Charles Spurgeon Commentary Genesis 22:12

"And he said, Lay not thy hand upon the lad, neither do thou anything unto him. For now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son, from me." — Genesis 22:12 (ASV)

The necessary test had been applied, and Abraham's faith had endured the trial. God knows all things by his divine omniscience, but now he knew by this severe test and trial which he had applied, that Abraham really loved him best of all.

Notice that the angel says, "Now I know that you fear God." I do not think that the gracious use of godly fear has ever been sufficiently estimated by most of us; here, the stress is not laid upon the faith, but upon the filial fear of Abraham.

That holy awe, that sacred reverence of God, is the very essence of our acceptance with him. "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom." "The Lord takes pleasure in them that fear him." This is a very different thing from slavish fear; it is a right sort of fear, the kind of fear that love does not cast out, but which love lives with in happy fellowship.