Avraham's Guests – Angels or Men/2

The Messengers – Angels or Men?

Exegetical Approaches

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Overview

Angels

The guests that came to Avraham were three angels. This position subdivides over whether the vision in 18:1 is the coming of the angels, or Hashem appeared to Avraham separately in 18:1 and then the angels came.

Hashem Through Angels

Sources: JubileesChapter 16:1-11,20-23About Jubilees, PhiloOn Abraham XXII-XXIIIAbout Philo, RashbamBereshit 18:1,13,14,16,20,26Bereshit 19:24About R. Shemuel b. Meir, ShadalBereshit 18:1,3,9,13,17,20,22Bereshit 19:17,18About R. S.D. Luzzatto, R. D"Z HoffmannBereshit 18:1-19:38,18:1-2,3-8,6-8,13-14,20-21Bereshit 19:1-3,18-20About R. D"Z Hoffmann

Vision and guests – the vision in 18:1 is the coming of the angels, and according to them "ה'" in the verse is the angels. They explain the verse as a summary (כלל ופרט) that Hashem appeared to Avraham, and the rest of the chapter explains how Hashem revealed himself, through the angels. There is no problem of missing content in the vision, though they still need to explain why Avraham is not mentioned in 18:1.

Purpose of the vision = visit – the purpose was to tell Avraham about Sedom. What was the need to tell Avraham a second time that Sarah will give birth?

How are the guests referred to – it's obvious why the guests are called angels, but they need to explain the verses which call them people, either since they looked like people,¹ or since the terms are interchangeable.² It's still not simple to understand why sometimes they are called people and sometimes angels. Bereshit Rabbah brings a couple of explanations.

Is "Hashem", Hashem or the guests – Rashbam and Shadal are consistent explaining all "Hashem" in the chapter to be talking about the angels, besides from 18:14 and the second one in 19:24. There is a dispute between them regarding 18:17, Rashbam explains it as the angels but Shadal says it's really Hashem talking. They don't say whether the three people represented Hashem, or just the bigger one and the other two were angels. The Torah sometimes refers to angels as Hashem.³

Angelic or human actions – According to these commentators it works well how the guests knew Sarah will give birth, that she laughed, and blinded the people of Sedom since they were angels. It's not clear though how the angels ate and had feet to be washed. Philo explains that these angels appeared in the form of people, and pretended to be eating and drinking even though they didn't.⁴ Did Sarah not know they were angels and that's why she laughed? According to Philo they looked like people.

Beliefs about angels – Jubilees often explains Hashem to mean angels. Rashi and the Midrash don't explain that this is a כלל ופרט because they hold of omnisignificance.

How many guests – It explains why only two came to Lot because one stayed to talk to Avraham about Sedom.

Hashem and Angels

Sources: R. Saadia GaonCommentary Bereshit 18:2,8,17-33Tafsir Bereshit 18:33Tafsir Bereshit 19:18HaNivchar BaEmunot UvaDeiot 2:6About R. Saadia Gaon, RashiBereshit 18:1,2,3,8,16,22,33Bereshit 19:1,18About R. Shelomo Yitzchaki, RambanBereshit 18:1,3,6,15About R. Moshe Nachmanides, Akeidat YitzchakBereshit #19About R. Yitzchak Arama, AbarbanelBereshit 18:1,2,4,9,16,22About R. Yitzchak Abarbanel, SefornoBereshit 18:1,2,3,9,12,14,20,22,33Bereshit 19:27About R. Ovadyah Seforno

Vision and guests – Hashem revealed himself to Avraham in 18:1, and then afterwards the angels came to him. Did Hashem leave before they came, or was Hashem still there as Avraham served the guests food? Rashi and Ramban say that Hashem left Avraham and then the angels came, but it's hard then to explain the switch between plural and singular in 18:3, and the fact that Hashem continues to talk to Avraham in 13-14 and 20-22. There are parallels between 18:3 and 18:5, which would make it seem that 18:3 was to Hashem and 18:5 to the angels. Trypho 56 also says that Hashem appeared to Avraham and then the angels came separately.

Purpose of the vision – the commentators give different possibilities for the purpose of the vision, and relate it to different contexts:⁵

• Conclusion of the circumcision – Bavli Sotah and many others⁶ relate the vision to the previous chapter, that Hashem was appearing either to cure Avraham, visit him,⁷ as a reward for keeping the commandment,⁸ or as one side in the covenant of the circumcision.⁹ Ramban notes that this explains the omission of Avraham's name in 18:1, since it is a continuation of the previous story which mentioned Avraham.¹⁰
• Notification they were angels – Rasag explains that this appearance of Hashem was just a light that showed up to tell Avraham that the guests were angels and not just any people.¹¹
• News about Sedom – Abarbanel says the vision was to tell Avraham about Sedom, as he is told later in 18:20.¹² In 18:3 Avraham davened to Hashem in his own initiative, since Hashem didn't appear to him before. This approach explains why 18:17 is written in the past because it's referring to 18:1.

