Genesis 17
17
Circumcision, the Sign of the Covenant
1When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to him and said, “I am the Almighty God. Obey me and always do what is right. 2I will make my covenant with you and give you many descendants.” 3Abram bowed down with his face touching the ground, and God said, 4“I make this covenant with you: I promise that you will be the ancestor of many nations. 5#Ro 4.17 Your name will no longer be Abram, but Abraham,#17.5: Abraham: This name sounds like the Hebrew for “ancestor of many nations.” because I am making you the ancestor of many nations. 6I will give you many descendants, and some of them will be kings. You will have so many descendants that they will become nations.
7 #
Lk 1.55
“I will keep my promise to you and to your descendants in future generations as an everlasting covenant. I will be your God and the God of your descendants. 8#Ac 7.5 I will give to you and to your descendants this land in which you are now a foreigner. The whole land of Canaan will belong to your descendants forever, and I will be their God.”
9God said to Abraham, “You also must agree to keep the covenant with me, both you and your descendants in future generations. 10#Ac 7.8; Ro 4.11 You and your descendants must all agree to circumcise every male among you. 11-12From now on you must circumcise every baby boy when he is eight days old, including slaves born in your homes and slaves bought from foreigners. This will show that there is a covenant between you and me. 13Each one must be circumcised, and this will be a physical sign to show that my covenant with you is everlasting. 14Any male who has not been circumcised will no longer be considered one of my people, because he has not kept the covenant with me.”
15God said to Abraham, “You must no longer call your wife Sarai; from now on her name is Sarah.#17.15: Sarah: This name in Hebrew means “princess.” 16I will bless her, and I will give you a son by her. I will bless her, and she will become the mother of nations, and there will be kings among her descendants.”
17Abraham bowed down with his face touching the ground, but he began to laugh when he thought, “Can a man have a child when he is a hundred years old? Can Sarah have a child at ninety?” 18He asked God, “Why not let Ishmael be my heir?”
19But God said, “No. Your wife Sarah will bear you a son and you will name him Isaac.#17.19: Isaac: This name in Hebrew means “he laughs.” I will keep my covenant with him and with his descendants forever. It is an everlasting covenant. 20I have heard your request about Ishmael, so I will bless him and give him many children and many descendants. He will be the father of twelve princes, and I will make a great nation of his descendants. 21But I will keep my covenant with your son Isaac, who will be born to Sarah about this time next year.” 22When God finished speaking to Abraham, he left him.
23On that same day Abraham obeyed God and circumcised his son Ishmael and all the other males in his household, including the slaves born in his home and those he had bought. 24Abraham was ninety-nine years old when he was circumcised, 25and his son Ishmael was thirteen. 26They were both circumcised on the same day, 27together with all of Abraham's slaves.
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Genesis 17
17
1And Abram was ninety-nine years old, when Jehovah appeared to Abram, and said to him, I am the Almighty ·God#GodHebrew: El walk before my face, and be perfect. 2And I will set my covenant between me and thee, and will very greatly multiply thee. 3And Abram fell on his face; and God#GodHebrew: Elohim talked with him, saying,
4It is I: behold, my covenant is with thee, and thou shalt be a father of a multitude of nations. 5And thy name shall no more be called Abram, but thy name shall be Abraham; for a father of a multitude of nations have I made thee. 6And I will make thee exceedingly fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee.
7And I will establish my covenant between me and thee, and thy seed after thee in their generations, for an everlasting covenant, to be a God#GodHebrew: Elohim to thee, and to thy seed after thee. 8And I give to thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land of thy sojourning, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be a God#GodHebrew: Elohim to them. 9And God#GodHebrew: Elohim said to Abraham, And as for thee, thou shalt keep my covenant, thou and thy seed after thee in their generations. 10This is my covenant which ye shall keep, between me and you and thy seed after thee — that every male among you be circumcised. 11And ye shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin; and that shall be a sign of the covenant between me and you. 12And at eight days old shall every male in your generations be circumcised among you — he who is born in the house, and he who is bought with money, any stranger who is not of thy seed. 13He who is born in thy house, and he who is bought with thy money, must be circumcised; and my covenant shall be in your flesh for an everlasting covenant. 14And the uncircumcised male who hath not been circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin, that soul shall be cut off from his peoples: he hath broken my covenant.
15And God#GodHebrew: Elohim said to Abraham, As to Sarai thy wife, thou shalt not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall be her name. 16And I will bless her, and I will give thee a son also of her; and I will bless her, and she shall become nations: kings of peoples shall be of her. 17And Abraham fell on his face and laughed, and said in his heart, Shall a child be born to him that is a hundred years old? and shall Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear? 18And Abraham said to God#GodHebrew: Elohim Oh that Ishmael might live before thee! 19And God#GodHebrew: Elohim said, Sarah thy wife shall indeed bear thee a son; and thou shalt call his name Isaac; and I will establish my covenant with him, for an everlasting covenant for his seed after him. 20And for Ishmael I have heard thee: behold, I will bless him, and will make him fruitful, and will very greatly multiply him; twelve princes shall he beget, and I will make him a great nation. 21But my covenant will I establish with Isaac, whom Sarah shall bear to thee at this appointed time in the next year. 22And he left off talking with him; and God#GodHebrew: Elohim went up from Abraham.
23And Abraham took Ishmael his son, and all who were born in his house, and all who were bought with his money — every male among the people of Abraham's house — and circumcised the flesh of their foreskin on that same day, as God#GodHebrew: Elohim had said to him. 24And Abraham 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. 26In the selfsame day was Abraham circumcised, and Ishmael his son; 27and all the men of his house, born in his house, or bought with money of the stranger, were circumcised with him.
First published in 1890. This edition is maintained by the British and Foreign Bible Society.