Genesis 18:8

Gen 18:8 And he took butter, and milk, and the calf which he had dressed, and set [it] before them; and he stood by them under the tree, and they did eat.

Ver. 8. And they did eat.] The angels, as they assumed human shapes, so they did truly eat, according to the present dispensation of the shape so assumed.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

For as God gave them bodies for a time, so gave he them the faculties thereof, to walk, to eat and drink, and such like.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

milk--A bowl of camel's milk ends the repast.

he stood by them under the tree--The host himself, even though he has a number of servants, deems it a necessary act of politeness to stand while his guests are at their food, and Abraham evidently did this before he was aware of the real character of his visitors.

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 8. And he stood by them under the tree, and they did eat.] Nothing is more common in Hindostan than to see travellers and guests eating under the shade of trees. Feasts are scarcely ever held in houses. The house of a Hindoo serves for sleeping and cooking, and for shutting up the women; but is never considered as a sitting or dining room. - Ward.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

(8) Butter.—Heb. curds, or curdled milk. Neither the Hebrews, Greeks, nor Romans knew how to make butter, and the word itself signifies cheese made of cows’ milk. This is less prized in the East than that made from the milk of sheep, or of goats, while camels’ milk is regarded by the Arabs as best for drinking. In a hot climate milk is more refreshing when slightly sour; but Abraham brought both fresh milk (probably from the camels) and sour milk (from the sheep), and this with the cakes and the calf made a stately repast. With noble courtesy “he stood by them, and they did eat.” The Targum of Jonathan and other Jewish authorities translate “and they made show of eating,” lest it should seem as though angels ate (Jdg_13:16). There is the same mystery as regards our risen Lord (Luk_24:43).

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

8. butter, and milk] Butter (ḥem’ah, LXX βούτυρον) is not what we should call butter, but rather “curds,” mentioned here and Jdg_5:25, as a cool and refreshing delicacy to be offered to a guest. It is called in the East leben. It is probably this which we find so often mentioned with honey, e.g. 2Sa_17:29; Isa_7:22. The milk (ḥâlâb) would be the fresh milk of sheep or goats.

they did eat] The manifestation of the Deity is here, as in Gen_19:3, associated with a meal. Cf. Exo_24:11; Jdg_6:19-20. God’s Presence may bless the simplest duties of home life.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And he took butter and milk,.... Jarchi says, it was the fat of the milk gathered from the top of it, he means cream, and is different both from butter and from milk: this was either Abraham himself, who took and brought these, as Sarah or her maidens might bring the cakes when baked; or else Abraham's young man, since it follows:

and the calf which he had dressed; either the whole of it, or some principal parts of it, reckoned the finest and choicest; though by what follows it seems to be Abraham himself, who may be said to dress the calf, it being done by his orders:

and set it before them; a table being placed under the tree, he set, or ordered to be set, all those provisions before the three men, to feed upon, the cakes and butter, the milk and fatted calf:

and he stood by them under the tree; not only to bid them welcome, but to minister to them; nor will this seem strange, or that the above several things were chiefly done by Abraham and Sarah, when it is observed that the greatest personages in the eastern countries, in early times, used to perform such services, and still do to this day, as a late traveller (r) informs us:"it is here (says he) no disgrace for persons of the highest character to busy themselves in what we should reckon menial employments; the greatest prince assists in the most laborious actions of husbandry; neither is he ashamed to fetch a lamb from his herd and kill it, while the princess his wife is impatient till she has prepared her fire and her kettle to seethe and dress it: the custom that still continues of walking either barefoot or with slippers requires the ancient compliment of bringing water upon the arrival of a stranger to wash his feet; and who is the person that presents himself first to do this office, and to give the "mar habbeh", or welcome, but the master of the family himself? who always distinguishes himself by being the most officious; and, after his entertainment is prepared, accounts it a breach of respect to sit down with his guests, but stands up all the time and serves them.''All which serves greatly to illustrate this passage; and the same learned author observes, that in this manner we find Achilles and Patroclus employed, as described by Homer (s), in providing an entertainment:

and they did eat; or seemed to eat, as the Targum of Jonathan and Jarchi; though as they assumed bodies so animated as to be capable of talking and walking, why not of eating and drinking? and there must have been a consumption of food some way or other, or Abraham would have known they had not eaten: we read of angels' food, Psa 78:25; our English poet had a notion of angels eating, and represents Eve providing a repast for the angel, which he owns to be no ungrateful food (t).

