The true nature of the Godhead was known for ages: the Father and the Son were known to be separate individuals, and the Father was worshiped in the name of the Son (Moses 1:17; 5:8). Even the law of Moses had as its basic purpose to point all souls to Christ. See also commentary at Mosiah 13:28–33.
Abraham’s near-sacrifice of his beloved son Isaac was a similitude of the Father’s sacrifice of his beloved Only Begotten Son. In fact, this is such an impressive and important likeness that in the book of Hebrews, Isaac is referred to as Abraham’s “only begotten son” (Hebrews 11:17). In addition, the episode stands as a supreme example of the kind of personal, total sacrifice required of all true disciples (D&C 101:4–5). The Prophet Joseph Smith stated, “The sacrifice required of Abraham in the offering up of Isaac, shows that if a man would attain to the keys of the kingdom of an endless life; he must sacrifice all things.” 9
Elder Bruce R. McConkie wrote: “I would suppose that among faithful people in ancient Israel, through all the ages from Abraham’s day onward, the favored illustration and the favored text to teach the people that the Only Begotten Son would be sacrificed to bring immortality to men would be the story of Abraham. There is nothing more dramatic than this in the whole biblical account.” 10