Isaac: The Passive Patriarch - Hardcover

by Shaul Bar (Author)

Throughout his life, Isaac remained a passive tent dweller. He did not go to find a wife; his servant brought a wife to him. He did not go to war; and when conflict arose, he withdrew. In the story of his binding, he was passive, and it appears as though he was bound forever on the altar. Isaac was dominated by his father Abraham, his wife Rebecca, Abimelech king of Gerar, and his sons Jacob and Esau. For most of his life, he is led by others, and his actions are reactions to the developing situations. He appears to have little personality and is better known as the son of his father Abraham, or the father of his sons Jacob and Esau.

Author Biography

Shaul Bar, Chair of Excellence, Judaic Studies, University of Memphis, is the author of A Letter That Has Not Been Read: Dreams in the Hebrew Bible (2001); I Deal Death and Give Life (2010); God's First King: The Story of Saul (2013); Daily Life of the Patriarchs (2014); A Nation Is Born: The Jacob Story (2016); and The Samson Story: Love, Seduction, Betrayal, Violence, Riddles, Myth (2018).