Ch 18 Angels Visit Abraham

Chapter 18 is a beautiful story that depicts before us the uh wonderful hosting of guests by Abraham, the patriarch. And to a large extent, it is the source for the ancient Jewish tradition of hosting guests, um, to this day. But before we approach the story in of itself, we first, uh, have to understand it within its context.

Chapter 18 in the mastic text, in its form, doesn't stand alone, but rather it is part of an ongoing text which indeed begins in chapter 18 but continues till the end of chapter 19. And in these two chapters, we see no line breaks, um, no indents, what are called, um, orot, a new a line, an open-ended line, or a just an indent. All these are signs of new paragraphs, new topics. But here we have a flow of text that begins in chapter 18 and, uh, continues on till the end of chapter 19. A lengthy, uh, text body of text. And and hence, there are already physical signs in the in the text that show that this was viewed as one ongoing story. And indeed, even though it's separated into two chapters, if we analyze, um, the content, we clearly see connections. Um, we have two chapters that could be broken up, I think, into four units. And I'll share with you an overview of the chapter in our source sheet. I broke it up into four. The first section is the story that we mentioned in our introduction, the visit of the angels to Abraham and his hiding of his son to be born, Sarah. Then we have the Lord's announcement regarding judgment of Dum. And then the lengthy debate, Abraham's attempt to save the city. Then chapter 19 moves to dome, and then we have the judgment of zom, and the saving of Lot and his family. And finally, the end of chapter 19 recounts Lot and his daughters in the cave and the birth of Lot's offspring, Amon and Moab.

Now, for one, we immediately see that the two chapters are connected through quisitive angels because the angels visit Abraham and then they continue on from Abraham to S. That's obviously one clear connection. Furthermore, we can see the flow of time in the text because they visit Abraham in the afternoon, in the hot sun, and then they reach Lot after being hosted by Abraham. They reach Lot in D, in in the evening. And and eventually Lot escapes, um, at the end of the day, and the following night, we have the story of Lot and his daughters in in the cave. So we got a clear flow, uh, chronological flow, which also ties together, uh, the narrative. And in addition, we have many linguistic parallels, parallels of motifs. The the most blatant, the hosting by by L, which parallels the hosting of the angels by Abraham. And if we also take a look and the overview structure, and here you can see it, there seems to be a chastic structure between these four, um, units within the larger narrative because we be we begin with a visit of angels that ultimately leads leads to the tidings of a new son that will be born Abraham and Sarah, and the story ends with the birth of the offspring of Lot. So we've got, um, both the beginning and end relating to, um, The Offspring of two of our Central characters, Abraham and Lot. And the middle sections, section sections B and C, if you will, um, both deal with the issue of the judgment of zom. First, Abraham trying to save zom in his, uh, debate with God, and later the actual judgment of zom, in which city is not saved, of course, rather destroyed, but Lot and his family are, uh, saved. So we can see, and I also highlighted the color code so you can see the connections, topics, right, that we have some chastic structure underline this narrative. And in addition, you can also see the narrative as two parallel, um, stories, right, of hosting angels. First one was Abraham, second one was Lot.

All this clearly shows that, um, in its present position, the story of the visit of the angels of Abraham doesn't stand alone, but is part of a larger narrative. I emphasize this because many dionic scholars, um, have put efforts into dissecting the story and breaking it up into its separate units, claiming that each unit stood alone. Whatever the may be, as far as the history of the narrative, um, it is clear that in its present state, it all these units are tied together and basically comprise one extended and intricate and very beautiful narrative. So with that as an introduction to the, um, context of chapter 18, this lecture, uh, will allow us to focus on, uh, the first chapter. And we right away will begin with the beautiful story of the visit of the angels to Abraham.

So the Story begins. Now the Lord appeared to him. Notice, to him, without even mentioning Abraham's name, as if it's an immediate continuation, right? It doesn't even stand alone, uh, in of itself, but it's part of the larger Abraham narrative. This is not a way to begin a new story, right? Who is him? We know in its context, of course, it is Abraham. Um, and this continuity led already to early commentators, including the Jewish sages, to connect between chapter 18 and chapter 17, that this visit of the Lord is actually right after Abraham's circumcised himself. So it's kind of an example of visiting the sick. Um, God himself is visiting Abraham, and right after he performed the act of circumcision. This is according to the old Jewish, uh, tradition of interpretation by the sages.

