This should be the most extensive examination of Gen. 18 available, where you will be able to see every word of the original text.

Outline of Chapter 18:

Introduction

         vv.     1–15         Y^ehowah God and Two Angels Come to Abraham, to Reassert the Promises to Him

         vv.    16–33         Abraham Bargains with God Concerning the Impending Judgment of Sodom

Addendum

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines:

         Introduction         The Prequel of Genesis 18

         Introduction         The Principals of Genesis 18

         Introduction         The Abrahamic Timeline for Genesis 18

         Introduction         A Synopsis of Genesis 18

         v.       1              Links to Doctrines on the Preincarnate Christ

         v.       2              The Abbreviated Doctrine of Angels (Angelology)

         v.       2              Abraham entertaining angels (a graphic)

         v.       3              Is Abraham Speaking to One Lord or to Three?

         v.       4              Abraham lavant les pieds aux anges 1854 Felix Henri Giacomotti (graphic)

         v.       8              Abraham and the Three Angels by Giovanni Andrea de Ferrari (graphic)

         v.      11              How Isaac’s Unusual Birth Foreshadowed Our Lord’s

         v.      12              Genesis 18:12 (a graphic)

         v.      12              Human Viewpoint Thinking versus Divine Viewpoint Thinking

         v.      13              Examples of Bible Contradictions from Evil Bible

         v.      14              Genesis 18:14 (graphic)

         v.      14              The Doctrine of Pâlâʾ (פָּלָא) [pronounced paw-LAW] [so far]

         v.      15              Preview of coming attractions for Gen. 18–22

         v.      19              Resources for the Preservation of the Old Testament

         v.      25              What we learn about prayer in studying Abraham

         v.      26              The National Entity Insert

         v.      26              What Preserves and Prospers a National Entity

         v.      26              The British Empire (map)

         v.      26              U.S. Military Troops and Bases Around the World (map)

         v.      26              Romans 13:1–10 Interlude

         v.      26              The Very Abbreviated Doctrine of a Client Nation

         v.      26              The History of Client Nations from the 18^th Century to the Present

         v.      26              Doctrine of the Pivot

         v.      26              The Declaration of Independence

         v.      26              Glossary of New Christian Terminology

         v.      26              Heathenism: What About the People Who Have Never Heard?

         v.      26              The Timeline of Lot Living in Sodom

         v.      32              The Seeds of Many Doctrines Found in Genesis 18

         Addendum          What We Learn from Genesis 18

         Addendum          Josephus’ History of this Time Period

         Addendum          Edersheim Summarizes Genesis 18

         Addendum          A Complete Translation of Genesis 18

         Addendum          Word Cloud from a Reasonably Literal Paraphrase of Genesis 18

         Addendum          Word Cloud from Exegesis of Genesis 18

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An Introduction to Genesis 18

I ntroduction: Chapter 18 contains the promise of the birth of Isaac to Sarah and it again has Abraham attempting to bail out his nephew, Lot. Abraham knows how to pray and prays to God concerning Sodom and Gomorrah in order to preserve Lot and his family.

After 13 quiet years, God appears to Abraham soon thereafter.

This ought to strike you as somewhat interesting: in the previous chapter, God made it clear that certain promises to Abraham were imminent—1 year in the future—and yet, there will be 3 chapters in between Gen. 17 and the fulfillment of Gen. 17. Two of those chapters will deal with great judgments upon the earth (particularly, upon Sodom and Gomorrah).

In Gen. 18, God will appear one more time to Abraham. It is now a month or so later, after God’s most recent promises to Abraham, which promises we studied in both Gen. 17 and Rom. 4. See Genesis 17 (HTML) (PDF) (WPD).

We know the time frame because God promised Abraham, in the previous chapter, that He would return to Abraham in a year’s time, and Abraham would have a son by Sarah; and in this chapter, Sarah is not even pregnant yet. Therefore, this chapter takes place less than 3 months after Gen. 17. It is also clear that Abraham has not yet been sexually revived, as vv. 12–13 reveal.

God has just promised Abraham that he would have a son by Sarah in one year (Gen. 17:21), so we would expect that we would see this fulfilled soon. That is not the case. We will not see the birth of Isaac until Gen. 21 and we have only begun Gen. 18. We have a lot to cover before we come to Isaac.

The Abrahamic Timeline for Genesis 18

Gen. 18 presents two very divergent topics but both occur on the same day and they involve the same people. Y^ehowah comes to Abraham with 2 others, and tells him again that his wife would give birth to a son, and that all of God’s promises would begin to be fulfilled, starting with this son. The last time, Abraham laughed when God made these promises (although it certainly appears that Abraham still believed God). In this chapter, Sarah will have a chance to laugh, and she will definitely manifest some doubt about this coming to pass.

The second half of this chapter is still Y^ehowah speaking with Abraham, however, this time the subject will change dramatically. Before, God was assuring Abraham that He would fulfill His many promises to him. Now, God will speak of Sodom and how Sodom is about to fall under great judgment. Then Abraham will feel bold enough to bargain with God. What if there are righteous (saved) men in Sodom? Will God simply destroy these people along with the wicked? And then we get to a numbers game. At what point will God continue to preserve the city-state of Sodom; and at what point will God determine that it be destroyed?

Genesis 18 breaks down easily into two parts: in vv. 1–15, Sarah becomes aware of just how imminent the birth of Isaac is. In vv. 16–33, we will learn about intercessory prayer, blessing by association and the concept of the pivot (how believers in a particular country preserve that country).

There are going to be some remarkable differences in this chapter with regards to God appearing to Abraham. First of all, it is not clear at what point Abraham realizes that this is the Lord to Whom he is speaking. Secondly, God is there with two angels; which is a new thing. Thirdly, Sarah is involved in God’s promises to Abraham and engaged in the conversation. Finally, God arrives to pronounce judgment and to carry out this judgment. Abraham, through his prayer to God (face to face) will potentially have an affect upon another part of the world.

——————————

Yehowah God and Two Angels Come to Abraham, to Reassert the Promises to Him

Here is how others have translated this verse:

Ancient texts:                       Note: I compare the Hebrew text to English translations of the Latin, Syriac and Greek texts, using the Douay-Rheims translation; George Lamsa’s translation, and Sir Lancelot Charles Lee Brenton’s translation as revised and edited by Paul W. Esposito, respectively. I often update these texts with non-substantive changes (e.g., you for thou, etc.). I often use the text of the Complete Apostles’ Bible instead of Brenton’s translation, because it updates the English text.

The Septuagint was the earliest known translation of a book (circa 200 b.c.). Since this translation was made before the textual criticism had been developed into a science and because different books appear to be translated by different men, the Greek translation can sometimes be very uneven.

When there are serious disparities between my translation and Brenton’s (or the text of the Complete Apostles’ Bible), I look at the Greek text of the Septuagint (the LXX) to see if a substantive difference actually exists (and I reflect these changes in the English rendering of the Greek text). I use the Greek LXX with Strong’s numbers and morphology available for e-sword. The only problem with this resource (which is a problem for similar resources) is, there is no way to further explore Greek verbs which are not found in the New Testament. Although I usually quote the Complete Apostles’ Bible here, I have begun to make changes in the translation when their translation conflicts with the Greek and note what those changes are.

The Masoretic text is the Hebrew text with all of the vowels (vowel points) inserted (the original Hebrew text lacked vowels). We take the Masoretic text to be the text closest to the original. However, differences between the Masoretic text and the Greek, Latin and Syriac are worth noting and, once in a great while, represent a more accurate text possessed by those other ancient translators.

