His hallmark was his open-tent policy. He pitched his non-profit hospitality in the middle of the desert, and pulled in every traveler and nomad for a hot meal and a night’s rest.
Some considered him an extremist. Once he was in the middle of a chat with G‑d Himself when some travelers appeared in the distance. He excused himself and ran off to invite in the guests! To Abraham, hospitality was greater even than communion with G‑d.
The tradition stayed in the family. When the Roman emperor Julian ordered the establishment of hostels for transients in every city, he referred to the example of the Jews “in whose midst no stranger goes uncared for.” Even in the worst of times, every Jewish community had a society to provide food and lodging for any traveler, without discrimination.
How To Host
Hospitality—hachnasat orchim—is primarily fulfilled by providing for visitors from out of town. But local guests are fine, too. Since it’s such a great mitzvah, you don’t want to wait for someone to call and ask: invite them yourself, or volunteer your home to local organizations that place visitors.
Once inside, some guests are too abashed to ask for a cold drink or an extra pillow. A good host anticipates their needs.
Here’s another cue from Abraham: although he had many servants, he stood over his guests and served their needs himself. If it’s such a great mitzvah, why give it away?
When your guests leave, make sure to pack them some kosher food for the road. It’s a mitzvah to escort them to the airport, bus or train, or at least four cubits (approximately seven feet) from your home’s entrance. In fact, the reward for escorting guests exceeds the reward for everything else we afford them. It goes beyond caring for them in your town—you want to ensure they get to their next destination safe and sound.
I see that it is a mitzvah to escort people to the next destination but, my first question was why did not Abraham make sure that Hagar and Ishmael get to their destination when he was asked by Sarah to make them leave ? ... they almost died because they were just left to go on their own, he had the means to even have someone else escort them safely ???? I know Hashem rescued them but, I was just wondering how that was overlooked by Abraham ......
The mitzvah is to escort them out to the edge of your property or city, not to travel with them all the way to their final destination. In most cases, that would be an impossibly trying task. So, we would presume that Abraham escorted them to the edge of the city, and then expected them to travel from there. Why they were not properly provided with provisions and protections is not mentioned in any ancient sources that I could find.