בְּרֹאשׁ הַשָּׁנָה, בַּחֹדֶשׁ הַשְּׁבִיעִי בְּאֶחָד לַחֹדֶשׁ (ויקרא כג).
On Rosh HaShanah [the congregation] reads the portion of “And on the seventh month, on the first of the month” (Lev. 23:23–25).
שנאמר (ויקרא כג, מד) וידבר משה את מועדי ה' אל בני ישראל מצותן שיהו קורין כל אחד ואחד בזמנו: .... בראש השנה (במדבר כט, א) בחדש השביעי ומפטירין (ירמיהו לא, כ) הבן יקיר לי אפרים ויש אומרים (בראשית כא, א) וה' פקד את שרה ומפטירין (שמואל א ב, א) בחנה והאידנא דאיכא תרי יומי יומא קמא כיש אומרים למחר (בראשית כב, א) והאלקים נסה את אברהם ומפטירין הבן יקיר
On Festivals and holidays, they read a portion relating to the character of the day, as it is stated: “And Moses declared to the children of Israel the appointed seasons of the Lord” (Lev. 23:44), which indicates that part of the mitzva of the Festivals is that the people should read the portion relating to them, each one in its appointed time.....On Rosh HaShana they read the portion of “On the seventh month” (Num. 29:1–6) and they read as the haftara “Is Ephraim My dear son?” (Jer. 31:1–20). And some say that they read “And the Lord visited Sarah” (Gen. 21). And they read as the haftara from the account of Hannah (I Sam. 1:1–2:10). And nowadays, when there are two days of Rosh HaShana, on the first day they read Genesis 21 in accordance with the opinion cited as: Some say. And on the next day they read “And God tested Abraham” (Genesis 22), and they read as the haftara “Is Ephraim My dear son?”
בפסח נולד יצחק .... בראש השנה נפקדה שרה רחל וחנה מנלן א"ר אלעזר אתיא פקידה פקידה אתיא זכירה זכירה כתיב ברחל (בראשית ל, כב) ויזכור אלקים את רחל וכתיב בחנה (שמואל א א, יט) ויזכרה ה' ואתיא זכירה זכירה מראש השנה דכתיב (ויקרא כג, כד) שבתון זכרון תרועה פקידה פקידה כתיב בחנה (שמואל א ב, כא) כי פקד ה' את חנה וכתיב בשרה (בראשית כא, א) וה' פקד את שרה
On Passover Isaac was born.... On Rosh HaShana, Sarah, Rachel, and Hannah were revisited by God and conceived children. From where do we derive this? Rabbi Elazar said: This is derived by means of a verbal analogy between one instance of the term revisiting [pekida] and another instance of the term revisiting, and between one instance of the term remembering [zekhira] and another instance of the word remembering. It is written about Rachel: “And God remembered Rachel” (Gen. 30:22), and it is written about Hannah: “And the Lord remembered her” (I Sam. 1:19). And the meaning of these instances of the term remembering is derived from another instance of the term remembering, with regard to Rosh HaShana, as it is written: “A solemn rest, a memorial proclaimed with the blast of a shofar” (Lev. 23:24). From here it is derived that Rachel and Hannah were remembered by God on Rosh HaShana. And the meaning of one instance of the term revisiting (“And the Lord revisited Sarah,” Gen. 21:1) is derived from another instance of the term revisiting (“And the Lord revisited Hannah” (I Samuel 2:21). Just as Hannah was revisited on Rosh HaShanah, so too, Sarah was revisited on Rosh HaShanah.
