Hebrews 11:19

King James Version

Accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead; from whence also he received him in a figure.

Parallel Translations

New American Standard Bible (1995)
He considered that God is able to raise people even from the dead, from which he also received him back as a type.

Legacy Standard Bible
He considered that God is able to raise people even from the dead, from which, figuratively speaking, he also received him back.

Simplified Cowboy Version
You ain't got to understand everything to have a heapin' of faith. If Isaac did die, Abe knew God had the power to bring him back. And in a way, that's what happened.

Bible in Basic English
Judging that God was able to give life even to the dead; and because of this he did get him back as if from death.

Darby Translation
counting that God [was] able to raise [him] even from among [the] dead, whence also he received him in a figure.

World English Bible
accounting that God is able to raise up, even from the dead. Figuratively speaking, he also did receive him back from the dead.

Wesley's New Testament (1755)
Accounting that God was able even to raise him from the dead; from whence also he received him in a figure.

Weymouth's New Testament
For he reckoned that God is even able to raise a man up from among the dead, and, figuratively speaking, it was from among the dead that he received Isaac again.

King James Version (1611)
Accounting that God was able to raise him vp, euen from the dead: from whence also he receiued him in a figure.

Literal Translation
reckoning that God was able to raise even from the dead; from where indeed he obtained him in a parable.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
For he considered, yt God was able to rayse vp agayne from the deed. Therfore receaued he him for an ensample.

Mace New Testament (1729)
concluding that God was able to raise him up, even from the grave; from whence, in a figurative sense, be may be said to have been recover'd.

Amplified Bible
For he considered [it reasonable to believe] that God was able to raise Isaac even from among the dead. [Indeed, in the sense that he was prepared to sacrifice Isaac in obedience to God] Abraham did receive him back [from the dead] figuratively speaking.

American Standard Version
accounting that God is able to raise up, even from the dead; from whence he did also in a figure receive him back.

Revised Standard Version
He considered that God was able to raise men even from the dead; hence, figuratively speaking, he did receive him back.

Tyndale New Testament (1525)
for he cosidered that God was able to rayse vp agayne fro deeth. Wherfore receaved he him for an ensample.

Update Bible Version
accounting that God [is] able to raise up, even from the dead; from where he did also in a figure receive him back.

Webster's Bible Translation
Accounting that God [was] able to raise [him] even from the dead; from whence also he received him in a figure.

Young's Literal Translation
reckoning that even out of the dead God is able to raise up, whence also in a figure he did receive [him].

New Century Version
Abraham believed that God could raise the dead, and really, it was as if Abraham got Isaac back from death.

New English Translation
and he reasoned that God could even raise him from the dead, and in a sense he received him back from there.

Berean Standard Bible
Abraham reasoned that God could raise the dead, and in a sense, he did receive Isaac back from death.

Contemporary English Version
because he was sure that God could raise people to life. This was just like getting Isaac back from death.

Complete Jewish Bible
For he had concluded that God could even raise people from the dead! And, figuratively speaking, he did so receive him.

English Standard Version
He considered that God was able even to raise him from the dead, from which, figuratively speaking, he did receive him back.

Geneva Bible (1587)
For he considered that God was able to raise him vp euen from the dead: from whence he receiued him also after a sort.

George Lamsa Translation
And he reasoned in himself, It is possible for God even to raise the dead, and because of this Isaac was given to him as a parable.

Christian Standard Bible®
He considered God to be able even to raise someone from the dead, and as an illustration, he received him back.

Hebrew Names Version
accounting that God is able to raise up, even from the dead. Figuratively speaking, he also did receive him back from the dead.

International Standard Version
He was certain that God could raise people from the dead, and figuratively speaking he did get him back in this way.Romans 4:17,19, 21;">[xr]

Etheridge Translation
For he thought within himself, that Aloha could [fn] even from the dead upraise [fn] : and on account of this in a similitude he was given to him.

Murdock Translation
And he reasoned with himself, that God was able even to raise [fn] from the dead: and therefore, in the similitude [fn] , he was restored to him.