In general, the Latin text is an outstanding translation from the Hebrew text into Latin and very trustworthy (I say this as a non-Catholic). Unfortunately, I do not read Latin—apart from some very obvious words—so I am dependent upon the English translation of the Latin (principally, the Douay-Rheims translation).

Underlined words indicate differences in the text.

Bracketed portions of the Dead Sea Scrolls are words, letters and phrases lost in the scroll due to various types of damage. Underlined words or phrases are those in the Dead Sea Scrolls but not in the Masoretic text.

The Targum of Onkelos is actually the Pentateuchal Targumim, which are The Targums of Onkelos and Jonathan Ben Uzziel. On the Pentateuch With The Fragments of the Jerusalem Targum From the Chaldee by J. W. Etheridge, M.A. Taken from http://targum.info/targumic-texts/pentateuchal-targumim/ and first published in 1862.

Targum of Onkelos                AND the glory of the Lord was revealed to him in the valley of Mamre; and he, being ill from the pain of circumcision, sat at the door of the tabernacle in the fervour (or strength) of the day.

Latin Vulgate                          And the Lord appeared to him in the vale of Mambre as he was sitting at the door of his tent, in the very heat of the day.

Masoretic Text (Hebrew)        And so is seen unto him Y^ehowah in Oaks of Mamre, and this one is sitting an opening of the tent as heat of the day.

Peshitta (Syriac)                    AND the LORD revealed himself to him by the oak of Mamre, as he was sitting at the door of the tent in the heat of the day.

Septuagint (Greek)                And God appeared to him by the oak of Mamre, as he sat by the door of his tent in the heat of the day.

Significant differences:           The targum inserts what appears to be commentary along side the translation; all of the excess words being underlined above. Although the word oak possibly means plain, vale; it is in the plural in the Hebrew, it is in the singular in the Greek and appears to be in the singular in the other languages as well (according to their English translations).

Although you will note that I have and where many of the other ancient translations have as, the Hebrew exegesis will show that a temporal meaning can be affixed to the wâw conjunction.

The Hebrew does not have preposition preceding door, opening; but the sense of the verse seems to imply one. The final preposition, in, which seems to be the one used in nearly every English translation is actually the very similar looking kaph preposition. However, it has a temporal understanding, which appears to be what is meant here.

Thought-for-thought translations; paraphrases:

Contemporary English V.       One hot summer afternoon Abraham was sitting by the entrance to his tent near the sacred trees of Mamre, when the LORD appeared to him.

Easy English                          The *Lord appeared in front of Abraham. It happened by the *oaks that Mamre owned. Abraham was sitting in the doorway of his tent. God appeared at midday, when the sun was very hot.

Easy-to-Read Version            Later, the Lord again appeared to Abraham. Abraham was living near the oak trees of Mamre. One day, at the hottest part of the day, Abraham was sitting at the door of his tent.

Good News Bible (TEV)         The LORD appeared to Abraham at the sacred trees of Mamre. As Abraham was sitting at the entrance of his tent during the hottest part of the day,...

New Life Bible                        Abraham Is Promised A Son

1The Lord showed Himself to Abraham by the oak trees of Mamre, as he sat at the tent door in the heat of the day.

Partially literal and partially paraphrased translations:

American English Bible          God [next] appeared to [AbraHam] by the big tree at MamRe, as he was sitting at the entrance to his tent, around noon.

Ancient Roots Translinear      Yahweh saw him at Mamre's oaks as he dwelled in the tent opening in the warmth of the day.

God’s Word™                         The LORD appeared to Abraham by the oak trees belonging to Mamre as he was sitting at the entrance of his tent during the hottest part of the day.

New American Bible              The LORD appeared to Abraham by the oak of Mamre, as he sat in the entrance of his tent, while the day was growing hot.

NIRV                                      Three Men Visit Abraham

The Lord appeared to Abraham near the large trees of Mamre. Abraham was sitting at the entrance to his tent. It was the hottest time of the day.

New Simplified Bible              Jehovah appeared again to Abraham by the oak grove of Mamre. He was sitting in the tent door in the heat of the day.

Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

Bible in Basic English             Now the Lord came to him by the holy tree of Mamre, when he was seated in the doorway of his tent in the middle of the day;...

Complete Jewish Bible           ADONAI appeared to Avraham by the oaks of Mamre as he sat at the entrance to the tent during the heat of the day.

Ferar-Fenton Bible                 The Lord again revealed to him at the Oakwood of Mamrah, when he sat at the door of his tent in the heat of the day.

JPS (Tanakh—1917)               And the LORD appeared unto him by the terebinths of Mamre, as he sat in the tent door in the heat of the day;...

JPS (Tanakh—1985)               The Lord appeared to him by the terebinths of Mamre; he was sitting at the entrance of the tent as the day grew hot.

NET Bible®                             Three Special Visitors

The LORD appeared to Abraham [Heb "him"; the referent (Abraham) has been specified in the translation for clarity.] by the oaks [Or "terebinths."] of Mamre while [The disjunctive clause here is circumstantial to the main clause.] he was sitting at the entrance [The Hebrew noun translated "entrance" is an adverbial accusative of place.] to his tent during the hottest time of the day. When it comes to making an actual material change to the text, the NET Bible® is pretty good about indicating this. Since most of these corrections will be clear in the more literal translations below and within the Hebrew exegesis itself, I will not continue to list every NET Bible® footnote.

New Advent Bible                  And the Lord appeared to him in the vale of Mambre as he was sitting at the door of his tent, in the very heat of the day.

NIV, ©2011                             The LORD appeared to Abraham near the great trees of Mamre while he was sitting at the entrance to his tent in the heat of the day.

The Scriptures 1998              And יהוה appeared to him by the terebinth trees of Mamrĕ, while he was sitting in the tent door in the heat of the day.

Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

Concordant Literal Version    And appearing to him is Yahweh Elohim among the oaks of Mamre. And sitting is he at the opening of the tent at noon, as the day is warm.

exeGeses companion Bible   THREE VISITORS

And Yah Veh is seen by him

in the mighty oaks of Mamre:

and he sits in the tent opening in the heat of the day;.

Modern KJV                           And Jehovah appeared to him in the plains of Mamre, and he sat at the tent door in the heat of the day.

Syndein/Thieme                     And Jehovah/God appeared unto him {Abraham} in the plains of Mamre {name means wealth and prosperity - implies he is in fellowship}. He {Abraham} sat in the tent door in the heat of the day {when the sun was high}.

Young’s Updated LT             And Jehovah appears unto him among the oaks of Mamre, and he is sitting at the opening of the tent, about the heat of the day.

The gist of this verse:          Abraham is sitting at the opening of his tent when it is warm and Y^ehowah appears to him.

Translation: Y^ehowah appears unto him by the Oaks of Mamre... There are no chapter divisions in the original Hebrew, so the person here is Abraham (chapter 17 is simply continued here, even though this is a month or so later). Since Y^ehowah appeared to Abraham in the previous chapter and there was going to be a year pass before Isaac is born, vv. 12–13 indicate to us that nothing sexual has happened between Abraham and Sarah during this time. Therefore, God is appearing to Abraham and Sarah within 3 months of the previous appearance. Now, we know that God left Abraham because Gen. 17:12 tells us that Y^ehowah completed talking to Abraham and then He went up from him. So, there was 13 years of silence and now, within a 3 month period of time, God appears to Abraham twice.

I left off the transitional wâw consecutive in my translation, because the actual physical chapter division accomplishes the same thing.