(טז) ויקרא ה' אל אברהם שנית בשם מן השמים כאשר צוני לדבר אליו בשם ה':
(יז) ויאמר בראשי נשבעתי נאום ה' כי יען אשר עשית את הדבר הזה ולא חשכת ממני את בנך את בכורך אשר אהבת:
(יח) כי ברך אברכך באמת והרבה ארבה את זרעך ככוכבי השמים וכחול אשר על שפת הים ויירש זרעך את שער אויביו:
(יט) והתברכו בזרעך כל גויי הארץ עקב אשר שמעת בקולי והראית לכל כי נאמן אתה לי בכל אשר צויתיך לך לשלום:
(כ) וילך אברהם אל נעריו ויקומו וילכו יחדו אל באר שבע וישב אברהם אצל הבאר שבעה:
(כא) ויעש את החג הזה מימים ימימה בשמחה שבעה ימים ויקרא לו חג ה' כפי שבעת הימים אשר הלך שמה וישב בשלום:
(כב) ובכן נועד ונכתב על לוחות השמים לישראל ולזרעו לעשות את החג הזה שבעה ימים בשמחה:
And the Lord called Abraham by his name a second time from heaven, as he caused us to appear to speak to him in the name of the Lord. And He said: "By Myself have I sworn, saith the Lord, Because thou hast done this thing, And hast not withheld thy son, thy beloved son, from Me, That in blessing I shall bless thee And in multiplying I shall multiply thy seed As the stars of heaven, And as the sand which is on the seashore. And thy seed will inherit the cities of its enemies, And in thy seed will all nations of the earth be blessed; Because thou hast obeyed My voice, And I have shown to all that thou art faithful unto Me in all that I have said unto thee: Go in peace." And Abraham went to his young men, and they arose and went together to Beersheba, and Abraham dwelt by the Well of the Oath. And he celebrated this festival every year, seven days with joy, and he called it the festival of the Lord according to the seven days during which he went and returned in peace. And accordingly hath it been ordained and written on the heavenly tables regarding Israel and its seed that they should observe this festival seven days with the joy of festival.
(יא) דָּבָר אַחֵר, הַחֹדֶשׁ הַזֶּה לָכֶם...מִשֶּׁבָּחַר הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא בְּעוֹלָמוֹ, קָבַע בּוֹ רָאשֵׁי חֳדָשִׁים וְשָׁנִים, וּכְשֶׁבָּחַר בְּיַעֲקֹב וּבָנָיו קָבַע בּוֹ רֹאשׁ חֳדָשִׁים שֶׁל גְּאֻלָּה שֶׁבּוֹ נִגְאֲלוּ יִשְׂרָאֵל מִמִּצְרַיִם וּבוֹ עֲתִידִין לִגָּאֵל.... וּבוֹ נוֹלַד יִצְחָק, וּבוֹ נֶעֱקַד....
New Testament Epistle to the Hebrews, chp. 11 (2nd c. CE)
By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to set out for a place that he was to receive as an inheritance; and he set out, not knowing where he was going. By faith he stayed for a time in the land he had been promised, as in a foreign land, living in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise…. By faith Abraham, when put to the test, offered up Isaac. He who had received the promises was ready to offer up his only son, of whom he had been told, "It is through Isaac that descendants shall be named for you" (Gen. 21:12). He considered the fact that God is able even to raise someone from the dead — and figuratively speaking, he did receive him back.
Augustine of Hippo, City of God Book XVI chp. 32 (5th c. CE)
Among other things, of which it would take too long time to mention the whole, Abraham was tempted about the offering up of his well-beloved son Isaac, to prove his pious obedience, and so make it known to the world, not to God…. In whose similitude [did Abraham sacrifice Isaac] but His of whom the apostle says, "He that spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all?" And on this account Isaac also himself carried to the place of sacrifice the wood on which he was to be offered up, just as the Lord Himself carried His own cross. Finally, since Isaac was not to be slain, after his father was forbidden to smite him, who was that ram by the offering of which that sacrifice was completed with typical blood? For when Abraham saw him, he was caught by the horns in a thicket. What, then, did he represent but Jesus, who, before He was offered up, was crowned with thorns by the Jews?
