Covenant of Circumcision (17)

3. Covenant of Circumcision (17)As Genesis 12:1-3 is central to the Yahwist's theology of promise, so Genesis 17 is foundational to the Priestly theology of covenant.

    The language of multitudes and multiplying recalls the blessing placed on humanity in Genesis 1:28. The Priestly writer viewed Abraham as the fulfiller of the promise given at creation. "Father of a multitude of nations" is the Priestly equivalent to the Yahwistic promise of becoming a great nation, spoken by God to Abraham in 12:2.

    The imminent fulfillment of the promise of offspring was signaled by a name change. Abram, meaning "Exalted Father," was changed to Abraham, "Father of a Multitude," affirming that the promise of offspring was still intact.

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Figure 2.4 Egyptian Circumcision Circumcision was not unique to the Israelites, as this Egyptian tomb painting from sixth dynasty (2350-2000 B.C.E.) Saqqara demonstrates, but the Israelites invested it with unique significance by using it as the mark of the covenant. Line drawing by Barry Bandstra after a Saqqara tomb painting from the Sixth Dynasty (2350-2000 B.C.E.)

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    Immediately after God's reaffirmation of the promises, circumcision was introduced as the ceremony and perpetual sign of the commitment of Abraham and his offspring to God (see Figure 2.4). Circumcision is the surgical removal of the foreskin of the penis, and is still practiced today in many communities. For parents who choose to have their sons circumcised, it usually takes place a day or two after birth in the hospital. In the Jewish community it happens with great ceremony in the synagogue eight days after a son is born. For a comprehensive account of circumcision see Hoffman (1996).

    Chapter 17 on circumcision is theologically important because God requires Abraham to do something to demonstrate his good faith as part of the covenant arrangement. This covenant assumes the structure of a treaty covenant, with mutual rights and obligations rather than a grant covenant. In this case, Abraham had to perform the ritual of circumcision on himself, Ishmael, and all the males in his household. Abraham vowed to live in such a way that he would please God--live "perfectly," the text says.
    Circumcision established itself within Judaism as the premiere mark of covenant commitment. Sealing the covenant by circumcising the organ of procreation with a knife, with its obvious threat of infertility, has the effect of symbolically handing over the possibility of offspring to the grace of God. By practicing the rite from generation to generation, the Israelites almost literally placed their future into the hands of the God of covenant. Contrast the Yahwist perspective, in which covenant was primarily a convention whereby Yahweh granted blessing in perpetuity. For the Yahwist, covenant took the form of a charter covenant given to Abraham with no required action in return, only a commitment of faith. By retaining both notions of covenant within the Abrahamic narrative, the final edition affirms that the two covenants complement each other.

Genesis contains restatements of the Priestly version of the covenant with Abraham; see Table 2.A. Table 2.B contains a comprehensive list of the use of the term "covenant," berit, in Genesis and Exodus.

Ann Landers -- Experts Divided over Circumcision
   Dear Ann Landers: My wife and I were both in our mid-30s when we married four years ago. We did not plan on having a family, but when she discovered she was pregnant at the age of 40, we were thrilled.
    We learned through amniocentesis that the baby she is carrying is a boy. We are terribly excited. Now comes the problem:
    Should the baby be circumcised? I say yes. My wife says no. According to what she has read, the practice is no longer necessary, and she sees no reason to put the infant through all that pain.
   Our family physician and my wife's obstetrician are both in favor of circumcision, but they say the decision must be made by the parents. Since my wife and I hold opposite views, we'd like yours.
   --Mr. Pro and Mrs. Con in Baltimore
   
   Dear P. and C.: Some highly respected physicians can be found on both sides of this issue.
   Circumcision of newborns was considered a routine procedure until 1971, when the American Academy of Pediatrics said there might be religious reasons for circumcision, but it had no medical benefits whatsoever.
    Years later, after a survey was taken at several hospitals, it was discovered that the babies who were NOT circumcised were 10 times more likely to suffer from urinary tract problems and kidney infections than those who had gone through the procedure.
    Dr. Thomas E. Wiswell, chief of neonatology at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, who previously had opposed circumcision, changed his mind when he read studies that indicated circumcision affords a high degree of protection against cancer of the penis. Of the 50,000 cases of penile cancer reviewed, only 10 occurred in men who were circumcised.
    Have I told you more than you wanted to know? Perhaps, but the statistics make a strong case for circumcision. (February 21, 1993)

God of Abraham. Notice how three different designations of God (YHWH, El Shaddai, and Elohim) are used in this passage. From creation until Abraham the deity was Elohim. Then he revealed himself to Abraham and the other ancestors as El Shaddai. The ancestors never knew his name to be Yahweh. Here, in one of its rare uses of the name Yahweh, the Priestly tradition makes the identification between Yahweh and El Shaddai explicit so readers will not be confused. In the Priestly historical record, God did not clarify that he was both Yahweh and El Shaddai until he spoke to Moses (Exodus 6:3). In 17:3 the Priestly writer reverts to Elohim, which is his normal pre-Exodus designation for God.

¹ Abram was ninety-nine years old. YHWH appeared to Abram and said to him, "I am El Shaddai. Live in my presence and be perfect. ² So I will put my covenant between me and you: I will multiply you greatly. ³ Abram fell on his face. Then Elohim spoke with him: ⁴ My covenant now is with you; you will be the father of a multitude of nations. ⁵ And your name will no longer be Abram, but your name shall be Abraham, for I will make you the father of a multitude of nations. ⁶ I will make you very prolific, and I will make you nations, and kings will come from you. ⁷ I will solidify my covenant between me and you and your offspring after you for generations, as a long-lasting covenant as your Elohim and your offspring's Elohim after you. ⁸ And I will make the land of your sojournings, the land of Canaan, your and your offspring's long-lasting possession. And I will be their Elohim. ⁹ Elohim said to Abraham, "You will keep my covenant, you and your offspring after you. ¹⁰ This is the covenant you will keep, the one between me and you and your offspring after you: Circumcise every male." (17:1-10)