Genesis 17

COVENANT CIRCUMCISION

17When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to him, saying, “I am God Almighty.^c Live^H in my presence and be blameless.^{d 2}I will set up my covenant between me and you, and I will multiply you greatly.”

³Then Abram fell facedown and God spoke with him: ⁴“As for me, here is my covenant with you: You will become the father of many nations. ⁵Your name will no longer be Abram;^I your name will be Abraham,^J for I will make you the father of many nations.^{e 6}I will make you extremely fruitful and will make nations and kings come from you. ⁷I will confirm my covenant that is between me and you and your future offspring throughout their generations. It is a permanent covenant^f to be your God and the God of your offspring after you.^{g 8}And to you and your future offspring^Ah I will give the land where you are residing—all the land of Canaan—as a permanent possession,ⁱ and I will be their God.”

⁹God also said to Abraham, “As for you, you and your offspring after you throughout their generations are to keep my covenant. ¹⁰This 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. ¹¹You must circumcise the flesh of your foreskin to serve as a sign of the covenant between me and you.^{j 12}Throughout your generations, every male among you is to be circumcised^k at eight days old—every male born in your household or purchased from any foreigner and not your offspring. ¹³Whether born in your household or purchased, he must be circumcised. My covenant will be marked in your flesh as a permanent covenant. ¹⁴If 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.”

¹⁵God said to Abraham, “As for your wife Sarai, do not call her Sarai, for Sarah^C will be her name. ¹⁶I will bless her; indeed, I will give you a son by her.^l I will bless her, and she will produce nations; kings of peoples will come from her.”

¹⁷Abraham fell facedown. Then he laughed^m and said to himself, “Can a child be born to a hundred-year-old man? Can Sarah, a ninety-year-old woman, give birth?” ¹⁸So Abraham said to God, “If only Ishmael were acceptable^D to you!”

¹⁹But God said, “No. Your wife Sarah will bear you a son, and you will name him Isaac.^E I will confirm my covenant with him as a permanent covenant for his future offspring. ²⁰As 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,ⁿ and I will make him into a great nation. ²¹But I will confirm my covenant with Isaac, whom Sarah will bear to you at this time next year.”^{o 22}When he finished talking with him, God withdrew^F from Abraham.^p

²³So 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. ²⁴Abraham was ninety-nine years old when the flesh of his foreskin was circumcised, ²⁵and his son Ishmael was thirteen years old when the flesh of his foreskin was circumcised. ²⁶On that very day Abraham and his son Ishmael were circumcised. ²⁷And all the men of his household—whether born in his household or purchased from a foreigner—were circumcised with him.