Digging Deeper – The Three Visitors as Theophany
1 The Lord appeared again to Abraham near the oak grove belonging to Mamre. One day Abraham was sitting at the entrance to his tent during the hottest part of the day. 2 He looked up and noticed three men standing nearby. When he saw them, he ran to meet them and welcomed them, bowing low to the ground. 3 “My lord,” he said, “if it pleases you, stop here for a while.
Genesis 18:1-3 (NLT)
THE THREE VISITORS AS THEOPHANY
Throughout the Bible, there are appearances of God to humanity. In the study of theology this is known as a theophany. A theophany is an appearance of God in some physical form to His creation. Simply put, it is a visit from God. One of the most famous theophanies in the Old Testament occurs in the scene at Abraham’s tent in Genesis 18:
And the LORD appeared to him by the oaks of Mamre, as he sat at the door of his tent in the heat of the day. He lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, three men were standing in front of him. When he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them and bowed himself to the earth and said, “O Lord, if I have found favor in your sight, do not pass by your servant (v.1-3)
A few things in the text hint at the divine identity of the visitors: 1) the LORD appears to Abraham; 2) he bows down before his guest; 3) he addresses one as “Lord” (the Hebrew “Adonai” or “Master”); and lastly, 4) when the other two depart for Sodom it says, “Abraham still stood before the Lord” (v.22). The early church fathers understood this theophany as the Son of God accompanied by two angels. Writing in the second century, Irenaeus, bishop of Lyon said this about the visitation in Gen.18, “Abraham was a prophet and saw what was to come to pass in the future, the Son of God in human form that He was to speak with men, and eat food with them, and then to bring down judgement from the Father…” Therefore, not only does this moment serve to deliver the news about the birth of Isaac, but it also foreshadows the incarnation of Christ – the ultimate theophany.
Though we are far removed in time and place from this scene under the oaks of Mamre, we have the same opportunity that our father Abraham had to invite our Lord in. He has visited us in Jesus and we can run to receive Him, bow before Him, and dine with Him. Take a moment to invite Him in today saying, “O Lord, if I have found favor in your sight, do not pass by your servant” (Gen18:3).
Ryan Hoffer serves as NextGen Production Director at NorthStar. He holds an M.Div in Church History and enjoys playing the harp. He and his wife, Tiffany, live in Acworth and have three children.