5787/2026
Rashi explains that the Torah places Sarah Imeinu’s passing immediately after the Akeidah because the two events were connected. When Sarah heard what had happened to Yitzchak—how close he had come to being offered as a Korban—her Neshamah left her.
Some explain that Sarah passed away with a profound sense of fulfillment. She had raised a son who was ready to give his life to fulfill the Ratzon Hashem. In a sense, her mission in this world was complete. She had raised a son whose commitment to Hashem knew no limits.
Others emphasize the painful circumstances of her passing. Avraham Avinu and Yitzchak Avinu were away, and neither was there to share her final moments. After everything they had just experienced at the Akeidah, they returned home to another devastating test.
Rav Eliyahu Dessler offers a puzzling insight: one of Avraham’s greatest tests came when he returned from the Akeidah, discovered that Sarah had passed away, and had to purchase a burial plot.
This was such a great test? After being thrown into a fiery furnace? Leaving his homeland? Enduring famine? Having his wife taken from him twice? Being commanded to offer his own son? How could buying a burial plot compare to any of those experiences?
But consider where Avraham was at that moment. Sarah lay before him. His wife. His partner in building a life dedicated to Hashem and changing the world forever. Imagine the grief. Imagine the exhaustion. He had just returned from the Akeidah, and now he had to face the loss of the person who had stood beside him through everything.
And in that moment, he could not simply mourn. He had to negotiate. He had to navigate the back-and-forth with Bnei Chet and Ephron to secure a proper burial place for Sarah. What should have been straightforward became a difficult transaction at an enormous price.
Yet Avraham never lost his Derech Eretz. He spoke respectfully. He bowed before the people. He remained dignified throughout the entire exchange. His pain never became an excuse to mistreat someone else.
That was the Nisayon. Could Avraham remain true to who he was when he was overwhelmed by grief? Could he maintain his character when the circumstances made frustration so understandable?
We often measure greatness by the extraordinary moments: the sacrifices a person makes, the challenges he overcomes, the things he is willing to do for Hashem. But greatness also appears in the way a person speaks when he is hurting. In the patience he shows when he is exhausted. In the respect he gives when a difficult situation pushes him to his limits.
Avraham Avinu teaches us that Derech Eretz must remain part of who we are, especially when life gets hard.
We all face stressful moments. We all experience situations in which losing our patience feels justified. The challenge is to remember that our circumstances do not remove our responsibility for how we treat others. Even in his grief, Avraham never forgot who he was.
That is the lesson he leaves us in this week’s Parashah: our character is revealed by the way we carry ourselves through our hardest moments.