Appeared is an interesting construction; this is the Niphal imperfect, 3^rd person masculine singular of râʾâh (רָאָה) [pronounced raw-AWH], which means to see. However, our Lord was not the one who was seeing but the one who was seen. This is why the passive voice is used here; effectively, this changes the meaning of the word from to see to to appear.

Mamre was one of the men who had helped Abraham back in Gen. 14 to route the kings. It is also the area that Abraham first settled in prior to this battle with the 4 kings. Gen. 13:18 tells us that this is in or near Hebron (both prepositions have the same root Hebrew word). My guess would be that Mamre was given the name by Mamre, who settled there before Abraham; or, Abraham picked up Mamre in Mamre and gave him that nickname.

Abraham has lived near the Oaks of Mamre since Gen. 13:18, a period of roughly 25 years. Being a rancher with probably a great many sheep, Abraham likely has traveled quite a bit with his sheep, probably in a circuit. However, this seems to be his primary residence, or home base, if you will.

You may recall that one of Abraham’s allies in the War of the Kings was Mamre, who was an Amorite, who was an okay guy (we know this, because he chose to ally himself with Abraham). It is reasonable to understand that Mamre has allowed Abraham to live on his land and that this association has brought great blessing to Mamre.

Translation: ...while he is sitting [at] the opening of [his] tent at the time of the heat of the day. There are a few minor problems in translating this second phrase. However, the translation above is reasonable, and is justified by the Hebrew exegesis above.

My assumption here is, Abraham is taking a little siesta at this time. He is nearly 100 years old and he is taking some time off. However, bear in mind that Abraham will live to be 175 years old (Gen. 25:7). So, he is in a half-conscious state, and suddenly, there is Jesus Christ in His preincarnate form, standing in front of him. We studied this concept back in Gen. 16, as the Doctrine of the Angel of Jehovah (HTML) (PDF) (WPD).

There is a revealed member of the Trinity, Jesus Christ, who reveals Himself to Abraham and to Moses (among many others). Usually, in the Old Testament, He is called the Angel of Y^ehowah.

As you view the remainder of this chapter, it will be clear that this verse—Y^ehowah appears unto Abraham [lit., him] by the Oaks of Mamre while he is sitting [at] the opening of [his] tent at the time of the heat of the day—is essentially a title or a summary of this chapter (at least, a summary of the first 15 verses).

This first verse appears to be a title for this chapter or a summary of this chapter. At the same time, it is a transitional verse from chapter 17 to chapter 18. The Bible was not separated into chapters (or even verses). However, you will recall that, by chiasmos, Gen. 17 was clearly a separate literary unit. Therefore, this verse deftly moves us from chapter 17 to 18, and announces the content of Gen. 18.

It is the warm part of the day, and Abraham would be sitting outside of his tent to pick up whatever breeze he might. He is probably in a state of being partially asleep.

This narrative is going to be fascinating. We begin with the 3^rd person masculine singular, Niphal imperfect of to appear (it means to see in the Qal stem; to appear, to be seen in the Niphal). So, Y^ehowah, appears (masculine singular) to Abraham.

Let me remind you about God: God is One in essence, but three in Persons. Each member of the Godhead has a different function and a different relationship to us. The 2^nd Member of the Trinity is Jesus Christ, known to Old Testament saints as Y^ehowah Elohim (although the name Jesus does appear in the Old Testament, hidden in one of the psalms). Y^ehowah Elohim is the Revealed Member of the Trinity, with Whom we directly interact. It is Jesus in Whom we must believe (John 14:1); and it was Y^ehowah in Whom Abraham believed in order to be seen as righteous (Gen. 15:6).

Gen 18:1 And Y^ehowah appears to him by the oaks of Mamre, as he sat at the door of his tent in the heat of the day.

However, when Abraham looks up to see Y^ehowah, he sees 3 men.

——————————

V. 2 begins to describe the narrative of how this all came about—what the details were when Y^ehowah appeared to Abraham while he sat near the opening of his tent.

Here is how others have translated this verse:

Ancient texts:

Targum of Onkelos                And he lifted up his eyes and looked, and, behold, three angels in the resemblance of men were standing before him; (angels) who had been sent from the necessity of three things;--because it is not possible for a ministering angel to be sent for more than one purpose at a time;--one, then, had come to make known to him that Sarah should bear a man-child; one had come to deliver Lot; and one to overthrow Sedom and Amorah. And when he saw them, he ran to meet them from the door of the tent, and bowed himself on the earth. [JERUSALEM. Three angels were sent to our father Abraham; and the three were sent for three things;--because it is not possible that one of the high angels should be sent for more things than one. The first angel was sent to announce to our father Abraham, that, behold, Sarah would bear Izhak; the second angel was sent to deliver Lot from the midst of the overthrow; the third angel was sent to overthrow Sedom and Amorah, Admah and Zeboim. Therefore was there a word of prophecy from before the Lord unto Abraham the Just, and the Word of the Lord was revealed to him in the valley of vision; and he sat in the door of the tabernacle, comforting himself from his circumcision in the fervour (or strength) of the day.]

Latin Vulgate                          And when he had lifted up his eyes, there appeared to him three men standing near to him: and as soon as he saw them, he ran to meet them from the door of his tent, and adored down to the ground.

Masoretic Text (Hebrew)        And so he lifts up his eyes and so he looks and, behold, three men are standing over him. And so he looks and so he runs to meet them from an opening of the tent. And so he bows down earthward,...

Peshitta (Syriac)                    And he lifted up his eyes and looked, and, behold, three men stood at a distance from him; and when he saw them, he ran from the door of the tent to meet them and bowed himself to the ground,...

Septuagint (Greek)                And he lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, three men stood before him; and having seen them, he ran to meet them from the door of his tent, and bowed himself to the ground.

Significant differences:           Again, the targum is filled with a discussion of what this verse is all about; all of that has been underlined.

Although the English translation from the Latin reads and when, this is not a bad translation from the Hebrew. The Latin appears to be missing and looked. However, they present this verb as a Niphal or Hiphil (based upon the English translation).

Where the men are standing in relationship to Abraham is a difficult call and will be discussed in the exegesis below. Therefore, the differences here are probably related more to the understanding of what is being said rather than to the actual words found in the Hebrew.

The verb to see occurs twice. The Latin seems to present this with a temporal understanding. The Greek presents it as a passive participle. All ancient versions append the verb with the 3^rd person masculine plural suffix (based upon the English translations above—and the same is true for many English translations).

Thought-for-thought translations; paraphrases:

Common English Bible           He looked up and suddenly saw three men standing near him. As soon as he saw them, he ran from his tent entrance to greet them and bowed deeply.

Contemporary English V.       Abraham looked up and saw three men standing nearby. He quickly ran to meet them, bowed with his face to the ground,...

Easy English                          Abraham looked up. And he saw three men, who were standing near him. Immediately he ran from the door of his tent. He ran towards them. He *bowed very low.

Easy-to-Read Version            Abraham looked up and saw three men standing in front of him. When Abraham saw the men, he ran to them and bowed before them.

Good News Bible (TEV)         ...he looked up and saw three men standing there. As soon as he saw them, he ran out to meet them. Bowing down with his face touching the ground,...

The Message                         He looked up and saw three men standing. He ran from his tent to greet them and bowed before them.

New Life Bible                        Abraham looked up and saw three men standing in front of him. When he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them. He put his face to the ground...

New Living Translation           He looked up and noticed three men standing nearby. When he saw them, he ran to meet them and welcomed them, bowing low to the ground.