So the Lord appeared to him by The Oaks of MRE, while he was sitting at the tent at the tent Door In the Heat of the day. The location, tent door, is a prominent motif here, um, and symbolizes, um, the open tent, right? Abraham's being open to host guests and strangers. Now, now the emphasis of the time, in the heat of the day, is also, um, very precise in its language. It doesn't, it doesn't state afternoon. So that would be that would be the Hebrew, but it says, "In the Heat of the day." The original Hebrew. And I think this is meant to emphasize, right, um, how challenging it would be to do everything that Abraham is about to do because we're talking about midafternoon on a very hot, in a location, The Oaks of Mamre, that's the area of Hebron. We're talking on the borders of the desert, a place that can get quite hot on a midsummer's day. So this is like the title of our, um, little narrative here, the Lord appearing before Abraham.

We continue on in verse two. When he lifted up his eyes and looked, behold, three men were standing opposite him. And when he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them and bowed himself to the Earth. So if we notice here, we have, um, a double mention of Abraham's seeing, right? Let's take a look at the Hebrew for a second down below. Um, we have "and he saw," got the first V right here. And what does he see? See the three people standing. And then again, V, right? V, he sees it again. And then he runs towards them. Now, the second V and saw seems to be super. We saw that he saw. Why the repetition? He saw these three people, and he saw, and he ran. Um, so in my opinion, this is actually, um, meant to, um, play the act of running side by side seeing. So once again, he looked, behold, and then he saw. The English, you lose the double repetition because precise translation would use the same verb. And he saw three men, and and when he saw them, he ran. And I think the text wants to emphasize, um, that he ran, right, upon seeing them. Other words, with no delay, with no hesitation. But the text first had to state what he saw. So he saw three people, and then it returns right away, and he saw them, and he ran from the tent to show how immediate his reaction is to, um, to those people standing outside.

And Abraham understanding that perhaps, um, he, uh, will be able to host them. So he ran from the tent door to meet them, and he bow, he bowed himself to the Earth, and a show of great respect, bound before them. As far as Abraham's concerned, what did he see? He saw three men. That's what the text says, from that were standing there. Um, and then he bows down before him, showing them respect. And after the physical reception, um, he continues and speaks to them and said, "My Lord." He first, uh, approaches them in language, "My Lord." The Hebrew Adonai. And this is indeed a word used to describe God. Look at verse three, Adonai. And according to the, uh, vocalization here, it is actually a holy, the Holy Name of God. Um, and here there's a question. When Abraham's using the name Adoni, "My Lord," um, what is he referring to? Does he understand that he sees God here, or or not? And different, this is already an old, uh, uh, discussion, debate amongst commentators from Middle Ages. Um, and it's clear that the vocalization, um, understood that he recognized this to be God. Lord, here you can see the English actually capitalized, so it also went in that direction. Um, however, some commentators say no, and I tend to agree with them, that, um, it's just a, a matter of respect, and it should not be a capitalized "My Lord," rather just a, a Lord, as far as, you know, approaching somebody with respect, dignity. So, "My Lord," but we, as readers, already have are are primed to the understanding that it is the Lord who indeed appeared. Notice the be, the story began by telling us that the Lord appeared to him. And therefore, I think here the ambivalence is is is purposefully directed by the by the text. Um, and while I believe that Abraham just saw three men and had no idea that this is God appearing before him, however, um, we, as readers, know that it is God, and there's like an ironic gap between the knowledge of the character Abraham and and and us as readers who who know differently, are more aware than the character. And this gap, I think, is purposeful because on the one hand, um, I think the text wants to emphasize Abraham's, um, hosting guests, and it's a lot more impressive if we, uh, assume that he did not know that we're talking about God, but rather just plain people. And that's, I think, what the text wants to show us, how Abraham hosted strangers, strange people. On the other side, it's important for the text to inform us, the readers, uh, of the nature of this visit in order to also give credence and weight to the tidings that will be brought forth to Abraham in the continuation of the narrative. So it might be a purposeful ambivalence here in relating to understanding. Is it, is it "My Lord" as God, or "My Lord's" as far as, you know, showing respect and dignity?