New King James Version
concluding that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead, from which he also received him in a figurative sense.

New Living Translation
Abraham reasoned that if Isaac died, God was able to bring him back to life again. And in a sense, Abraham did receive his son back from the dead.

New Life Bible
Abraham believed God was able to bring Isaac back to life again. And so it may be said that Abraham did receive him back from death.

English Revised Version
accounting that God is able to raise up, even from the dead; from whence he did also in a parable receive him back.

New Revised Standard
He considered the fact that God is able even to raise someone from the dead—and figuratively speaking, he did receive him back.

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Accounting that, even from among the dead, God, was able, to raise him , - whence, even in similitude, he bare him away.

Douay-Rheims Bible
Accounting that God is able to raise up even from the dead. Whereupon also he received him for a parable.

Lexham English Bible
having reasoned that God was able even to raise him from the dead, from which he received him back also as a symbol.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
For he considered that God was able to rayse the dead vp agayne, fro whence also he receaued hym in a similitude [of the resurrection.]

Easy-to-Read Version
He believed that God could raise people from death. And really, when God stopped Abraham from killing Isaac, it was as if he got him back from death.

New American Standard Bible
He considered that God is able to raise people even from the dead, from which he also received him back as a type.

Good News Translation
Abraham reckoned that God was able to raise Isaac from death—and, so to speak, Abraham did receive Isaac back from death.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
For he demyde, that God is myyti to reise hym, yhe, fro deth; wherfor he took hym also in to a parable.

Contextual Overview

⁴ By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts: and by it he being dead yet speaketh. ⁵ By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God. ⁶ But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. ⁷ By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith. ⁸ By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went. ⁹ By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise: ¹⁰ For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God. ¹¹ Through faith also Sara herself received strength to conceive seed, and was delivered of a child when she was past age, because she judged him faithful who had promised. ¹² Therefore sprang there even of one, and him as good as dead, so many as the stars of the sky in multitude, and as the sand which is by the sea shore innumerable. ¹³ These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

God: Genesis 22:5,*Heb: Matthew 9:28, Romans 4:17-21, Ephesians 3:20

from the: Hebrews 11:11, Hebrews 11:12, Hebrews 9:24, Genesis 22:4, Genesis 22:13, Romans 5:14

Reciprocal: Genesis 18:11 - old Genesis 18:14 - Is Genesis 22:12 - Lay 1 Kings 17:21 - O Lord my God Ezekiel 37:3 - O Lord God Mark 10:27 - for John 4:50 - Go Romans 4:21 - he was able 2 Corinthians 1:9 - in God Galatians 4:24 - an allegory Hebrews 9:9 - a figure 1 Peter 3:21 - like

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead,.... Abraham did not go about this affair without thought; and yet he did not consult with flesh and blood; his reasoning was the reasoning of faith; and the conclusion of it was, not that he believed that God would raise his son from the dead, but that he was able to do it. He knew that he had received him at first, as it were, from the dead; he sprung from his own dead body, and out of Sarah's dead womb; and though his faith did not prescribe to God, yet as he believed the doctrine of the resurrection of the dead, he might believe that God would raise his son from the dead, rather than that his promise should fail; and this conclusion proceeded upon the power and faithfulness of God:

from whence also he received him in a figure; or for an "example" of faith and obedience; or for a "parable or proverb", that such a proverbial expression might be made use of, for the comfort and encouragement of saints in distressed and difficult circumstances, as is in Genesis 22:14 or as a type of the death and resurrection of Christ, whose type he was in other things, as well as in this; as in his birth, and the circumstances of it; he was long promised and expected, as Christ, was; his birth was beyond the ordinary course of nature, and attended with great joy; he was circumcised the eighth day; at his weaning a great feast was made, typical of the Gospel feast; and as he was persecuted by Ishmael, so was Christ by Herod, in his infancy: and he was a figure of him in his oblation; they were both sons of Abraham; both only begotten and beloved sons; both heirs; both carried the wood on which they were offered; both were offered on a Mount, and by their father, by whom neither of them were spared; and both by the command of God, and alone, none were with them: and Isaac prefigured him in his deliverance; Abraham stretched out his hand, but was restrained, and not a bone of Christ must be broken; not Isaac, but the ram was slain, not the divine, but the human nature suffered; both were delivered on the third day, the one as from death, the other really from death; and both returned to their father's house. Moreover, Abraham received his son in the similitude of a resurrection; it was as life from the dead; it was like the return of the prodigal, Luke 15:32. Abraham, looked upon him as dead to him, and Isaac thought himself a dead man; so that he that was accounted as one dead, was received alive. The Jews speak of this matter agreeably to the apostle; they say, a man has two breaths or souls, one in this world, and another in the world to come; and of Isaac they say d, that

