Circumcision

Circumcision is the surgical removal of the foreskin of the male reproductive organ. In Bible times, circumcision was the sign of God’s covenant (a binding agreement) with Abraham (Genesis 17:1–14).

Circumcision began as an ancient tribal or religious practice. In some Western countries, it has also been performed on newborn boys for reasons of health and hygiene. Where circumcision is performed for medical reasons, it carries no religious meaning.

Circumcision in the Ancient World

Circumcision in the Old Testament

Circumcision in the New Testament

The Spiritual Significance of Circumcision

The rite of circumcision is much older than the Hebrew people. Cave paintings may show that circumcision occurred in prehistoric times. Ancient Egyptian tomb art from around 2400 BC shows that circumcision was practiced in Egypt.

People groups that practiced circumcision lived on almost every continent. The rite was observed among Central and South American Indians, Polynesians, the peoples of New Guinea, many Australian and African tribes, Egyptians, and pre-Islamic Arabs. The rite is not mentioned in the Quran, but because Muhammad was circumcised, tradition teaches that male Muslims follow the ancient custom. Arab ancestry is traced to Abraham through Ishmael (Genesis 17:20), so a common age for Muslim circumcisions is 13, because Ishmael was circumcised at that age (verse 25).

Jeremiah indicates that circumcision was practiced by several peoples neighboring Israel, including the Egyptians, Edomites, Ammonites, Moabites, and people living in the desert (Jeremiah 9:25–26). The Philistines, however, did not (Judges 14:3; 15:18; 1 Samuel 14:6; 17:26, 36; 18:25, 27; 31:4; 2 Samuel 1:20; 3:14; 1 Chronicles 10:4).

Young men were usually circumcised at puberty. This seems to have prepared them for marriage and for taking on the full responsibilities of their community. The Hebrews were the only ancient practitioners of circumcision to observe the rite in infancy. This separated the practice from rituals connected with fertility.

In the Bible, the practice of circumcision began in Genesis 17 as a sign of the covenant between God and Abraham. God promised to give Abraham a land and many descendants through a son who had not yet been conceived. Kings would come from these descendants. God also promised to bless Abraham and, through him, all nations (Genesis 12:1–3).

God formally established the covenant in Genesis 15. He later gave circumcision as its sign. God commanded Abraham and every male in his household to be circumcised (17:9–13).

Circumcision was to be an expression of faith that God’s promises would be realized. Because Abraham’s faith had lapsed (Genesis 16) even after he had seen the awesome display of God’s majesty (15:9–17), a permanent reminder of God’s covenant promises was placed on his body and the bodies of his male descendants (17:11). This sign was so closely related to God’s covenant promise that the rite itself could be called the “covenant” (Genesis 17:10; Acts 7:8).

Circumcision was to take place on the eighth day after a boy was born (Genesis 17:12; Leviticus 12:1–3; see Genesis 21:4; Luke 1:59; 2:21; Acts 7:8; Philippians 3:5). The boy’s father usually performed the circumcision (Genesis 17:23; 21:4; Acts 7:8). The child was also given his name at this time (Luke 1:59; 2:21).

In early times, people used knives made of flint, a hard stone (Exodus 4:25; Joshua 5:2–3). Later, a trained person called a mohel performed the circumcision.

Circumcision was connected with God’s promise about Abraham’s descendants (Genesis 17:9–12). Because the sign was placed on the male reproductive organ, it was also connected with the continuation of Abraham’s family line.

Circumcision was performed when a boy was eight days old. This showed that God’s promise to Abraham’s descendants depended on God’s grace, not on the child’s own response. It also pointed to the need for God’s cleansing grace from the beginning of life (Leviticus 12:1–3).

God repeated the covenant promises to each generation before the children were old enough to respond with faith or unbelief. The final fulfillment of God’s promises to Abraham did not depend on the inner response of his descendants.

Circumcision was also connected with God’s promise to give Abraham’s descendants the land (Genesis 17:8). The land belonged to God and was holy. Therefore, the Israelites also had to be holy in order to live there.

While Joseph and his descendants lived in Egypt, they continued to circumcise their sons. But after the Israelites sinned at Mount Sinai following the exodus, the unbelieving generation did not circumcise their children during the years in the wilderness. As a result, the new generation had not received the covenant sign and was not ready to enter the promised land.

God therefore commanded Joshua to circumcise the men of Israel. Their obedience was an act of faith because enemy armies were nearby while the Israelite men were recovering from the procedure (Joshua 5:2–9).