What is interesting is that he approached in the singular, "My Lord." "Now I have found favor in your sight, please do not pass your servant by. Please let a little water be brought and wash your feet and rest yourselves under the tree." So first of all, he invites, uh, them. And apparently he approaches, I guess, the most dominant and outstanding of the three men who seem to be the leader. So it's as if we have, um, one leader accompanied by two additional men. And therefore, Abraham approaches, uh, the one who he recognized as the leader. If we accept that, um, this is also maybe God appearing as one of those three, and this is, of course, a testy issue, um, where certain Christian commentators were more Pro to accepting the idea of God appearing in the shape of a man, right? And understandably, on the flip side, Jewish commentators were more hesitant of accepting this. But even if we open ourselves to that possibility that, um, the dominant of the three may be a representation of of God himself, then, uh, Abraham was able to pick up at least on the, um, I guess the superior status of one of those three men. And then he shifts to the singular and he invites them, um, and tells them that he will bring them water to wash their feet, and they will be able to rest under the tree. Of course, um, this is very important on a hot day in an area where we don't have a lot of trees, bordering with a desert. And then not only that, "and I will bring a piece of bread that you may refresh yourselves and that you may go on since you have visited servant." So Abraham invites them and offers them, uh, I guess you can call it a, uh, bread and, uh, shower, right? They can wash themselves and eat some bread and refresh themselves and then move onwards. And the response is, "And they said, 'So do as you have said.'" They accept the invitation.

Now we have the description of of Abraham's response. And notice the key words. "So Abraham hurried into the tent to Sarah and said, 'Quickly prepare three measures of fine flour, knead it and make bread cakes.'" Gives very explicit, um, instructions, including how much, three measures, which apparently is an impressive amount, um, not your typical amount. And he also tells her how to make it, knead and make red cake. Now, of course, this would be superfluous because I assume Sarah knows how to make cakes, but it may also represent Abraham's involvement, right, in giving very explicit instructions. And notice he went quickly, right, hurried. And then he also said, "Quickly." Once again, you missed out in the English translation because the Hebrew uses the same word, right? Mah. Let's take a look for a second in the Hebrew. Um, we have the same word appearing twice. And then when he tells Sarah, he tells her, right, "Hurry up." So we lose a key word here in the inconsistent translation, in English. So, uh, obviously we have a keyword, rushing. You see how Abraham is acting with urgency and as quickly as possible, so it's not to delay his guests.

We continue on in verse seven. "Abraham also ran to the herd and took a tender and choice calf and gave it to the servant, and he hurried to prepare it." Once again, um, the usage of the word hurrying, um, third time around. Um, so here we're somewhat surprised because in the invitation, the invitation included bread and water, and suddenly we're not talking about bread, but rather cakes, and we're not talking, um, about a simple meal, but a full-fledged meal, which includes also, you know, calf, ve steak, right, something serious. And you know, you notice the language, "tender and choice calf," right? And he gave it to the servant, and again, hurried to prepare it. "He took curds and milk and the calf which he had prepared and placed it before them, and he was standing by them under the tree as they ate." Um, so those who may be surprised as far as the, uh, menu here, well, it would not seem to be the most kosher meal because, as you know, Jewish tradition, um, separates between, um, meat and milk, and here we have the offering of steak and butter and milk, right, together. And, uh, so that, of course, raises the question, is this a kosher meal? Now, the Apologetics, um, among the interpreters, suggest that, um, oh, the milk and the butter were used before the meat because you're allowed to have milk before meat according to the tradition, but not, milk after meat. But of course, this is just apologetics. And the simple explanation is, Abraham was not yet first commanded to separate between, um, Ary and meat products. So, um, we have, uh, here a pre, command. And therefore, proser meal at that time, it was permissible. But what is clearly, um, intended by the text is to show not only how Abraham invests so much energy and is rushing, but also how, uh, he, he does a lot more beyond what he offered, right? He just offered, um, bread and water, and he ends up giving them a full-fledged meal, right? So we see a nice example, and this is what the sages learned from this, how you should say little and do a lot, right? And this is indeed one of the, uh, um, lessons learned from the, uh, wonderful hosting, uh, that Abraham here, uh, presents to us, for the, uh, for the angels.

