The Ladder of Divine Consciousness
The three altars that Abraham built express the three levels through which we can ascend in our relationship with G‑d. Abraham built his first altar to thank G‑d for the promise of sustenance, children, and a land in which they could live. This corresponds to observing G‑d’s commandments, which gives life to the soul and sustains its connection to the body.
Abraham built his second altar to acknowledge the Divine gift of repentance. This altar expresses how we deepen our relationship with G‑d in order to restore it after having sinned.
Abraham built his third altar purely for the sake of glorifying G‑d. This altar expresses our ability to abandon our sense of independent selfhood and fuse with Him. All reality will fully attain this level of Divine consciousness only in the Messianic Era, but our awareness of this fact fuels our yearning for the Messianic Era, and G‑d will hasten its arrival commensurate with our yearning for it.1