The Arizal taught that before beginning Shacharis one should take upon oneself the mitzvah of "love your fellow as yourself" and intend to love every Jew like his own soul. Through this, one's tefillah is joined with the prayers of all Israel and can rise and bear fruit. This instruction is printed in many siddurim at the start of davening: "Hareini mekabel alai..."
Pri Etz Chaim, Sha'ar Olam HaAsiyah 1
In the same passage the Arizal warns that a person may not stand before Hashem in sadness. He should serve like a servant who is happy to serve his master, because a sad soul lacks the strength to receive the higher light drawn down through prayer. The place for brokenness is during viduy and when recalling one's sins; for the rest of davening, even worries about past sins should be set aside.
Pri Etz Chaim, Sha'ar Olam HaAsiyah 1
The Arizal explains that a completely new soul must fulfill all 613 mitzvos. A soul that has returned to this world in a gilgul, however, does not need to start over; it comes to complete what it lacked before. This is why each person is drawn to particular mitzvos and faces particular tests: they are the very tikkun his soul came down to accomplish.
Sha'ar HaGilgulim, Hakdamah 16
Before creation, the Arizal teaches, Hashem's infinite light filled all of existence and there was no 'space' for a world. Hashem withdrew and concealed His light, leaving an apparently empty space, and into it drew a single thin line of light from which all the worlds unfold. Chassidus applies this to everyday life: true giving often means holding oneself back to make room for someone else to grow.
Etz Chaim, Sha'ar 1 (Derush Igulim V'Yosher), Anaf 2
When the original vessels of creation shattered, sparks of holiness fell and became embedded in every part of the physical world. The Arizal teaches that a Jew who eats, works or speaks with holy intent, saying a beracha, learning or helping another, frees those sparks and returns them to their Source. This is why a person's travels and possessions are guided from Above: certain sparks are waiting precisely for him.
Etz Chaim, Sha'ar 9 (Sha'ar Sheviras HaKeilim); Sha'ar HaMitzvos
The Tanya opens its description of the Jewish soul with a startling phrase: the G-dly soul of every Jew is 'truly a part of G-d Above'. This soul is not merely created by Hashem; it is rooted in His very essence, like a child drawn from the mind of a parent. Alongside it, each person has an 'animal soul' that drives natural desires. Recognizing the G-dly spark within oneself and others is the starting point of all Chassidic service.
Tanya, Likkutei Amarim ch. 2
The Alter Rebbe describes the 'beinoni' – the intermediate person whose heart may still feel temptation, but who never acts on it in deed, speech or thought. Unlike the level of the true tzaddik, which depends on feelings that are not in our control, the beinoni's path depends on choice. Therefore, he writes, every person can at any moment choose to be a beinoni. The mind can always rule over the heart.
Tanya, Likkutei Amarim ch. 14
Overcoming the yetzer hara, the Alter Rebbe teaches, is like a wrestling match. If one wrestler is sluggish and heavy-hearted, he will lose even if he is stronger. So too, sadness and gloom make a person spiritually lazy. To win the inner battle one needs joy and alacrity. Regret over wrongdoing has its proper time, but it should lead to renewed joy, not despair.
Tanya, Likkutei Amarim ch. 26
Why should we love every Jew as ourselves? Because at the level of the soul, all Jews share one source and are truly one family; only bodies divide us. A person who values the soul over the body will find it natural to love every Jew, great or small. Love built only on physical or passing things is conditional; love built on the soul is constant. The Alter Rebbe adds that one should try to draw even distant people close with ropes of love.
Tanya, Likkutei Amarim ch. 32
Based on a teaching of Chazal, the Tanya explains that the purpose of creation is that Hashem desired a 'dwelling place in the lower realms'. Not the heavens, but this physical, often dark world is where His presence is meant to be revealed. Each mitzvah performed with physical objects turns a piece of the material world into a home for G-dliness, preparing for the era of Moshiach when this light will be openly revealed.
Tanya, Likkutei Amarim ch. 36
The Baal Shem Tov explained this verse literally: the very words Hashem spoke at creation, "Let there be a firmament," remain clothed within the heavens at every moment and keep them in existence. If the Divine word withdrew even for an instant, the heavens would return to nothingness. The same is true of every creature. All of existence is continually being re-created, so Hashem is never distant from anything.