"in the time that he was offered upon the altar, his soul (or "breath"), which he had in this world, "went out"; and when it was said to Abraham (or by him) blessed be he that quickeneth the dead, his soul (or breath), which he had in the world to come, returned to him--for אתחשב כמת, "he was accounted as dead".''

They speak of him as if he was just dead; they say e,

"when he saw the sword over his neck, his breath fled from him, and came to the place of the soul, כאילו היה, "as if he was at the point of giving up the ghost".''

So that a Jew cannot find fault with the apostle for expressing himself in this manner.

d Tosaphta in Zohar in Gen. fol. 46. 21. e Tzeror Hammor, fol. 58. 2. Pirke Eliezer, c. 31.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Accounting that God was able to raise him up even from the dead - And that he would do it; for so Abraham evidently believed, and this idea is plainly implied in the whole narrative. There was no other way in which the promise could be fulfilled; and Abraham reasoned justly in the case. He had received the promise of a numerous posterity. He had been told expressly that it was to be through this favorite child. He was now commanded to put him to death as a sacrifice, and he prepared to do it. To fulfil these promises, therefore, there was no other way possible but for him to be raised up from the dead, and Abraham fully believed that it would be done. The child had been given to him at first in a supernatural manner, and he was prepared, therefore, to believe that he would be restored to him again by miracle. He did not doubt that be who had given him to him in a manner at first so contrary to all human probability, could restore him again in a method as extraordinary. He, therefore, anticipated that he would raise him up immediately from the dead. That this was the expectation of Abraham is apparent from the narrative in Genesis 22:5, “And Abraham said unto his young men, Abide ye here with the ass; and I and the lad will go yonder and worship, and come again to you;” in the plural - ונּשׁובּה אליכם w^anaashuwbaah '^alēykem - “and we will return;” that is, I and Isaac will return, for no other persons went with them, Hebrews 11:6. As Abraham went with the full expectation of sacrificing Isaac, and as he expected Isaac to return with him, it follows that he believed that God would raise him up immediately from the dead.

From whence also he received him in a figure - There has been great difference of opinion as to the sense of this passage, but it seems to me to be plain. The obvious interpretation is that he then received him by his being raised up from the altar as if from the dead. He was to Abraham dead. He had given him up. He had prepared to offer him as a sacrifice. He lay there before him as one who was dead From that altar he was raised up by direct divine interposition, as if he was raised from the grave, and this was to Abraham a “figure” or a representation of the resurrection. Other interpretations may be seen in Stuart in loc. - The following circumstances will illustrate the strength of Abraham’s faith in this remarkable transaction.

(1) The strong persuasion on his mind that God had commanded this. In a case of this nature - where such a sacrifice was required - how natural would it have been for a more feeble faith to have doubted whether the command came from God! It might have been suggested to such a mind that this must be a delusion, or a temptation of Satan; that God “could not” require such a thing; and that whatever might be the appearance of a divine command in the case, there must be some deception about it. Yet Abraham does not appear to have reasoned about it at all, or to have allowed the strong feelings of a father to come in to modify his conviction that God had commanded him to give up his son. What an example is this to us! And how ready should we be to yield up a son - an only son - when God comes himself and removes him from us.