As far as Abraham is concerned, of these strangers, then they said to him, "Where is Sarah your wife?" Oh, so suddenly we have a mention of Sarah. And he said, "They're in the tent." He said, "I will surely return to you at this time next year, and behold, Sarah your wife will have a son." So here we have the amazing hiding of a son to be born to Sarah. Now we read her, uh, reaction, but beforehand, the narrator gives us some background information. "Sarah was listening at the tent door, which was behind him." Now, Abraham and Sarah were old, advanced in age. Sarah was past childbearing, right? Literally, she was postmenopause. This information, um, is, of course, directly connected to the continuation. One hand, we have to know how is it that Sarah heard what the guest said. So we're informed of her location, she was listening at the tent door, which was behind him. The guest did not see Sarah, but she was able to hear it. And then the other information relating to Abraham and Sarah's age, um, is important for her reaction.

Verse 12. "Sarah laughed to herself, saying, 'After I have become old, shall I have pleasure, my Lord being old also?'" So Sarah laughs, and this would seem to be a laugh of incredulity. She doesn't believe what. After I have, I'm so old, I post, uh, childbearing age, and also my Lord, other Abraham, notice here, small, right, is also old. So she finds this whole thing to be quite humorous and, um, unbelievable. And then we have the response. Now, as far as Sarah's laughter, up till this point, we understand her laughter. In other words, the narrator even gave us background as if to explain her reaction, that is indeed something which is quite laughable, right, and incredulous and totally illogical, right, that a, an old aged lady will be able to, uh, give birth. Um, but even though it would seem to that the reaction of Sarah would seem to be totally understandable, um, we have the Lord responding in in what would seem to be quite a bit of anger.

"And the Lord said to Abraham, 'Why did Sarah laugh, saying, Shall I indeed bear a child when I am so old?'" So here the Lord quotes Sarah, that, why did she laugh? She said to herself, "I'm gonna give birth when I'm so old." By the way, this is, of course, only a partial quote because she not only found it humorous as far as her age is concerned, "After I have become old," but she also added, "My Lord being old also." Adon. But in in God's quoting Sarah, he only mentions the the prior point of her being so old. And here the sages, by the way, learned an important moral lesson that God himself sometimes even, didn't say the whole truth, didn't give a total quote in order to, uh, prevent offending Abraham. He didn't want to reveal that Sarah thought Abraham was already far too old, right, for any of this. Therefore, he left that out. So that could be one important lesson as far as, uh, not revealing the whole quote. Um, on the flip side, it might also just put the focus on Sarah herself. That's what's important here. Um, and then a, and God continues with the reproof of Sarah's laughter and its condemnation.

Verse 14. He's speaking to Abraham. "Is anything too difficult for the Lord? At the appointed time I will return to you at this time next year, and Sarah will have a son." So obviously God is quite angry, um, and he informs Abraham, why does Sarah lack faith and belief? Why does you think is there anything beyond God's capacity? And we continue, just another verse. "Sarah denied it, however, saying, 'I did not laugh.'" So apparently got some kind of a gap here. Apparently, after God reproved Abraham, he must have gone to, uh, Sarah. I think it's a simple reading and told her about this, and and she, uh, denied say laughing, for she was afraid. And he said, "No, but you did laugh." And we're not exactly clear who says this. Is it Abraham responding, or is it God suddenly stating, "No, we did laugh"? What is clear here is that there is a reproof of Sarah's lack of faith, um, that's communicated to Abraham, and Sarah is suddenly, um, fearful of this and, and wants to even deny it. And she might have been quite surprised. Notice that the text said that she laughed to herself. Sarah laughed to herself. It wasn't an an external laughter, it was an internal laughter, and maybe, uh, that is what is beyond her denial. But of course, God leads heart. He doesn't need external manifestation of behavior. And he said, "No, I know you did not believe. You did laugh." Uh, and this would seem to be a laugh of incredulity, a lack of, of faith.