Tanya, Sha'ar HaYichud V'HaEmunah, ch. 1 (citing the Baal Shem Tov)
"Shivisi Hashem l'negdi tamid," I have set Hashem before me always. The Besht connects "shivisi" with "hishtavus," equanimity: when a person lives with Hashem constantly before him, praise and insult, delicacies and plain food become equal in his eyes. Whatever happens, he says, "This too is from Hashem; if it is good in His eyes, it is good in mine."
Tzava'as HaRivash 2
Hashem wants to be served with every part of a person and in every situation. When travel or business keeps a Jew from his usual learning and davening, he should not be upset: Hashem arranged it so that he could serve Him differently, by cleaving to Him in thought and in the way he conducts himself. There is no place and no activity where avodas Hashem is impossible.
Tzava'as HaRivash 3
The Besht taught that the summit of knowledge is to know that we cannot know Hashem, but there are two ways to reach that conclusion. One person never searches at all. Another searches through every chamber of the King's palace until he grasps that the King is beyond grasping. Both 'do not know,' yet the second has enjoyed all the treasures of the palace along the way. Learning and seeking are never wasted, even at the edge of understanding.
Keser Shem Tov 1
A teaching handed down in his name holds that Divine providence extends to everything: a leaf turning over in the wind, a speck of dust carried along, all happen by Hashem's precise will and for a purpose within His plan for creation. For the Baal Shem Tov's followers this transformed daily life. Nothing is random; each encounter and event is a message and an opportunity.
Oral tradition of the Baal Shem Tov, recorded in Chabad Chassidic literature (e.g., the Lubavitcher Rebbes' talks)
In his letter to his brother-in-law Rabbi Gershon of Kitov, the Baal Shem Tov describes ascending on high on Rosh Hashanah and asking Moshiach, "When will the Master come?" The answer was that it would be when his teaching becomes known and revealed in the world and his wellsprings spread outward, so that others too could achieve the unifications he did. For Chassidim this became a mission: spreading the light of Chassidus hastens the Geulah.
Iggeres HaKodesh of the Baal Shem Tov (printed in Ben Poras Yosef, 1781)
When Moshe Rabbeinu asked Hashem to appoint a leader after him, he called upon Him as the G-d of the spirits of all flesh. The Kedushas Levi explains his choice of words. When a Jew falls short in serving Hashem, we must search for a fair reason to judge him favorably, and one is usually close at hand: he must toil for his bread, and the weight of this world presses on him. The angels serve without distraction because they carry no such burden. A human being lives with both. Moshe was asking for a leader who understands this, who, like Hashem Himself, knows what is in each person's heart, and therefore always finds the good in Israel. A judge and leader of the Jewish people, the Rebbe teaches, must be one who 'always pleads in favor of Israel.'
Kedushas Levi, Bamidbar, Pinchas (on Bamidbar 27:16)
At Mei Merivah, Hashem told Moshe to speak to the rock, yet Moshe called the people rebels and struck it. Some explain that his mistake was the harsh word, others that it was striking instead of speaking. The Kedushas Levi teaches that the two are really one. There are two ways to correct the Jewish people. One reminds them of the greatness of their souls and of how much the Creator delights in their mitzvos, and this awakens them to rise. The other shames them by dwelling on how far they have fallen. In that painful moment Moshe spoke the second way, and striking the rock mirrored his words, as though the people were as unfeeling as stone. Hashem wanted the first way. The one who corrects Israel with goodness, the Rebbe writes, 'raises the soul of Israel higher and higher,' and he is truly fit to lead them.
Kedushas Levi, Bamidbar, Chukas (on Bamidbar 20:8)
In the Torah, the Yom Tov is called Chag HaMatzos, the festival of matzos, yet Jews everywhere call it Pesach. The Kedushas Levi explains that each side is praising the other. Hashem names it after the matzos to praise His people, who followed Him out of Egypt in perfect faith, carrying their dough with them before it could rise and setting out into the wilderness without provisions for the road. We call it Pesach, recalling how Hashem passed over our homes, to praise His kindness. Like two who love each other, each speaks of the other's goodness. This, he teaches, is the meaning of the verse in Shir HaShirim, 'I am my Beloved's, and my Beloved is mine.'
