“In verse 16, we find the following words: “And the men rose up from thence, and looked toward Sodom: and Abraham went with them to bring them on the way.” Mark you, Abraham went with the three men; but in verse 17, the language is changed, for we read, “And Yahveh said, Shall I hide from Abraham that which I do?” What we wish to call attention to here, is the fact that one of the three men remained with Abraham and that the other two went on to attend to their work in Sodom, for we read in chapter 19 verse 1, “And the two angels came to Sodom at evening; and Lot sat in the gate of Sodom.” This shows that two of the men went on while one remained with Abraham and gave him God’s message.
In chapter 18:20, we read that Yahveh said, “Because the cry of Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very grievous; I will go down now, and see whether they have done altogether according to the cry of it, which is come unto me; and if not, I will know.” Therefore, whoever or whatever these men may have been, one thing is certain – it was necessary that Yahveh go down and see whether it was altogether according to the cry which had come unto him. In other words, he must go in person that he may know whether the report is true, before justice and destruction can be executed upon Sodom.
Now, if it should be said that this conversation and prayer, or argument – whichever you wish to call it – of Abraham with Yahveh was with a spirit, disembodied, verse 30 would dissipate such a thought, for we read, “And he (Abraham) said unto him, O let not Adonai be angry, and I will speak.” While heretofore he called this one to whom he had been speaking Yahveh, he now calls him Adonai, Master, and we here make this assertion, that in no case is the word Adonai, or Master, used in connection with a spiritual manifestation, but always in connection with a person, at least supposed to be in the body; neither is it used in connection with the God of the universe.
This being true, it is positive proof that Abraham recognized the one with whom he was conversing as one who was in the body. He continues to use the word Adonai in the last part of his argument to the end of the interview, when the writer giving the account says, in verse 33, “And Yahveh went his way, as soon as he had left communing with Abraham: and Abraham returned unto his place.” He did not say that Yahveh had disappeared, or that he went up from Abraham, but simply that he went his way; and where did he go? In verse 21 he said, “I will go down now [to Sodom], and see whether they have done altogether according to the cry of it, which is come unto me”; and we have no further account of him.
The next account of the two angels is given in chapter 19, where they come to Lot in Sodom, enter into his house and eat unleavened bread, et cetera. In proof that these men were in the body, we read: “The men put forth their hand, and brought Lot into the house to them, and shut the door. … But he lingered and the men laid hold upon his hand, and upon the hand of his wife, and upon the hand of his two daughters; Yahveh being merciful unto him: and they brought him forth, and set him without the city.” Mark you, they laid hold upon the hand of Lot and of his wife and daughters, which no spirit can do, for we well know that spirit cannot touch matter, nor matter, spirit. (Spirit may take hold of the mind and thus influence the physical body, as if the body were taken hold of.)
In the foregoing we have evidence, if not absolute proof, of the existence of a Brotherhood in the flesh who were directly in touch with Yahveh, the Spirit of the universe, and one with him; and that they were so recognized by Abraham, who was virtually a neophyte under the guidance and instruction of Melchizedek and of the Brotherhood with whom Melchizedek was connected.”
Hiram Butler
The Mark Of God: Understanding Your "I AM Presence" 