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†. Gen 18:13-14 . .Then Yhvh said to Abraham: Why did Sarah laugh,
saying; Shall I in truth bear a child, old as I am? Is anything too
wondrous for Yhvh? I will return to you at the time next year, and
Sarah shall have a son.
Yhvh didn't quote Sarah verbatim-- He actually paraphrased her words to
say what she meant; rather than what she spoke. That's important to note;
and tells me that it really isn't all that important to quote Scripture precisely
so long as you don't lose, or change, its meanings. There's a lot of that in
the New Testament; and certainly in the Targums too.
It isn't said exactly from whence the voice of Yhvh came: whether it was one
of the men speaking or a voice in the air. However, Yhvh did show up and do
"as He had spoken." (Gen 21:1)
†. Gen 18:15a . . Sarah lied, saying; "I didn't laugh" for she was
frightened.
Sarah hadn't actually laughed out loud, but "to herself". When she realized
that one of the men could read her thoughts, she became nervous: and who
wouldn't?
†. Gen 18:15b . . But He replied: You did laugh.
Most men would have jumped right to their wife's defense. Abraham had at
least 300 armed men in his camp who would do anything he asked; but
knowing by now exactly who these men really were, Abraham kept his cool.
The word used to describe Abraham's visitors is 'iysh (eesh) which is a
gender-specific word that means: a man as an individual or a male person.
It is also the word used to specify the male gender among the animals taken
aboard the Ark. (Gen 7:2)
This passage strongly suggests that Abraham and Sarah saw Yhvh as a fully
functioning man. As to whether the person they saw was an actual human
being or a human avatar; I don't know and I'm afraid to even hazard a
guess.
†. Gen 18:16 . .The men set out from there and looked down toward
Sodom, Abraham walking with them to see them off.
Looking down towards Sodom is probably just another way to say aiming for
Sodom.
Many of us just see our visitors out the front door. But, you know, it
wouldn't hurt to see them out to their cars too. Maybe even carry a few
things for them.
The site of Sodom has never been found. Some believe it was at the south
end of the Dead Sea; but that's really only a guess. The destruction was so
severe and so complete that it's just impossible now to tell where it was.
†. Gen 18:17 . . Now the Lord had said: Shall I hide from Abraham
what I am about to do,
Now there's a pretty good yardstick of your standing with God. Do you know
what is on His agenda for tomorrow? Me neither. God doesn't confide in me
for the slightest thing. I don't even know what brand of toothpaste He uses
in the morning let alone His daily schedule.
†. Gen 18:18 . . since Abraham is to become a great and populous
nation and all the nations of the earth are to bless themselves by
him?
Divine purposes for Abraham elevated him to a very high degree of
importance above ordinary human beings; and God regarded the old boy not
as a servant, but as a member of Yhvh's inner circle of confidants. In point
of fact; one of His buddies (Isa 41:8). That is amazing.
†. Gen 18:19 . . For I have singled him out, that he may instruct his
children and his progeny to keep the way of the Lord by doing what
is just and right, in order that the Lord may bring about for Abraham
what He has promised him.
In order for Yhvh's statement to be meaningful it has to imply that Abraham
possessed a knowledge of what is just and right in harmony with what Yhvh
feels is just and right rather than a humanistic knowledge. The US Supreme
Court's justices obviously don't have a knowledge of what is just and right in
harmony with Yhvh's because they seldom agree on anything and their
rulings are opinions rather than absolutes.
Getting all of Abraham's progeny to do what is just and right has been a bit
of a challenge for Yhvh down through the centuries. Some have; but
typically not all.
NOTE: Yhvh's prediction no doubt included Ishmael, so I wouldn't be
surprised if by the time Abraham emancipated his mom, the boy had
more of "the way of the Lord" under his belt than quite a few modern pew
warmers.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
†. Gen 18:13-14 . .Then Yhvh said to Abraham: Why did Sarah laugh,
saying; Shall I in truth bear a child, old as I am? Is anything too
wondrous for Yhvh? I will return to you at the time next year, and
Sarah shall have a son.
Yhvh didn't quote Sarah verbatim-- He actually paraphrased her words to
say what she meant; rather than what she spoke. That's important to note;
and tells me that it really isn't all that important to quote Scripture precisely
so long as you don't lose, or change, its meanings. There's a lot of that in
the New Testament; and certainly in the Targums too.
It isn't said exactly from whence the voice of Yhvh came: whether it was one
of the men speaking or a voice in the air. However, Yhvh did show up and do
"as He had spoken." (Gen 21:1)
†. Gen 18:15a . . Sarah lied, saying; "I didn't laugh" for she was
frightened.
Sarah hadn't actually laughed out loud, but "to herself". When she realized
that one of the men could read her thoughts, she became nervous: and who
wouldn't?
†. Gen 18:15b . . But He replied: You did laugh.
Most men would have jumped right to their wife's defense. Abraham had at
least 300 armed men in his camp who would do anything he asked; but
knowing by now exactly who these men really were, Abraham kept his cool.
The word used to describe Abraham's visitors is 'iysh (eesh) which is a
gender-specific word that means: a man as an individual or a male person.
It is also the word used to specify the male gender among the animals taken
aboard the Ark. (Gen 7:2)
This passage strongly suggests that Abraham and Sarah saw Yhvh as a fully
functioning man. As to whether the person they saw was an actual human
being or a human avatar; I don't know and I'm afraid to even hazard a
guess.
†. Gen 18:16 . .The men set out from there and looked down toward
Sodom, Abraham walking with them to see them off.
Looking down towards Sodom is probably just another way to say aiming for
Sodom.
Many of us just see our visitors out the front door. But, you know, it
wouldn't hurt to see them out to their cars too. Maybe even carry a few
things for them.
The site of Sodom has never been found. Some believe it was at the south
end of the Dead Sea; but that's really only a guess. The destruction was so
severe and so complete that it's just impossible now to tell where it was.
†. Gen 18:17 . . Now the Lord had said: Shall I hide from Abraham
what I am about to do,
Now there's a pretty good yardstick of your standing with God. Do you know
what is on His agenda for tomorrow? Me neither. God doesn't confide in me
for the slightest thing. I don't even know what brand of toothpaste He uses
in the morning let alone His daily schedule.
†. Gen 18:18 . . since Abraham is to become a great and populous
nation and all the nations of the earth are to bless themselves by
him?
Divine purposes for Abraham elevated him to a very high degree of
importance above ordinary human beings; and God regarded the old boy not
as a servant, but as a member of Yhvh's inner circle of confidants. In point
of fact; one of His buddies (Isa 41:8). That is amazing.
†. Gen 18:19 . . For I have singled him out, that he may instruct his
children and his progeny to keep the way of the Lord by doing what
is just and right, in order that the Lord may bring about for Abraham
what He has promised him.
In order for Yhvh's statement to be meaningful it has to imply that Abraham
possessed a knowledge of what is just and right in harmony with what Yhvh
feels is just and right rather than a humanistic knowledge. The US Supreme
Court's justices obviously don't have a knowledge of what is just and right in
harmony with Yhvh's because they seldom agree on anything and their
rulings are opinions rather than absolutes.
Getting all of Abraham's progeny to do what is just and right has been a bit
of a challenge for Yhvh down through the centuries. Some have; but
typically not all.
NOTE: Yhvh's prediction no doubt included Ishmael, so I wouldn't be
surprised if by the time Abraham emancipated his mom, the boy had
more of "the way of the Lord" under his belt than quite a few modern pew
warmers.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=