Kedushas Levi, Shemos, Bo (on Shemos 12:27)
Explaining how the Infinite could create a limited world, the Maggid used an image every parent knows. A wise father who wants to teach his young son does not lecture at his own level; he lovingly narrows his thoughts and speaks in simple words the child can grasp. In the same way, Hashem 'contracted' His infinite light out of love, so that creatures could exist and relate to Him. The tzimtzum is not distance – it is the act of a Father bending down to His children.
Maggid Devarav LeYaakov §1
Nothing new can grow unless the old form first gives way. An egg must lose its existence as an egg before a chick can emerge, and a seed must decompose before a new plant sprouts. So too, a person who wishes to change and grow must first reach the level of 'ayin' – letting go of self-importance and fixed self-image. In that state of humility, a person becomes a vessel for new blessing. The Maggid connects this to the power of tzaddikim to transform harsh judgment into mercy.
Maggid Devarav LeYaakov §12
The Maggid told a parable of a king who sent his son into exile. When a loyal minister grieved openly over the prince's suffering, his pain aroused the king's own hidden compassion, and the king's mercy flowed to all his children. The tzaddik plays this role for Klal Yisroel: by sincerely feeling the exile of the Shechinah and of every Jew, he awakens Divine mercy for the whole people and helps call them back home.
Maggid Devarav LeYaakov §5
A well-known teaching in the Maggid's name, said to have been told to Rebbe Zusha, holds that one can learn three things from a small child: to be happy for no particular reason, never to sit idle, and to cry to his Father for what he needs. From a thief one learns to work at night, to keep trying after failing, to value what one does, to keep one's efforts private, and more. Every part of life can become a teacher in avodas Hashem. (This teaching is transmitted in later Chassidic collections and oral tradition; versions of the list differ.)
Oral tradition in the Maggid's name; cited in later Chassidic anthologies (versions vary)
On the words 'Lech lecha – go from your land, your birthplace and your father's house', the Noam Elimelech describes a path in three steps. First, a person learns to master physical appetites so that even eating becomes holy. Next, he works to break inborn negative traits such as anger, which opens the heart to true love of Hashem. Finally, he adorns his life with beautiful deeds. He adds a warning not to rely on, or boast of, one's ancestry – each person must make the journey himself.
Noam Elimelech, Lech Lecha
Why did Hashem appear to Avraham as he sat at the entrance of his tent? The Noam Elimelech explains that the Divine Presence rests on a person who considers himself small. Avraham, despite his greatness, sat at the doorway as one standing at the threshold, never assuming he had arrived. True humility is not a lack of self-worth; it is the open space that allows Hashem's presence to enter.
Noam Elimelech, Vayera
A central theme of the Noam Elimelech is that the tzaddik bows low and binds himself to the simple people in order to draw Divine abundance down to them. Reading the story of Avraham running to greet his guests, the Rebbe sees a tzaddik who humbles himself and hurries to bring shefa – blessing for children, health and livelihood – to all of Yisroel. Holiness is not meant to stay at the top; it must flow down.
Noam Elimelech, Vayera
In his Tzetel Katan, a short list of daily practices, Rebbe Elimelech offers a practical method for character change: whatever a person's natural failing – stubbornness, laziness, unhealthy shyness, careless speech – he should consistently practice the opposite behavior for forty days in a row. The Tzetel Katan also advises sharing troubling thoughts with a trusted teacher or friend, which weakens the yetzer hara.
Tzetel Katan (printed in Noam Elimelech)
Rebbe Elimelech's 'Prayer before Prayer', printed in many siddurim, asks Hashem to protect us from jealousy and to place in our hearts the ability to see the good qualities of others and not their faults. It asks that we speak to each other in ways that are pleasing before Hashem and that no hatred ever arise between friends. For the Rebbe, preparing to pray means first preparing to love.
Tefillah Kodem HaTefillah (Noam Elimelech, additions)
Rachel gave Leah the secret signs she had arranged with Yaakov, so that her sister would not be humiliated on her wedding night. She risked losing the husband she had waited seven years for, and she did it in silence, without seeking credit. Chazal teach that because of this hidden modesty she merited that Shaul HaMelech, himself known for his modesty, would descend from her. True greatness is often invisible, measured by what a person quietly gives up for another.
Megillah 13b
When the Torah says "Hashem remembered Rachel," Rashi explains what was remembered: that she had passed the signs to her sister, and how anxious she was that she might end up married to Esav. Many years after her quiet act of kindness, it stood before Hashem as the merit that brought Yosef into the world. No act of chesed is lost, even when it seems to have cost us everything.
