Filled with joy and gratitude (and possibly, relief), Abraham sees a ram caught in a thicket and sacrifices it upon the pyre instead of his son.
After this sacrifice, the Angel speaks to Abraham again:
‘I swear by myself, declares the LORD, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies, and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me.’
