And the Lord said to him: Whence comest thou? And he answered and said: I have gone round about the earth, and walked through it.
Rashi
“Where are you coming from?” Scripture speaks of etiquette, that the greater one speaks first and permits the smaller one to reply.
“From going to and fro on the earth” As is explained above, and it is in the homiletic section of the chapter [that begins], “The partners.”
“From going to and fro on the earth and from walking in it.” So is my wont to go to and fro, to see the evil ones and the good ones. Now I went to and fro throughout the entire earth and I did not find anyone like Abraham, about whom it is said (Gen. 13:17): “Rise, go to and fro in the land.” The Sages of blessed memory (Baba Bathra 16a) said that the Adversary meant this for the sake of Heaven, in order that Abraham’s merit not be forgotten by our God.
Hebrew and Aramaic words are the commentator’s citations of the sacred text; the English translation that follows each is the translator’s.
Imported from an open dataset — not yet checked against the printed edition.