Bereishis 30:22, Rashi
Yaakov did not carry Rachel to Beis Lechem or to Chevron, but buried her on the roadside where she died. Rashi relates from the Midrash that this was by Hashem's command: when the Jewish people would be led into exile past that place, Rachel would come out of her grave and beg for mercy for them. Her kever is placed precisely where her children would need her most.
Bereishis 48:7, Rashi
Yirmiyahu hears Rachel crying for her children and refusing comfort, and then Hashem's answer: stop your crying, for there is reward for your labor, and your children will come back to their own borders. Chassidic teachers read this as a promise for every generation: the tears of a mother are never wasted, and the final redemption is the answer to Rachel's prayers.
Yirmiyahu 31:14–16
The Midrash relates that after the Churban, Avraham, Yitzchak, Yaakov and Moshe each pleaded for Israel without success. Then Rachel spoke: she had overcome her own jealousy and even helped her rival sister so as not to shame her. If a human being could set aside jealousy, should the merciful King be 'jealous' of powerless idols and exile His children? Hashem answered that for her sake He would bring Israel back. Her argument was not her suffering but her self-mastery.
Eicha Rabbah, Pesichta 24
The Rambam teaches that a person should view himself, and the entire world, as if his merits and sins were exactly balanced. With his very next deed he can tip himself and all of creation to the side of merit and bring salvation, or the opposite. No act is small; every mitzvah may be the one that decides everything. The sound of the shofar, he writes, is a call: wake up, sleepers, search your deeds and return.
Mishneh Torah, Hilchos Teshuvah 3:4
The right way, the Rambam writes, is the middle measure in every character trait: not hot-tempered nor emotionless, not stingy nor wasteful, not frivolous nor gloomy. A person should regularly weigh his traits and direct them toward the center. This is the path of the wise and is what the Torah calls 'walking in His ways.' (He makes exceptions for pride and anger, from which one should distance oneself completely.)
Mishneh Torah, Hilchos De'os 1:4
The Rambam lists eight levels of tzedakah. Higher than any gift, even an anonymous one, is helping a fellow Jew before he falls: giving him a loan, a partnership or a job so that he never needs to ask for charity. The highest tzedakah preserves a person's dignity and independence, strengthening him so that he can stand on his own.
Mishneh Torah, Hilchos Matnos Aniyim 10:7
After describing how the Leviim are set apart for Hashem's service, the Rambam adds that this is not limited to one tribe. Any person whose spirit moves him to stand before Hashem, to serve Him and know Him, and who throws off the yoke of worldly calculations, becomes holy of holies, and Hashem will be his portion and provide what he needs. Spiritual greatness is open to every soul that chooses it.
Mishneh Torah, Hilchos Shemittah V'Yovel 13:13
The Rambam closes the Mishneh Torah with a vision of the days of Moshiach: there will be no famine and no war, no jealousy and no rivalry, for good things will be as plentiful as dust. The whole world will have one occupation, to know Hashem. The Jewish people will be great sages, understanding hidden matters, and the earth will be filled with knowledge of Hashem as the waters cover the sea.
Mishneh Torah, Hilchos Melachim 12:5
In his commentary on the Mishnah "All Israel have a share in the World to Come," the Rambam formulated thirteen foundations of Jewish belief: Hashem's existence, unity and incorporeality, His eternity, that only He is to be worshipped, prophecy, the unique prophecy of Moshe, the Divine origin and permanence of the Torah, Hashem's knowledge of our deeds, reward and punishment, the coming of Moshiach, and the resurrection of the dead. They became the basis of the Ani Ma'amin and the Yigdal hymn.
Commentary on the Mishnah, Sanhedrin 10:1 (Perek Chelek)
Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai taught that Hashem gave the Jewish people three precious gifts, and each of them is acquired only through hardship: the Torah, Eretz Yisroel, and the World to Come. His lesson is that struggle is not a sign that something has gone wrong. Precisely the most valuable things in a Jew's life are the ones that cost effort and pain, and the difficulty itself refines a person so that he becomes a fitting vessel for the gift.
Berachos 5a
In the name of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai the Gemara teaches that it is better for a person to throw himself into a fiery furnace than to humiliate someone else in public. The proof is Tamar, who was being led out to be burned yet refused to name Yehuda openly; she only sent his belongings and let him choose to admit the truth. Protecting another person's dignity outweighs even one's own safety.
