**The Divine Visitors at Mamre**
The sun hung high in the sky, casting a golden glow over the plains of Mamre. The air was warm, and the gentle rustling of the terebinth trees provided a soothing melody. Abraham, now an old man with a long life of faith behind him, sat at the entrance of his tent. His eyes, though aged, still sparkled with the fire of devotion to the Lord. He had grown accustomed to the quiet rhythms of life in this place, but today would be anything but ordinary.
As Abraham sat in the shade of his tent, he lifted his eyes and saw three men standing nearby. They appeared suddenly, as if emerging from the shimmering heat of the desert. Their presence was striking—not just in their sudden appearance, but in the aura of authority and holiness that surrounded them. Abraham, though he did not yet fully understand who they were, sensed something extraordinary. He rose quickly from his seat and hurried toward them, bowing low to the ground in a gesture of deep respect and humility.
“My lords,” Abraham said, his voice trembling with reverence, “if I have found favor in your sight, do not pass by your servant. Let a little water be brought, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree. Let me bring a morsel of bread, that you may refresh yourselves, and after that you may pass on—since you have come to your servant.”
The men nodded in agreement, and Abraham, filled with a sense of urgency, rushed back to the tent. “Sarah!” he called to his wife, his voice urgent but kind. “Quickly, prepare three measures of fine flour, knead it, and make cakes.” Without waiting for her reply, he ran to the herd and selected a tender and good calf, giving it to a young servant, who hurried to prepare it. Meanwhile, Abraham brought curds and milk and the calf that had been prepared, and set it before the men. He stood by them under the tree as they ate.
As the men partook of the meal, one of them—clearly the leader—spoke. “Where is Sarah, your wife?” he asked.
Abraham, surprised that the visitor knew his wife’s name, replied, “She is in the tent.”
Then the man said, “I will surely return to you about this time next year, and Sarah your wife shall have a son.”
Sarah, who had been listening at the entrance of the tent behind him, let out a soft, incredulous laugh. She was well advanced in years, and her body was long past the age of childbearing. “After I am worn out, and my lord is old, shall I have pleasure?” she murmured to herself, her voice tinged with both disbelief and a faint glimmer of hope.
But the Lord—for it was indeed the Lord who had spoken—heard her thoughts. “Why did Sarah laugh and say, ‘Shall I indeed bear a child, now that I am old?'” He asked Abraham. “Is anything too hard for the Lord? At the appointed time I will return to you, about this time next year, and Sarah shall have a son.”
Sarah, realizing that her private thoughts had been heard, was overcome with fear. She stepped out of the tent and denied it, saying, “I did not laugh.” But the Lord, gentle yet firm, replied, “No, but you did laugh.”
The meal concluded, and the men rose to leave. Abraham, sensing that their visit was not yet complete, walked with them a short distance to see them on their way. As they stood together, the Lord said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do? For Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him. For I have chosen him, that he may command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the Lord by doing righteousness and justice, so that the Lord may bring to Abraham what he has promised him.”
Then the Lord revealed His plan. “Because the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is great and their sin is very grave, I will go down to see whether they have done altogether according to the outcry that has come to me. And if not, I will know.”
The two other men—who were angels—turned and went toward Sodom, but Abraham remained standing before the Lord. A deep sense of responsibility and compassion welled up within him. He stepped closer and said, “Will you indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked? Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city. Will you then sweep away the place and not spare it for the fifty righteous who are in it? Far be it from you to do such a thing, to put the righteous to death with the wicked, so that the righteous fare as the wicked! Far be that from you! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do what is just?”
The Lord, patient and merciful, replied, “If I find at Sodom fifty righteous in the city, I will spare the whole place for their sake.”
Abraham, emboldened yet humble, pressed further. “Behold, I have undertaken to speak to the Lord, I who am but dust and ashes. Suppose five of the fifty righteous are lacking. Will you destroy the whole city for lack of five?”
The Lord answered, “I will not destroy it if I find forty-five there.”
Abraham continued, “Suppose forty are found there.”
The Lord replied, “For the sake of forty I will not do it.”
Then Abraham said, “Oh, let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak. Suppose thirty are found there.”
The Lord answered, “I will not do it, if I find thirty there.”
Abraham pressed on, “Behold, I have undertaken to speak to the Lord. Suppose twenty are found there.”
The Lord said, “For the sake of twenty I will not destroy it.”
Finally, Abraham said, “Oh, let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak again but this once. Suppose ten are found there.”
The Lord replied, “For the sake of ten I will not destroy it.”
With that, the Lord departed, and Abraham returned to his tent. The sun was beginning to set, casting long shadows across the plains. Abraham’s heart was heavy with the weight of the conversation, yet he trusted in the justice and mercy of the Lord. He knew that the fate of Sodom and Gomorrah rested in the hands of the Almighty, and he had done all he could to intercede for the righteous.
As the stars began to appear in the night sky, Abraham sat in silence, reflecting on the day’s events. He thought of Sarah, of the promise of a son, and of the cities that stood on the brink of judgment. And in the quiet of the evening, he whispered a prayer of gratitude and trust, knowing that the Lord, the Judge of all the earth, would do what was right.
