וַיֹּאמְר֣וּ אֵׄלָׄ֔יׄוׄ אַיֵּ֖ה שָׂרָ֣ה אִשְׁתֶּ֑ךָ וַיֹּ֖אמֶר הִנֵּ֥ה בָאֹֽהֶל׃
И сказали ему: 'Где Сара, твоя жена?' И сказал он: 'Вот, в палатке.'
That the Worse is wont to Attack the Better
[59] When God puts a question to the wise one, “Where is thy virtue?” (Gen. 18:9)—(I refer to the question put to Abraham about Sarah), He asks not because He is ignorant, but because He thinks it necessary that Abraham should answer, with a view to set in bold relief the praise shown by the speaker’s own words to be due. We are told, you see, that he said “Lo, she is in the tent,” that is, in the soul. What matter for praise, then, is it that springs out of the answer? What he says is, “Lo, I have virtue laid up by me as some precious treasure, and this by itself does not make me happy.