Bereishis/Vayera - God will see

In parsha Vayera God informs Abraham about His plan to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah with the following expression:

 אֵֽרֲדָה־נָּ֣א וְאֶרְאֶ֔ה הַכְּצַעֲקָתָ֛הּ הַבָּ֥אָה אֵלַ֖י עָשׂ֣וּ ׀ כָּלָ֑ה וְאִם־לֹ֖א אֵדָֽעָה׃
I will go down to see whether they have acted altogether according to the outcry that has reached Me; if not, I will know” .

An interesting question to ask is how exactly God intends to "go down" and "see". Isn't God everywhere, and doesn't He already see and know everything, even before it happens? What do we learn by knowing that God  intends to "go down" in order to "see" what's going on?  Upon closer observation, we notice that the concept of looking, seeing, appearing, and the like, appears throughout the parsha, beginning with the name of the parsha itself: וַיֵּרָ֤א  Vayera, meaning "appear", as in God "appeared" to Abraham. Let us now go down line by line and make a list of every sentence, where this concept appears:

1) וַיֵּרָ֤א אֵלָיו֙ יְהוָ֔ה בְּאֵלֹנֵ֖י מַמְרֵ֑א וְה֛וּא יֹשֵׁ֥ב פֶּֽתַח־הָאֹ֖הֶל כְּחֹ֥ם הַיּֽוֹם׃
The LORD appeared to him by the terebinths of Mamre; he was sitting at the entrance of the tent as the day grew hot.

2) וַיִּשָּׂ֤א עֵינָיו֙ וַיַּ֔רְא וְהִנֵּה֙ שְׁלֹשָׁ֣ה אֲנָשִׁ֔ים נִצָּבִ֖ים עָלָ֑יו וַיַּ֗רְא וַיָּ֤רָץ לִקְרָאתָם֙ מִפֶּ֣תַח הָאֹ֔הֶל וַיִּשְׁתַּ֖חוּ אָֽרְצָה׃
Looking up, he saw three men standing near him. As soon as he saw them, he ran from the entrance of the tent to greet them and, bowing to the ground, 

3) וַיָּקֻ֤מוּ מִשָּׁם֙ הָֽאֲנָשִׁ֔ים וַיַּשְׁקִ֖פוּ עַל־פְּנֵ֣י סְדֹ֑ם וְאַ֨בְרָהָ֔ם הֹלֵ֥ךְ עִמָּ֖ם לְשַׁלְּחָֽם׃
The men set out from there and looked down toward Sodom, Abraham walking with them to see them off. 

4) אֵֽרֲדָה־נָּ֣א וְאֶרְאֶ֔ה הַכְּצַעֲקָתָ֛הּ הַבָּ֥אָה אֵלַ֖י עָשׂ֣וּ ׀ כָּלָ֑ה וְאִם־לֹ֖א אֵדָֽעָה׃
I will go down to see whether they have acted altogether according to the outcry that has reached Me; if not, I will take note.”

5) וַ֠יָּבֹאוּ שְׁנֵ֨י הַמַּלְאָכִ֤ים סְדֹ֙מָה֙ בָּעֶ֔רֶב וְל֖וֹט יֹשֵׁ֣ב בְּשַֽׁעַר־סְדֹ֑ם וַיַּרְא־לוֹט֙ וַיָּ֣קָם לִקְרָאתָ֔ם וַיִּשְׁתַּ֥חוּ אַפַּ֖יִם אָֽרְצָה׃
The two angels arrived in Sodom in the evening, as Lot was sitting in the gate of Sodom. When Lot saw them, he rose to greet them and, bowing low with his face to the ground 

6) הִנֵּה־נָ֨א לִ֜י שְׁתֵּ֣י בָנ֗וֹת אֲשֶׁ֤ר לֹֽא־יָדְעוּ֙ אִ֔ישׁ אוֹצִֽיאָה־נָּ֤א אֶתְהֶן֙ אֲלֵיכֶ֔ם וַעֲשׂ֣וּ לָהֶ֔ן כַּטּ֖וֹב בְּעֵינֵיכֶ֑ם רַ֠ק לָֽאֲנָשִׁ֤ים הָאֵל֙ אַל־תַּעֲשׂ֣וּ  דָבָ֔ר כִּֽי־עַל־כֵּ֥ן בָּ֖אוּ בְּצֵ֥ל קֹרָתִֽי׃
Look, I have two daughters who have not known a man. Let me bring them out to you, and you may do to them as is good in your eyes; but do not do anything to these men, since they have come under the shelter of my roof.” 

7) וְֽאֶת־הָאֲנָשִׁ֞ים אֲשֶׁר־פֶּ֣תַח הַבַּ֗יִת הִכּוּ֙ בַּסַּנְוֵרִ֔ים מִקָּטֹ֖ן וְעַד־גָּד֑וֹל וַיִּלְא֖וּ לִמְצֹ֥א הַפָּֽתַח׃
And the people who were at the entrance of the house, young and old, they struck with blinding light, so that they were helpless to find the entrance. 

8) וַיְהִי֩ כְהוֹצִיאָ֨ם אֹתָ֜ם הַח֗וּצָה וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙ הִמָּלֵ֣ט עַל־נַפְשֶׁ֔ךָ אַל־תַּבִּ֣יט אַחֲרֶ֔יךָ וְאַֽל־תַּעֲמֹ֖ד בְּכָל־הַכִּכָּ֑ר הָהָ֥רָה הִמָּלֵ֖ט
פֶּן־תִּסָּפֶֽה׃
When they had brought them outside, one said, “Flee for your life! Do not look behind you, nor stop anywhere in the Plain; flee to the hills, lest you be swept away.” 

