Abraham’s Sacrifice

The motif of God testing a faithful servant dominates the narrative in Chapter 22, Test of Abraham in Genesis. Moreover, the theme of sacrificing a precious possession, in this case, Abraham’s only son, shows how Abraham’s trust in God will later reward him with prolific number of descendants. In the story, God asks Abraham to sacrifice his only son, Isaac, as a sacrifice for God, without telling him the purpose of his request. Abraham immediately agrees to follow God’s command without a single doubt in his mind, since he believes that there must be a reason behind God’s request. Then, right before Abraham gives the killing blow with his knife, God sent a lamb to stop the sacrifice saying that he was testing Abraham’s belief in God’s infallibility and how God values humanity’s trust. Thus, Abraham’s devotion towards God mirrors God’s love and devotion toward humanity.

This prevalent motif of trust and credence is amplified by the theme of sacrificing one’s most precious possession, whether it is physical or mental. In “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn”, Huck essentially goes against the society’s ideals by helping Jim escape, which could almost equate to stealing a precious property from Miss Watson, Jim’s owner. By going against his own race, Huck decided to continue to help Jim escape by saying “All right, then, I’ll go to Hell”, and then tore up his letter to Miss Watson about returning Jim. In this case, Huck is not only risking his life to help out Jim, he is sacrificing his own freedom and to pursue his belief, which is similar to how Abraham is willing to sacrifice Isaac, his precious son, at the will of God without a doubt in his mind. In the end, Abraham also received many descendants as a reward for his faithfulness in God, which is similar to how Huck is rewarded in the end, by earning true freedom and a chance to venture out into the “wild west”.