Partially literal and partially paraphrased translations:

Ancient Roots Translinear      He looked up and saw three men before him. And when he noticed them, he ran from the entrance of his tent to meet them and bowed all the way to the ground.

Beck’s American Translation He looked up, and there he saw three men standing not far from him. When he saw them, he ran from his tend door to meet them, and he bowed down to the ground.

God’s Word™                         Abraham looked up, and suddenly he saw three men standing near him. When he saw them, he ran to meet them, and he bowed with his face touching the ground.

New American Bible              Looking up, he saw three men standing near him. When he saw them, he ran from the entrance of the tent to greet them; and bowing to the ground,... Heb 13:1-2.

New Jerusalem Bible             He looked up, and there he saw three men standing near him. As soon as he saw them he ran from the entrance of the tent to greet them, and bowed to the ground.

Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

Bible in Basic English             And lifting up his eyes, he saw three men before him; and seeing them, he went quickly to them from the door of the tent, and went down on his face to the earth;...

Ferar-Fenton Bible                 Then he raised his eyes and looked, and saw three men standing opposite to him; and he looked, and called to them from the door of his tent, and bowing to the ground,...

HCSB                                     He looked up, and he saw three men standing near him. When he saw them, he ran from the entrance of the tent to meet them and bowed to the ground.

JPS (Tanakh—1917)               ...and he lifted up his eyes and looked, and, lo, three men stood over against him; and when he saw them, he ran to meet them from the tent door, and bowed down to the earth,...

NET Bible®                             Abraham ["he"; the referent (Abraham) has been specified in the translation for clarity.] looked up [Heb "lifted up his eyes."] and saw [Heb "and saw, and look." The particle הִנֵּה (hinneh) draws attention to what he saw. The drawn–out description focuses the reader's attention on Abraham's deliberate, fixed gaze and indicates that what he is seeing is significant.] three men standing across [The Hebrew preposition עַל ('al) indicates the three men were nearby, but not close by, for Abraham had to run to meet them.] from him. When he saw them [The pronoun "them" has been supplied in the translation for clarification. In the Hebrew text the verb has no stated object.] he ran from the entrance of the tent to meet them and bowed low [The form וַיִּשְתַּחוּ (vayyishtakhu, "and bowed low") is from the verb הִשְתַּחֲוָה (hishtakhavah, "to worship, bow low to the ground"). It is probably from a root חָוָה (khavah), though some derive it from שָחָה (shakhah).] to the ground [The reader knows this is a theophany. The three visitors are probably the LORD and two angels (see Gen. 19:1). It is not certain how soon Abraham recognized the true identity of the visitors. His actions suggest he suspected this was something out of the ordinary, though it is possible that his lavish treatment of the visitors was done quite unwittingly. Bowing down to the ground would be reserved for obeisance of kings or worship of the LORD. Whether he was aware of it or not, Abraham's action was most appropriate.].

NIV – UK                                Abraham looked up and saw three men standing nearby. When he saw them, he hurried from the entrance of his tent to meet them and bowed low to the ground.

Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

The Amplified Bible                He lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, three men stood at a little distance from him. He ran from the tent door to meet them and bowed himself to the ground.

Concordant Literal Version    And lifting is he his eyes and seeing, and behold! Three mortals are stationed by him. And seeing is he and running to meet them from the opening of the tent, and is prostrating to the earth.

Context Group Version          ...and he lifted up his eyes and looked, and noticed three men stood across from him: and when he saw them, he ran to meet them from the tent door, and bowed himself to the land { or earth },...

English Standard Version      He lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, three men were standing in front of him. When he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them and bowed himself to the earth...

exeGeses companion Bible   ...and he lifts his eyes and sees, and behold,

three men station themselves by him:

and he sees them

and runs to meet them from the tent opening

and prostrates himself toward the earth,...

Heritage Bible                        And he lifted up his eyes, and saw, and lo, three men were stationed by him; and when he saw, he ran to meet them from the tent door, and prostrated himself upon the earth,...

Modern KJV                           And he lifted up his eyes and looked, and lo, three men stood by him. And when he saw them, he ran to meet them from the tent door, and bowed toward the ground.

Syndein                                  {Verses 2-8: A Believer In Fellowship - Is Friendly and Hospitable} He kept on lifting up {nasa'} his eyes and 'looking to understand' {ra'ah}, and, lo, three men stood in front of him. And when he saw them, he ran to meet them from the tent door, and bowed {shachah - used for 'to prostrate oneself '- here is a gracious greeting to strangers} himself toward the ground.

Updated Bible Version 2.11   ...and he lifted up his eyes and looked, and noticed three men stood across from him: and when he saw them, he ran to meet them from the tent door, and bowed himself to the earth,...

Webster’s Bible Translation  And he lifted up his eyes and looked, and lo, three men stood by him: and when he saw [them], he ran to meet them from the tent door, and bowed himself toward the ground.

World English Bible                He lifted up his eyes and looked, and saw that three men stood opposite him. When he saw them, he ran to meet them from the tent door, and bowed himself to the earth,...

Young’s Updated LT             And he lifts up his eyes and looks, and lo, three men standing by him, and he sees, and runs to meet them from the opening of the tent, and bows himself towards the earth.

The gist of this verse:          Three men come to Abraham, while he is sleeping in front of his tent, and he runs to them, bowing before them.

Translation: Abraham lifts up his eyes... I have suggested that Abraham is taking a siesta at this point. Rather than translating this with a 3^rd person masculine singular pronoun, many translators, including myself, use Abraham’s name, simply because it sounds better. This is understood in the Hebrew text because there is no break between chapters 17 and 18, so the narrative about Abraham is considered to simply continue.

V. 1 tells us that this is the Lord, although it is not clear whether Abraham knows that or not. This is likely Jesus and two angels coming to Abraham at this momentous time. We can be fairly certain that one of them at least is Y^ehowah, the One who is revealed. Vv. 19 and 13 indicate this.

Translation: ...and looks [lit., and so he lifts up his eyes and so he looks]... Perhaps Abraham is in a deep sleep and perhaps not. He looks up, which seems to be the meaning of these verbs strung together.

Translation: ...and, behold, [there are] three men... What Abraham sees is three men. Now, the use of this particular word for men suggests that there is nothing special about them. That is, none of them have horns or wings or whatever; they simply appear to be normal men.

The questions which occur to me immediately is, who are these men and who does Abram think that they are?

Their appearance here seems somewhat sudden—Abraham looks up, and right in front of him are 3 men. In fact, the Hebrew reads that these 3 men are stationed [standing] over him. However, that is probably not how your Bible reads. In this verse, we have the masculine plural, Niphal participle of nâtsab (נָצַב) [pronounced naw-TSAH^BV], which means, those stationed, the ones left standing, stationing themselves, who are taking a stand; those standing [at the ready]. Strong’s #5324 BDB #662. This is followed by the preposition ʿal (עַל) [pronounced ģahl], which means, upon, beyond, on, against, above, over; on the ground of, because of, according to, on account of. Strong’s #5921 BDB #752. It is affixed to the 3^rd person masculine singular suffix, which refers to Abraham.

In the previous verse, we are told that Y^ehowah appears to Abraham; yet, in this verse, he sees 3 men standing over him.

What is being illustrated for us here is the Trinity. These men are not the 3 members of the Trinity taking on physical form and coming to Abram; this could be Jesus Christ in His preincarnate form (He is the revealed member of the Trinity) with 2 angels (say, Michael and Gabriel). What we know for certain is, Jehovah Elohim is among them. That this is Jesus Christ in His preincarnate form traveling with two angels, which explanation will become clear as we continue in this narrative.

