Over the course of the last 18 months or so, a topic I have explored from multiple angles is the visible presence of Yehovah in the Tanakh and the connections to the Messiah. We’ve looked at ‘the Angel of the Lord,’ ‘the Memra,’ and the ‘Metatron.’
Recently, I was challenged on whether or not God can be seen. And, while I agree that there are verses indicating His altogether set apartness, there also is the clear statement of Scripture, over and over, that God does indeed reveal Himself to His creation in a form that man can relate to. Consider Genesis 18 in this week’s Parsha. The text begins,
18 Adonai appeared to Avraham by the oaks of Mamre as he sat at the entrance to the tent during the heat of the day.
No explanation. No apologetics. No tap-dancing. The text is starkly clear: Yehovah appeared to Avraham!!
But this isn’t the first time. Just go look at Genesis 17:1! No explanation there, either, but it is possible in the context of 17 to spiritualize the event as if it were a vision until one gets to verse 22. The CJB says,
22 With that, God finished speaking with Avraham and went up from him.
The Schottenstein Edition Interlinear Chumash is a little more accurate when it translates,
And He finished speaking with him and God ascended from upon Abraham.
Still, no such explanation in Genesis 18. Rather, we find that clearly, one of the three men is Yehovah!! Read, Continue reading ““Now the Lord appeared to [Abraham]…””
11:3 Restoration 