Purpose of the visit – Why did only two come to Lot while three came to Avraham? Split maybe into purpose of the guests and purpose of the visit.

• Reward for Avraham – Ramban.¹³
• To tell Avraham about Sedom –
• Michael to tell the news, Gabriel to destroy Sedom, Refael to save Lot – Bereshit Rabbah 50:2, Tanchuma Vayera 8, Tanchuma Buber Vayera 20, Targum Pseudo-Jonothan and Yerushalmi 18:2. One to tell the news and two to destroy Sedom – Trypho. One to destroy the four cities and one to save Tzoar – Philo. Michael to tell the news and save Lot, Refael to cure Avraham, Gabriel to destroy Sedom – BM 86b, Kalah Rabbati 7:2, Ben Azai in Derech Eretz 2:2. Refael told the news and cured Avraham, and Michael and Gabriel destroyed Sedom and saved Lot – one opinion in Kalah Rabbati. It's not clear from all of the sources if Hashem came to visit Avraham or to cure him as Bavli Bava Metzia connects this role of curing Avraham to one of the angels (Refael).
• Ramban says

How are the guests referred to

• The angels looked like people – Rasag, Rashi, Ramban.¹⁴
• The terms are interchangeable – Rasag.
• When Hashem is with the guests they were called people – Rashi.
• Avraham got to see angels often so they are called people by him – Rashi.

Is "Hashem", Hashem or the guests –

• "אֲדֹנָי" (18:3, 19:18) – Ramban explains 18:3 to be the angels, since Avraham realized they were Hashem's angels that's why he called them like that.¹⁵

Angelic or human actions – These commentators disagree whether the angels ate:¹⁶

• Pretended to eat¹⁷ – Rasag's first opinion, Rashi, Ramban.
• The people which were there ate¹⁸ – Rasag's second opinion.
• Ate what they always eat – Akeidat Yitzchak.
• Really ate – Abarbanel?, Seforno?, Midrashim?

Beliefs about angels –

How many guests –

People

Hashem appeared to Avraham separately from the three human visitors.

Sources: R. Yosef Bekhor ShorBereshit 18:1,2-4,9,17-19Bereshit 19:1,18-19About R. Yosef Bekhor Shor, RalbagBeiur HaMilot Bereshit 18:2,3,13Beiur HaMilot Bereshit 19:13Beiur Divrei HaParashah Bereshit 18:1,2-8,9-10,13-14,16,17-19,20-21,22,33Beiur Divrei HaParashah Bereshit 19:27-28,37-38About R. Levi b. Gershon

Vision and guests – Hashem revealed himself to Avraham separately from the three human visitors.

Purpose of the vision – R. Yosef Bekhor Shor explains that 18:1 is an introduction for 18:17 where Hashem tells Avraham about his plans to destroy Sedom, and 18:2-16 is in parenthesis. According to him, Avraham in 18:3 davened to Hashem from his own intiative. It's not clear why this is not explicit in the verse and why Avraham's name is first mentioned in 18:6.

Purpose of the visit – R. Yosef Bekhor Shor says that one of the angels came to announce the birth of a child.

How are the guests referred to – R. Yosef Bekhor Shor explains "מַּלְאָכִים" to mean messengers, and in our case the guests are messengers of Hashem.¹⁹ Ralbag, on the other hand says that prophets are called "מַּלְאָכִים" only if they get more prophecies than the person they are prophesying about. Avraham got more prophecies than the guests therefore they are called there people, but Lot wasn't a prophet so by him they can be called "מַּלְאָכִים".

• When the guests left him Avraham got a prophecy, the guests weren't also in divine prophecy because the Torah doesn't say that explcitly and there is no need to say that, if Sarah prophesied and that's how she laughed so how could she laugh about her prophecy and if Avraham got it how could she hear if Avraham is prophesying, lot wasn't rauy for nevuah, how could the people of Sedom tell Lot to give them the guests.

Is "Hashem", Hashem or the guests –

• שם אדנות – R. Yosef Bekhor Shor explains "אֲדֹנָי" in 18:3 to refer to Hashem, and 19:18 to refer to the angel though the next verse he says is Lot praying to Hashem.
• שם הויה – R. Yosef Bekhor Shor explains 18:1 and 17 to refer to Hashem.