I have taken some liberties with this verse (not as much as most translators have), but very literally, this verse reads: And so he lifts up his eyes and so he looks and, behold, three men are standing over him. And so he looks and so he runs to meet them from an opening of the tent. And so he bows down earthward,... You will note that we have a repetition of the wâw consecutive and the verb he looks.

Let me explain something from the Hebrew, which is not fully understood or even correctly taught in many Hebrew classes: when you have a bunch of wâw consecutives followed by imperfect verbs, you are reading a chronological or logical progression of action, without reference to the duration or the completion of the action itself. Here are the two ways that translators have gotten this wrong: traditionally, it is incorrectly taught that a wâw would transform an imperfect verb (continuous or progressive action) into a perfect verb (completed action). It is called a wâw conversative. Teachers teach this because, much of this action which should be seen as continuous simply isn’t. R. B. Thieme, Jr. made mention, from time to time, of the wâw conversative, but, most of the time, seemed to reject that notion (although I do not recall him actually saying that), and took every imperfect verb and made it into continuous action. So, traditional Hebrew scholars render this: And he lifted up his eyes and he looked,... R. B. Thieme, Jr. would render this: And he keeps on lifting up his eyes and he keeps on looking,... However, the key is not the English tense of the verb, but the chronological progression of these actions, which actions may occur in a moment or which actions may occur over a lengthier period of time. However, what should focus on is the progression: And then he lifted up his eyes; and then he looked, and, behold, [there are] three men standing over him. And then he looked and then he ran to meet them [running] from the opening of the tent. And then he bowed down low [before them]. I know that this was quite technical, and you may not get it; but, because this is not understood by most translators, some have fudged the translation of this verse. The Hebrew clearly says that these men are standing over Abraham; and yet, he runs to meet them. That doesn’t make any sense, so the words standing over are changed by some translators to make it sound like these 3 men are off in the distance. The NET Bible, for instance, renders this: Abraham looked up and saw three men standing across from him. It takes 4 footnotes for them to explain their translation of this one short phrase.

What pulls this all together is, Abraham looks twice. The first time he looks, they are standing over him; the second time he looks, they are, apparently, off a ways from him.

All three look just like men; there is nothing suggested in this context that they had wings or were translucent or anything else. All Abraham sees is just three men. We will find out that this is Jehovah Elohim and two angels (compare Gen. 18:1–2, 16, 22 and 19:1).

Translation: ...standing beyond [over?] him. This is actually a fairly difficult phrase, not because the words themselves are difficult (they are very common Hebrew words), but because we normally associate the preposition with being upon, against, above, over when it comes to the relative position of two sets of things (in this case, Abraham and the 3 men). If we were to understand this as Abraham sitting outside of his tent opening on a lawn chair (or, whatever), in a half-conscious state, and there are 3 men standing over him, then these words perfectly fit with this scenario. Because Abraham will run to meet these men, they would not appear to be so close to him.

BDB gives the following meanings for this preposition: 1) upon, on the ground of, according to, on account of, on behalf of, concerning, beside, in addition to, together with, beyond, above, over, by, on to, towards, to, against (preposition); 1a) upon, on the ground of, on the basis of, on account of, because of, therefore, on behalf of, for the sake of, for, with, in spite of, notwithstanding, concerning, in the matter of, as regards; 1b) above, beyond, over (of excess); 1c) above, over (of elevation or pre-eminence); 1d) upon, to, over to, unto, in addition to, together with, with (of addition); 1e) over (of suspension or extension); 1f) by, adjoining, next, at, over, around (of contiguity or proximity); 1g) down upon, upon, on, from, up upon, up to, towards, over towards, to, against (with verbs of motion); 1h) to (as a dative); 2) because that, because, notwithstanding, although (conjunction). I mention this, because in all cases where relative juxtaposition of two objects or two sets of things tend to imply both a nearness and the idea that one set of things is over another set. So, these three men standing over Abraham, while Abraham is half asleep in his lawn chair out on the front lawn is a very reasonable understanding.

Now, it may strike you as odd for God and two angels to be walking, but the earth, created by God, is a marvelous place. The design of the earth, its plant life and animal life, and mankind, and the actual composition of the earth and its atmosphere is absolutely amazing. So, it should not seem odd that God would allow these angels with Him to enjoy walking upon the earth and taking in all of its great beauty, even in it fallen state (Gen. 3:17–18).

In fact, the earth is such an incredible place that man has worshiped the earth throughout much of human history. Looking back, it is called Gaia worship; today, it is known as rabid environmentalism (or, environmentalism for short). A distinction ought to be made. God has placed man on this earth to inhabit it and to make the environment what we want it to be. That is, we adapt the environment and use the earth for our own purposes and design. For many of us, that is a house surrounded by a slightly larger lawn, with roads that will take us to stores. It becomes environmentalism when (1) you are so offended by the aesthetics of your surroundings that you want to not just change the way you live, but the way others live as well; and/or (2) you believe that man is destructive to the earth, and that we ought to strive for the earth to be what it is, as if man never existed.

This does not mean that wanting clean air to breathe and clean water to drink are radical notions. That does not mean that, you prefer a wild landscape, and you want to live in a house surrounded by forest (or, whatever). It is even okay if you think your lawn ought to grow wild and never be mowed—just find a place where you can do that without having to spend the rest of your life in court. We are allowed to adapt the earth for our living desires.

Quite obviously, since we are not the only people on this earth, our designs and choices are limited by the respect for others. If you live in a neighborhood, like it or not, there are community standards. Or, if you live along a river, you cannot simply throw your garbage into the river to get rid of it, since, quite obviously, someone else lives down-river from you. Rom 12:18 (WEB) If it is possible, as much as it is up to you, be at peace with all men. Heb. 12:14a (BBE) Let your desire be for peace with all men.

Translation: So he looks... We repeat this verb, in exactly the same stem and tense. Although we do not have the qualifier again, it would not be out of order to understand this to mean and he looks again. This is simply based upon the repetition of the verb.

Let me suggest this as one possible explanation. Abraham looks up, out of a half-conscious sleep, and he sees 3 men standing over him or standing by him. He dozes off for a few instances, his mind snaps to what he saw, and he looks again. This time, the men are no longer standing over him, but they are a distance off. Now, quite frankly, there is not enough information in this verse for me to give this interpretation only; but it does reasonably take into account all that we find here without having to fudge the meanings of the words (and, by fudge, and I don’t mean fudge, but to take a less-used definition for this or that word). It is not unusual in English to use a particular word in a particular way almost all of the time; and yet, to use this word in a slightly different sense once or twice in your lifetime.

So far, v. 2 reads: Abraham lifts up his eyes and looks up [lit., and so he lifts up his eyes and so he looks] and, behold, [there are] three men standing beyond [over?] him. So he looks... Two of these men are angels; so let’s talk about angels for a moment:

Translation: ...and then he runs to meet them from the opening of the tent. It appears as if these men are afar off. Therefore, Abraham has to get onto his feet and run to them. Given the words in this verse and how they are used, this does not preclude a semi-conscious state. That is, it is almost as if Abraham is experiencing this in a dream. First the men are right there over him; and then he is running to them, with twice the allusion to the entry to the tent. However, it will become clear that this is not a vision or a dream because Sarah will hear what is being said. She will actually hear them say things.

Abraham entertaining angels (a graphic); from St-takla.org; accessed January 1, 2014.

Translation: Then he bowed down toward the earth,... It is not clear whether Abraham is acting with great humility toward 3 strangers who are within his periphery or whether he recognizes who this is. Even calling one of these men, my lord does not require Abraham to have recognized one of the men as Jehovah Elohim.

