The Akeidah as foundation of all tikkun

ברש"י נלכה עד כה. היכן מ"ש כה יהי' זרעך.

In Rashi: "we will go until 'koh' (here/thus)" — to where it was said, "so (koh) shall be your offspring" (Bereishis 15:5).

Rashi reads Avraham's words "we will go yonder (ad koh)" as alluding to Hashem's promise "koh yihyeh zar'echa" — that his offspring would be as numerous as the stars.

הענין הוא עפ"י מ"ש במ"א כי עיקר נסיון העקידה הי' מה שידע אברהם אע"ה כי עתידין בני ישראל לעמוד ממנו כמ"ש ואעשך לגוי גדול וע"ז הי' מצפה כל ימיו.

The matter is, according to what was explained elsewhere, that the essence of the test of the Akeidah was that Avraham avinu, alav hashalom, knew that Bnei Yisrael were destined to descend from him — as it says, "and I will make you a great nation" — and for this he had hoped all his days.

The real difficulty of the Akeidah was not merely losing a son, but that all of Avraham's lifelong hope — that an entire holy nation would come from Yitzchak — seemed to be cut off.

ועתה הלך לשחוט בנו.

And now he was going to slaughter his son.

Despite that hope, Avraham went to fulfill Hashem's command and offer the very son through whom the promise would be fulfilled.

וזה סימן גדול להנאמן ליוצרו להיות זהיר במצוה קלה כבחמורה מאחר שכן רצונו ית' אם כי לכל זכיות ועבודת כל זרע ישראל הוא דבר שאין לו סוף ותכלית.

And this is a great sign for one who is faithful to his Maker — to be as careful with a "light" mitzvah as with a "weighty" one, since such is His will, yisborach, even though all the merits and avodah of the entire offspring of Yisrael is something without end or limit.

Avraham teaches that one loyal to Hashem treats every mitzvah, light or weighty, with equal seriousness — because it is Hashem's ratzon — even at the apparent cost of something of infinite value like the future of all Klal Yisrael.

ומ"מ נתן הכל בעבור לקיים מצוה אחת בשעתה.

And nonetheless he gave up everything in order to fulfill one mitzvah in its moment.

Avraham was willing to surrender that boundless future for the sake of carrying out a single command of Hashem at the time it was given.

וממילא נכנס עתה אברהם אע"ה לתקן במעשה זו כל מה שעתידין בנ"י לתקן עד סוף כל הדורות ז"ש ונלכה עד כה.

And automatically Avraham avinu, alav hashalom, now entered, through this deed, to rectify all that Bnei Yisrael are destined to rectify until the end of all generations — and this is the meaning of "and we will go until koh."

Precisely because he gave up everything for one mitzvah, Avraham's act of the Akeidah encompassed and made possible all the future tikkun of Klal Yisrael, reaching all the way to "koh" — the promise of his countless descendants.

דכתיב כה יהי' זרעך פי' שבנ"י יתקנו בחי' מלכותו ית' שאינו ניכר בעוה"ז שזה ההפרש שאמרו חכמים בין זה הדבר לכה אמר ה' שהוא התגלות ההארה מתוך החושך וע"ז נכנס לתקן הכל עתה.

As it is written, "so (koh) shall be your offspring" — meaning that Bnei Yisrael will rectify the aspect of His malchus (kingship), yisborach, which is not recognized in this world. This is the distinction the Chachamim drew between "this is the thing (zeh hadavar)" and "so says Hashem (koh amar Hashem)" — for "koh" is the revealing of illumination from within the darkness; and for this Avraham entered to rectify everything now.

"Koh" (so/thus) signifies an indirect, veiled revelation — Hashem's kingship shining out from within concealment, unlike the clear "zeh" of direct prophecy. Bnei Yisrael's task is to reveal that hidden malchus, and Avraham planted the seed of this tikkun through the Akeidah.

והנה באמת הי' זה הכנה לכל מעשה בנ"י וע"י המחשבה טובה של אאע"ה.

And indeed this was truly a preparation for every deed of Bnei Yisrael, by means of the good intention (machshavah tovah) of Avraham avinu, alav hashalom.

Avraham's pure intention at the Akeidah laid the spiritual groundwork enabling every future mitzvah performed by his descendants.

הקב"ה מצרפה למעשה הבנים.

The Holy One, Blessed is He, joins it (Avraham's good intention) to the deeds of the children.

Hashem attaches Avraham's lofty machshavah to the actual mitzvos of Bnei Yisrael, so that his merit empowers their deeds throughout the generations.

וז"ש המאכלת שבנ"י אוכלין מתן שכרה:

And this is the meaning of "the slaughtering knife (ma'acheles)" — that Bnei Yisrael "eat" the reward it earned (the Midrash links ma'acheles to achilah, eating).

The "knife" of the Akeidah is called ma'acheles because the reward Avraham generated through it continues to nourish and benefit Bnei Yisrael in every generation, who "eat" of its merit.

Summary: The true test of the Akeidah was that Avraham gave up his lifelong hope — the boundless future of Klal Yisrael — to fulfill a single command of Hashem in its moment. By doing so he laid the foundation for all the tikkun his descendants would ever accomplish, especially the revealing of Hashem's hidden malchus ("koh") from within the world's concealment, and his good intention is forever joined to their deeds, its reward nourishing Bnei Yisrael in every generation.