From the beginning, participation in the covenant promises was open to persons outside Abraham’s household (Genesis 17:12–13). Non-Israelites could also take part in the Passover if they met the same requirement as the Israelites: every male had to be circumcised (Exodus 12:43–49).

Jacob’s sons misused circumcision, the sign of God’s covenant. They required the men of Shechem to be circumcised before allowing them to marry women from Jacob’s family. While the men were still in pain from circumcision, Simeon and Levi killed them. They then took property from the city as revenge for the rape of their sister Dinah (Genesis 34).

The covenant sign was not to be ignored. God said that an uncircumcised male was to be removed from the covenant community because he had broken the covenant (Genesis 17:14). Exodus 4:24–26 records a difficult event that may show God reminding Moses about the requirements of his covenant with Abraham. Moses had not circumcised his son. When the Lord threatened Moses with death, Zipporah, the wife of Moses, circumcised their son with a flint knife. She then touched the feet of Moses with the foreskin, and the Lord spared him.

John the Baptist was circumcised, as were Jesus and Paul (Luke 1:59; 2:21; Philippians 3:5). Jesus recognized the cleansing significance of circumcision (John 7:22–23), contrasting the rite with his healing ministry that made a man completely well and therefore ceremonially “clean.”

Before Stephen was stoned, he spoke about the covenant of circumcision. He accused his Jewish opponents of being like their ancestors. He said they were stubborn and uncircumcised in heart and ears, meaning that they refused to listen to God and obey him. He also said that they continually resisted the Holy Spirit (Acts 7:8, 51).

For a time the first Christians continued to participate in the Jewish rites and customs, even attending the services of the temple (Acts 3:1; 5:21, 42). As Gentiles believed in Christ, controversy arose between those who said that participation in the covenant community required circumcision and those who believed the rite was unnecessary. Some Jewish Christians argued that since the covenant promise of the Messiah was given to the Jews, Gentiles must first be circumcised and become Jews before they could receive salvation in Christ.

In the time of Christ, some Jews misunderstood the meaning of circumcision. They believed that the physical act was necessary for salvation and that it guaranteed salvation. Thus the rite became not only a sign of membership in the covenant community, but also, for some, a ground of confidence in their standing before God (Philippians 3:4–6). These Jews associated the ceremony with the Mosaic law rather than the promise to Abraham (John 7:22; Acts 15:1).

Because Greeks and Romans did not practice circumcision, Jews had come to be called “the circumcised” or “the circumcision” (Acts 10:45; 11:2; Romans 15:8; Galatians 2:7–9; Ephesians 2:11; Titus 1:10). Following Old Testament practice (Ezekiel 28:10; 31:18; 32:19–32), Gentiles were termed “the uncircumcision” or “the uncircumcised” (Galatians 2:7; Ephesians 2:11).

During their visit to Caesarea, Jewish believers were amazed to realize that uncircumcised Gentiles received the purifying gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 10:44–48). Moses had promised that God would circumcise the hearts of his people to love the Lord with heart and soul (Deuteronomy 30:6).

Ezekiel had prophesied that the Lord would sprinkle clean water on his people, giving them a new heart and putting his Spirit within them (Ezekiel 36:25–27). When these Jewish believers witnessed the fulfillment of the prophecy that God would pour out his Spirit upon all flesh (Joel 2:28; Acts 2:17), they realized that the inward reality symbolized by circumcision could be achieved without the physical sign. Therefore, the Gentile believers were immediately baptized.

Not all the Jewish believers were immediately willing to accept Gentiles into the church. When Peter returned to Jerusalem after his visit to Caesarea, “the circumcision party” criticized him. But after telling how the Spirit had fallen upon the Gentiles, Peter declared that he could not stand against God. At this the Jewish believers were silenced and glorified God that repentance unto life had been granted to Gentiles (Acts 11:1–3, 15).

Some Christians from the Pharisee group taught the believers in Antioch that circumcision was necessary for salvation (Acts 15:1, 5). Paul and Barnabas debated this teaching. Then they went to Jerusalem to discuss the issue with the apostles and elders (verse 2).

Peter argued that God had given the Spirit to Gentiles and “cleansed their hearts by faith,” affirming that “we believe it is through the grace of the Lord Jesus that we are saved, just as they are” (Acts 15:8–9, 11). Therefore, James and the other Jerusalem leaders agreed that circumcision should not be imposed on the Gentiles (verses 13–21).

It was decided that Peter, James, and John would be entrusted with the gospel to “the circumcised,” while Paul and Barnabas would preach to “the uncircumcised” (Galatians 2:7–9). Paul tried to remove unnecessary cultural barriers when sharing the gospel. He described this approach as becoming “all things to all people” in matters that did not change the message of the gospel (1 Corinthians 9:19–23).

