Knowing The Word in Genesis 17:1-14, The Covenant of Circumcision

The structure of chapter 17:

A Abram is 99 (1a)

B The Lord appears (1ba)

C God speaks (1bb)

D The first speech (1bc-2)

E Abram falls on his face (3a)

F The second speech (name-change, nations, kings) (4-8)

G The third speech (the main point) (9-14)

F’ The fourth speech (name-change, nations, kings) (15-16)

E’ Abraham falls on his face (17)

D’ The fifth speech (19-21)

C’ God ceases speaking (22a)

B’ God goes up from him (22b)

A’ Abraham is 99 and Ismael 13 (24-25)

1 When Abram was ninety-nine years old [13 years after the last scene] the Lord appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am God Almighty [El Shaddai, “the God who so constrains nature that it does his will, and so subdues it that it bows to and subserves grace”]; walk before me, and be blameless [like Enoch and Noah], 2 that I may make my covenant [ratifying it] between me and you, and may multiply you greatly.” [Ratifying the covenant was an entirely divine action. God now desires a human response.] 3 Then Abram fell on his face [in a gesture more powerful than words, showing his humility and willingness to listen]. And God said to him, 4 “Behold, my covenant is with you, and you shall be the father of a multitude of nations. 5 No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham [“father of a multitude”], for I have made you the father of a multitude of nations. [Old Testament names express a person’s character and destiny. Given by God, they come with a divine guarantee.] 6 I will make you [this is God’s miraculous work] exceedingly fruitful, and I will make you into nations, and kings [of Israel, leading to Christ] shall come from you. [Abraham stands at a turning point in human history as Adam and Noah did before him. Whereas God commanded Adam and Noah to be fruitful and multiply and left it to them, here God promises divine power to make it happen.] 7 And I will establish my covenant between me and you and your offspring [a more valuable blessing] after you throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant [Old and New], to be God to you and to your offspring after you. [At the heart of the covenant, God has chosen Abraham and his descendants, so that they are in a unique relationship with God. He is their God and they are his people.] 8 And I will give to you [eventually] and to your offspring after you the land of your sojournings [Abraham is still an alien], all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession, and I will be their God.”

[9-14 constitute the central and longest divine speech of the chapter, dealing with circumcision and covenant making and keeping.] 9 And God said to Abraham, “As for you, you shall keep my covenant, you and your offspring after you throughout their generations. 10 This is my covenant, which you shall keep, between me and you and your offspring after you: Every male among you shall be circumcised. 11 You shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and you. 12 He who is eight days old among you shall be circumcised. Every male throughout your generations, whether born in your house or bought with your money from any foreigner who is not of your offspring, 13 both 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. [Once done, it can’t be undone!] 14 Any uncircumcised male who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin shall be cut off from his people; he has broken my covenant.” [In the ANE, the majority of Israel’s neighbors practiced circumcision, including the Egyptians, Canaanites, and Arabs. The Philistines and Hivites did not and were referred to as “the uncircumcised.” Here circumcision marks one as a member of the covenant community. It is a sign of the covenant. There are three kinds of OT signs. First are proof signs such as the plagues against the Egyptians. Second are acted prophecies that resemble the situation announced such as Ezekiel 4:1-3. The third, which is closest to circumcision, are signs that are reminders, such as the Sabbath and the rainbow. The sign of circumcision reminds them that God will multiply Abraham’s descendants exceedingly. It reminds Israel of its status as the Lord’s people and their obligation to keep the law. The permanent marking of the body reflects the eternity of the covenant. Its primary function was manward, to remind the Israelite men to walk blamelessly with God as did Noah and Abraham.]