(2) The strength of his faith was seen in the fact that in obedience to the simple command of God, all the strong feelings of a father were overcome. On the one hand there were his warm affections for an only son; and on the other there was the simple command of God. They came in collision - but Abraham did not hesitate a moment. The strong paternal feeling was sacrificed at once. What an example this too for us! When the command of God and our own attachments come into collision, we should not hesitate a moment. God is to be obeyed. His command and arrangements are to be yielded to, though most tender ties are rent asunder, and though the heart bleeds.

(3) The strength of his faith was seen in the fact, that, in obedience to the command of God, he resolved to do what in the eyes of the world would be regarded as a most awful crime. There is no crime of a higher grade than the murder of a son by the hand of a father. So it is now estimated by the world, and so it would have been in the time of Abraham. All the laws of God and of society appeared to be against the act which Abraham was about to commit, and he went forth not ignorant of the estimate which the world would put on this deed if it were known. How natural in such circumstances would it have been to argue that God could not possibly give such a command; that it was against all the laws of heaven and earth; that there was required in this what God and man alike must and would pronounce to be wrong and abominable! Yet Abraham did not hesitate. The command of God in the case was to his mind a sufficient proof that this was right - and it should teach us that whatever our Maker commands us should be done - no matter what may be the estimate affixed to it by human laws, and no matter how it may be regarded by the world.

(4) The strength of his faith was seen in the fact that there was a positive promise of God to himself which would seem to be frustrated by what he was about to do. God had expressly promised to him a numerous posterity, and had said that it was to be through this son. How could this be if he was put to death as a sacrifice? And how could God command such a thing when his promise was thus positive? Yet Abraham did not hesitate. It was not for him to reconcile these things; it was his to obey. He did not doubt that somehow all that God had said would prove to be true; and as he saw but one way in which it could be done - by his being immediately restored to life - he concluded that that was to be the way. So when God utters his will to us, it is ours simply to obey. It is not to inquire in what way his commands or revealed truth can be reconciled with other things. He will himself take care of that. It is ours at once to yield to what he commands, and to believe that somehow all that he has required and said will be consistent with everything else which he has uttered.

(5) The strength of the faith of Abraham was seen in his belief that God would raise his son from the dead. Of that he had no doubt. But what evidence had he of that? It had not been promised. No case of the kind had ever occurred; and the subject was attended with all the difficulties which attend it now. But Abraham believed it; for, first, there was no other way in which the promise of God could be fulfilled; and second, such a thing would be no more remarkable than what had already occurred. It was as easy for God to raise him from the dead as it was to give him at first contrary to all the probabilities of the case, and he did not, therefore, doubt that it would be so. Is it less easy for us to believe the doctrine of the resurrection than it was for Abraham? Is the subject attended with more difficulties now than it was then? The faith of Abraham in this remarkable instance shows us that the doctrine of the resurrection of the dead, not withstanding the limited revelations then enjoyed, and all the obvious difficulties of the case, was early believed in the world; and as those difficulties are no greater now, and as new light has been shed upon it by subsequent revelations, and especially as in more than one instance the dead have been actually raised, those difficulties should not be allowed to make us doubt it now.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse 19. To raise him up, even from the dead — Abraham staggered not at the promise through unbelief, but was strong in faith, giving glory to God. The resurrection of the dead must have been a doctrine of the patriarchs; they expected a heavenly inheritance, they saw they died as did other men, and they must have known that they could not enjoy it but in consequence of a resurrection from the dead.

He received him in a figure. — εν παραβολη. In my discourse on parabolical writing at the end of "Matthew 13:58, I have shown (signification #9) that παραβολη sometimes means a daring exploit, a jeoparding of the life; and have referred to this place. I think it should be so understood here, as pointing out the very imminent danger he was in of losing his life. The clause may therefore be thus translated: "Accounting that God was able to raise him up from the dead, from whence he had received him, he being in the most imminent danger of losing his life." It is not, therefore, the natural deadness of Abraham and Sarah to which the apostle alludes, but the death to which Isaac on this occasion was exposed, and which he escaped by the immediate interference of God.