9) הִנֵּה־נָ֠א מָצָ֨א עַבְדְּךָ֣ חֵן֮ בְּעֵינֶיךָ֒ וַתַּגְדֵּ֣ל חַסְדְּךָ֗ אֲשֶׁ֤ר עָשִׂ֙יתָ֙ עִמָּדִ֔י לְהַחֲי֖וֹת אֶת־נַפְשִׁ֑י וְאָנֹכִ֗י לֹ֤א אוּכַל֙ לְהִמָּלֵ֣ט הָהָ֔רָה פֶּן־תִּדְבָּקַ֥נִי הָרָעָ֖ה וָמַֽתִּי׃
Please, your servant has found grace in your eyes, and you have already shown me so much kindness in order to save my life; but I cannot flee to the hills, lest the disaster overtake me and I die. 

10) הִנֵּה־נָ֠א הָעִ֨יר הַזֹּ֧את קְרֹבָ֛ה לָנ֥וּס שָׁ֖מָּה וְהִ֣יא מִצְעָ֑ר אִמָּלְטָ֨ה נָּ֜א שָׁ֗מָּה הֲלֹ֥א מִצְעָ֛ר הִ֖וא וּתְחִ֥י נַפְשִֽׁי׃
Look, that town there is near enough to flee to; it is such a little place! Let me flee there—it is such a little place—and let my life be saved.” 

11) וַתַּבֵּ֥ט אִשְׁתּ֖וֹ מֵאַחֲרָ֑יו וַתְּהִ֖י נְצִ֥יב מֶֽלַח׃
Lot’s wife looked back, and she thereupon turned into a pillar of salt.

12) וַיַּשְׁקֵ֗ף עַל־פְּנֵ֤י סְדֹם֙ וַעֲמֹרָ֔ה וְעַֽל־כָּל־פְּנֵ֖י אֶ֣רֶץ הַכִּכָּ֑ר וַיַּ֗רְא וְהִנֵּ֤ה עָלָה֙ קִיטֹ֣ר הָאָ֔רֶץ כְּקִיטֹ֖ר הַכִּבְשָֽׁן׃
and, looking down toward Sodom and Gomorrah and all the land of the Plain, he saw the smoke of the land rising like the smoke of a kiln. 

This observation suggest an answer to the original question: that when God said I will "go down to see", the way it played out in the story, is that this Divine "seeing" was actually done by every participant in the story, be it Abraham seeing a vision of God, Abraham seeing the 3 angels, the 3 angels looking down at Sodom, Lot seeing the 3 angels, the residents of Sodom doing what's good in their eyes, Residents of Sodom blinded (unable to see), Lot's wife looking back, and so on.

It's as if when God "comes down to see", what actually happens is that He lowers His consciousness to the level of angelic and human participants, and observes what is happening through their own eyes, seeing and experiencing what they are seeing and experiencing. Merging with their views, values and perspectives in the difficulties and challenges in their lives. 

Perhaps it is this very spark that is a part and a portion of Him, that we call the Godly soul, which is ever present deep in the subconscious, looking, seeing, hearing, and feeling everything that we experience? And for what purpose is this Godly descent to see? In order to answer this, we need to look at what this parsha says about what happened to these cities:

וַֽיַּהֲפֹךְ֙ אֶת־הֶעָרִ֣ים הָאֵ֔ל וְאֵ֖ת כָּל־הַכִּכָּ֑ר וְאֵת֙ כָּל־יֹשְׁבֵ֣י הֶעָרִ֔ים וְצֶ֖מַח הָאֲדָמָֽה׃
He overturned those cities and the entire Plain, and all the inhabitants of the cities and the vegetation of the ground. The word used to here is וַֽיַּהֲפֹךְ֙ - vayahaphoch, which comes from the root הָפַךְ - hophach, meaning overturn, overthrow, but can also mean turn around, change, or transform. 

Thus we conclude that God descended and merged with the consciousness of the people involved in order to ultimately overturn, turn around, change, and transform their corrupt (inverted, upside down) values and views, where good (such as hospitality to strangers) is bad, where evil (such as rape of innocent travelers)  is good, where good of feeding the poor is bad, but the evil of murdering those who feed the poor is good, as told in the Midrash about the brutal murder of a girl who secretly brought food to the poor. The people of Sodom upon discovering this, covered her with honey, and then exposed her to a swarm of bees, who devoured her alive. It was her cries that God was referring to when he said to Abraham "the outcry that has reached Me".

The lesson for us in all of this, that we must emulate God's ways. In order to change someones mistaken views or values, we must first enter into their mind, so to speak, view and experience the world through their eyes and their feelings, and their experiences. And only after having done that, can we speak intelligently and truthfully to them, but from their perspective, if we hope to affect a positive transformation of values within them.

Surely God speaks about this idea through His prophet Isaiah 1:18

לְכוּ־נָ֛א וְנִוָּֽכְחָ֖ה יֹאמַ֣ר יְהוָ֑ה אִם־יִֽהְי֨וּ חֲטָאֵיכֶ֤ם כַּשָּׁנִים֙ כַּשֶּׁ֣לֶג יַלְבִּ֔ינוּ אִם־יַאְדִּ֥ימוּ כַתּוֹלָ֖ע כַּצֶּ֥מֶר יִהְיֽוּ׃
Come, וְנִוָּֽכְחָ֖ה venivochecha - let us reason together — says the LORD. Be your sins like crimson, They can turn white as snow; Be they red as dyed wool, They can become like fleece. 

Here we see a lesson in spiritual transformation, where sins which were red as crimson will be transformed into whiteness of snow. But how? By having God come into our minds and hearts, with perfect clarity and understanding of our situation, and then both of us reasoning together with the purity of His blessed thoughts, until the redness of our sins becomes transformed into the purity of white snow.