In the Torah portion of Lech Lecha, as well, regarding the War of the Kings, we find the topic of chessed-kindness. When our forefather Avraham heard that his nephew Lot had been taken captive, he waged war against the kings—even taking his allies, Aner, Eshkol and Mamre with him—as an act of kindness to Lot in order to save him from the ordeal. Despite the fact that Lot himself deserved what happened to him (since it was he who chose to live in Sodom), Avraham acted with kindness towards him.

The Torah portion of Vayera contains many instances of kindness, such as: the Holy One came to visit Avraham who was [at the time] recuperating [from his circumcision], and Avraham’s great diligence in hosting guests. Yet another example of kindness is the fact that Avraham prayed on behalf of the Sodomites that they not be punished, from which we learn that one is obligated to act with kindness towards people even in such matters as praying for them and even if they are living improperly. We can also learn the great importance of kindness from the episode of the overturning of Sodom, for the main reason they were punished was that they refused to act with kindness. The Torah also recounts how Lot exerted great effort to bring the guests into his home, even though he did not know that they were angels.