Why the Visitors to Abraham Were Not Called Angels

Midrash Aggadah, Genesis 18:16

Curated by Arthur·Told by Maggid·

"And the men rose up from there" (Genesis 18:16). Because Abraham was righteous, they were not called angels; and the entire time that they were with him, Abraham did not suppose that they were angels, and therefore Abraham went with them to send them off. "And they looked down upon the face of Sodom" (Genesis 18:16). Every place where "looking down" (hashkafah) is stated is for evil, except for "Look down from Your holy habitation" (Deuteronomy 26:15); for because they give terumot and ma'asrot to their owners, the attribute of punishment turns into blessing.

Themes

HospitalityAngelsDivine Judgment

Biblical References

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Noam Elimelech (Rebbe Elimelech)Abraham's Tent Open on All Four SidesThe opening of Parashat Vayera, "And God appeared to him at the terebinths of Mamre" (Genesis 18:1), seems straightforward. Abraham is sitting at his tent, and Midrash AggadahWhy Lot's Wife Was Punished With Salt of All ThingsThe angel's command was simple. Do not look behind you. Lot's wife looked anyway, and froze into a pillar of salt. Most people read it as a moment of weakness, Yalkut Shimoni on TorahThe Lord Visits the Recovering Abraham on the Third DayThe opening of Vayera is read as the third day after Abraham's circumcision, the day a wound burns hottest, and the sages fill it with tenderness. God comes to Yalkut Shimoni on TorahLot Urges the Angels In and Bakes Them MatzahLot greets the two visitors at Sodom's gate and begs them to lodge with him. The sages catch a wary note in his welcome. He asks them to bend their route and slMidrash AggadahWhy Abraham Served the Angels Milk and Meat Without BreadWhen Abraham set food before his three guests, the order of his table was a teaching. He brought milk first and ate of it, and only afterward the calf, followinMidrash AggadahThree Angels Visit Abraham While He Recovers From CircumcisionThe Holy One looked down and saw Abraham grieving on the third day after his circumcision. His wound throbbed, yet what pained him more was an empty doorway: no