Berachos 43b
When Rashbi and his son left the cave for the last time, they saw an elderly Jew rushing before Shabbos with two bunches of myrtle. Asked why one would not suffice, he answered: one for "Zachor" and one for "Shamor." Rabbi Shimon told his son, "See how precious the mitzvos are to Yisroel," and their anger at the world melted away. Even a giant who lived thirteen years in pure Torah learned to see the greatness hidden in a simple Jew's love for a mitzvah.
Shabbos 33b
When some sages feared that Torah would one day be lost from Israel, Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai rejected the idea outright, citing the promise that the Torah "shall not be forgotten from the mouth of his descendants" (Devarim 31:21). The verses that speak of people searching for the word of Hashem, he explained, mean only that clear, undisputed rulings will be harder to find, not that Torah itself will vanish. It is a statement of deep faith in the eternity of Torah among the Jewish people.
Shabbos 138b
The Zohar teaches that the stories of the Torah are its outer clothing. Just as a person is more than the garment he wears, the Torah is far more than its narratives; beneath the clothing is a body of mitzvos, and within that body a soul of hidden wisdom. Someone who thinks the Torah is nothing more than tales has missed it entirely. This is why Dovid HaMelech prayed, "Open my eyes, that I may see wonders from Your Torah."
Zohar III 152a (Beha'alosecha)
Rabbi Shimon taught that there are three crowns: the crown of Torah, the crown of kehunah and the crown of kingship. Yet a fourth crown, a good name, rises above all of them. Two of the three crowns can be inherited, and Torah can be learned, but a good name is built only through a lifetime of honest, kind conduct, and it adorns whatever other crowns a person wears.
Pirkei Avos 4:13
Rebbe Nachman taught that being joyful at all times is a great mitzvah, and that one must use every strength to push away sadness and depression. Many illnesses, he said, stem from a lack of joy, and joy has the power to heal. When happiness does not come naturally, a person can even act happy – sometimes with a bit of silliness – until true joy follows.
Likutei Moharan II:24
In the famous teaching known as Azamra ('I will sing'), Rebbe Nachman instructs us to search for at least a little good in every person, even in someone who seems completely wicked. By judging him favorably we can actually lift him up. A person must do the same for himself: rather than falling into despair over his failings, he should find his own good points and 'sing' to Hashem with them. This brings joy and true teshuvah.
Likutei Moharan I:282
Rebbe Nachman calls hisbodedus, secluded personal prayer, the highest path of all. Each day a person should set aside time – ideally an hour – to speak to Hashem in his own language, like a child talking to a loving father, pouring out his heart about everything in his life. Even if the words don't flow, simply repeating 'Ribbono shel Olam' or sitting before Hashem in longing has great value.
Likutei Moharan II:25
A person must cross a very narrow bridge in this world, Rebbe Nachman taught, and the essential rule is not to be afraid at all. The teaching encourages those starting to serve Hashem who feel distant or rejected: every apparent pushing-away is really part of drawing closer. The beloved song 'Kol HaOlam Kulo' is a popular paraphrase of this lesson.
Likutei Moharan II:48
To someone overwhelmed by the harm his actions have caused, Rebbe Nachman offered a powerful answer: if you believe it is possible to destroy, then believe it is possible to fix. The same faith that makes us take our mistakes seriously should also give us confidence that teshuvah and repair are always within reach. Despair, in Rebbe Nachman's eyes, is never humility; it is a failure of that very same faith.
Likutei Moharan II:112
Rav Avrohom explains that while Klal Yisroel dwells in its own land, the land itself is a shield for every Jew, because the air of Eretz Yisroel is the holy domain of the Shechinah, which hovers over her children there and guards them herself. The forces of impurity surround the borders of the Land but cannot enter it. When Klal Yisroel is exiled, the Shechinah does not abandon her children; only a small spark of her light goes with them into exile, like the small part of the sun's light that reaches the earth.
Chessed L'Avrohom, Maayan 3, Nahar 9
According to Chessed L'Avrohom, a Jew who comes to live in Eretz Yisroel receives a new, higher level of nefesh, drawn from the world of Yetzirah, which clothes itself in his earlier soul. On his first night in the Land, it is taught, the old soul goes up and only the new one returns. This is how Chazal can say that one who lives in Eretz Yisroel is forgiven his sins, and why every Jew who lives there is called a tzaddik. Rav Avrohom adds that the Land atones only for unintentional sins; deliberate sins require teshuvah and Torah learning.