(ה) בן שלשים ושבע שנה היה יצחק בלכתו אל הר המוריה, וישמעאל בן חמשים שנה נכנס תחרות בין אליעזר וישמעאל אמ' ישמעאל לאליעזר עכשו אברהם הקריב את יצחק בנו מוקדה על המזבח ואני בכורו יורש אברהם אמ' לו אליעזר כבר גרשך כאשה שהיא מגורשת מבעלה ושלחך למדבר אבל אני עבדו משרת אותו ביום ובלילה ואני הוא היורש את אברהם ורוח הקדש משיבה אותם ואומרת להם לא זה יורש ולא זה יורש.
(ו) ביום השלישי הגיעו לצופים, וכיון שהגיעו לצופים ראה כבוד השכינה עומד על גבי ההר שנ' ביום השלישי וישא אברהם את עיניו וירא את המקום ומה ראה עמוד של אש עומד מן הארץ ועד השמים והבין אברהם שנתרצה הנער לעולה תמימה אמ' לישמעאל ולאליעזר רואים אתם מאומה באחד מן ההרים הללו אמרו לו לאו וחשב אותם כחמור, אמר הואיל ואין אתם רואים מאומה שבו לכם פה עם החמור, עם הדומים לחמור....
(י) ר' יהודה אומר, כיון שהגיע החרב על צוארו פרחה ויצאה נפשו של יצחק, וכיון שהשמיע קולו מבין הכרובים ואמר לו אל תשלח ידך, נפשו חזרה לגופו וקם ועמד יצחק על רגליו וידע יצחק שכך המתים עתידים להחיות, ופתח ואמ' ברוך אתה ה' מחיה המתים.
(יא) ר' זכריה אומר, אותו האיל שנברא בין השמשות היה, ובא להתקרב תחת יצחק, והיה סמאל עומד ומסטינו כדי לבטל קרבנו של אברהם אבינו, ונאחז בשני קרנותיו בין האילנות, שנ' וישא אברהם את עיניו וירא והנה איל אחר נאחז בסבך בקרניו. מה עשה אותו האיל, פשט את ידו ואחז בטליתו של אברהם אבינו ונאחז בשתי קרנותיו בין האילנות, שנ' וישא אברהם את עיניו וירא והנה איל אחר, והביט אברהם וראה האיל והלך והתירו והקריבו תחת יצחק בנו, שנ' וילך אברהם ויקח את האיל וכו'....
(יג) ר' חנניא בן דוסא אומר ... קרניו של איל, של שמאל שתקע בו בהר סיני שנ' ויהי במשוך בקרן היובל, ושל ימין שהיא גדולה משל שמאל שהוא עתיד לתקוע בה לעתיד לבא, שנ' והיה ביום ההוא יתקע בשופר גדול והיה ה' למלך על כל הארץ.
(5) Isaac was thirty-seven years old when he went to Mount Moriah, and Ishmael was fifty years old. Contention arose between Eliezer and Ishmael. Ishmael said to Eliezer: Now that Abraham will offer Isaac his son for a burnt offering, kindled upon the altar, and I am his first-born son, I will inherit (the possessions of) Abraham. Eliezer replied to him, saying: He has already driven thee out like a woman divorced from her husband, and he has sent thee away to the wilderness, but I am his servant, serving him by day and by night, and I shall be the heir of Abraham. The Holy Spirit answered them, saying to them: Neither this one nor that one shall inherit.
