וַיֹּאמֶר שׁוֹב וְגוֹ׳. דִּבֵּר בִּלְשׁוֹן יָחִיד, כִּי אֶחָד הוּא הַמְבַשֵּׂר כִּי הַשְּׁנַיִם כָּל אֶחָד בָּא לִמְלַאכְתּוֹ. וְצָרִיךְ לָתֵת לֵב לָמָּה בַּשְּׁאֵלָה עַל שָׂרָה שָׁאֲלוּ שְׁנַיִם, וְאוּלַי כִּי לֶהֱיוֹת שֶׁגַּם נִתְכַּוְּנוּ לִשְׁאוֹל בִּשְׁלוֹמָהּ עַל יְדֵי בַּעְלָהּ, לָזֶה שָׁאֲלוּ שְׁלָשְׁתָּם מִשּׁוּם הִלְכוֹת דֶּרֶךְ אֶרֶץ. ויאמר שוב אשוב אליך, He said: "I will certainly come back to you, etc." The angel used the singular, indicating that each one of them had his own task. In view of this why did all three angels ask about Sarah's whereabouts? Perhaps they simply wanted to enquire from her husband about Sarah's wellbeing. According to the rules of etiquette then, all three angels enquired.
שׁוֹב אָשׁוּב וְגוֹ׳. טַעַם כֶּפֶל שׁוֹב אָשׁוּב, גַּם אָמְרוֹ תֵּיבַת וְהִנֵּה, יְכַוֵּן לוֹמַר עַל דֶּרֶךְ אָמְרָם זִכְרוֹנָם לִבְרָכָה כְּשֶׁנּוֹלַד יִצְחָק לֹא הָיָה רָאוּי לְהוֹלִיד, כִּי בָּא מִסִּטְרָא דְּנוּקְבָּא, וּבְמַעֲשֵׂה הָעֲקֵידָה זָכָה לְנֶפֶשׁ הָרָאוּי לְהוֹלִיד, וְהוּא שֶׁרָמַז בְּמַאֲמַר הַמַּלְאָךְ שׁוֹב אָשׁוּב אֵלֶיךָ כָּעֵת חַיָּה וְהִנֵּה בֵן לְשָׂרָה פֵּרוּשׁ מִסִּטְרָא דְּנוּקְבָּא, וְדָיֵּק לוֹמַר ״וְהִנֵּה״, פֵּרוּשׁ הַמִּזְדַּמֵּן קוֹדֵם הוּא גֶּדֶר זֶה, וְאָמַר אָשׁוּב פֵּרוּשׁ פַּעַם שְׁנִיָּה יָשׁוּב אֵלָיו, פֵּרוּשׁ לִבְחִינַת אַבְרָהָם שֶׁהוּא עָלְמָא דִּדְכוּרָא, וְזֶה הָיָה בָּעֲקֵידָה דִּכְתִיב (בראשית כב:יא) ״וַיִּקְרָא אֵלָיו מַלְאַךְ ה׳ מִן הַשָּׁמַיִם״ וְגוֹ׳. וְהֵם שְׁתֵּי פְּקִידוֹת: פְּקִידָה אַחַת שֶׁיִּהְיֶה בָּעוֹלָם יִצְחָק, שְׁנִיָּה שֶׁתִּהְיֶה לוֹ נֶפֶשׁ הַיּוֹלֶדֶת, וְטַעַם שֶׁעָשָׂה ה׳ כָּכָה לְסִבַּת אָמְרוֹ (בראשית יז:יט) ״לוּ יִשְׁמָעֵאל״ וּכְמוֹ שֶׁכָּתַבְתִּי שָׁם וְיֵשׁ סוֹדוֹת. שוב אשוב. "I will certainly return." The reason the angel repeated the words שוב אשוב and added the word והנה, may be better understood on the basis of a tradition that when Isaac was born he suffered from a congenital defect; he was sterile. It was only after agreeing to be the sacrifice at the עקדה, that he was cured of that defect. The angel hinted that he would have to return twice כעת חיה, at a time when he would "give life," in order that Sarah's son would be a true son, able to procreate. The words והנה בן לשרה indicate that Sarah's son emanated from the left side of the emanations, the female, weaker side. The word והנה emphasises this origin of Isaac in Sarah's domain. Only when the angel would return once more would the male component, i.e. Abraham's input, become dominant within Isaac. This occurred in Genesis 22,11 where the Torah reports that an angel called out to Abraham not to harm Isaac. The angel therefore had two tasks to perform, 1) to announce that there would be an Isaac, 2) that he would possess a soul that could procreate. The reason that G'd had to do this was related to Abraham's prayer on behalf of Ishmael in 17,19. I have written about that subject at the time.