Angelic or human actions – R. Yosef Bekhor Shor proves from Shofetim 13:16 that the guests were people because we are told twice that they ate and angels can't eat. They say that the people were prophets which explains how they knew Sarah will give birth, that she laughed, and blinded the people of Sedom, because we have other cases where a prophet blinds people.²⁰

Beliefs about angels –

Motivations – Polemic - R. Yosef Bekhor Shor says explicitly that his explanation is an answer to the Christians who claim the three guests were three parts of god, therefore he doesn't take the approach they were angels because that's coming close to their read.

How many guests –

Divine Prophecy

All of chapter 18 was in a Divine prophecy.

Sources: RambamMoreh Nevukhim 2:42Moreh Nevukhim 2:45About R. Moshe Maimonides, RadakBereshit 18:1,2,3,4,10,12,13,17,22,33Bereshit 19:1,2,3,11,15,16,18,24About R. David Kimchi, R. Yosef ibn KaspiTirat Kesef 2:3Bereshit 18:3,11Bereshit 19:1About R. Yosef ibn Kaspi, AbarbanelCommentary on Moreh Nevukhim 2:42About Abarbanel

Vision and guests – These commentators explain that the vision in 18:1 includes all of chapter 18 and maybe also 19 (כלל ופרט). They explain the missing content in the vision to be all that happens afterwards in the chapter. Although it's still not clear why Avraham's name is not mentioned in 18:1.

Purpose of vision = visit – Radak says the purpose was to tell Avraham about Sedom,²¹ and that even though Hashem already told Avraham in chapter 17 he'll have a child he repeated it here to emphasize the fact and so Sarah will hear.²² Ramban questions the Torah's need to tell us that Sarah baked cakes, Avraham made meat, and Sarah laughed if it was all in a vision. Radak explains that the story teaches us to act kindly.

How are the guests referred to – Radak says that the guests are called people when they act in ways people act, and angels when they act in ways angels act.²³ Radak also brings Bereshit Rabbah 50:2.

Is "Hashem", Hashem or the guests –

• שם אדנות – Radak²⁴ explains both 18:3 and 19:18 to refer to one of the guests.²⁵
• שם הויה – Radak says 18:10,13 and the first Hashem in 19:24 are talking about the angels, while 18:1 and 17 are talking about Hashem.

Angelic or human actions – According to this approach the guests didn't eat nor blind the people of Sedom, rather it was all what Avraham saw in his prophecy. Though Radak and Ibn Kaspi seem to say they did blind Sedom.²⁶

Until where is the prophecy – One would need to assume that the people which came to Lot since they are the same people that came to Avraham, in reality didn't come, and Lot saw them only in a prophecy just like Avraham. But how could Lot and the people of Sedom²⁷ have prophesied? Where did the prophecy end?

• After the first half of chapter 18 –
• After the end of chapter 18 – Radak.²⁸ 18:33 which says Hashem left is talking about the end of the prophecy. According to Radak, Sedom was really destroyed which makes sense from later verses in Torah that mention the destruction of Sedom,²⁹ but he does not explain where the guests in chapter 19 came from.
• Avraham prophesied chapters 18-19 – Abarbanel. one would have to explain 18:33 that there was a vision inside a vision.
• Lot prophesied chapter 19 – Ibn Kaspi. He also understands 18:33 as the end of Avraham's prophecy, but he says that Lot had a similar prophecy where he saw two guests. Ibn Kaspi says that Sedom was destroyed not just in Lot's prophecy but also in reality. Ibn Kaspi assumes that Lot can have a prophecy.³⁰

Sarah prophesied – Radak brings a parallel to Daniel 11:7 where the people in the room with Daniel also felt something even though just Daniel was prophesying, and he says that was the case by Sarah which heard something even though just Avraham was prophesying. Sarah didn't know he was angel rather thought he was a prophet and that's why she laughed. Ibn Kaspi says that in his prophecy Avraham saw Sarah laughing, but she didn't really laugh.

Beliefs about angels – Rambam is consistent with his general approach towards angels that any seeing or talking of a מלאך didn't really happen rather was in a prophecy or dream.³¹ Radak and Ibn Kaspi say explicitly that Avraham was sleeping when he prophesied all of chapter 18. It's not clear according to Ibn Kaspi if Avraham imagined this or prophesied this.

How many guests – Ibn Kaspi says that Lot had a similar prophecy but he only saw two people as opposed to Avraham who saw three.

Ibn EzraBereshit 18:1,13,33Bereshit 19:2,12,18About R. Avraham ibn Ezra, JosephusAntiquities of the Jews 1:11:1-4About Josephus

¹ See Bereshit Rabbah 50:2 and Rasag.