(6) On the third day they reached Zophim, and when they reached Zophim they saw the glory of the Shekhinah resting upon the top of the mountain, as it is said, "On the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes, and saw the place afar off" (Gen. xxii. 4). What did he see? (He saw) a pillar of fire standing from the earth to the heavens. Abraham understood that the lad had been accepted for the perfect burnt offering. He said to Ishmael and Eliezer: Do ye see anything upon one of those mountains? || They said to him: No. He considered them (as dull) as an ass. He told them: Since ye do not see anything, "Abide ye here with the ass" (ibid. 5), with such who are similar to the ass.... (10) Rabbi Jehudah said: When the blade touched his neck, the soul of Isaac fled and departed, (but) when he heard His voice from between the two Cherubim, saying (to Abraham), "Lay not thine hand upon the lad" (Gen. xxii. 12), his soul returned to his body, and (Abraham) set him free, and Isaac stood upon his feet. And Isaac knew that in this manner the dead in the future will be quickened. He opened (his mouth), and said: Blessed art thou, O Lord, who quickeneth the dead. ||
(11) Rabbi Zechariah said: That ram, which was created at the twilight, ran and came to be offered up instead of Isaac, but Sammael was standing by, and distracting it, in order to annul the offering of our father Abraham. And it was caught by its two horns in the trees, as it is said, "And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold, behind him a ram caught in the thicket by its horns" (ibid. 13). What did that ram do? It put forth its leg and took hold of the coat of our father Abraham, and Abraham looked, saw the ram, and he went and set it free. He offered it up instead of Isaac his son, as it is said, "And Abraham went and took the ram, and offered it up for a burnt offering in the stead of his son" (ibid.).... (13) Rabbi Chanina ben Dosa said: ....The horn of the ram of the left side (was the one) wherein God blew upon Mount Sinai, as it is said, "And it shall come to pass, that when the ram's horn soundeth long" (Josh. vi. 5). (The horn) of the right side, which is larger than that of the left, is destined in the future to be sounded in the world that is to come, as it is said, "And it shall come to pass in that day, that a great trumpet shall be blown" (Isa. xxvii. 13); and it is said, "And the Lord shall be king over all the earth" (Zech. xiv. 9).
“They read the haftarah from Hannah,” because she was visited on Rosh Hashanah, and they mention the binding of Isaac, because it recalls the Day of Judgment for us.
The Jewish Boy Who Became Pope (before the 16th c.)
A tale of Rabbi Simon the Great, who lived in Mainz. Rabbi Simon and his wife had a young son, who was stolen away by the Gentile woman who came to light the oven on Shabbat; she baptized him and left him at a monastery. The boy was so quick to learn that in short order he became pope. Although he remembered that he was a Jew and that Rabbi Simon was his father, it was only once he became pope that he realized he could compel his father to visit him. So he prohibited circumcision, ritual immersion, and Sabbath observance for the Jews of Mainz and waited for them to send a delegation of their leaders to appeal the ruling. Eventually, Rabbi Simon recognized his son and the two were reunited. (Jellinek, Beth ha-Midrasch, VI.137-9)
He [the pope] said: “My father! My father, what can I do to become one who goes to the World To Come, for I know that the teaching of Jesus is empty and is nothing?” His father said to him: “You have profaned the name of God in public; sanctify God's name in public, and I will accept you to me, and you will become one who goes to the World To Come.” He said to him: “In what way should I do it?” He said to him: “Summon all of your government, the kings and the dukes and the bishops; then you will sanctify the name of the Holy One, blessed be God.”
He did so, and purified himself, and went up to the head of the tower and cried: “Listen, all of you as to why you have been summoned, for until now I did not wish to reveal it to you, but now I reveal [it] to you: there is nothing in Jesus the Nazarene, for he was born from a woman just like any man, and therefore there is no hope in the end which you believe in!” The monks who advised him said: “Perhaps he has gone mad!” Then he said to them: “You think that a mad spirit has entered me? By my soul, it is the Spirit of God that is in me, and you are mad!” The monks decided to kill him lest he sway the people from their error. When he saw this, he jumped from the tower to the ground, saying: “Far be it that those impure ones kill me, for I believe in the God of my father.”
When his father, Rabbi Simon the Great, heard that he had sanctified the name, he praised and thanked God at once. He composed a yotser [for the second day of Rosh Hashanah] in the name of his son – ִit begins “a King whose word is faithful” – and he wrote in the verses the name of his son: “God has been gracious [el hanan], improving his inheritance,” for that was his son's name, Elhanan.