Genesis 18 begins with Abraham sitting at the door of his tent and greeting three strangers. Abraham and Sarah prepare a meal for the visitors.
It soon becomes clear that their visitors are 3 angels sent with a message for Abraham and Sarah.
Here’s what one of the angels said:
10. And he said, I will certainly return to you at this season; and, lo, Sarah your wife shall have a son. And Sarah heard it in the tent door, which was behind him.
Sarah and Abraham React
In this article I will discuss Genesis 18:12-15 which describes the reaction of Sarah and Abraham to the angel’s words.
12. Therefore Sarah laughed within herself, saying, After I am grown old shall I have youth, my lord being old also?
13. And the Lord said to Abraham, Why did Sarah laugh, saying, Shall I indeed bear a child, now that I am old?
14. Is any thing too hard for the Lord? At the time appointed I will return to you, at this season, and Sarah shall have a son.
15. Then Sarah denied, saying, I laughed not; for she was afraid. And he said, No; you did laugh.
Genesis 18:12 – Sarah Laughed
Why did Sarah laugh? I’ve previously written about this, so I won’t add a lot here.
Rashi writes that Sarah looked at her innards and wondered if they could bear a child.
The Netziv writes that Sarah is reacting to the difference between herself and Abraham. She sees that she is becoming young again and could be able to have a child. But she’s not seeing any changes in Abraham that hint that he can father a child.
Did Sarah Know?
In Genesis 17 God told Abraham several things:
- their new names
- the commandment of circumcision
- Sarah would have a son
Abraham certainly told Sarah about the first two messages. Did he tell her the promise that she would have a child?
According to Ramban, Chizkuni, and others, Abraham did not tell Sarah this news.
Why didn’t Abraham tell Sarah? Ramban suggests 3 reasons:
- He knew that God would reveal it to her at the proper time.
- He was too busy circumcising himself and all the males of his household.
- Then he was too weary to tell her. Before he had a chance, the angels appeared to him.
Abarbanel disagrees and concludes that Abraham had told Sarah that she would have a child. He writes that everything God told Abraham in Genesis 17 was to prepare them for the birth of Isaac.
Since Abraham had to tell Sarah about the name changes and circumcision, he certainly also told her that she would become a mother.
In my reading of these verses I always thought that Abraham had not told Sarah. But, I must admit that Abarbanel makes a compelling argument.
Genesis 18:14 – Any Thing too Hard?
Rashi interprets the question as “is there anything that prevents God from doing what He wants to do?”
Radak writes that some things are hard and difficult for a person to do. But from the standpoint of God there is nothing hard for the Lord. That is because He can do anything in His creation and can overturn the natural order when He desires.
Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan summarizes the concept this way:
8:8 As Author of the laws of nature, God is likewise Author of any exceptions that take place when He brings about a miracle. It would be inconsistent to believe in God as the omnipotent Creator of the universe, and hold Him to be incapable of miracles.
God can rejuvenate an older woman who no longer has a monthly period to become fertile and bear a child.
Genesis 18:14 – The Appointed Time
The appointed time is the season that God told Abraham about in Genesis 17:
21. But my covenant will I establish with Isaac, whom Sarah shall bear to you at this set time in the next year.
God told Abraham that Sarah would give birth one year after He changed their names. According to Jewish tradition, this appearance to Abraham was in the spring corresponding to the future holy day of Passover.
In Genesis 18:14, God is confirming to Abraham and Sarah that Isaac will be born that coming Passover.
Who is Speaking?
It is not always clear who is saying which words during this short conversation.
Genesis 18:13 – the Lord
In Genesis 18:10, the speaker is one of the visiting angels.
But then, in Genesis 18:13 it’s written, “And the Lord said to Abraham…”
Rabbi Steinsaltz comments that there are two ways to understand what is happening.
1. In 18:13 it was one of the angels, a messenger from God. At times in the Bible an angel delivering a message is referred to as “the Lord.”
2. It was God’s voice interrupting the conversation between Abraham and his guests.
See Judges 6:10 and 14 for a similar scenario that can be understood in the same two ways.
Genesis 18:12-15 – The Conversation
Now let’s look at the entire conversation to determine who says each phrase.
Here is how Ramban understands the conversation. I’ve added some of his comments in parentheses:
- God to Abraham: Why did Sarah laugh? (She should have believed or have answered Amen.)
- Abraham to Sarah: Is any thing too hard for the Lord? (Abraham had not told her what God had revealed to him.)
- Sarah to Abraham: I did not laugh.
- Abraham to Sarah: No; you did laugh. (Then she realized that God had revealed the fact to Abraham prophetically.)
Torah Temimah views the end of the conversation differently:
- First an angel spoke. Sarah heard it and laughed.
- God to Abraham: Why did Sarah laugh?
- Abraham to Sarah: (Torah Temimah does not clarify what Abraham said to Sarah.)
- God to Sarah: You did laugh.
Here is how Daat Mikra understands the end of the conversation:
- Angel to Abraham: Why did Sarah laugh? … Is any thing too hard for the Lord? …
- Abraham asked Sarah why she laughed.
- Sarah to Abraham: I did not laugh.
- Angel to Sarah: You did laugh.
The most obvious difference in these 3 approaches is who says the words: No; you did laugh.
- Ramban: Abraham
- Torah Temimah: God directly
- Daat Mikra: Angel speaking for God
There is also a dispute about who is speaking in Genesis 18:14. From the flow of the verses, it seems like it should be God or the angel.
However, Ramban states that the beginning of the verse is said by Abraham. He does not explain who says the end of the verse.
The Subtle Rebuke
Who was rebuked? This seems like a silly question. The verses make it clear that Sarah was rebuked because she laughed.
But Abraham also laughed when he was first told the news:
17. Then Abraham fell upon his face, and laughed, and said in his heart, Shall a child be born to him who is a hundred years old? and shall Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear?
Why isn’t Abraham rebuked for his laughing? This problem is solved by explaining that Abraham and Sarah laughed in different ways. I’ve discussed this in another article.
Rabbi Sorotzkin suggests an entirely different approach.
If God is rebuking Sarah, then why didn’t He speak directly to Sarah? The start of the rebuke, Genesis 18:13, is directed to Abraham.
He quotes a midrash about two people did the same action and should both be rebuked. As we would expect, one of the people who deserves a rebuke is “greater” than the other person.
The midrash says that it is proper to rebuke the person of lesser status. Then the person of greater status will realize that he also deserves that rebuke and will accept the message.
So Rabbi Sorotzkin concludes that the rebuke of Sarah was also a subtle rebuke of Abraham.
Update: They Knews Sarah’s Name
A reader sent me a question that I think is worth adding to this article.
Question: Assuming the angels looked like regular humans, wouldn’t someone be surprised if a random passing guest knew his wife’s first name?
My Answer: Not necessarily. As many of the commentators explain, at first both Abraham and Sarah thought the guests were prophets. (Though some suggest that Abraham realized right away that they were angels.)
They wouldn’t be shocked that a prophet already knew their names.
Here’s another idea: Maybe Abraham and Sarah were already well known as people who were eager to provide meals and lodging. That would fit with Rashi’s comment on Genesis 18:1 that God sent the angels because Abraham was upset that no one was passing by his tent.