Chessed L'Avrohom, Maayan 3, Nahar 12
Rav Avrohom writes that Me'aras Hamachpelah in Chevron is the entrance to the Gan Eden below. He finds this hinted in the words used for the silver Avrohom Avinu paid for the cave, whose numerical value equals that of a phrase meaning 'the path to the Garden'. Yaakov Avinu therefore longed to be buried there, so that the passage would stay open for his descendants.
Chessed L'Avrohom, Maayan 3, Nahar 13
The Torah and Eretz Yisroel come from a single source, and Klal Yisroel, through the root of its souls, shares that same bond with the Holy Land.
Chessed L'Avrohom, Maayan 3, Nahar 7
Rav Noach taught that the Baal Shem Tov came down to this world to replace depression, sadness and empty frivolity by planting the roots of sincere humility and true simchah in the hearts of Bnei Yisroel.
Toras Avos #11
In a letter to his chassidim, Rav Noach wrote: "Even one without a penny to his name should make this tzedakah a priority, even before kiddush on Shabbos. We heard much from my father about the hidden secrets of Torah contained in this mitzvah. We also heard from my master Rav Shlomo HaLevi of Karlin and the holy master Rav Baruch of Mezibuzh how important this great mitzvah is. They made it their practice to support the tzedakah of Eretz Yisroel, so that the poor of the Holy Land would have their needs well provided for, especially the holy chevrah kadishah of the kollel. Therefore, my beloved friends and brothers, do not neglect this mitzvah; treat it as my father did, like the apple of his eye. No one should reduce the established donations. I have heard some murmuring among you that this may have mattered in the past, when the poor were of loftier stature, but that in this generation they are less worthy of our support. Such words are nothing but hot air. We too have descended and are no longer on the level we once were. Therefore, my brothers and friends, please have mercy on your own bodies and souls and strengthen yourselves in this mitzvah, for it includes several other mitzvos: tzedakah, supporting talmidei chachamim, and the love of Eretz Yisroel."
Letter to his chassidim
Rav Raphael Boruch would ask: Why did Dovid HaMelech reverse the order in the words "Hashem Melech, Hashem Malach, Hashem Yimloch l'olam va'ed", speaking first of the present, then of the past and only then of the future? Logically he should have begun with the past, then the present, and then the future. The answer is that the foundation of emunah is in the present. We cannot feel Hashem's kingship in the past as long as we have not accepted His reign now. Only after we have rooted the kingship of Hashem deeply in our hearts, at every present moment, can we, with pure emunah, come to grasp His kingship in the past and in the future.
As quoted in his biography on Hevrat Pinto
On the pasuk "And the frogs came out [of the Nile] and covered all the land of Egypt" (Shemos), Rav Menachem Nachum taught that this alludes to the very first thought of the day. When we wake up each morning with holy thoughts of avodas Hashem (serving Hashem) at the forefront of our minds, and we get out of bed and attach our thoughts to Hashem with gadlus hamochin, an expanded awareness of the exaltedness, greatness and awesome majesty of Hashem, this becomes the theme for the rest of the day. The whole day follows its beginning, and the morning's thoughts influence the rest of the day. If we start the morning right, it is much easier to serve Hashem for the rest of the day. This is hinted at in the pasuk. צפרדעה (frog) is a compound word, hinting at צפר, morning, and דעה, thought or intellect. When we concentrate our first thought of the morning on Hashem, it covers the entire land of Egypt. מצרים is also a compound word: מצר ים, the oppressors, the forces of tumah (impurity) and darkness. Once we begin the day with holy thoughts, with our minds attached and bound to Hashem, it is easier to cover over all the forces of evil and the klipos (husks of impurity), and to serve Hashem better for the rest of the day.
M'Peulas Hatzaddikim, cited in Beis Mordechai to Sefer Hayachas Chernobyl, p. 24
“And the two angels came to Sodom” (Bereishis 19:1). When angels visited Avraham, they appeared as human beings. Why, then, did they come to Lot in their true form as angels? Avraham, famous for his hospitality, treated everyone who came to him alike, honoring simple people as much as those considered important. Had Lot seen mere human beings at his door, he would never have let them cross his threshold.
Bereishis 19:1
