Why Abraham's Sacrifice Was the Hardest Test of All

Ari asks: "Shalom, there is something I can't understand about the greatest test of Avraham Avinu – the Binding of Isaac. After all, Avraham was a prophet who experienced personal revelation of the Creator of the Universe, who is present everywhere and controls every particle in existence. This is an unimaginable reality. When the One who created the world commands you directly, there can be no doubt that you must obey. So what exactly was the test in the Akeidah (Binding)? Was there really any choice for Avraham?"

* * *

Shalom Ari, and thank you for your question.

The lesson of the Akeidah is one of sacrifice to God. Some people read the story and imagine the pain of a parent losing a child and wrongly assume that Avraham’s experience was similar to theirs. However,  Avraham Avinu was no ordinary man, and his desires were not ordinary desires.

Avraham was a great prophet who foresaw the future of the nation that would descend from him, as it says: "Know well that your offspring shall be strangers in a land not theirs..." (Bereishit 15:13).

Avraham dedicated his entire life to God. He left his homeland at age 70, wandered through various lands during times of famine and drought, and withstood numerous trials. What was Avraham's greatest desire in this world?

The answer lies in how we refer to him. While Moses is called "Moshe Rabbeinu (our teacher)," we call Avraham "Avraham Avinu" – our father. Avraham’s deepest longing was to become the father of the Jewish nation, a people that would serve God and proclaim His Name in the world.

This desire was so central to him that he asked God for assurance: "How shall I know that I am to possess it?" (Bereishit 15:8). The nation he yearned to establish was more precious to him than any material good. As he said: "O Lord God, what can You give me, seeing that I shall die childless?" (Bereishit 15:2).

Eventually, he received a miraculous son through Sarah – Yitzchak – the very child through whom the Jewish nation would emerge: "For through Isaac shall your offspring be called" (Bereishit 21:12).

Yitzchak wasn’t just his beloved son, but he was the essence and purpose of Avraham’s entire life. Without him, everything Avraham worked for would be lost.

His love for Yitzchak was tied to his love for the Jewish people and his longing for the fulfillment of God’s covenant: "If you will obey My covenant, you shall be My treasured possession among all the peoples" (Shemot 19:5). What greater divine service could there be than to establish the nation that would receive the Torah?

The Akeidah was therefore the greatest act of sacrifice ever demanded of a human being. It wasn't just the loss of a beloved son, but the loss of an entire nation, and an eternal mission.

Because Yitzchak embodied all that Avraham longed for, the test was profoundly difficult. It required absolute submission to God's will, even when it contradicted everything he knew, hoped for, and lived for.

The Akeidah was, in essence, a spiritual resignation letter. God was asking him to give up his entire mission, his identity, his spiritual legacy. And yet, Avraham did not protest. With love and devotion, he rose early, saddled his donkey, and prepared the wood (Bereishit 22:3). Rashi comments: "He arose early — he was eager to fulfill the commandment."

The true test was internal, in the silent recesses of his heart. A prophet must obey, but how could he silence his emotions? How could he not rebel in his thoughts? How could he remain loving and faithful toward God, even in the face of such excruciating loss?

Avraham passed this unfathomable trial. He not only obeyed, he did so with joy, enthusiasm, and deep faith. In doing so, he demonstrated that his love for God surpassed all else — more than life, more than his child, more than his own divine mission.

Some people in this world are willing to sacrifice their lives for their mission, but how many are willing to sacrifice the mission itself?

Without this supreme test, Avraham’s story might have been that of a great man who suffered for a noble cause and succeeded. But through the Akeidah, he proved his love was not for reward or purpose, but for God alone.

Only through such pure, unconditional love could he become the father of the nation that would one day declare: "We will do and we will hear" (Shemot 24:7), and fulfill the commandment: "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your might" (Devarim 6:5).

The lesson of the Akeidah is a korban (sacrifice) to God, which in Hebrew means closeness — closeness to God.

We all have our own sacrifices to make in life for the sake of getting closer to God. Sometimes these sacrifices feel like giving up our greatest joys, our own “only son whom you love.” But at every stage in life, we can learn from Avraham that the impossible is possible when it’s for God — and from that sacrifice comes the greatest light.