Genesis 18:1-33: "1 Then the LORD appeared to him by the terebinth trees of Mamre, as he was sitting in the tent door in the heat of the day. 2 So he lifted his eyes and looked, and behold, three men were standing by him; and when he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them, and bowed himself to the ground, 3 and said, 'My Lord, if I have now found favor in Your sight, do not pass on by Your servant. 4 Please let a little water be brought, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree. 5 And I will bring a morsel of bread, that you may refresh your hearts. After that you may pass by, inasmuch as you have come to your servant.' They said, 'Do as you have said.' 6 So Abraham hurried into the tent to Sarah and said, 'Quickly, make ready three measures of fine meal; knead it and make cakes.' 7 And Abraham ran to the herd, took a tender and good calf, gave it to a young man, and he hastened to prepare it. 8 So he took butter and milk and the calf which he had prepared, and set it before them; and he stood by them under the tree as they ate. 9 Then they said to him, 'Where is Sarah your wife?' So he said, 'Here, in the tent.' 10 And He said, 'I will certainly return to you according to the time of life, and behold, Sarah your wife shall have a son.' (Sarah was listening in the tent door which was behind him.) 11 Now Abraham and Sarah were old, well advanced in age; and Sarah had passed the age of childbearing. 12 Therefore Sarah laughed within herself, saying, 'After I have grown old, shall I have pleasure, my lord being old also?' 13 And the LORD said to Abraham, 'Why did Sarah laugh, saying, "Shall I surely bear a child, since I am old?" 14 Is anything too hard for the LORD? At the appointed time I will return to you, according to the time of life, and Sarah shall have a son.' 15 But Sarah denied it, saying, 'I did not laugh,' for she was afraid. And He said, 'No, but you did laugh!' 16 Then the men rose from there and looked toward Sodom, and Abraham went with them to send them on the way. 17 And the LORD said, 'Shall I hide from Abraham what I am doing, 18 since Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him? 19 For I have known him, in order that he may command his children and his household after him, that they keep the way of the LORD, to do righteousness and justice, that the LORD may bring to Abraham what He has spoken to him.' 20 And the LORD said, 'Because the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very grave, 21 I will go down now and see whether they have done altogether according to the outcry against it that has come to Me; and if not, I will know.' 22 Then the men turned away from there and went toward Sodom, but Abraham still stood before the LORD. 23 And Abraham came near and said, 'Would You also destroy the righteous with the wicked? 24 Suppose there were fifty righteous within the city; would You also destroy the place and not spare it for the fifty righteous that were in it? 25 Far be it from You to do such a thing as this, to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous should be as the wicked; far be it from You! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?' 26 So the LORD said, 'If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare all the place for their sakes.' 27 Then Abraham answered and said, 'Indeed now, I who am but dust and ashes have taken it upon myself to speak to the Lord: 28 Suppose there were five less than the fifty righteous; would You destroy all of the city for lack of five?' So He said, 'If I find there forty-five, I will not destroy it.' 29 And he spoke to Him yet again and said, 'Suppose there should be forty found there?' So He said, 'I will not do it for the sake of forty.' 30 Then he said, 'Let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak: Suppose thirty should be found there?' So He said, 'I will not do it if I find thirty there.' 31 And he said, 'Indeed now, I have taken it upon myself to speak to the Lord: Suppose twenty should be found there?' So He said, 'I will not destroy it for the sake of twenty.' 32 Then he said, 'Let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak but once more: Suppose ten should be found there?' And He said, 'I will not destroy it for the sake of ten.' 33 So the LORD went His way as soon as He had finished speaking with Abraham; and Abraham returned to his place."
This pericope embraces two parts, one, the promise of our Lord God to Abraham that he would have a son. The second, the interceding on the behalf of Sodom and Gomorrah by Abraham.
Our Lord visits Abraham, and the first thing that they do together is eat a meal. This meal consisted of fresh baked bread, and a freshly slaughtered calf, with butter and milk. It seems that meals happen a lot in holy Scripture, when our Lord is involved. This meal (and really all meals in holy Scripture) of bread and flesh, is foreshadowing of the perfect meal that our Lord gave to us in His Body and Blood. In the Revelation of Jesus Christ to St. John, the eternal meal with our Lord is portrayed as a wedding banquet. We have all been to a wedding at some point, and weddings are known for their good food, and the abundance of food and drink. This is how eternity is pictured, an everlasting banquet.