Now, this of course raises a question, one of several questions that arise when we read this chapter, um, and compare it to our previous chapter, chapter 17, because also in chapter 17, we read about a, um, uh, God informing Abraham that he will have a from Sarah. So we have that tiding as well, and we also have a response of laughter by Abraham. And this of course raises two questions. The immediate one that we will ask is, um, the different reactions to laughter. Let's just refresh our memories in relation to chapter 17. We have it right here. The second part of chapter 17, we'll just read it again. "Then God said to Abraham, 'As for Sarah your wife, you shall not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall be her name. And I will bless her and also give you a son by her. Then I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations. Kings of peoples shall be from her.'" So within the context of the covenant of circumcision, Sarah's name is also changed to Sarah, and, um, this of course represents the future promise of an offspring. "Then Abraham fell on his face and laughed and said in his tent, 'Shall a child be born to a man who is 100 years old? And shall Sarah, who is 90 years old, bear a child?'" So while Abraham fell on his face, which seems to be a sign of respect, but he also laughs and said in his heart, he also laughs to himself. And we also have an explanation. The explanation is also dual. He's laughing because it s sounds unlikely for two reasons: one, because he is already very 100 years old, and two, Sarah is 90 years old. So how will they have children? Notice, by the way, the ORD Flint, because when Sarah, uh, laughed in chapter, laughs in chapter 18, she first laughs because of her status, from her perspective, she's laughing at herself and Abraham's old age. When Abraham laughs, so he's laughing first of all, he finds it humorous from his perspective, far as his age, and then also he moves on to Sarah's old age. And then the explicit, uh, speech, "And Abraham said to God, 'Oh, that Ishmael might live before you.'" So Abraham says, "No, I have a son already. Ishmael will live before you." Then God said, "No, Sarah your wife shall bear you a son, and you shall call his name Isaac. I will establish my covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his descendants after him. As for Ishmael, I have heard you. Behold, I have blessed him and will make him fruitful and will multiply him exceedingly. He shall beget 12 princes, and I will make him a great nation. But my covenant I will establish with with Isaac, whom Sarah shall bear to you at this set time next year." Then he finished talking with him, and God went up from Abraham. So Abraham took Ish's son, all who were born in his house, and all who were bought with his money, every male among the men of Abraham's house, and circumcised the flesh of their for foreskins that very same day, as God had said to him.

So when reading chapter 17, um, and, uh, then comparing it to what we read just previously in chapter 18, we of course struck, uh, by two points. The first one is the different responses to laughter. Both cases, the central character, um, um, in the promise here was Sarah in chapter 18, and in chapter 17, it's directed towards Abraham. Laugh. And I think it's quite clear that in both instances, a laughter is a laughter of disbelief. And we can see that also in chapter 17, um, God rejects, right, Abraham's, um, kind of lack of faith and says, "No, no, I didn't mean Ishmael, I meant that Sarah will give you a son." Notice his his, um, immediate response, "No, Sarah your wife shall bear you a son," right? Um, and the text also implies that he laughed because he, because he found it odd and and hard to believe that at that age, um, they will be able to have offspring. So now we ask, so why is there such a, a reproof and apparent anger in chapter 18 relating to Sarah, Sarah's laughter? And here God just says, "No, no, I'm serious." Uh, I'm not referring to, referring to, um, a son that will be born Sarah, who will be named Isaac.

Now, the ancient Aramean translation, Aramaic translation, known as Onkelos, interestingly enough, translated the Hebrew of laughing in the two chapters differently. In chapter 17, with regard to Abram's chapter laughter, the translation, the Aramaic translation translated Abraham's laughter as "sadi," um, which means it's also an Acadian root, uh, meaning happiness. So Abraham didn't laugh, but was joyous, right, upon hearing that. Whereas in, uh, in chapter 18, Onkelos translated a different word, not, you know, happiness, but rather, which would be laughter, similar to the Hebrew. Um, and and in so doing, and translating the words differently, he wanted to try to explain that Abraham is is laughing of joy, while Sarah's laughing of incredulity and lack of faith. Um, now, of course, this would solve the problem. The only, uh, the only issue is that we're talking about the exact same Hebrew word, and the context is so similar, and the background to the laughter and the explanation for the laughter is so, uh, similar. Uh, I I find that difficult to accept. It seems that both instances, the laughter is the same type of laughter, maybe that Abraham is showing a little more respect and falling on his face, but still his response relating to Ishmael shows that he's he's he finds it difficult to really absorb this, uh, revelation of God. And, uh, so why the different re reactions?

And what I want to propose, and this is, uh, following the assumption that this promise in chapter 17, given to Abraham, was actually forwarded and revealed to Sarah herself, and I think this is a safe assumption because her name was changed, right? Suddenly Abraham is no longer calling her Sarai, but rather Sarah, right? And that, of course, requires an an explanation. So if we accept that Abraham also informed, uh, Sarah about this revelation and her change of name, then there may be an alternative explanation to the greater anger in chapter 18, and that is that it may be more understandable and legitimate to laugh the first time hearing such a statement that an elderly couple like Abraham and Sarah will have a child. But after this was already revealed, and now it is being reiterated a second time by the angel visiting, um, so here, um, the laughter is viewed with more critique because this was already stated. This is not an instinctual first response, but rather an ongoing state of disbelief. And we can understand Sarah, of course, throughout all these years, 90 years, every month with anticipation and hope that she'll finally, uh, be pregnant, and this never materializing. So you could understand her lack of faith. But here, um, it's an ongoing, uh, refusal to accept the Divine word here, and therefore maybe, um, also invites that more critical response on the part of God.

