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Genesis 18's visitation of Abraham by three angels in the form of men is a classic Biblical story. Abraham finds out that although his wife Sarah is very old, she will soon bear him a baby. In this story, many in the Messianic-Christian movement see G-d coming in a human form. In particular one of the three angels/men is believed to be G-d. However, a closer view of this story shows that this simply is not true. Not only is this not true, but by understanding one of the three angels/men to be G-d, the misinformed reader misses multiple important messages that the Bible is teaching us.
At the start of chapter 18, in verse 1, we read that G-d was visiting Abraham:
"1 And the L-RD appeared to him by the terebinths of Mamre, and he was sitting at the entrance of the tent in the heat of the day" So, why is G-d visiting Abraham? What is the importance? Abraham was just recently circumcised, at age 99 no less! This is obviously a painful experience. G-d visited Abraham in this painful time, teaching us the importance of visiting the sick. As G-d visited the sick, so should we visit the sick. Now, in the next verse is when the three angels in the form of men appear. G-d is already with Abraham prior to the angels visit, so this also demonstrates that G-d was not one of Abraham's three guests. As we read in Genesis 18:2: "and he lifted up his eyes and looked, and three men stood beside him and when he saw them, he ran to meet them from the tent door, and bowed down to the earth" Here we are now introduced to the angels (in the form of three men), and Abraham's eagerness to greet them. The Torah is teaching us another important lesson here. Abraham was so willing to show hospitality, that he was literally willing to leave the presence of G-d to greet his guests. Thus the Torah teaches us the importance of showing hospitality to our guests. Jews throughout the centures have been known for their kind hospitality and have used this verse as a basis of the importance of hospitality. Again, if one makes the mistake to think that one of these three guests is actually G-d, this valuable lesson is lost. Now, verse 3-5 is where many individuals seem to be confused. Abraham says to his guests: "3: and he said: 'My lords, if now I have found favour in your sight, pass not away from your servant. 4: Let a little water be taken and wash your feet, and recline under the tree. 5: And I will take a morsel of bread, and sustain your hearts; after that you shall pass on; because you have passed by your servant.' And they said: 'So you shall do, as you have said.' The term used in verse 3, "lords", seems to be the term that confuses people. In Hebrew, the word is "Adonai", spelled (in the Hebrew equivalent) A-D-N-Y. This term can be used both to refer to G-d, but also to other creatures as well. In this case, Abraham is addressing the three angels, offering them hospitality. Some individuals translate it as "lord", with Abraham addressing the leader of the three angels. Many in the Messianic-Christian movement assume that Abraham must be talking to G-d, which as we already reviewed, makes little sense since G-d was there prior to the arrival of Abraham's guests. We see further evidence that the term "Adonai" can be used to refer to creatures other than G-d in the very next chapter, Genesis 19. In Genesis 19:1 we read that Lot is visited by two of these three angels, and in verse 19:2 he addresses the angels, saying: "Behold now, my lords..." The word in Hebrew for "lords" in Genesis 19:2 is the exact same word used by Abraham in Genesis 18:3, demonstrating that this term is appropriately used for the angels. And, like Abraham, Lot offers to feed his guests. Another sticking point for many in the Messianic-Christian movement is that in Genesis 18 there are three guests, and in Genesis 19 there are two angels, so they falsely assume that Abraham's third visitor was G-d. To understand the error, one must first understand the function of angels in this world. There are many different forms of angels identified in the Bible, such as Cherubs and Winged Creatures. The angels are created by G-d to carry out the jobs that G-d gives to them. In Genesis 18, we had three angels, but they did not have the same job. The first angel's job was to inform Abraham of Sarah's impending pregnancy, while the other two angels' jobs had to do with Lot, Sodom and Gemorrah. After the first angel had informed Abraham of the pregnancy, the angel was done with the job. Hence, only two angels visited with Lot. So, we see that the third man/angel was not G-d, but an angel, who did not go to visit Lot in Genesis 19 because that was not G-d's purpose for the angel. As an important related point, G-d also states many times in the Bible that G-d is not a "man" or a "son of man." We see this in Numbers 23:19 and Hoshea 11:9. In Psalm 146:3, we are directed not to put our hope in the "son of man." Interestingly, Jesus is called the "son of man" throughout the Christian Bible. For instance, Jesus calls himself the "son of man" at the Last Supper in Matthew 26:24. He calls himself the "son of man" in many other places, such as in Luke 6:5, when he also declares himself to be a god. Clearly, this does not match G-d's statements in the Jewish Bible that G-d is not a human. There are many reasons why Jews do not accept Jesus, and the links below are some of the better explanations on this topic. Of course, if you have questions that are not covered on the links, you can always e-mail me with your questions. An Answer from Rabbi Stuart Federow Click Here An Answer from Rabbi Shraga Simmons Click Here Ask the Rabbi from Ohr Somayach Click Here An Answer from Rabbi Tovia Singer Click Here
There are a number of groups that provide Countermissionary Counseling. Here are links to a few of them: Alternatively, you can call them at 1-800-4PROOF1 with general questions about missionary claims.
Here are a number of great sites that counter missionaries and explain the differences in belief between Judaism and Christianity, including addressing the Biblical verses that missionaries try to use against the Jews and explaining why the missionaries are incorrect. For the most in-depth analysis of verse by verse questions, go to Messiah Truth (sections on Counter-Missionary: Multi-media training [this can be read without being "multi-media"], Knowing Your Orchard and Judaism's Answer), Jews for Judaism (in their Reference Section (please note that the Isaiah topics tend to be under "Suffering Servant" part of the "Proof Text" section) and the Q & A section of Outreach Judaism. Escape From Counterfeit Judaism Talking to Kids About Missionaries
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