The midrash elaborates by explaining that after Abraham's early departure (for Moriah) Sarah grew more and more worried about the welfare of her son. By the third day - the day of the Akedah itself - she decided to go look for him. When Sarah reached Hebron, however, the evil one disguised himself as her (disfigured) son. When she saw him, she asked: "My son, what has your father done to you?" He answered, "My father took me and made bound me on the altar. He then took the knife to slaughter me. If the Holy One had not called out, 'Do not cast your hand on this boy,' I would have been slaughtered." When she heard how her son had been bound on the altar, Sarah was so overcome with fright that her soul had departed from her" (Midrash Tanchuma).
Therefore when the Torah says, "And Abraham came to mourn for Sarah and to cry for her" (Gen. 23:2), the sages say that he was returning directly from Mount Moriah, the place of the sacrifice of Isaac. (This also explains why Isaac was not present at his mother's funeral since he had fled from Abraham and sought refuge with Shem in Salem after the terrifying ordeal).
Two things here. The first one jumped out at me hard. This little blerb is talking about the fallout from Abraham and Isaac on Mount Moriah - and the non-biblical tradition states that Isaac took off and had some time apart from dad, hanging out with Shem in Salem (the original city of Jerusalem, where Jeru = City and Salem = Shalom = Peace). This is the same High Priest that, according to Hebrews Ch 7, was Melchizedek and to whom Abraham paid his tithing to and to whom Abraham went to receive the Sacrament (break bread and wine). By deduction, this Shem and Melchizedek are one in the same! The ONLY other place I have read that is a passing statement in Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, where he states that Shem (one of the three sons of Noah, who held the garment of the Priesthood of his father, Noah that was handed down from Adam) is one in the same with Melchizedek and who received the birthright after Ham messed up and attempted to take it by force. Now, this Melchizedek was taken up to heaven with the inhabitants of the city of Salem - city of Enoch style. I imagine it was a small city, but it was taken up nonetheless!
If this is correct, then there was some major geological disturbances as this city and the land mass it was attached to was pulled into heaven. Every time there was one of these events, the earth was heavily shaken according to statements from those who have seen them in vision. The shakings that occur once again as the winding-up scenes occur and these portions return to the earth that were previously taken.
The thought popped into my head as I was reading this. Melchizedek and the city of Salem going up, the great upheaval in the plains of Mamre where Sodom and Gomorrah used to reside. While this possible scenario is simply not doctrine (at least explicitly stated in scripture, nor by anyone of this last dispensation that I have read), it is delicious to my mind - and I would bet dollars to donuts that there is a connection!
Cool beans!
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