Many ancient cultures practiced circumcision, the removal of the male foreskin (see Jeremiah 9:25–26).
God chose circumcision as a sign of a covenant (special agreement) that focuses on descendants. God promised to make Abraham and his descendants into a great nation and to use them to redeem the non-Jewish nations (Genesis 12:2, 3; 17:3–6; see Galatians 3:8–9). Circumcision was God's mark on the body. It identified Abraham and his descendants as God's people (Genesis 17:9–14). It reminded them to live faithfully to the covenant.
They performed circumcision on adult males when they joined the covenant community (Genesis 17:23–27; Exodus 12:48; Joshua 5:3–7). But it was usually for infants (Genesis 21:4; Leviticus 12:3). Infants received God's promises and joined the covenant community through their parents.
Faith was necessary to receive God's blessings. This was shown by the differences between Ishmael and Isaac, Esau and Jacob, and Joseph and his brothers. Non-Israelites could also join Israel's covenant (Exodus 12:48; compare Genesis 34:15–24). Circumcision marked their inclusion in the worshiping community (for example, Exodus 12:44).
Circumcision helped Israel remember to set aside natural impurity. God's people had to stay loyal to the covenant, their family, and their marriages. Marrying uncircumcised people outside the covenant violated the covenant. The people expelled ("cut off") any man who refused circumcision (a symbolic physical cut) from the covenant people for disobeying God's command (Genesis 17:14).
Circumcision symbolizes separation from the world, purity, and loyalty to the covenant. It offers a strong metaphor for the "circumcision of the heart." This refers to a heart committed to God and set apart for him, rather than being stubbornly resistant (Leviticus 26:41; Deuteronomy 30:6; Jeremiah 4:4; 9:26; Ephesians 2:11). Circumcision of the heart shows salvation and fellowship with God (see Ezekiel 18:31–32; 36:25–27; Romans 2:28–29; 4:11).
When Jesus Christ created God's new covenant, he fulfilled the old covenant's requirements. Gentile Christians do not need circumcision because faith in Jesus makes them part of God's people (Acts 15:1–29; Romans 2:25–29; Galatians 2:1–10; 6:15; Colossians 2:11–12). One must trust in God and his promises, abandon sinful actions and worldly customs, and live a new life by faith (see Jeremiah 31:33–34; Romans 8:1–17; Galatians 5:16–6:10).
Passages for Further Study
Genesis 17:9–14, 23–27; 21:4; 34:1–26; Exodus 4:24–26; 12:48; Leviticus 12:3; Joshua 5:2–8; Jeremiah 9:25–26; Ezekiel 44:7–9; Luke 1:59; 2:21; Acts 15:1–31; 16:1–5; Romans 2:25–29; 1 Corinthians 7:17–19; Galatians 5:1–6, 11–12; 6:12–16; Ephesians 2:11–18; Philippians 3:2–7; Colossians 2:11; 3:11