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| 1 And Jehovah appeared to him by the oaks of Mamre. And he sat at the tent-door in the heat of the day. |
And the LORD – Not Jehovah personally, but the messenger of Jehovah, Christ Jesus, in human form. E43, E94; R5179:1
Appeared unto him – Temporarily assumed human form, a matter entirely different from his advent as a man when he was "made flesh." (John 1:14) R3946:3
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| 2 And he lifted up his eyes and saw, and behold, three men standing near him. And when he saw them, he ran to meet them from the tent-door, and bowed himself to the earth, |
And, lo, three men – Jesus and two other spirit beings, in the form of men. A183; B127; E94; R5416:3
Angels possess a God-given power of materialization. PD15/24
And bowed himself – Shaw-kaw, worshipped. It is proper to reverence those in harmony with Jehovah. E73
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| 3 and said, Lord, if now I have found favour in thine eyes, pass not away, I pray thee, from thy servant. |
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| 4 Let now a little water be fetched, that ye may wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree. |
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| 5 And I will fetch a morsel of bread; and refresh yourselves; after that ye shall pass on; for therefore have ye passed on towards your servant. And they said, So do as thou hast said. |
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| 6 And Abraham hastened into the tent to Sarah, and said, Knead quickly three seahs of wheaten flour, and make cakes. |
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| 7 And Abraham ran to the herd, and took a calf tender and good, and gave it to the attendant; and he hasted to dress it. |
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| 8 And he took thick and sweet milk, and the calf that he had dressed, and set it before them; and he stood before them under the tree, and they ate. |
And they did eat – Showing complete materialization. Q744:3
"Be not forgetful to entertain strangers, for some thereby have entertained angels unawares." (Heb. 13:2) R3946:2
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| 9 And they said to him, Where is Sarah thy wife? And he said, Behold, in the tent. |
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| 10 And he said, I will certainly return to thee at this time of the year, and behold, Sarah thy wife shall have a son. And Sarah was listening at the tent-door, which was behind him. |
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| 11 Now Abraham and Sarah were old and advanced in age: it had ceased to be with Sarah after the manner of women. |
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| 12 And Sarah laughed within herself, saying, After I am become old, shall I have pleasure, and my lord old? |
Sarah laughed – With incredulity when informed of the subject. R2860:2
In joy and appreciation at the time of Isaac's birth. R2860:2
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| 13 And Jehovah said to Abraham, Why is this, that Sarah laughs, saying, Shall I indeed bear, when I am become old? |
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| 14 Is any matter too wonderful for Jehovah? At the time appointed I will return to thee, at this time of the year, and Sarah shall have a son. |
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| 15 And Sarah denied, saying, I did not laugh; for she was afraid. And he said, No; but thou didst laugh. |
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| 16 And the men rose up thence, and looked toward Sodom; and Abraham went with them to conduct them. |
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| 17 And Jehovah said, Shall I hide from Abraham what I am doing? |
Hide from Abraham – My friend. "I have called you friends, because whatsoever I have heard of the Father I have made known unto you." (John 15:15) R2208:4,5
"The Lord will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants." (Amos 3:7) B22
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| 18 Since Abraham shall indeed become a great and mighty nation; and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him. |
And all the nations – Not merely the Jews. A58
Shall be blessed – In due time. E22
With an opportunity of returning to harmony with God, and with everlasting life. R4557:3, R4537:6, R5768:3,5
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| 19 For I know him that he will command his children and his household after him, and they shall keep the way of Jehovah, to do righteousness and justice, in order that Jehovah may bring upon Abraham what he hath spoken of him. |
For I know him – I have become intimate with him, made a covenant with him, revealed myself to him. R3946:6
That he will – To the end that he may. R3946:6
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| 20 And Jehovah said, Because the cry of Sodom and Gomorrah is great and their sin is very grievous, |
The LORD said – Jesus, as a spirit being who merely assumed a fleshly body as a convenience in communicating with men. R5622:5
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| 21 I will go down now, and see whether they have done altogether according to the cry of it, which is come to me; and if not, I will know it2. |
If not, I will know – This is stated in simple language so that all may understand that the Lord takes full cognizance of earth's affairs. R3947:2
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| 22 And the men turned thence, and went towards Sodom; and Abraham remained yet standing before Jehovah. |
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| 23 And Abraham drew near, and said, Wilt thou also cause the righteous to perish with the wicked? |
And Abraham – Not rejoicing in the calamity about to come upon his neighbors, but manifesting benevolence and the spirit of a mediator. R3947:3
The righteous - Abraham's solicitude was for the righteous, not the wicked. R3948:1
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| 24 There are perhaps fifty righteous within the city: wilt thou also destroy and not forgive the place for the sake of the fifty righteous that are therein? |
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| 25 Far be it from thee to do so, to slay the righteous with the wicked, that the righteous should be as the wicked--far be it from thee! Will not the Judge of all the earth do right? |
Be far from thee – Abraham petitioned God's mercy on the Sodomites to spare them, if even ten among them were righteous. R5179:1
Do right – As if to say, "Lord, harmonize this matter for me. Show me how this would be just." R3947:4
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| 26 And Jehovah said, If I find at Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will forgive all the place for their sakes. |
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| 27 And Abraham answered and said, Behold now, I have ventured to speak unto the Lord; I, who am dust and ashes. |
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| 28 Perhaps there may want five of the fifty righteous: wilt thou destroy all the city on account of the five? And he said, If I shall find forty-five there, I will not destroy it2.
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| 29 And he continued yet to speak with him, and said, Perhaps there may be forty found there. And he said, I will not do it for the forty's sake. |
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| 30 And he said, Oh, let not the Lord be angry that I speak! Perhaps there may be thirty found there. And he said, I will not do it if I find thirty there. |
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| 31 And he said, Behold now, I have ventured to speak with the Lord. Perhaps there may be twenty found there. And he said, I will not destroy it for the twenty's sake. |
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| 32 And he said, Oh, let not the Lord be angry, that I speak yet but this time! Perhaps there may be ten found there. And he said, I will not destroy it for the ten's sake. |
For ten's sake – Abraham found that in every case the Lord was no less just and generous than himself. "Blessed are the merciful." In the end he found that God had saved the only righteous one and on his account some that were not righteous; and we shall see in due time that God will save all who were destroyed. "As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways." (Isa. 55:9) R3948:2
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| 33 And Jehovah went away when he had ended speaking to Abraham; and Abraham returned to his place. |
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