(4) Wash your feet.—This is the first necessity of Oriental hospitality (Judges 19:21), not merely because the feet, protected only by sandals, are soiled by the dirt of the roads, but because it cools the whole body, and allays the feverishness caused by the heat of travelling. Thus refreshed they are “to rest,” Heb., to lay themselves down, in the shade. read more
(5) Comfort ye your hearts.—Heb., strengthen ye, the original meaning of comfort, a word formed from the Latin fortis = strong, brave. The heart in Hebrew is the sum total of all the powers, mental and bodily, of the whole man.After that ye shall pass on.—Coming at noon, the travellers after rest and refreshment would continue their journey. It is quite plain that Abraham still regarded them as passing wayfarers.Therefore . . . —Abraham thus suggests that his tent was pitched near to the route... read more
Abraham's Intercession Genesis 18:16-33 When Scott the commentator was dying, we are told that he spoke much to those around him on the way in which his prayers for others had been answered. He thought he had failed less in the duty of intercession than in any other. Whether that be true of Scott or not, it is surely very true of Abraham. His nearness to God is never more apparent than when he intercedes for Sodom. Meyer notes these features of his prayer: (1) It was lonely prayer. 'He waited... read more
ABRAHAM’S INTERCESSION FOR SODOMGenesis 18:1-33THE scene with which this chapter opens is one familiar to the observer of nomad life in the East. During the scorching heat and glaring light of noon, while the birds seek the densest foliage and the wild animals lie panting in the thicket and everything is still and silent as midnight, Abraham sits in his tent door under the spreading oak of Mamre. Listless, languid, and dreamy as he is, he is at once aroused into brightest wakefulness by the... read more
CHAPTER 18 The Sixth Communication and Jehovah Visits Abraham 1. The manifestation (Genesis 18:1-2 ) 2. Abraham’s welcome (Genesis 18:3-8 ) 3. The promise repeated (Genesis 18:9-10 ) 4. Sarah’s laughter (Genesis 18:11-15 ) 5. The departure towards Sodom (Genesis 18:16 ) 6. Abraham’s intercession (Genesis 18:17-33 ) This most remarkable visitation was the answer of Jehovah to Abraham’s obedience of faith. The one in the middle was none other than Jehovah in human form; the other two... read more
18:2 And he lift up his eyes and looked, and, lo, three {a} men stood by him: and when he saw [them], he ran to meet them from the tent door, and bowed himself toward the ground,(a) That is, three angels in the shape of men. read more
18:3 And said, My {b} Lord, if now I have found favour in thy sight, pass not away, I pray thee, from thy servant:(b) Speaking to the one who appeared to be most majestic, for he thought they were men. read more
18:4 Let a little water, I pray you, be fetched, and {c} wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree:(c) For men used to go bare footed in those parts because of the heat. read more
18:5 And I will fetch a morsel of bread, and comfort ye your hearts; after that ye shall pass on: for therefore are ye {d} come to your servant. And they said, So do, as thou hast said.(d) As sent by God that I should do my duty to you. read more
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Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers - Genesis 18:3
(3) My lord.—Heb. ‘donai, a term of simple respect, just as the bowing towards the earth is exactly what an Arab sheik would do now to a passing traveller. Abraham’s conduct is marked by all that stately courtesy usual among Orientals. He calls himself their slave: regards it as a favour that they should partake of his hospitality; speaks slightingly of the repast prepared as a mere morsel of bread; and treats it as a providential act that they had come into his neighbourhood. It was only... read more