זוהר בראשית — דף קמ ע”א

The Zohar notes that God did not judge Adam as he deserved and prolonged His patience; likewise, He does not judge a person according to his evil deeds, or the world could not endure. He holds back His anger with the righteous, and even more with the wicked, so that they may return in complete repentance and live in this world and the world to come, or so that a good lineage may come from them, as Abraham came from Terah. With the righteous He is exacting in everything and tests them, not for His own sake but to raise their heads. Thus “God tested Abraham” means He raised a banner, and Abraham’s flag was lifted in everyone’s sight. The text then turns to “the righteous is tested” and to the fact that the divine will inclines to the soul and not to the body.