Genesis 18:1

1 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;

Genesis 18:1 Meaning and Commentary

Genesis 18:1

And the Lord appeared unto him in the plains of Mamre
That is, to Abraham; and very likely this appearance of God was quickly after the affair of the circumcision, to show his approbation of his ready obedience to his command; and at this time he was in the plains, or at the oaks of Mamre, the oaken grove there, as has been observed on ( Genesis 13:18 ) ; and which seems to be the best rendering of the words, since in ( Genesis 18:4 Genesis 18:8 ) ; mention is made of a tree to sit and stand under; and Abraham might choose this place for his habitation, because of the shadiness of it, in those hot countries:

and he sat in the tent door, in the heat of the day;
partly to cool and refresh himself, and partly to observe if any passengers passed by, to invite them in; this being a time of day when such needed refreshment, and it was proper for them to lie by a while, and not proceed on their journey until it was cooler: or rather to or "near" the tent door, as Noldius ^F7, or before it, without or under the shade of the tree, after mentioned.

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FOOTNOTES:

F7 Ebr. Concord. Part. p. 13.

Genesis 18:1 In-Context

1 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;

2 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;

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

4 Let me get water for washing your feet, and take your rest under the tree:

5 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.