² Rasag proves this from Chaggai 1:13, and see Bereshit 32:25 (the man may be a human and not an angel), Shoftim 13:10-11 (before Manoach knew he was an angel), and Daniel 12:7.

³ See Shemot 3:2-4 and 23:21.

⁴ Alternatively, they could explain like the options below that the angels really ate or that Avraham and the people that were there ate.

⁵ According to all of them, it's not clear why the purpose isn't explict in the verse.

⁶ Bavli Bava Metzia 86b, Tanchuma Vayera 2, Ki Tisa 15, Rashi, Ramban, and Seforno

⁷ These variations anthropomorphize Hashem, and see Bavli Sotah that just like Hashem visited the sick we humans should also visit the sick.

⁸ Ramban brings parallels to Bereshit 32:2, Vayikra 9:23, and Bemidbar 14:10 where Hashem appears as a reward with no content. R. Elhanan Samet, עיונים בפרשת השבוע סדרה שניה, בראשית (ירושלים, תשס"ד): 59-81, differentiates between those cases where it says that "מַלְאֲכֵי אֱלֹהִים" and "כְבוֹד ה'" appeared and our case where Hashem appeared. Ramban says that also the rest of the chapters are a reward to Avraham

⁹ Seforno brings a parallel to Shemot 4:24.

¹⁰ It is difficult to say 18:1 is a continuation because it mentions a place and time for the revelation which makes it seem like a new beginning. Ramban tries to explain the mention of place, that it was to tell us where Avraham circumcised himself, and see Tanchuma Vayera 3 and Rashi.

¹¹ See his understanding in general that Hashem shows a mark to prophets so they know it's Hashem talking and not just their own imagination.

¹² Compare to R. Yosef Bekhor Shor below.

¹³ N. Leibowitz, Iyyunim Chadashim BeSefer Bereshit (Jerusalem, 1970): 116 understands Ramban that only 18:1 is the reward and the story ends the way it began in 17:1, though R"E Samet says that 18:2 can't be a begining for the next story. He questions Ramban's opinion that there is no mention anywhere in chapters 18-19 of the circumcision and there is no proportions between Avraham's circumcision and his reward on it.

¹⁴ Ramban explains that either Sarah didn't see the angels or she didn't know they were angels and that's why she laughed.

¹⁵ Ramban explains the singular that he asked each one of the angels not to leave, and he brings parallels from Torah where there is a switch between plural and singular like in Devarim 4:29.

¹⁶ How about washing their feet, did they look like humans?

¹⁷ Rasag explains "וַיֹּאכֵלוּ" from the language of כילוי.

¹⁸ Rasag brings parallel examples where the Torah says an action was done in plural when it only refers to the objects that are able of the action being done to them, like in Bereshit 47:19, Yehoshua 7:25, Yeshayahu 5:12, and Ezra 8:35.

¹⁹ Often the Torah uses "מַּלְאָכִים" to describe people sent by others, and he brings as an example Bereshit 32:4.

²⁰ Though in Melakhim II 6:18 Elisha davens to Hashem before he blinds the people.

²¹ He follows Bereshit Rabbah 50:2 that one of the guests came to tell Avraham and Sarah they will have a child, the second to destroy Sedom, and the third to save Lot.

²² See below whether Sarah heard.

²³ For example in 19:15 they save Lot which is an action of angels, and in 19:16 the guests are called people because they held on to Lot which is an action of humans.

²⁴ Rambam explains 18:3 in the name of R. Chiyya like Radak and doesn't disagree, and Ibn Kaspi only says explicitly about 18:3.

²⁵ Radak says that angels could kill and bring back to life people just like prophect like Eliyahu and Elisha did so in Hashem's message, and proves this from the fact that Lot said in plural.

²⁶ Radak says the prophecy ended at the end of chapter 18, and Ibn Kaspi says it happened also for real it seems.

²⁷ Bereshit Rabbah 51:9 moves over the question to the wife of Lot saying that she went to all her neighbors asking for salt because she has guests and that is how they knew.

²⁸ He does bring an option that the prophecy continued to chapter 19.

²⁹ See Devarim 29:22, Yeshayahu 1:9, 13:19, and more.

³⁰ But it's not clear from him if Avrham and Lot just imagined this or prophesied this.

³¹ Rambam doesn't say like R. Yosef Bekhor Shor and Ralbag either that the guests were people, because he thinks there are different levels of prophecy, the highest one being appearence of Hashem in the day which only Moshe reached, therefore he can't say that Hashem appeared to Avraham separately in 18:1 in the middle of the day.