Gen 18:1–2 And Y^ehowah appears to him by the oaks of Mamre, as he sat at the door of his tent in the heat of the day. He lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, three men were standing over him. When he looked [again], he ran from the tent door to meet them and bowed himself to the earth

Let me suggest this explanation. Abraham looks up, out from a half-conscious sleep, and he sees 3 men standing over him or standing by him. He dozes off for a few instances, his mind snaps to what he saw, and he looks again. This time, the men are no longer standing over him, but they are a distance off.

Abraham runs to meet them and he bows himself before them.

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Here is how others have translated this verse:

Ancient texts:

Targum of Onkelos                And he said, I beseech, by the mercies (that are) before You, O Lord, if now I have found favour before You, that the glory of Your shekina may not now ascend from Your servant, until I have set forth provisions under the tree.

Latin Vulgate                          And he said: Lord, if I have found favour in your sight, pass not away from your servant.

Masoretic Text (Hebrew)        ...and so he says, “My Lords, if please I have found grace in Your eyes do not please pass from upon Your servant.

Peshitta (Syriac)                    And said, O LORD, if now I have found mercy in your sight, do not pass away from your servant.

Septuagint (Greek)                And he said, Lord, if indeed I have found grace in Your sight, pass not by Your servant.

Significant differences:           The targum is filled will extra stuff. You will note that my translation has My Lords, and the others are somewhat different. See the Hebrew exegesis for more information on that.

The Latin lacks the particle of entreaty (which occurs twice in the Hebrew). The translations if now and if indeed (in the Syriac and Greek) are legitimate (as is, in Your sight). .

Thought-for-thought translations; paraphrases:

Common English Bible           He said, "Sirs, if you would be so kind, don't just pass by your servant.

Contemporary English V.       ...and said, "Please come to my home where I can serve you.

Easy English                          Abraham said, `Sir, if you think kindly about me, please do not go away.

Easy-to-Read Version            Abraham said, “Sirs [This Hebrew word can mean "sirs" or "Lord." This might show that these were not ordinary men.], please stay awhile with me, your servant.

Good News Bible (TEV)         ...he said, "Sirs, please do not pass by my home without stopping; I am here to serve you.

The Message                         He said, "Master, if it please you, stop for a while with your servant.

New Century Version             ...and said, "Sir, if you think well of me, please stay awhile with me, your servant.

New Living Translation           "My lord," he said, "if it pleases you, stop here for a while.

Partially literal and partially paraphrased translations:

Ancient Roots Translinear      ...saying, "My lord, please, if I find grace in your eyes, please do not pass by your servant.

Beck’s American Translation “my lord,” he said, “if you’re kind to me, please don’t pass by your servant.

God’s Word™                         "Please, sir," Abraham said, "stop by to visit me for a while.

New American Bible              ...he said: "Sir,* if it please you, do not go on past your servant.

NIRV                                      He said, "My lord, if you are pleased with me, don't pass me by.

Revised English Bible            ...he said, ‘Sirs, if I have deserved your favour, do not go past your servant without a visit.

Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

Bible in Basic English             And said, My Lord, if now I have grace in your eyes, do not go away from your servant:...

Complete Jewish Bible           ...and said, "My lord, if I have found favor in your sight, please don't leave your servant.

Ferar-Fenton Bible                 ...said, “My masters, if now I have found favour in your eyes, will you not come in to your servant?

HCSB                                     Then he said, "My lord, if I have found favor in your sight, please do not go on past your servant.

PS (Tanakh—1985)                 ...he said, “My lords [Or, “My Lord”], if it please you, do not go on past your servant.

NET Bible®                             He said, "My lord [The Masoretic Text (MT) has the form אֲדֹנָי ('adonay, "Master") which is reserved for God. This may reflect later scribal activity. The scribes, knowing it was the LORD, may have put the proper pointing with the word instead of the more common אֲדֹנִי ('adoni, "my master").], if I have found favor in your sight, do not pass by and leave your servant [Heb "do not pass by from upon your servant."].

Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

Concordant Literal Version    And saying is he, "My lord, pray, should I find grace in your eyes, pray, you must not pass on from your servant.

Context Group Version          ...and said, My lord, if now I have found favor in your sight, don't pass away, I beg of you, from your slave...

English Standard Version      ...and said, "O Lord, if I have found favor in your sight, do not pass by your servant.

exeGeses companion Bible   ...and says, My Adonay, If, I beseech you,

I find charism in your eyes,

pass not away, I beseech you, from your servant:.

Heritage Bible                        And said, My Lord, if now there exists grace to me in your eyes, I beg you, do not cross on from your servant;...

NASB                                     ...and said, "My Lord [Or O Lord], if now I have found favor in Your sight, please do not pass Your servant by [Lit pass away from Your servant].

Syndein                                  And said, "Why don't you stay awhile?" {Idiom: literally is "my 'Adonay/lord, if now I have found favor in your sight, pass not away, I pray you, from your servant"} {Note: RBT says that Abraham did not recognize these three strangers as being God or messengers from God at this point. The point of the verses is to show Abraham's good mental attitude when the strangers arrived.}.

Updated Bible Version 2.11   ...and said, My lord, if now I have found favor in your sight, don't pass away, I pray you, from your slave:.

World English Bible                ...and said, "My lord, if now I have found favor in your sight, please don't go away from your servant..

Young’s Updated LT             And he says, “My Lord, if, I pray you, I have found grace in your eyes, do not, I pray you, pass on from your servant.

The gist of this verse:          Abraham asks for them to not pass by him.

Translation: ...and said, “My Lords,... The word Lord here can refer to God and can be a term of simple respect for a man in authority. The form that this word is in is, ʾădônây (אֲדֹנָי) [pronounced uh-doh-NAY]. Grammatically speaking, this is the plural form of ʾâdôwn (אָדוֹן) [pronounced aw-DOHN] with the 1^st person singular suffix affixed to it. Most English Bibles translate this my Lord here and my lords in Gen. 19:2, even though this is the exact same form of the word and Abram is addressing 3 men and Lot will address 2 messengers when they come to him (God will not be with them). It is not unusual for this to be simply translated Lord. To add to this confusion, Strong gives 2 numbers to this word (Strong’s #113 & 136), which merely represent these 2 forms of the same word. And, as if that were not confusing enough, my e-sword identifies the word here as Strong’s #136 and as Strong’s #113 in Gen. 19:2, even though they are the exact same form of the exact same word. I am not opposed in any way to the different Strong numbers, which is often the case when, say, the present active participle of a verb is separately named as an adjective; however, it strikes me as being rather inconsistent to take these 2 instances of having the exact same word in all respects given 2 different Strong’s numbers.

I mention this bit of confusion, because it would be easy to use your e-sword (or a similar type tool) and to think that the Hebrew word here is ʾădônây (אֲדֹנָי) [pronounced uh-doh-NAY] but in Gen. 19:2, the Hebrew word is ʾâdôwn (אָדוֹן) [pronounced aw-DOHN]. Both BDB and Gesenius combine these “two” Strong’s numbers under one grouping. Strong differentiates between them. But, we have exactly the same form and spelling of the same word in Gen. 18:3 and 19:2, even though Strong treats them as different words.

