“He blessed him, and he said: Blessed is Abram to God, the Most High, Maker of heavens and earth” (Genesis 14:19). “He blessed him, and he said: Blessed is Abram to God, the Most High, Acquirer of heavens and earth” – from whom did He acquire them? Rabbi Abba in the name of Rav Kahana and Rabbi Yitzḥak, Rabbi Abba said: It is like a person who says: The eyes of so-and-so are fair, his hair is fair.36Koneh does not refer to acquisition, but to one’s fixing and perfecting something that already belongs to him.
Rabbi Yitzḥak said: He [Abraham] would receive passersby into his house. After they had eaten and drunk, he would say to them: ‘Say a blessing.’ They would say to him: ‘What shall we say?’ He would say to them: ‘Say: Blessed is God, the Most High, of whose food we have eaten.’
The Holy One blessed be He said to him: ‘My name had not been known by My creations, and you caused My creations to recognize me. I consider it for you as though you were My partner in creation of the world.’ That is what is written; “Maker of heavens and earth.”37According to Rabbi Yitzḥak, the words “Acquirer of heaven and earth” refer to Abraham, not God. Abraham acquired this status by making God’s presence known in the world.