Circumcision

The permanent nature of a tattoo as well as the pain associated with getting one makes it a rite of passage in some sense for many today. Ancient Israelites were forbidden to “put tattoo marks” on their skin (), but tattoos are mainstream in modern Western culture. One in three Americans between the ages of 18 and 50 has at least one tattoo.

Regardless of what one may think of this practice, such a permanent and visible mark is recognized as one of association. God gave Abraham and his descendants a permanent mark to show that they belonged to him. But the mark of circumcision was more personal and less visible.

God called Abram to leave his family (or most of it) and to go to a land that God would show him (). Scholars are divided on whether the call in chapter 12 is a repeat of an earlier call, in Ur, or is actually a record of the earlier call. In Stephen’s defense to the Sanhedrin, he affirmed that God call Abram, “while he was still in Mesopotamia, before he lived in Harran” (). God promised to make of Abram a great nation, to bless him, and to make his name great (). He was age 75 when he left Harran for the land of Canaan (12:4).

God repeated his promise in . Abram had separated from nephew Lot because the land could not support the livestock of both groups (13:5-12). Lot had taken the lush Jordan valley toward Sodom, so Abram was left with land that had lesser pasture. It seemed he got the worse part of the deal, but God reassured him of his future (13:16,17). “Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness” (15:6).

The promise depended on Abram’s having an heir, but we see him childless through . Sarai, Abram’s wife, proposed a solution: “The Lord has kept me from having children. Go, sleep with my slave; perhaps I can build a family through her” (16:2). Abram agreed, and so he became the father of Ishmael by Sarai’s servant, Hagar. But Ishmael, born to Abram at age 86 (16:16), was not the child of promise.

Great Promise - , )

Thirteen years pass without notice in the divine record between and 17:1, given mentions of Abram’s age. Whether the Lord appears or otherwise speaks to him during these 13 years, we cannot say. Some suggest that 13 years of silence is some kind of punishment for Abram because he went along with the idea of breaking sexual faithfulness of his wife, Sarai, in order to have a child. But like most all arguments from silence, this is mere conjecture.

God identifies himself as God Almighty (El Shaddai - in Hebrew). The significance of this designation seems to be that God is unlimited in his ability to act for the good of his people; nothing can thwart his plans.

How does the description of God as Almighty affect you personally? How should it?

God puts the condition on Abram to walk before him faithfully (that is to live to meet with God’s approval) and be blameless. The two may seem to be one and the same, and from a God-centered perspective that is reasonable. But Abram’s pagan culture is not centered on God; hardly anyone lives with the desire to please him. The emphasis here is on before me. In effect, God is saying “Make me, not your culture, your standard of conduct.”

The word translated blameless does not mean absolute perfection, but more as living with integrity in not being open to charges of wrongdoing. Living in such a way that is respected by the people around you.

In verse two, this is the third time God has promised to bless Abram. In the second blessing, God specifically told him that a son of Abram’s own flesh and blood would be his heir (15:4). The record then notes the implication of Abram’s relief (15:6).

In spite of that faith, Abram had come to believe that he needed to take matters in his own hands. When Sarai, his wife, suggests he take her servant Hagar as a surrogate wife, he agrees; Ishmael is born as a result. But the covenant of which God speaks does not involve Ishmael. God will multiply Abram through another son, one yet to be born to Abram and Sarai.

New Status -

Abram is properly awed by this appearance of the Lord. Whether falling facedown means lying prostrate before God or dropping to his knees and bowing forward is not specified. In either case, Abram shows the respect due to the Lord.

How can we worship in the spirit Abram exhibited without literally falling on our faces?

In verse four, God makes a covenant with Abram to make him a father of many nations. Earlier God had promised to make of Abram “a great nation” (). Now the promise is that he will the father of many nations. It is easy to read this and to see the fulfillment in Israel (through Isaac and his son Jacob), Edom (through Isaac and his son Esau), the nations that descend from Ishmael, and also the nations that descend from Abraham via Keturah (the woman he marries after Sarah’s death; ).