The reason the narrative begins with Abraham seeing three men is because Abraham did not realize who this was at first. What he was doing was being polite. Lord here is the masculine plural with a 1^st person singular suffix of the Hebrew word ʾădônây (אֲדֹנָי) [pronounced uh-doh-NAY] is a term of respect and it can refer to God or to a person. My Lords is a good translation as long as it is not confused and thought to be a divine reference. Sirs would be another good translation here. Abraham is ingratiating himself to these strangers and is assuming the best of them. Abraham is merely providing them with some southern hospitality.

So, Abraham literally says, “My lords;” although it is not out of the question to render this O Lord or my Lord, despite the plural and the suffix. This sort of vocative simply connotes respect and does not necessarily mean that it is a reference to deity every time it is used (see 1Sam. 25:31, for instance). However, for the Pentateuch, Joshua and Judges, this word is used exclusively for Deity (this being the lone questionable example).

The narrative here tells us that YHWH is appearing to Abram. However, in vv. 2–3, it is not clear that Abraham knows who these men are. This could simply be ancient world hospitality that Abraham is practicing here. He sees these men off in the distance, and he gets up and runs to them, and then bows before them, asking if he can refresh them.

There are definitely some difficult things to explain from the Hebrew. Most of the time, when we find this word, we translate it Lord or my Lord; however, it is in the plural and Abraham is speaking to 3 people (well, sort of). What follows is, Abraham will twice use the 2^nd person masculine singular suffix, rather than the plural. So, is he speaking to 3 men (or, whatever) or is he speaking to one of them in particular?

My point here is, this is consistent with speaking of God as a Trinity, a Unified Whole, yet in three Persons. Again, this is not the Trinity appearing to Abraham; this is simply illustrative of the Trinity.

Translation: ...if indeed I have found grace in Your eyes,... You will note the particle of entreaty can be used with the hypothetical particle to mean if now, if indeed. This is the second time that we have found this word for grace in the Old Testament (the first was in reference to Noah in Gen. 6:8). Abraham appears to be speaking to One Person here, as he uses the 2^nd person masculine singular suffix twice (here and in v. 3c).

Translation: ...please do not pass away from Your servant. Abraham has run up to them and caught them and he asks only One Person, “Please do not pass away from Your servant.” The verb Abraham uses is in the 2^nd person masculine singular, rather than a plural.

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Here is how others have translated this verse:

Ancient texts:

Targum of Onkelos                ...until I have set forth provisions under the tree.

Latin Vulgate                          But I will fetch a little water, and wash ye your feet, and rest ye under the tree.

Masoretic Text (Hebrew)        Let be taken please a little of waters and you [all] wash your feet and you [all] rest underneath the tree.

Peshitta (Syriac)                    Let me bring a little water and wash your feet and rest yourselves under the tree.

Septuagint (Greek)                Let water now be brought, and let them wash your feet, and refresh yourselves under the tree.

Significant differences:           At this point, the targum essentially preserves 3 words: set forth, under and tree. The English translation from the Latin and Syriac have the 1^st person singular associated with the first verb (which is found in many English translations). The imperatives to wash and rest seem to be more imperatives of request rather than demand; and that comes across in the ancient translations.

Thought-for-thought translations; paraphrases:

Common English Bible           Let a little water be brought so you may wash your feet and refresh yourselves under the tree.

Contemporary English V.       I'll have some water brought, so you can wash your feet, then you can rest under the tree.

Easy English                          Let us bring a little water so that you can wash your feet. Then rest under the tree.

Easy-to-Read Version            I will bring some water to wash your feet. You can rest under the trees.

Good News Bible (TEV)         Let me bring some water for you to wash your feet; you can rest here beneath this tree.

The Message                         I'll get some water so you can wash your feet. Rest under this tree.

New Berkeley Version           I beg of you, let us have a little water brought, to wash your feet. Recline under the tree...

New Century Version             I will bring some water so all of you can wash your feet. You may rest under the tree,...

New Living Translation           Rest in the shade of this tree while water is brought to wash your fee.

Partially literal and partially paraphrased translations:

American English Bible          '[I will have] water brought and [my servants] will wash your feet; so rest here under the tree.

Ancient Roots Translinear      Please take a little water and wash your feet, and lean under the tree.

Beck’s American Translation Somebody will get a little water; then wash your feet, and rest under the tree.

God’s Word™                         Why don't we let someone bring a little water? After you wash your feet, you can stretch out and rest under the tree.

Revised English Bible            Let me send for some water so that you may bathe your fee; and rest under this tree.

Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

Bible in Basic English             Let me get water for washing your feet, and take your rest under the tree:...

NET Bible®                             Let a little water be brought so that [The imperative after the jussive indicates purpose here.] you may all [he word "all" has been supplied in the translation because the Hebrew verb translated "wash" and the pronominal suffix on the word "feet" are plural, referring to all three of the visitors.] wash your feet and rest under the tree.

Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

Concordant Literal Version    Let a little water, pray, be taken, and they will wash your feet. And lean back under the tree.

Context Group Version          ...let now a little water be fetched, and wash your { pl } feet, and rest yourselves under the tree.

exeGeses companion Bible   ...take a little water, I beseech you,

and bathe your feet and lean under the tree:...

Fred Miller’s Revised KJV     I beseech you, let a little water be fetched and wash your feet and rest yourselves under the tree.

Heritage Bible                        I beg you, let a little water be brought, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree;...

LTHB                                     Please allow a little water to be taken and You wash Your feet, and rest under the tree.

NASB                                     Please let a little water be brought and wash your feet, and rest [Lit support] yourselves under the tree;...

Syndein                                  "Let a little water, please/'I exhort you, be fetched, and wash your feet {this was the invitation to enter one's home - 'wash your feet first'}, and rest yourselves under the tree {out of the hot sun}."

World English Bible                Now let a little water be fetched, wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree.

Young’s Updated LT             Let, I pray you, a little water be accepted, and wash your feet, and recline under the tree.

The gist of this verse:          Abraham asks for them to rest under the tree while water was brought to wash their feet.

Translation: Please let a little water be brought [to you]... Abraham has been a stranger in a strange land and has traveled the length and breadth of the land of Canaan as God had told him to do. He recognized the importance of hospitality and kindness. To be brought is the Hophal, which is the passive causative stem; the water is being brought (passive) and Abraham will not bring it out himself but have his wife or servants bring it out. He will personally bring out some food to them (bring back—literally, fetch—is in the Qal imperfect. The Qal is the simple verb form and the imperfect tense means that this will be a process. The word servant is the proper contrast to the word lord.

In the Hebrew, this is a little odd, because the verb is in the masculine singular, but water is a plural noun (however it is affixed to a masculine singular construct). Perhaps this would be reasonably translated Please let one bring a little water [to you].

Interestingly enough, the verb is in the imperfect tense here, rather than the imperative, with the particle of entreaty affixed to it. If you read through the Hebrew exegesis, this particle can be used to express a wish or a desire, as well as used to urge someone to do something.

Abraham has already asked that these men not pass on or pass by. So, momentarily, they are just standing there, and he then asks if he can bring them some water. Abraham is expecting an answer here; although he is insisting here that they stay with him a bit. Once he completes his request, they will give him an answer.

Now, it does not appear that Abraham knows who this is—that he is speaking to the very God Who has made these many promises to him over these years.

Translation: ...and then you [all] will wash your feet... The water is not for their parched mouths, but for the dry and dirty feet. These men had apparently been walking through the land. So, we might picture Jesus Christ in His preincarnate form, when with angels, flying overhead; but they are all walking, all in a human form.

In the dusty ancient world, men apparently walked everywhere in sandals—Reebok and Saucony having not yet having established outlets in Canaan—and their feet became dry and dirty. It became a common custom in the ancient world for a person returning home or being taken in temporarily as a guest, to wash his feet (or to have his feet washed) and, on some occasions, for oil to be applied to moisten the feet.

