Genesis 17:1–18:33
Abraham and the Covenant of Circumcision
1 Now when Abram was ninety-nine years old, athe Lord appeared to Abram and said to him,
Walk before Me, and be 2cblameless.
2 “I will 1establish My acovenant between Me and you,
And I will bmultiply you exceedingly.”
3 Abram afell on his face, and God talked with him, saying,
4 “As for Me, behold, My covenant is with you,
And you will be the father of a amultitude of nations.
5 “No longer shall your name be called 1Abram,
But ayour name shall be 2Abraham;
For bI will make you the father of a multitude of nations.
6 “I have made you exceedingly fruitful, and I will make nations of you, and akings will come forth from you.
7 “I will establish My covenant between Me and you and your 1descendants after you throughout their generations for an aeverlasting covenant, bto be God to you and cto your 1descendants after you.
8 “aI will give to you and to your 1descendants after you, the land of your sojournings, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and bI will be their God.”
9 God said further to Abraham, “Now as for you, ayou shall keep My covenant, you and your 1descendants after you throughout their generations.
10 “aThis is My covenant, which you shall keep, between Me and you and your 1descendants after you: every male among you shall be circumcised.
11 “And ayou shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskin, and it shall be the sign of the covenant between Me and you.
12 “And every male among you who is aeight days old shall be circumcised throughout your generations, a servant who is born in the house or who is bought with money from any foreigner, who is not of your 1descendants.
13 “A servant who is born in your house or awho is bought with your money shall surely be circumcised; thus shall My covenant be in your flesh for an everlasting covenant.
14 “But an uncircumcised male who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin, that person shall be acut off from his people; he has broken My covenant.”
15 Then God said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you shall not call her name Sarai, but 1Sarah shall be her name.
16 “I will bless her, and indeed I will give you aa son by her. Then I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations; bkings of peoples will 1come from her.”
17 Then Abraham afell on his face and laughed, and said in his heart, “Will a child be born to a man one hundred years old? And bwill Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear a child?”
18 And Abraham said to God, “Oh that Ishmael might live before You!”
19 But God said, “No, but Sarah your wife will bear you aa son, and you shall call his name 1Isaac; and bI will establish My covenant with him for an everlasting covenant for his 2descendants after him.
20 “As for Ishmael, I have heard you; behold, I will bless him, and awill make him fruitful and will multiply him exceedingly. bHe shall 1become the father of twelve princes, and I will make him a cgreat nation.
21 “But My covenant I will establish with aIsaac, whom bSarah will bear to you at this season next year.”
22 When He finished talking with him, aGod went up from Abraham.
23 Then Abraham took Ishmael his son, and all the servants who were aborn in his house and all who were bought with his money, every male among the men of Abraham’s household, and circumcised the flesh of their foreskin in the very same day, bas God had said to him.
24 Now Abraham was ninety-nine years old when ahe was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin.
25 And aIshmael his son was thirteen years old when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin.
26 In the very same day Abraham was circumcised, and Ishmael his son.
27 All the men of his household, who were aborn in the house or bought with money from a foreigner, were circumcised with him.
1 Now athe Lord appeared to him by the 1boaks of Mamre, while he was sitting at the tent door in the heat of the day.
2 When he lifted up his eyes and looked, behold, three amen were standing opposite him; and when he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them and bowed himself to the earth,
3 and said, “1My Lord, if now I have found favor in Your sight, please do not 2pass Your servant by.
4 “Please let a little water be brought and awash your feet, and 1rest yourselves under the tree;
5 and I will 1abring a piece of bread, that you may 2refresh yourselves; after that you may go on, since you have 3visited your servant.” And they said, “So do, as you have said.”
6 So Abraham hurried into the tent to Sarah, and said, “1Quickly, prepare three 2measures of fine flour, knead it and make bread cakes.”
7 Abraham also ran to the herd, and took a tender and 1choice calf and gave it to the servant, and he hurried to prepare it.
8 He took curds and milk and the calf which he had prepared, and placed it before them; and he was standing by them under the tree 1as they ate.
9 Then they said to him, “Where is Sarah your wife?” And he said, “There, in the tent.”
10 He said, “aI will surely return to you 1at this time next year; and behold, Sarah your wife will have a son.” And Sarah was listening at the tent door, which was behind him.
11 Now aAbraham and Sarah were old, advanced in age; Sarah was bpast 1childbearing.
12 Sarah laughed 1to herself, saying, “aAfter I have become old, shall I have pleasure, my blord being old also?”
13 And the Lord said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh, saying, ‘Shall I indeed 1bear a child, when I am so old?’
14 “aIs anything too 1difficult for the Lord? At the bappointed time I will return to you, 2at this time next year, and Sarah will have a son.”
15 Sarah denied it however, saying, “I did not laugh”; for she was afraid. And He said, “No, but you did laugh.”
16 Then athe men rose up from there, and looked down toward Sodom; and Abraham was walking with them to send them off.
17 aThe Lord said, “Shall I hide from Abraham bwhat I am about to do,
18 since Abraham will surely become a great and 1mighty nation, and in him aall the nations of the earth will be blessed?
19 “For I have 1achosen him, so that he may bcommand his children and his household after him to ckeep the way of the Lord by doing righteousness and justice, so that the Lord may bring upon Abraham dwhat He has spoken about him.”
20 And the Lord said, “aThe outcry of Sodom and Gomorrah is indeed great, and their sin is exceedingly grave.
21 “I will ago down now, and see if they have done entirely according to its outcry, which has come to Me; and if not, I will know.”
22 Then athe men turned away from there and went toward Sodom, while Abraham was still standing before bthe Lord.
23 Abraham came near and said, “aWill You indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked?
24 “Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city; will You indeed sweep it away and not 1spare the place for the sake of the fifty righteous who are in it?
25 “Far be it from You to do 1such a thing, to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous and the wicked are treated alike. Far be it from You! Shall not athe Judge of all the earth 2deal justly?”
26 So the Lord said, “aIf I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will 1spare the whole place on their account.”
27 And Abraham replied, “Now behold, I have 1ventured to speak to the Lord, although I am but adust and ashes.
28 “Suppose the fifty righteous are lacking five, will You destroy the whole city because of five?” And He said, “I will not destroy it if I find forty-five there.”
29 He spoke to Him yet again and said, “Suppose forty are found there?” And He said, “I will not do it on account of the forty.”
30 Then he said, “Oh may the Lord not be angry, and I shall speak; suppose thirty are found there?” And He said, “I will not do it if I find thirty there.”
31 And he said, “Now behold, I have 1ventured to speak to the Lord; suppose twenty are found there?” And He said, “I will not destroy it on account of the twenty.”
32 Then he said, “aOh may the Lord not be angry, and I shall speak only this once; suppose ten are found there?” And He said, “I will not destroy it on account of the ten.”
33 As soon as He had finished speaking to Abraham athe Lord departed, and Abraham returned to his place.