Covenant Circumcision

17 When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to him, saying, ‘I am God Almighty.^(A) Live^[a] in my presence and be blameless.^{(B) 2} I will set up my covenant between me and you, and I will multiply you greatly.’

³ Then Abram fell face down and God spoke with him: ⁴ ‘As for me, here is my covenant with you: you will become the father of many nations. ⁵ Your name will no longer be Abram;^[b] your name will be Abraham,^[c] for I will make you the father of many nations.^{(C) 6} I will make you extremely fruitful and will make nations and kings come from you. ⁷ I will confirm my covenant that is between me and you and your future offspring throughout their generations. It is a permanent covenant^(D) to be your God and the God of your offspring after you.^{(E) 8} And to you and your future offspring^[d](F) I will give the land where you are residing – all the land of Canaan – as a permanent possession,^(G) and I will be their God.’

⁹ God also said to Abraham, ‘As for you, you and your offspring after you throughout their generations are to keep my covenant. ¹⁰ This is my covenant between me and you and your offspring after you, which you are to keep: every one of your males must be circumcised. ¹¹ You must circumcise the flesh of your foreskin to serve as a sign of the covenant between me and you.^{[e](H) 12} Throughout your generations, every male among you is to be circumcised^(I) at eight days old – every male born in your household or purchased from any foreigner and not your offspring. ¹³ Whether born in your household or purchased, he must be circumcised. My covenant will be marked in your flesh as a permanent covenant. ¹⁴ If any male is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin, that man will be cut off from his people; he has broken my covenant.’

¹⁵ God said to Abraham, ‘As for your wife Sarai, do not call her Sarai, for Sarah^[f] will be her name. ¹⁶ I will bless her; indeed, I will give you a son by her.^(J) I will bless her, and she will produce nations; kings of peoples will come from her.’

¹⁷ Abraham fell face down. Then he laughed^(K) and said to himself, ‘Can a child be born to a hundred-year-old man? Can Sarah, a ninety-year-old woman, give birth? ’ ¹⁸ So Abraham said to God, ‘If only Ishmael were acceptable^[g] to you! ’

¹⁹ But God said, ‘No. Your wife Sarah will bear you a son, and you will name him Isaac.^[h] I will confirm my covenant with him as a permanent covenant for his future offspring. ²⁰ As for Ishmael, I have heard you. I will certainly bless him; I will make him fruitful and will multiply him greatly. He will father twelve tribal leaders,^(L) and I will make him into a great nation. ²¹ But I will confirm my covenant with Isaac, whom Sarah will bear to you at this time next year.’^{(M) 22} When he finished talking with him, God withdrew^[i] from Abraham.^(N)

²³ So Abraham took his son Ishmael and those born in his household or purchased – every male among the members of Abraham’s household – and he circumcised the flesh of their foreskin on that very day, just as God had said to him. ²⁴ Abraham was ninety-nine years old when the flesh of his foreskin was circumcised, ²⁵ and his son Ishmael was thirteen years old when the flesh of his foreskin was circumcised. ²⁶ On that very day Abraham and his son Ishmael were circumcised. ²⁷ And all the men of his household – whether born in his household or purchased from a foreigner – were circumcised with him.