Honest Abe

Although I read the three chapters preceding the story of Abraham and Issac, I still am not sure what compelled this man to attempt to sacrifice his own son. I think God may have commanded him to, in which case any sane man would. After all, what god giveth, he may also taketh away. The morning of the sacrifice to be, Issac and Old Abe woke up, stretched and then stepped out to make their daily burnt offerings to the Lord. Then Issac starts asking all these crazy questions like, " Gee Pop, if we're going to make an offering to God and whatnot, don't you think we oughta have a calf?" to which Abraham presumably responded tearily, "Shut up kid and keep walking". The Abe bound up his one and only boy and was about to do the deed for the love of God when a voice came down from the heavens telling Abe that God was only foolin' and he didn't think anyone would go that far. For this great show of macabre willpower, Abraham gets to keep his son with the added promise of his offspring being as plentiful as the stars. Billions and billions of offspring.