Genesis 17
17
1-2When Abram was ninety-nine years old, God showed up and said to him, “I am The Strong God, live entirely before me, live to the hilt! I’ll make a covenant between us and I’ll give you a huge family.”
3-8Overwhelmed, Abram fell flat on his face.
Then God said to him, “This is my covenant with you: You’ll be the father of many nations. Your name will no longer be Abram, but Abraham, meaning that ‘I’m making you the father of many nations.’ I’ll make you a father of fathers—I’ll make nations from you, kings will issue from you. I’m establishing my covenant between me and you, a covenant that includes your descendants, a covenant that goes on and on and on, a covenant that commits me to be your God and the God of your descendants. And I’m giving you and your descendants this land where you’re now just camping, this whole country of Canaan, to own forever. And I’ll be their God.”
9-14God continued to Abraham, “And you: You will honor my covenant, you and your descendants, generation after generation. This is the covenant that you are to honor, the covenant that pulls in all your descendants: Circumcise every male. Circumcise by cutting off the foreskin of the penis; it will be the sign of the covenant between us. Every male baby will be circumcised when he is eight days old, generation after generation—this includes house-born slaves and slaves bought from outsiders who are not blood kin. Make sure you circumcise both your own children and anyone brought in from the outside. That way my covenant will be cut into your body, a permanent mark of my permanent covenant. An uncircumcised male, one who has not had the foreskin of his penis cut off, will be cut off from his people—he has broken my covenant.”
15-16God continued speaking to Abraham, “And Sarai your wife: Don’t call her Sarai any longer; call her Sarah. I’ll bless her—yes! I’ll give you a son by her! Oh, how I’ll bless her! Nations will come from her; kings of nations will come from her.”
17Abraham fell flat on his face. And then he laughed, thinking, “Can a hundred-year-old man father a son? And can Sarah, at ninety years, have a baby?”
18Recovering, Abraham said to God, “Oh, keep Ishmael alive and well before you!”
19But God said, “That’s not what I mean. Your wife, Sarah, will have a baby, a son. Name him Isaac (Laughter). I’ll establish my covenant with him and his descendants, a covenant that lasts forever.
20-21“And Ishmael? Yes, I heard your prayer for him. I’ll also bless him; I’ll make sure he has plenty of children—a huge family. He’ll father twelve princes; I’ll make him a great nation. But I’ll establish my covenant with Isaac whom Sarah will give you about this time next year.”
22God finished speaking with Abraham and left.
23Then Abraham took his son Ishmael and all his servants, whether houseborn or purchased—every male in his household—and circumcised them, cutting off their foreskins that very day, just as God had told him.
24-27Abraham was ninety-nine years old when he was circumcised. His son Ishmael was thirteen years old when he was circumcised. Abraham and Ishmael were circumcised the same day together with all the servants of his household, those born there and those purchased from outsiders—all were circumcised with him.
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THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson. All rights reserved. Used by permission of NavPress. Represented by Tyndale House Publishers.
Genesis 17
17
1And Abram is a son of ninety and nine years, and Jehovah appeareth unto Abram, and saith unto him, ‘I [am] God Almighty, walk habitually before Me, and be thou perfect;
2and I give My covenant between Me and thee, and multiply thee very exceedingly.’
3And Abram falleth upon his face, and God speaketh with him, saying,
4‘I — lo, My covenant [is] with thee, and thou hast become father of a multitude of nations;
5and thy name is no more called Abram, but thy name hath been Abraham, for father of a multitude of nations have I made thee;
6and I have made thee exceeding fruitful, and made thee become nations, and kings go out from thee.
7‘And I have established My covenant between Me and thee, and thy seed after thee, to their generations, for a covenant age-during, to become God to thee, and to thy seed after thee;
8and I have given to thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land of thy sojournings, the whole land of Canaan, for a possession age-during, and I have become their God.’
9And God saith unto Abraham, ‘And thou dost keep My covenant, thou and thy seed after thee, to their generations;
10this [is] My covenant which ye keep between Me and you, and thy seed after thee: Every male of you [is] to be circumcised;
11and ye have circumcised the flesh of your foreskin, and it hath become a token of a covenant between Me and you.
12‘And a son of eight days is circumcised by you; every male to your generations, born in the house, or bought with money from any son of a stranger, who is not of thy seed;
13he is certainly circumcised who [is] born in thine house, or bought with thy money; and My covenant hath become in your flesh a covenant age-during;
14and an uncircumcised one, a male, the flesh of whose foreskin is not circumcised, even that person hath been cut off from his people; My covenant he hath broken.’
15And God saith unto Abraham, ‘Sarai thy wife — thou dost not call her name Sarai, for Sarah [is] her name;
16and I have blessed her, and have also given to thee a son from her; and I have blessed her, and she hath become nations — kings of peoples are from her.’
17And Abraham falleth upon his face, and laugheth, and saith in his heart, ‘To the son of an hundred years is one born? or doth Sarah — daughter of ninety years — bear?’
18And Abraham saith unto God, ‘O that Ishmael may live before Thee;’
19and God saith, ‘Sarah thy wife is certainly bearing a son to thee, and thou hast called his name Isaac, and I have established My covenant with him, for a covenant age-during, to his seed after him.
20As to Ishmael, I have heard thee; lo, I have blessed him, and made him fruitful, and multiplied him, very exceedingly; twelve princes doth he beget, and I have made him become a great nation;
21and My covenant I establish with Isaac, whom Sarah doth bear to thee at this appointed time in the next year;’
22and He finisheth speaking with him, and God goeth up from Abraham.
23And Abraham taketh Ishmael his son, and all those born in his house, and all those bought with his money — every male among the men of Abraham's house — and circumciseth the flesh of their foreskin, in this self-same day, as God hath spoken with him.
24And Abraham [is] a son of ninety and nine years in the flesh of his foreskin being circumcised;
25and Ishmael his son [is] a son of thirteen years in the flesh of his foreskin being circumcised;
26in this self-same day hath Abraham been circumcised, and Ishmael his son;
27and all the men of his house — born in the house, and bought with money from the son of a stranger — have been circumcised with him.
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