Genesis 18:1

1 And God appeared to him by the oak of Mambre, as he sat by the door of his tent at noon.

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 And God appeared to him by the oak of Mambre, as he sat by the door of his tent at noon.

2 And he lifted up his eyes and beheld, and lo! three men stood before him; and having seen them he ran to meet them from the door of his tent, and did obeisance to the ground.

3 And he said, Lord, if indeed I have found grace in thy sight, pass not by thy servant.

4 Let water now be brought, and let them wash your feet, and do ye refresh under the tree.

5 And I will bring bread, and ye shall eat, and after this ye shall depart on your journey, on account of which ye have turned aside to your servant. And he said, So do, as thou hast said.