עוֹד יִרְצֶה בְּאָמְרוֹ וְלְשָׂרָה בֵן לְפִי פְּשׁוּטוֹ עַל דֶּרֶךְ אָמְרָם זִכְרוֹנָם לִבְרָכָה (ויקרא רבה פי״ד): לְעוֹלָם זְכָרִים תְּלוּיִים בִּנְקֵבוֹת וּנְקֵבוֹת בִּזְכָרִים, דִּכְתִיב (דברי הימים א׳ ד:יח) ״וְאִשְׁתּוֹ הַיְהֻדִיָּה יָלְדָה אֶת יֶרֶד״, (בראשית כב:כד) ״וּפִילַגְשׁוֹ וּשְׁמָהּ וְגוֹ׳ וַתֵּלֶד״ וְגוֹ׳, (ויקרא יב:ב) ״אִשָּׁה כִּי תַזְרִיעַ וְיָלְדָה זָכָר״ עַד כָּאן. גַּם אָנוּ מוֹסִיפִין לִמְנוֹת בֵּן לְשָׂרָה וְגוֹ׳. Another meaning of the words ולשרה בן, that Sarah would by then have a son, is to tell us that a son i.e. male issue, is dependent on the female element being predominant whereas daughters are the result of a preponderant male element during marital union. We know this from Nidah 31 based on Leviticus 12,2. The angel prophesied that the physical union of Abraham and Sarah which would result in her impregnation would correspond to the rules laid down, or hinted at, in Leviticus 12,2. [compare Midrash Hagadol in the name of Rabbi Yitzchak that the sex of the embryo is determined in accordance with whose orgasm occurs first. If the male completes his orgasm first, the result is a daughter, if the female is first, the result is a son. Ed.] Scripture alludes to who was first by the way the birth is described. Chronicles I 4 18, states: "and his wife, the Jewess, gave birth to Yered, etc." [Every other issue mentioned in that chapter is described in terms of the husband fathering instead of as the wife giving birth. Ed.] In Genesis 22,24 the repetition of "and his concubine whose name was Re-umah, etc.," is another example of the principle we described. The words "whose name was" were quite unnecessary otherwise. Accordingly, the angels attributed the forthcoming son to the predominance of the female, i.e. Sarah's input.
וְשָׂרָה שֹׁמַעַת. מוֹדִיעַ הַכָּתוּב כִּי הַבְּשׂוֹרָה לְשָׂרָה בִּשְּׂרוּ כְּמַאֲמַר ה׳ בַּשְּׁלִיחוּת, וְהוּא אָמְרוֹ וְשָׂרָה שׁוֹמַעַת וְגוֹ׳ וְהוּא הַמְבַשֵּׂר אַחֲרָיו. וְרָאִיתִי בַּמִּדְרָשׁ כִּי אַף עַל פִּי כֵן נִתְיַסֵּר הַמַּלְאָךְ עַל אֲשֶׁר לֹא דִּבֵּר הַבְּשׂוֹרָה מִפִּיו אֵלֶיהָ וְדִבֵּר לְאַבְרָהָם, וְהַמַּלְאָכִים יֵעָנְשׁוּ עַל הַשּׁוֹגֵג וְעַל שִׁנּוּי כָּל שֶׁהוּא: ושרה שומעת, and Sarah was listening. On the one hand the verse indicates that what Sarah heard was a message intended for her by a heavenly messenger, the messenger himself standing behind her. Nonetheless I have seen a Midrash according to which the angel was disciplined for not addressing Sarah directly with the message, preferring to deliver it to Abraham. Angels are punished for inadvertently committed disobedience or minor deviations from the instructions they receive.