Parshat Vayeira

When the three angels visited Avraham and Sarah they said to him “where is Sarah your wife?” (Bereishit 18:9). On the word “to him,” eylav, there are three dots over the letters alef, yud and vav (אֵׄלָיׄוׄ). These three letters together mean “where is he.” This alludes to a second question that was similarly asked of Sarah as to where her husband was (Bereishit Rabbah 48:15). From this the Sages learn that it is appropriate for guests to ask the host about the welfare of his or her spouse (Bava Metziah 87a).

The question is also asked why the angels inquired at all as they certainly knew the answer that Avraham would give – that Sarah was in the tent. According to the commentaries, the question was asked in order to give Avraham an increased awareness of and pride in his wife’s great modesty. Interestingly, there is no explicit mention in the text of the angel’s second question, alluded to by the dots above the letters, or of Sarah’s response regarding her husband’s whereabouts, but in a sense, Avraham’s response that she is in the tent applies to him as well. For it was in their open tent that Avraham and Sarah hosted guests, and it was in this sacred space that they were able to teach people about the one God, which was their life’s mission. In some sense, Avraham and Sarah were always “in the tent,” so to speak, as the ohel, or tent, represents the place where we invite the Divine to reside in this world.