But there is more to the covenant than political nations, since Paul makes clear that Isaac alone is the heir of promise (). Thus the nations primarily in view, the ones included in this promise, must come from Isaac, whom Abram will father.

God gives two symbols of the covenant. The second symbol is described in , below. The first is the name change we see here. Abram, whose name means “exalted father,” is henceforth to be known as Abraham, which probably mean father of many. As God repeats the promise of making Abraham such a father, he speaks as if it is already the case.

God promises a greater fruitfulness to come. Abraham has one son at this point: Ishmael, whose mother is Hagar. It will be seen in the birth of Isaac and, later, in the birth of six sons to Keturah (,). However, the key to the covenant promise is Isaac, so the fruitfulness God promises is Abraham’s through his descendants. Grandson Jacob will have 12 sons and a daughter. The nation of Israel will come from these sons. with many kings born to them.

In verse seven, God promises an everlasting covenant. This is an enduring covenant in the fullest sense of the term everlasting. The ultimate fulfillment is in the one person, Jesus Christ.

There appears to be a dual fulfillment, as it is to your descendants after you for the generations to come. So the fulfillment is in the generations of Abraham’s seed until the ultimate fulfillment is seen in Christ himself.

Abraham has been in Canaan for more than two decades at this point, and still he own none of it. Further, God has already said his descendants will be oppressed in a foreign land for 400 years (). Even so, God assures Abraham that his descendants will indeed be given the whole land of Canaan .... as an everlasting possession.

Even more than the land promise is the relationship promise we see here. When one seeks God wholeheartedly, he’s not hard to find because he reveals himself. The God of Abraham’s descendants is the living God.

How does the relationship promise of this verse affect you in ways different from knowing God as “Almighty” in verse 1 above?

Personal Mark -

God now speaks of Abraham’s responsibility to the covenant. In exchange for the blessings to be accorded, Abraham and his descendants are to keep God’s covenant. This means to submit to him as their God and obey his commandments. One of the first items requiring obedience is set forth in the next two verses.

In verse ten God speaks of the sign of the covenant is the circumcision of each male. This sign (symbol) is so important that it is spoken of as if it were the covenant in and of itself: this is my covenant. Circumcision will be the mark of God’s people for generations.

When Jesus inaugurates the new covenant, physical circumcision will no longer play a part (). But circumcision will still be of significant figurative importance. Circumcision - cutting off a small piece of flesh - becomes a symbol of putting off the sins of the flesh in the new covenant (). The circumcision is not done with hands; thus it is a spiritual event. connects it with baptism, a physical act and yet one in which God is working spiritually as well: “in which you were also raised with him through your faith in the working of God.”

What can we do to cooperate with the Holy Spirit in circumcising our hearts?

Interestingly enough is the fact that symbols have power because they can be seen by others. Symbols are mean to be seen. In this case, the symbol of the covenant is not to be seen by others, but is a reminder to the covenant keeper himself. As he dedicates the most personal part of his body to the Lord, so also he dedicates his whole life.

Conclusion

For Israel’s covenant with the Lord, to not be circumcised was a deal breaker. Refusal of circumcision meant exclusion. The precise reason circumcision was so important is never stated. But it was indeed critically important - and that fact was stated. No Israelite had an excuse for failure in this matter.

Perhaps the reason it was so important was because it had significance beyond itself, beyond even the covenant to which it witnessed. The New Testament calls features of the old covenant “a shadow” of something more substantial to come (; ). “In Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through “love” ().

Prayer

Meet us where we are, Almighty God. Invite us to walk with you as we follow our daily paths so that you can teach us to trust you more fully than we ever have. Help us refresh the meaning of our baptism and our covenant to be your people; help us to live in the manner your Word would have us, in Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

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