(r) Dr. Shaw's Travels, p. 237, 238. Ed. 2. (s) Iliad. 9. ver. 205. (t) Milton's Paradise Lost, B. 5. ver. 412, &c.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

The calf, to wit, the choicest parts of the calf.

He stood by them, to wait upon them, as the word standing is used, Neh 12:44; Jer 52:12.

They did eat; either seemingly, as the Scripture oft speaks of things according to appearance; or really, they received the meat into the bodies which they assumed, where it was consumed by a Divine power.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

8. Butter — “This is commonly clotted cream. The milk is chiefly that of the goat, which is very rich and sweet, rather sickening to an unpracticed taste. This kind of milk we found abundant in Palestine, and no other.” — Jacobus.

Stood by them — As a reverent attendant and waiter, fully appreciating the honour of the occasion.

They did eat — As truly as did the risen Lord. Luk_24:43. It was not because they needed food, but as, in our Lord’s case, to convince Abraham and Sarah of the reality of this divine visitation. See on Gen_18:2. “If the angels had assumed human bodies, though but for a time, there would have been nothing strange in their eating. In any case the food may have been consumed, miraculously or not; and the eating of it was a proof that the visit of the angels to Abraham was no mere vision, but a true manifestation of heavenly beings.” — Speaker’s Com.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And he took butter, ha; mj, from the root amj, to curdle or become thick, signifies curdled milk, not butter (boututron, LXX; butyrum, Vulgate), which was not used among Orientals except medicinally. The word occurs seven times in Scripture with four letters (Deu_32:14; Jud_1:5:25; 2Sa_17:29; Isa_7:15, Isa_7:22; Pro_30:33; Job_20:17) and once without a (Job_29:6; vide Michaelis, "Supplement," p. 807) and milk, blj milk whilst still fresh, or containing its fatness, from a root signifying to be fat (Gen_49:12; Pro_27:27) and the calf which he i.e. the young manhad dressed, and set it before them; and he stood by them under the tree, a custom still observed among the Arabs, who honor their guests not by sitting to eat with, but by standing to wait upon, themand they did eat. Not seemed to eat (Josephus, Philo, Jonathan), nor simply ate after an allegorical fashion, as fire consumes the materials put into it (Justin Martyr), but did so in reality (Tertullian, Delitzsch, Keil, Kurtz, Lange). Though the angel who appeared to Manoah (Jud_1:13:16) refused to partake of food, the risen Savior ate with his disciples. (Luk_24:43) Physiologically inexplicable, this latter action on the part of Christ was not a mere fainomenon or simulation, but a veritable manducation of material food, to which Christ appealed in confirmation of the reality of his resurrection; and the acceptance of Abraham"s hospitality on the part of Jehovah and his angels may in like manner have been designed to prove that their visit to his tent at Mamre was not a dream or a vision, but a genuine external manifestation.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

חמאה is the fatty part of milk which is skimmed off its surface.

ובן הבקר אשר עשה literally, AND THE CALF WHICH HE HAD MADE — i.e. prepared. Whatever was ready first he brought and placed before them.

ויאכלו AND THEY DID EAT—They appeared to be eating: from this we may learn that a man should not act differently from the prevalent custom (Bava Metzia 86b).

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.

ויקח, he, personally.

ויתן, he placed before them butter and milk as well as the young calf. He offered them the choice to eat either dairy or meaty. There was no need to mention the bread as it is understood that he first brought them the bread. After all, the very minimum one can serve guests is bread. When one entertains guests who appear to be distinguished people one most certainly does not fail to offer them bread first. Besides, the Torah had already mentioned that he prepared the bread in the guise of uggot, cakes. There was also no need to mention that he served them wine, another, staple at all meals.

אשר עשה, by means of his servant.

והוא עומד, as explained by Onkelos, i.e. he served them in the capacity of waiter.

עליהם, the word is used in the same sense already in verse 2

ויאכלו, this is how it appeared to him. All this was part of his prophetic vision.

Radak on the Tanakh — English translations: “Sefaria Community Translation” (CC0 1.0 (public-domain dedication)); “Eliyahu Munk, HaChut Hameshulash” (CC BY 4.0); “Rabbi Mike Feuer, Jerusalem Anthology” (CC BY 4.0); and “R. David Kimhi on the first book of Psalms, Translated by R.G. Finch, London, 1919” (public domain). Text via Sefaria.