Why God Sent Abraham to the Land of Moriah

"And He said, 'Take, please.'" The word "please" is nothing other than a term of request. "Your son." He said to Him, "Which son?" He said, "Your only one." He said to Him, "This one is the only son of his mother, and that one is the only son of his mother." He said, "Whom you love," and so forth (as above in section 62). "And go for yourself to the land of Moriah" (Genesis 22:2). Rabbi Chiyya the Elder and Rabbi Yannai differed. One said: to the place from which instruction (hora'ah) goes forth to the world. The other said: to the place from which reverence (yir'ah) goes forth. Similarly with the word "Aron" (the Ark): one said, the place from which light (orah) goes forth to the world, and the other said, the place from which reverence goes forth to the world. And similarly with the word "Devir" (the Holy of Holies): one said, the place from which speech (dibbur) goes forth to the world, and the other said, the place from which the commandments (dibberot) go forth to the world. Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi said: from there the Holy One shoots like an arrow (moreh) at the nations of the world and brings them down to Gehinnom. Rabbi [Shimon] ben Yochai says: to the place that corresponds (ya'ru'i) opposite the Temple that is above. Rabbi Yudan says: to the place that I am creating for you. Rabbi Pinchas said: from the place that is the dwelling of the Master of the world. The rabbis say: to the place where the incense is offered, as you say, "I will go to the mountain of myrrh (mor)" (Song of Songs 4:6). "And offer him up there as a burnt offering." He said before the Holy One, blessed be He, "Is there a sacrifice without a priest?" The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him, "I have already appointed you to be a priest." This is what is written, "The LORD has sworn and will not relent: You are a priest forever" (Psalms 110:4). "To the land that I will show you," and so forth (as written in section 63). To what may the matter be compared? To a king who said to his friend, "I long to see a small child on my table." Immediately his friend went and brought his own son and stood him on the table before the king, and went and brought a sword to slaughter him. The king cried out at him, "What are you doing?" He said to him, "But did you not say to me, 'I long to see him'?" He said to him, "Did I say so that he should die?" So the Holy One, blessed be He, said to Abraham, "Take, please, your son." "And Abraham stretched out his hand," and so forth. He said to him, "Do not lay your hand upon the lad." He said to Him, "But did You not say to me, 'Take, please, your son'?" He said to him, "Did I say to you to slaughter him? Rather, 'I will not profane My covenant, nor change what has gone forth from My lips' (Psalms 89:35)."