What we do see is that both narratives put, put the spotlight on the laughter, which would seem to be a side issue. Why such an emphasis on the laughter, both of Abraham in the beginning, and then once again in chapter 18 of, uh, Sarah? So, most commentators say that this is, of course, related to the name of the son to be born because the the name, it's given already in chapter 17, Isaac, right? Um, "You will call his name Isaac." In Hebrew, the name Isaac is from the root S, right, laughter. Um, and you can see the the verb sahak, right, that's the exact description of, uh, Abraham's response. We have here V, so that's the source of the name of the son to be born. So that's on the one hand, obviously, kind of foreshadowing in the background to the name of the second patriarch, patriarch Isaac. But I think it even goes beyond that. The emphasis on the laughter here is really meant to, um, aggrandize and really, um, put the spotlight on the greatness of the miracle here, right? This is such an amazing, um, event that invites, uh, laughter of incredulity. It's something so beyond, right, logic. And this is meant indeed to show the greatness of this miracle that God is is bringing to, uh, the family, to Abraham and Sarah. So that's one point that arises when we compare, um, chapters 18 and 17.

But, uh, the more weighty question is the actual revelation because once chapter 17, we counted that God informed Abraham and and Sarah about the future son that will be born to Sarah, then why is this repeated again in chapter 18? Why do we need the double, um, narrative of, uh, a promise of a son to be born? And of course, uh, this double, uh, narrative, uh, has led dionic analysis to the, uh, assumption that we're talking about two different sources, and those two traditions about how, um, um, how the promise of a son that will be born to Sarah, how that was given. If we want to understand nevertheless the double, um, birth promise, um, within a synchronic analysis, we should also note not only the similarities but the differences between the two. And, uh, for starters, the the obvious, obvious immediate, uh, distinction is the focus of the promise, um, in relation to the character, namely chapter 17 was a revelation to Abraham. Sarah is not there present. She's mentioned, but she's not present, and she doesn't respond, and it's Abraham who is the one who responds in laughter, and, uh, he emphasizes himself, self, first of all, as being old. Whereas in chapter 18, the guests for don't just tell Abraham, but they open up by saying, "Where is Sarah your wife?" Right? And then the whole promise is relating to Sarah, Sarah, Sarah your wife will have a son, right? And then we have the description of Sarah laughing and the reproof of her laughter. Whereas in chapter 17, the focus was, um, on Abraham. "Then God said to Abraham," right? He changes her name and give you a son by her. It's a promise to Abraham, right? And then Abraham is the one who left. So the first difference is the focus. We have a first, the promise focused induction of Abraham, a son to Abraham in chapter 17, whereas in chapter 18, it focuses on Sarah and a son that will be born to Sarah and her response of laughter.

And in addition, uh, we have different names of God, right, in the two chapters. "Then God said to Abraham," Elohim in Hebrew, Hebrew Elohim, so translated here as God, that's in chapter 17. Whereas in chapter 18, uh, the whole chapter describes the Lord appearing before, uh, God. "Now the Lord appeared to him," right? That is the translation of the Tetragrammaton, the name Hashem, the holy name, what is pronounced sometimes in English, not the original Hebrew pronunciation, is Yahweh, right? So we have different names of, uh, of God. And the whole, um, nature of the revelation is is dramatically different because in chapter 17, it's a prophetic revelation, God appearing before Abraham, like like the Lord revealing himself to a prophet. Whereas in chapter 18, it's a, it's a, it's an angel representing God, or God himself appearing as an angel, as a person, as a human being, right? Not like a hierarchical appearance of God and, and, and Abraham, right, down below hearing the revelation, but rather Abraham seeing people running towards them, inviting them, the tent, they're eating in the tent, totally different nature of, uh, revelation. And also, uh, in relation to the son himself. So in chapter 17, this son, of course, will have a, a central role because he, he will be the one who will continue, right, the covenant, right? Um, um, let's see the text itself, "But my covenant I will establish with Isaac," right? Um, so the purpose of the son is to continue the covenant that was established between God and Abraham. Whereas the, uh, revelation in chapter 18 focuses on Sarah having a son finally after so many years, no mention of the covenant, no mention of the name of the son to be born, as opposed to in chapter 17, where his name is already, um, given.