Abraham lavant les pieds aux anges 1854 Felix Henri Giacomotti (graphic); from Pickleloaf; accessed January 1, 2014.

McGee comments: In that day they did not take off their hat, but they did take off their shoes. Today we have reversed it. When you come to visit somebody, you leaves your shoes on and take off your hat. I'm not sure which is right. I like the idea, myself, of taking off my shoes. I like to go barefooted in the summertime. I wish it were possible more often. When I am out in the Hawaiian Islands, I put my shoes away and wear thongs or go barefooted as much as possible. I don't put my shoes back on the whole time I am there. I love to go barefooted. I think this was a great custom. It sure would make you feel at home to take off your shoes, wash your feet, and rest yourself under the shade of a tree. Abraham is really entertaining these men royally.

Translation: ...and rest underneath the tree. Abraham makes a request, using the imperative mood, that they all take a rest under the tree. This further suggests one prominent shade tree in this area or that Abraham is indicating a particular tree near his tent.

Abraham makes a request, using the imperative mood, that they all take a rest under the tree. This further suggests one prominent shade tree in this area or that Abraham is indicating a particular tree near his tent.

The first words which Abraham spoke appear to be directed toward Jehovah Elohim, and they are in the singular. This second set of phrases that Abraham spoke is to all three, as all of the words and suffixes are in the plural in v. 4 (and the same will be true of v. 5).

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Here is how others have translated this verse:

Ancient texts:

Targum of Onkelos                And I will bring food of bread, that you may strengthen your hearts, and give thanks in the Name of the Word of the Lord, and afterwards pass on. For therefore at the time of repast are you come, and have turned aside to your servant to take food. And they said, You have spoken well; do according to your word.

Latin Vulgate                          And I will set a morsel of bread, and strengthen you your heart, afterwards you will pass on: for therefore are you come aside to your servant. And they said: Do as you have spoken.

Masoretic Text (Hebrew)        And I should fetch a morsel of bread and you [all] refresh your heart. Afterwards, you will pass on for upon thus you have passed upon your servant.” And they say, “Thus you will do as which you have spoken.”

Peshitta (Syriac)                    And take a morsel of bread and sustain your hearts; after that you shall go on your way, since you have come to your servant. And they said, So do as you have said.

Septuagint (Greek)                And I will bring bread, and you shall eat, and after this you shall depart on your journey, on account of which refreshment you have turned aside to your servant. And he said, So do, as you have said.

NETS (Greek)                        And I shall take bread and you will eat, and after that, you will pass by on your way—inasmuch as you have turned aside to your servant.” And they said, “So do, as you have said.”

Significant differences:           The English translation from the Latin has set instead of fetch, bring. The Syriac appears to treat this as a 2^nd person rather than as a 1^st person. The Hebrew says they will refresh themselves; the Greek says they will eat. I don’t know if this is an interpretation by the Greek or what.

The Greek also adds that they will then pass by on the road (way).

Thought-for-thought translations; paraphrases:

Common English Bible           Let me offer you a little bread so you will feel stronger, and after that you may leave your servant and go on your way-since you have visited your servant."

They responded, "Fine. Do just as you have said."

Contemporary English V.       Let me get you some food to give you strength before you leave. I would be honored to serve you." "Thank you very much," they answered. "We accept your offer."

Easy English                          I will fetch a little food to give you energy. After that, you will be able to continue your journey. We are happy to have you with us.'

The men said, `That is good. Do as you have said.'

Easy-to-Read Version            I will get some food for you, and you can eat as much as you want. Then you can continue your journey.”

Good News Bible (TEV)         I will also bring a bit of food; it will give you strength to continue your journey. You have honored me by coming to my home, so let me serve you." They replied, "Thank you; we accept."

The Message                         I'll get some food to refresh you on your way, since your travels have brought you across my path." They said, "Certainly. Go ahead."

New Berkeley Version           ...while I get a bite of bread so you may refresh yourselves; then you may go on; for this you surely came by your servant.”

They said, “Do as you have said.”

New Century Version             ...and I will get some bread for you so you can regain your strength. Then you may continue your journey."

The three men said, "That is fine. Do as you said."

New Life Bible                        And I will get a piece of bread so you may eat and get strength. After that you may go on your way, since you have come to your servant."

The men said, "Do as you have said."

New Living Translation           And since you've honored your servant with this visit, let me prepare some food to refresh you before you continue on your journey."

"All right," they said. "Do as you have said."

Partially literal and partially paraphrased translations:

American English Bible          I will bring some bread for you to eat, and then you can continue your journey. But, [please stop] so your servant can refresh you.'

And the Lord replied, 'Do just as you have said.' The AEB has this line as beginning v. 6, which is a far more logical approach.

Beck’s American Translation Let me get a bit of food for you to refresh yourselves; then go on. It was for this you were passing by your servant.”

“Do as you say,” they answered.

God’s Word™                         Let me bring some bread so that you can regain your strength. After that you can leave, since this is why you stopped by to visit me." They answered, "That's fine. Do as you say."

New American Bible              Now that you have come to your servant, let me bring you a little food, that you may refresh yourselves; and afterward you may go on your way." "Very well," they replied, "do as you have said."

NIRV                                      "Let me get you something to eat to give you strength. Then you can go on your way. I want to do this for you now that you have come to me."

"All right," they answered. "Go ahead and do it."

New Simplified Bible              »I will bring a bite to eat to refresh you. Stay a while before you continue your journey.« They responded: »Very well, do as you have said.«

Revised English Bible            ...while I fetch a little food so that you may refresh yourselves. Afterwards you may continue the journey which has brought you my way.’ They said, ‘Very well, do as you say.’

Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

Bible in Basic English             And let me get a bit of bread to keep up your strength, and after that you may go on your way: for this is why you have come to your servant. And they said, Let it be so.

Complete Jewish Bible           ...and I will bring a piece of bread. Now that you have come to your servant, refresh yourselves before going on.""Very well," they replied, "do what you have said."

Ferar-Fenton Bible                 ...and take a bit of bread, and refresh your heart, and afterwards proceed; perhaps for this you passed near your servant?”

And they replied, “Do as you have said.”

HCSB                                     I will bring a bit of bread so that you may strengthen yourselves. This is why you have passed your servant's way. Later, you can continue on." "Yes," they replied, "do as you have said."

JPS (Tanakh—1985)               And let me fetch a morsel of bread that you may refresh yourselves; then go on—seeing that you have come your servant’s way.” They replied, “Do as you have said.”

New Advent Bible                  And I will set a morsel of bread, and you strengthen your heart, afterwards you shall pass on: for therefore are you come aside to your servant. And they said: Do as you have spoken.

NET Bible®                             And let me get [The Qal cohortative here probably has the nuance of polite request] a bit of food [tn Heb "a piece of bread." The Hebrew word ????? (lekhem) can refer either to bread specifically or to food in general. Based on Abraham's directions to Sarah in v. 6, bread was certainly involved, but v. 7 indicates that Abraham had a more elaborate meal in mind.] so that you may refresh yourselves [Heb "strengthen your heart." The imperative after the cohortative indicates purpose here.] since you have passed by your servant's home. After that you may be on your way [Heb "so that you may refresh yourselves, after [which] you may be on your way - for therefore you passed by near your servant."]." "All right," they replied, "you may do as you say."

NIV, ©2011                             Let me get you something to eat, so you can be refreshed and then go on your way-now that you have come to your servant."