The meal that we receive of our Lord's Body and Blood is a great meal that grants forgiveness of sins, and strengthens our faith in the Holy Blessed Trinity. But even this meal, on account that we still live in this sinful flesh, and in this sinful world, pales in comparison to the eternal meal that awaits us in Heaven.
There is a reason for all of the talk about meals in holy Scriptures. We often see our Saviour being invited over to somebody's house to eat with him. Meals are about communion, that is, fellowship. They are about uniting together in a bond of unity all those who eat the meal. For the Jews in the Old Testament, every meal was a figure of the Last Meal that they ate in the land of Egypt before the Exodus. For them every meal was an image of the unity that the people of Israel were united during the Passover. And so, when they sat down to eat with one another, or they invited someone over to their home to eat with them, it was showing a solidarity, a bond of unity. Therefore, when our Lord ate with people, He was uniting Himself to them; to their sinfulness, their pain, their struggle, and in uniting Himself to them He takes these things from them, and purifies them.
The same is true of the meal that we eat with our Lord and Saviour, which is His very Body and Blood, given in bread and wine. He unites Himself to us, taking away our sin and sorrow, and giving us of His very self. Those who eat this meal together are binding themselves together into a bond of unity. Therefore, all those who eat this meal are in agreement on doctrine and practice, and not just the doctrine and practice of the meal they eat, but in all points. The Church has practiced this from the beginning, and it has come to be known as closed communion. Those outside the faith, or outside the bond of fellowship have to wait until they are a part of that fellowship until they can enjoy the meal.
The Hebrews of the Old Testament practiced this as well, not allowing a foreigner or a stranger to eat with them, especially when it came to the Passover meal. Our Lord Jesus even practices this by eating the Last Supper with just His disciples.
And so Abraham, who by his faith, which is counted towards him as righteousness is in fellowship with our Lord God, and prepares a meal for him. The bond of unity between the Holy Blessed Trinity and Abraham is expressed in the proclamation once again of a baby boy to be born to the house of Abraham, who will be the father of many nations. The birth of this baby boy will be marked by joy, which is seen in the name that will be given to him, Isaac, which means "he laughed." Even Sarah, laughs with joy at such a prospect of giving birth to a baby boy when she is not physically able to give birth. Sarah is the first mother who gives birth when according to all reason and science she should not be able to. She is a figure of not only the Blessed Virgin Mary, but also her relative, Elizabeth, who also gives birth in her old age while barren. Isaac will become the prefigurement of our Lord, the only son of the father, who is obedient to him even unto death, as we will see in Genesis 22.
All fellowship, all meals, all promises of baby boys, all lead to our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. For it is in Him alone where true fellowship and unity is to be found. Apart from His presence, and His action, there can be no unity, no fellowship. Indeed, there can be no righteousness. And so, our Lord heads to Sodom and Gomorrah for its destruction. For Sodom and Gomorrah represent the complete opposite of the bonds of unity and fellowship.
In Sodom and Gomorrah, we find a people where selfishness and hatred and lust and degradation and abominable acts of homosexuality are rampant, and indeed praised as worthwhile things. But in Abraham's pleading on behalf of these cities, we see our Heavenly Father's mercy and grace, for Abraham begs for our Lord God to not destroy them, but to spare them. Our Lord, in His own mercy, agrees to spare them if there are only found ten righteous persons within these cities. The narrative is not completed for us today, but we know from history, and from holy Scripture, that our Lord did not find ten righteous persons, only Lot, and his wife and daughters. Thus, Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed, and their names became bywords of degradation and abominable acts.
These two cities picture the opposite of the fellowship that the Church shares with our Lord Jesus. For fellowship with Him is only through righteousness, not unrighteousness, like the men of Sodom and Gomorrah. Our righteousness is accounted to us because of our faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. And on account of this faith, we are able to participate with Him in the holy Supper which He prepared for us by His death and the cross. Therefore, let us put away the works of unrighteousness, of revelry, of lust, of selfishness, and put on the works of our Lord Jesus Christ, so that we may be united in the bond of holy fellowship with Him, and with all those already united in Him.
May God be with you!
Deacon Dulas
Our Lord visits Abraham, and the first thing that they do together is eat a meal. This meal consisted of fresh baked bread, and a freshly slaughtered calf, with butter and milk. It seems that meals happen a lot in holy Scripture, when our Lord is involved. This meal (and really all meals in holy Scripture) of bread and flesh, is foreshadowing of the perfect meal that our Lord gave to us in His Body and Blood. In the Revelation of Jesus Christ to St. John, the eternal meal with our Lord is portrayed as a wedding banquet. We have all been to a wedding at some point, and weddings are known for their good food, and the abundance of food and drink. This is how eternity is pictured, an everlasting banquet.
