Genesis 17
17
1When Abram was 99, the Lord appeared to him and told him, “I am God Almighty. Live in my presence and don't do wrong.#17:1. “Live in my presence and don't do wrong,” literally, “walk before me and be innocent.” 2I will make my agreement between me and you, and I will give you many, many descendants.”
3Abram bowed down with his face to the ground, and God told him, 4“Listen! This is the agreement I'm making with you. You will be the father of many nations, 5so your name won't be Abram any longer. Instead, your name will be Abraham#17:5. The name change is usually interpreted to be from Abram (“exalted father”) to Abraham (“father of many”). because I'm going to make you the father of many nations. 6I will make sure you have a large number of descendants. They will become many nations, and some of their kings will also come from your line. 7I promise to continue my agreement with you, and with your descendants who come after you, for generations to come. This is an eternal agreement. I will always be your God, and the God of your descendants. 8I will give you and your descendants the whole country of Canaan—where you've been living as a foreigner—as land to own forever, and I will be their God.”
9Then God told Abraham, “Your part is to keep my agreement—you and your descendants for generations to come. 10This is my agreement with you and your descendants who come after you, the agreement you are to keep: every male among you shall be circumcised. 11You are to circumcise your foreskin, and this will be the sign of the agreement between me and you. 12From now and for all generations to come every male among you who is eight days old must be circumcised. This includes not only your sons but also those born in your household or bought from foreigners. 13You must circumcise those born in your household or bought from foreigners as a sign in your bodies of my eternal agreement. 14Any uncircumcised male who refuses circumcision will be excluded from his people because he has broken my agreement.”
15Then God told Abraham, “Now about Sarai your wife. Don't call her Sarai any longer. Instead, her name will be Sarah. 16I will bless her and I promise to give you a son by her. I will bless her so that she will become the mother of nations, and kings will be among her descendants.”
17Abraham bowed down with his face to the ground. But inside he was laughing, asking himself, “How on earth could I have a son at the age of one hundred? How could Sarah have a child when she is ninety?”
18Abraham said to God, “May Ishmael always live under your blessing!”
19“No, it's your wife Sarah who is going to have a son for you!” God replied. “You are to call him Isaac.#17:19. Isaac means “he laughs.” I will keep my agreement with him and his descendants as an eternal agreement. 20Now about Ishmael. I heard what you said, and I will also bless him. I will make sure he has a great many descendants. He will be the father of twelve princes, and I will make him into a great nation. 21But it's with Isaac that I will keep my agreement, the son Sarah will give birth to about this time next year.” 22When God had finished speaking with Abraham he left him.
23That day Abraham circumcised his son Ishmael as well as all those born in his household or purchased, in fact every male among the members of Abraham's household, just as God had told him. 24Abraham was 99 when he was circumcised, 25and his son Ishmael was thirteen. 26Both Abraham and his son Ishmael were circumcised on the same day. 27All the males in Abraham's household, including those born in his household or purchased from foreigners, were circumcised with him.
Dr. Jonathan Gallagher. Released under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 Unported License. Version 4.3. For corrections send email to jonathangallagherfbv@gmail.com
Genesis 17
17
Abraham and the Covenant of Circumcision
1When Abram was ninety-nine years old the Lord appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am God Almighty;#17:1 Hebrew El Shaddai walk before me, and be #ch. 6:9; Deut. 18:13; Job 1:1; Ps. 119:1; Matt. 5:48blameless, 2that I may make my covenant between me and you, and #ch. 12:2; 13:16; 22:17may multiply you greatly.” 3Then Abram #ver. 17fell on his face. And God said to him, 4“Behold, my covenant is with you, and you shall be #Rom. 4:11, 12, 16the father of a multitude of nations. 5No longer shall your name be called Abram,#17:5 Abram means exalted father but #Neh. 9:7 your name shall be Abraham,#17:5 Abraham means father of a multitude #Cited Rom. 4:17for I have made you the father of a multitude of nations. 6I will make you exceedingly fruitful, and I will make #ch. 35:11 you into nations, and #ver. 16kings shall come from you. 7And I will #Gal. 3:17 establish my covenant between me and you and your offspring after you throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant, #Heb. 11:16; [ch. 26:24; 28:13]to be God to you and to your offspring after you. 8And #ch. 12:7; 13:15; Ps. 105:11 I will give to you and to your offspring after you the land of your sojournings, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession, and #Ex. 6:7; Lev. 26:12I will be their God.”
9And God said to Abraham, “As for you, you shall keep my covenant, you and your offspring after you throughout their generations. 10This is my covenant, which you shall keep, between me and you and your offspring after you: Every male among you shall be circumcised. 11You shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a #Acts 7:8; Rom. 4:11sign of the covenant between me and you. 12He who is #Lev. 12:3; Luke 1:59; 2:21; Phil. 3:5 eight days old among you shall be circumcised. Every male throughout your generations, whether born in your house or #[Ex. 12:48, 49]bought with your money from any foreigner who is not of your offspring, 13both he who is born in your house and he who is bought with your money, shall surely be circumcised. So shall my covenant be in your flesh an everlasting covenant. 14Any uncircumcised male who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin shall be cut off from his people; he has broken my covenant.”
Isaac’s Birth Promised
15And God said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you shall not call her name Sarai, but Sarah#17:15 Sarai and Sarah mean princess shall be her name. 16I will bless her, and moreover, I will #ch. 18:10 give#17:16 Hebrew have given you a son by her. I will bless her, and #ch. 35:11she shall become nations; kings of peoples shall come from her.” 17Then Abraham #ver. 3 fell on his face #ch. 21:6; Rom. 4:19; [John 8:56]and laughed and said to himself, “Shall a child be born to a man who is a hundred years old? Shall Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear a child?” 18And Abraham said to God, “Oh that Ishmael might live before you!” 19God said, “No, but #ch. 18:10; 21:2; Gal. 4:23, 28 Sarah your wife shall bear you a son, and you shall call his name #ch. 21:3Isaac.#17:19 Isaac means he laughs I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his offspring after him. 20As for Ishmael, I have heard you; behold, I have blessed him and will make him fruitful and #ch. 16:10 multiply him greatly. He #See ch. 25:12-16 shall father twelve princes, and #ch. 21:13, 18I will make him into a great nation. 21But #ch. 26:2-5 I will establish my covenant with Isaac, #ch. 21:2whom Sarah shall bear to you at this time next year.”
22When he had finished talking with him, #ch. 35:13God went up from Abraham. 23Then Abraham took Ishmael his son and all those born in his house or bought with his money, every male among the men of Abraham’s house, and he circumcised the flesh of their foreskins that very day, as God had said to him. 24Abraham was ninety-nine years old when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin. 25And Ishmael his son was thirteen years old when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin. 26That very day Abraham and his son Ishmael were circumcised. 27And all the men of his house, those born in the house and those bought with money from a foreigner, were circumcised with him.
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
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