The medrash (Bereishit Rabbah 56:4) says that when Avraham Avinu was going to do the Akeida, the Satan came to him to dissuade him. He kept calling him crazy for going to kill his own son whom he had waited so long for. Avraham kept ignoring his antagonizing remarks, intent on doing Hashem’s will. The Yetzer HaRa then discouragingly asked, “If you are tested anymore, will you be able to withstand it?”
A person needs to familiarize himself with the tactics of the Yetzer HaRa so that he can defend himself against it. Rav Henoch Leibowitz tz”l teaches (Chiddushei HaLev Vayerah) that we learn from this medrash, that one of those tactics is that the Yetzer HaRa is to make a person give up. He will tell a person that he will never amount to the level a tzaddik gamur, and therefore should not bother to do any mitzvot. This is what the Yetzer said to Avraham; that he would not be able to do anymore difficult tests, and therefore should not bother with even doing the Akeida. This is certainly a discouraging thought that affects many people.
However, what the Yetzer HaRa says doesn’t make so much sense. Even if Avraham Avinu had done just the Akeida and not been able to do any greater tests after, he would still be a great tzaddik, even if he wasn’t a tzaddik gamur. What is the Yetzer HaRa’s logic in telling Avraham that since he won’t be a tzaddik gamur for doing the greater, harder tests, he should not even attempt to be a regular tzaddik by doing the Akeida? We know that inside every person is the desire to attain shleimut, completeness. If one doesn’t reach this he can become very upset and perhaps even stray from his Avodat Hashem in despair. [We know that despair, ye’ush, is the lowest negative middah and is associated with Amalek.] The Yetzer Hara’s intent in his words to Avraham was to put despair in Avraham that he would not be able to accomplish anything past the Akeida and therefore he would not reach the great level he yearned towards. From this feeling of incompleteness and failure to reach the ultimate goal, Avraham would lose hope and give up doing the Akeida, even though he had reached such a high level. This logic of the Yetzer Hara is strong and he felt this would be effective even against Avraham Avinu. Even his love for Yitzchak didn’t stop him from doing the Akeida, so he could only be dissuaded by something more powerful. But Avraham Avinu was so rooted in his Avodat Hashem; he was unwavering in bending to His will! The Yezter HaRa was not able to have any hold over him.
The Gemara (Yerushalmi Taanit Perek 2 Halacha 4) says in that when Hashem told Avraham to carry out the Akeida he said to Him, “Master of the World, You know that when You said bring him [Yitzchak] up as an olah, I had what to respond. Before You told me that through Yitzchak I would have children, and now You tell me to bring him as a korban. But I conquered my Yetzer HaRa to do Your will…” If one were to just think about this for a moment he would realize that this doesn’t seem right for Avraham Avinu to say HaKadosh Baruch Hu. After all, the ways of Hashem are truthful and just. The Torah Temimah writes, that perhaps we can resolve this based on the Gemara in Shabbos (55b) which says that a good thing was never said by Hashem that was then changed to bad. The Rambam writes that if a navi has a prophecy that good will turn to bad, “shinuy m’tovah l’ra’ah,” he need not heed it. Furthermore, it is asur to listen to a navi who proclaims such a prophecy for it is not a the way of Hashem to do such a thing. Perhaps this was what Avraham Avinu meant. L’halacha, he didn’t have to listen to the ruach hanevuah which told him to take Yitzchak; nor did Yitzchak have to listen to his father. After Hashem’s first promise to Avraham of his posterity, the instruction to do the Akeida was a change from good to bad. But despite this Avraham Avinu said he conquered his own will, “elah she’kavashti ritzoni.” His love of doing the mitzvot Hashem was so great that doing the Akeida was not in his eyes tovah l’raah, rather it was tovah l’tovah! It was all good to him because of his great Ahavat Hashem! He conquered whatever there was inside of him that said this was bad.
The Gemara (Yerushalmi Taanit Perek 2 Halacha 4) says in that when Hashem told Avraham to carry out the Akeida he said to Him, “Master of the World, You know that when You said bring him [Yitzchak] up as an olah, I had what to respond. Before You told me that through Yitzchak I would have children, and now You tell me to bring him as a korban. But I conquered my Yetzer HaRa to do Your will…” If one were to just think about this for a moment he would realize that this doesn’t seem right for Avraham Avinu to say HaKadosh Baruch Hu. After all, the ways of Hashem are truthful and just. The Torah Temimah writes, that perhaps we can resolve this based on the Gemara in Shabbos (55b) which says that a good thing was never said by Hashem that was then changed to bad. The Rambam writes that if a navi has a prophecy that good will turn to bad, “shinuy m’tovah l’ra’ah,” he need not heed it. Furthermore, it is asur to listen to a navi who proclaims such a prophecy for it is not a the way of Hashem to do such a thing. Perhaps this was what Avraham Avinu meant. L’halacha, he didn’t have to listen to the ruach hanevuah which told him to take Yitzchak; nor did Yitzchak have to listen to his father. After Hashem’s first promise to Avraham of his posterity, the instruction to do the Akeida was a change from good to bad. But despite this Avraham Avinu said he conquered his own will, “elah she’kavashti ritzoni.” His love of doing the mitzvot Hashem was so great that doing the Akeida was not in his eyes tovah l’raah, rather it was tovah l’tovah! It was all good to him because of his great Ahavat Hashem! He conquered whatever there was inside of him that said this was bad.
We should strive to emulate Avraham Avinu and overcome our Yetzer HaRa. Sometimes his tactics are clever and strong, but we must always keep Hashem before us and overcome him. Sometimes things may seem too hard for us to do, and sometimes things may be presented in a way where it seems like we don’t even have to do them (this happens a lot). However, we must try to internalize the same Ahavat Hashem which Avraham Avinu had so that we can succeed in our Avodat Hashem and bring ourselves even closer to Hakadosh Boruch Hu.
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