So, uh, even though we have two stories that involve a promise, a revelation, um, of a future son to be born, um, the content may be, uh, may hold a lot in common, but, uh, the two chapters are are dramatically different with different characters being in the focus, um, and responding with the laughter, which repeat, which is repeated in both chapters, but from the perspective of different characters, and God also appearing in totally different ways, different names, in a different nature of a revelation, and also the son himself seemingly, uh, fulfilling a different role. And this may be the key. These differences may be the key to understanding the double narrative. And here I'm following suggestion proposed by, uh, Jonathan Groman, that, um, throughout the Abraham narrative, we see kind of two tracks. We see on the one hand, Abraham and Sarah as individuals, right, with aspirations and with their challenges, and on the on, and in addition to that, we have the track of the covenant, right, where Abraham and Sarah are the patriarch, the matriarch, and the fathers of a na, the the fathers of a nation that will be the people of God. And we may see the double promise narrative as really representative of the fulfillment of the promise of offspring on these two tracks. In other words, it's important for the Torah to inform us that, um, a son will be born in fulfillment of the two tracks. On the one hand, um, Abraham needs a son, and this is for the purpose of the covenant, and this is more from the perspective of God, who was promised to make a covenant with generations and promised to make Abraham into a great nation. And in this sense, the son is really a necessity from God's perspective to fulfill the covenant.

On a different note, we have Abraham and Sarah's individuals, and here the focus is specifically on Sarah, who's gone through all the frustration. Don't forget, Abraham already had a son, Ishmael, right? But it's Sarah who has not had a son, right? And here Sarah as an individual, um, has has the credit to to be given a son. And hence, we have also a different explanation to this fulfillment of a promise of offspring because whereas in chapter 17, this fulfillment is just part of God, um, preparing the basis for the covenantal relationship, in chapter 18, the description of the promise of an offspring is given as a direct consequence of the hosting in the tent, right? And here it's as if as a reward for what Abraham and Sarah did in their hosting these strangers, they deserve to have a son. And of course, this is a motif we find elsewhere in the Bible, primarily in the story of, um, the Shunamite woman in Kings 2, chapter four, who hosts a, um, um, Elisha, um, um, the prophet, and, and sets up, right, like a studio apartment up on top for him, and they, uh, the prophet Elisha wants to, uh, reward her for for all that she's done, and they, uh, promise a son to be born. Also there, the woman is incredulous of this, uh, promise. So this is a motif that in return for hosting, you, um, you get a reward. And we can also find some logic to this, uh, idea because, um, in return for opening your tent to strangers, bringing people in to your tent, so your tent will also be widened, and you will have an additional, uh, member in the family. And in addition to giving life and helping people in the desert, giving them water, giving them food, etcetera, you will, uh, be rewarded by additional life and offspring. So we can see here a, uh, a reward, and, and this on the individual, uh, level of, uh, son being promised to Sarah. So, uh, that may be the logic behind the double narrative, double promise, one in fulfillment of the covenant, God's fulfillment of the covenant, uh, aspiration of a great nation to be born from Abraham, and two, in chapter 18, in fulfillment of the, uh, uh, personal reward that is given to Abraham and Sarah for their hosting of the strangers.

And now the difference between these two levels of promises may also explain the difference in the nature of revelation and even the difference in the name of God because whereas, um, the name, the Lord, Shem AEM, the Holy Name, represents closeness, and this is on the personal level, right? God, um, appearing before Abraham and, and entering Abraham's tent, all right? So here we have the close ties, the personal ties, um, between the Lord and Abraham and Sarah. Chapter 17, the name that is focused is, uh, the name, the God, the generic name, and that represents one more distant God above, right, who reveals and has the long-term plan of a, uh, covenant. In any event, this story in chapter 18, of course, is an exemplary story of kindness, of of, um, the invitation of the stranger into your home, and it serves as an exemplar and the source in the Jewish tradition for the great, um, importance given to the, um, inviting of strangers into our homes.