Fisher Digital Publications

Article Title

When Isaac Was a Priest

Authors

John W. Fadden, St. John Fisher UniversityFollow

Document Type

Faculty Essay

Abstract

In lieu of an abstract, below is the essay's first paragraph.

"On his deathbed, the patriarch Isaac received the important men from the city to talk to him. Among these men was an unnamed priest of God who requested Isaac to tell him a word (T. Isaac 4.8). In this moment, the Testament of Isaac¹¹ depicts Isaac as a priestly authority who is able to instruct priests. If you have not read ancient narratives in which Isaac plays a role, but have only read Genesis, you might be confused: Why does it represent Isaac in this manner? Was Isaac a priest? Nonetheless, the Testament of Isaac does not make up this representation of Isaac from out of nothing. In what follows, I sketch out relevant events from Isaac’s narrative tradition to show that there was a tradition of Isaac as a priest that makes this representation not unexpected.¹²

First Page

43

Last Page

50

Recommended Citation

Fadden, John W. (2013) "When Isaac Was a Priest," Verbum: Vol. 11: Iss. 1, Article 9.
Available at: https://fisherpub.sjf.edu/verbum/vol11/iss1/9