim-"Behold the fire and the wood: but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?" (22:8)-this would

seem to be more than the human heart could bear. Yet, this shock to Abraham's natural affection was not the severest part of the trial. What must it have been to his faith. It was not only that Isaac was his son, but the promised seed, the one in whom all the great things spoken of the seed were to be fulfilled. When he was called to give up his other son God condescended to give him a reason for it, but here no reason was given. In the former case, though Ishmael must go, it was because he was not the child of promise ("in Isaac shall thy seed be called"), but if Isaac goes who shall substitute for him? To offer up Isaac was to sacrifice the very object of faith! Turn now and consider, Abraham's Response.

Mark his promptitude. There was no doubt or delay, and no reluctance or hesitation; instead, he "rose up early in the morning." There was no opposition either from natural affection or unbelief, rather did he bow in absolute submission to the will of God. Faith triumphed over natural affection, over reason, and over self-will. Here was a most striking demonstration of the efficacy of Divine grace which can subdue every passion of the human heart and every imagination of the carnal mind, bringing all into unrepining acquiescence to God. And what was the effect of this trial upon Abraham? He was amply rewarded, for he discovered something in God he never knew before, or at most knew imperfectly, namely, that God was JehovahJireh-the Lord who would provide. It is only by passing through trials that we learn what God is-His grace, His faithfulness, His sufficiency. May the Lord grant both writer and reader more of that power of faith which, with open hand, takes every blessing which God gives us, and with open hand gives back to Him, in the spirit of worship.

GENESIS 26

In our last two articles we have been occupied more particularly with the person of Isaac, now we are to review his history. It is noticeable that though Isaac lived the longest of the four great patriarchs yet less is recorded of him than of the others: some twelve chapters are devoted to the biography of Abraham, and a similar number each to Jacob and Joseph, but excepting for one or two brief mentionings, before and after, the history of Isaac is condensed into a single chapter. Contrasting his character with those of his father and son, we may remark that of Isaac there is noted less of Abraham's triumphs of faith and less of Jacob's failures.

As we have seen in our previous studies Isaac, typically, represents sonship. In perfect consonance with this we may note how he was appointed heir of all things. Said Eliazer to Bethuel, "And Sarah my master's wife bare a son to my master when she was old: and unto him hath he given all that he hath" (24:36). Observe how this is repeated for sake of emphasis in 25: 5-"And Abraham gave all that he had unto Isaac." In the type this pointed first to Abraham's greater Son, "Whom He (God) hath appointed Heir of all things" (Heb. 1:2). But it is equally true of all those who are through faith the children of Abraham and the children of God-"And if children, then heirs: heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ" (Rom. 8: 17). As with Isaac, so with us: all the wealth of the Father's house is ours! But Isaac not only represented the believer's sonship and heirship, but he also foreshadowed our heavenly calling. As is well known to most of our readers, the land of Canaan typified the Heavenlies where is our citizenship (Phil. 3:20) and our spiritual warfare (Eph. 6:12). Hence it was that Isaac alone of the patriarchs is never seen outside the Land. This is the more noticeable and striking when we remember how that Abraham, Jacob and Joseph each did leave the Land, for a time at least.

Having looked at Isaac mystically we shall now consider him morally. The first thing we read about him after the remarkable scene pictured in Gen. 22 is that "Isaac came

from the way of the well Lahai-roi; for he dwelt in the south country. And Isaac went out to meditate (or pray) in the field at the eventide" (24: 62, 63). This gives us a good insight into Isaac's character. He was of the quiet and retiring order. He had not the positive, active, aggressive disposition of his eminent father, but was gentle and retiring and unresisting. In One only do we find all the Divine graces and perfections.

Isaac was essentially the man of the well. Abraham was markedly the man of the altar, Jacob specially the man of the tent but that which was most prominent in connection with Isaac was the "well." The first thing said of Isaac after he was bound to the altar (Gen. 22) is, "Isaac came from the way of the well Lahai-roi" (24: 62). This is very striking coming as the next mention of Isaac after we have seen Christ typically slain, resurrected and ascended (compare our last article on Gen. 22). Hence that which follows here in the type is the figure of the Holy Spirit's operations as succeeding Christ's Ascension! But returning to Isaac and the well. The next time he is referred to we are told, "And it came to pass after the death of Abraham, that God blessed his son Isaac; and Isaac dwelt by the well Lahai-roi" (25:11). And again we read, "And Isaac departed thence, and pitched his tent in the valley of Gerar, and dwelt there. And Isaac digged again the wells of water which they had digged in the days of Abraham his father; for the Philistines had stopped them" (26: 18, 19). For further references see Gen. 26:20, 21, 22, 25. It is very striking and significant that the name of Isaac is associated with "wells" just seven times, not less, not more. Undoubtedly there is some important lesson to be gathered from this.

A well differs from a cistern, in that it is the place of running water. What a marvelous hint of the typical meaning of Isaac's well is that found in 26: 19!-"And Isaac's servants digged in the valley, and found there a well of springing water," the margin gives, "of living water"! Water is imperative for the maintenance of the natural life; so, too, is it with the spiritual. The first need of the believer is the "living water," that is, the Spirit acting through the Word. "The way that water ministers to life and growth is indeed a beautiful type of the Spirit's action. Without water a plant will die in the midst of

abundance of food in actual contact with its roots. Its office is to make food to be assimilated by the organism, and to give power to the system itself to take it up" (F. W. G.).

The first well by which Isaac is seen is that of Lahai-roi (24: 62; 25:11), the meaning of which is, "Him that liveth and seeth me" (See 16:14). It told of the unfailing care of the ever-living and ever-present God. And where is such a "well" to be found to-day? Where is it we are brought to realize the presence of this One? Where but in the Holy Scriptures! The Word of God ministered to us by the power and blessing of the Spirit is that which reveals to us the presence of God. The "well," then, typifies the place to which the son is brought-into the presence of God. His remaining there, practically, depends upon his use of and obedience to the Word.

We have just looked at Isaac by the Well of Lahai-roi; did he remain there? What do you suppose is the answer, reader? Could you not supply it from your own experience! "And there was a famine in the land, besides the first famine that was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went unto Abimelech, king of the Philistines unto Gerar" (26:1). Isaac's departure from the well Lahai-roi to Gerar typifies the failure of the son (the believer) to maintain his standing in the presence of God and his enjoyment of Divine fellowship. But is it not blessed to read next, "And the Lord appeared unto him, and said, Go not down into Egypt; dwell in the land which I shall tell thee of. Sojourn in this land, and I will be with thee, and will bless thee, for unto thee, and unto thy seed, I will give all these countries, and I will perform the oath which I sware unto Abraham thy father" (26:2, 3). Apparently, Isaac was on his way to Egypt, like his father before him in time of famine, and would have gone there had not the Lord appeared to him and arrested his steps. In passing, we would remark that here we have a striking illustration of the sovereign ways of God. To Isaac the Lord appeared and stayed him from going down to Egypt, yet under precisely similar circumstances He appeared not unto Abraham!

"And Isaac dwelt in Gerar" (26:6). Gerar was the borderland midway between Canaan and Egypt. Note that God had said to Isaac, "Sojourn in this land” (v. 3), but