The meal that we receive of our Lord's Body and Blood is a great meal that grants forgiveness of sins, and strengthens our faith in the Holy Blessed Trinity. But even this meal, on account that we still live in this sinful flesh, and in this sinful world, pales in comparison to the eternal meal that awaits us in Heaven.
There is a reason for all of the talk about meals in holy Scriptures. We often see our Saviour being invited over to somebody's house to eat with him. Meals are about communion, that is, fellowship. They are about uniting together in a bond of unity all those who eat the meal. For the Jews in the Old Testament, every meal was a figure of the Last Meal that they ate in the land of Egypt before the Exodus. For them every meal was an image of the unity that the people of Israel were united during the Passover. And so, when they sat down to eat with one another, or they invited someone over to their home to eat with them, it was showing a solidarity, a bond of unity. Therefore, when our Lord ate with people, He was uniting Himself to them; to their sinfulness, their pain, their struggle, and in uniting Himself to them He takes these things from them, and purifies them.
The same is true of the meal that we eat with our Lord and Saviour, which is His very Body and Blood, given in bread and wine. He unites Himself to us, taking away our sin and sorrow, and giving us of His very self. Those who eat this meal together are binding themselves together into a bond of unity. Therefore, all those who eat this meal are in agreement on doctrine and practice, and not just the doctrine and practice of the meal they eat, but in all points. The Church has practiced this from the beginning, and it has come to be known as closed communion. Those outside the faith, or outside the bond of fellowship have to wait until they are a part of that fellowship until they can enjoy the meal.
The Hebrews of the Old Testament practiced this as well, not allowing a foreigner or a stranger to eat with them, especially when it came to the Passover meal. Our Lord Jesus even practices this by eating the Last Supper with just His disciples.
And so Abraham, who by his faith, which is counted towards him as righteousness is in fellowship with our Lord God, and prepares a meal for him. The bond of unity between the Holy Blessed Trinity and Abraham is expressed in the proclamation once again of a baby boy to be born to the house of Abraham, who will be the father of many nations. The birth of this baby boy will be marked by joy, which is seen in the name that will be given to him, Isaac, which means "he laughed." Even Sarah, laughs with joy at such a prospect of giving birth to a baby boy when she is not physically able to give birth. Sarah is the first mother who gives birth when according to all reason and science she should not be able to. She is a figure of not only the Blessed Virgin Mary, but also her relative, Elizabeth, who also gives birth in her old age while barren. Isaac will become the prefigurement of our Lord, the only son of the father, who is obedient to him even unto death, as we will see in Genesis 22.
All fellowship, all meals, all promises of baby boys, all lead to our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. For it is in Him alone where true fellowship and unity is to be found. Apart from His presence, and His action, there can be no unity, no fellowship. Indeed, there can be no righteousness. And so, our Lord heads to Sodom and Gomorrah for its destruction. For Sodom and Gomorrah represent the complete opposite of the bonds of unity and fellowship.
In Sodom and Gomorrah, we find a people where selfishness and hatred and lust and degradation and abominable acts of homosexuality are rampant, and indeed praised as worthwhile things. But in Abraham's pleading on behalf of these cities, we see our Heavenly Father's mercy and grace, for Abraham begs for our Lord God to not destroy them, but to spare them. Our Lord, in His own mercy, agrees to spare them if there are only found ten righteous persons within these cities. The narrative is not completed for us today, but we know from history, and from holy Scripture, that our Lord did not find ten righteous persons, only Lot, and his wife and daughters. Thus, Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed, and their names became bywords of degradation and abominable acts.
These two cities picture the opposite of the fellowship that the Church shares with our Lord Jesus. For fellowship with Him is only through righteousness, not unrighteousness, like the men of Sodom and Gomorrah. Our righteousness is accounted to us because of our faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. And on account of this faith, we are able to participate with Him in the holy Supper which He prepared for us by His death and the cross. Therefore, let us put away the works of unrighteousness, of revelry, of lust, of selfishness, and put on the works of our Lord Jesus Christ, so that we may be united in the bond of holy fellowship with Him, and with all those already united in Him.
May God be with you!
Deacon Dulas
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