For this reason, Paul had Timothy circumcised. Timothy’s mother was Jewish, so Jews regarded him as Jewish (Acts 16:1–2). But Paul resisted attempts to have Titus circumcised, since he was a Gentile (Galatians 2:3). Paul also appears to have allowed Jewish believers to continue circumcising their sons (Acts 21:21).

Paul said that some people were pressuring the Galatian Christians to be circumcised and to keep the law. He accused these teachers of failing to keep the law themselves. He said they wanted to boast that the Galatians had been circumcised and also wanted to avoid persecution because of the cross of Christ (Galatians 6:12–13). Paul, however, was willing to suffer such persecution (5:11).

Paul argued on his opponents' own terms. If salvation could be earned by keeping the law, then anyone who accepted circumcision would be obligated to keep the whole law (Galatians 5:2–3). He warned that Christ would be “of no value” to those who tried to be justified by the law, that is, to be made right with God by keeping it. Such a person would be “severed from Christ” and would have “fallen away from grace” (verses 2–4). These Christians were being tempted to turn to “a different gospel” (1:6–7).

Paul strongly opposed teachers who said that Gentile Christians had to be circumcised. He believed that this teaching threatened the gospel of salvation by grace. Because these teachers were troubling the Galatians, Paul said that he wished they would “emasculate themselves” (Galatians 5:12).

Paul also used very strong language for such teachers. He called them “dogs” and “evil workers” (Philippians 3:2). He then said that believers in Christ are “the circumcision” (Philippians 3:3). By this, Paul meant that they worship by the Spirit of God, boast in Christ Jesus, and do not depend on human achievements as the basis for being made right with God.

Paul taught that circumcision was indeed of value to Jews, for it was the sign that to them had been committed the “words of God,” that is, God’s word concerning the promise of salvation (Romans 3:1–3). He reminded the prideful Ephesians that as Gentiles they had once been “strangers to the covenants of the promise,” not bearing the covenant sign in their flesh (Ephesians 2:11–12; see Colossians 2:13). Likewise, Jews had no cause for pride, for disobedience could cause outward circumcision to be counted as uncircumcision (Romans 2:25).

Paul and the other apostles followed Moses and the Old Testament prophets in teaching that true circumcision was a matter of the heart. The teaching of the New Testament goes further to affirm that a faithful believer, though physically uncircumcised, is regarded by God as circumcised.

“A man is not a Jew because he is one outwardly, nor is circumcision only outward and physical” (Romans 2:28). Both Jews and Gentiles are saved by grace (Acts 15:11), and circumcised and uncircumcised alike are justified on the ground of their faith, apart from works of the law (Romans 3:28–30).

Abraham served as an example of a person whose faith was “credited to him as righteousness” (Romans 4:3; see Genesis 15:6). Paul argued that both Gentiles and Jews are justified by faith, because Abraham was accounted righteous before he was circumcised. Abraham did not receive circumcision to obtain righteousness, but as a sign of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised. Thus, Abraham is the father of all who believe without being circumcised, as well as those who are circumcised but also follow the example of Abraham’s faith (Romans 4:9–12; see Galatians 3:6–9).

At first, God gave little explanation of the meaning of circumcision. In Genesis 17:9–27, circumcision mainly serves as the sign of the covenant. Later biblical writers used circumcision as a picture for other kinds of uncleanness or weakness. They understood it to point to the cleansing that sinful people needed in order to live in relationship with God, who is holy.

Moses described himself as “unskilled in speech” (Exodus 6:12, 30, see marginal note). The Hebrew expression translated this way literally means “uncircumcised lips.” When Israel entered the promised land, the people were to consider the fruit of their trees “uncircumcised” during the first three years. In the fourth year, all its fruit was to be holy to the LORD, and from the fifth year the people could eat it (Leviticus 19:23–25).

By the end of Israel's years in the wilderness, circumcision had a moral meaning as well as a physical one. Moses told the people to circumcise their hearts (Deuteronomy 10:16). In other words, they were to remove the sin and stubbornness that kept them from obeying God. Later, this command became a promise: “The LORD your God will circumcise your hearts and the hearts of your descendants, and you will love Him with all your heart and with all your soul” (30:6).

Sin made the physical circumcision of God’s chosen people meaningless before him. God said that if their uncircumcised hearts were humbled in exile, and they made amends for their sin, he would remember his covenant (Leviticus 26:41). The prophets developed this teaching further.

Jeremiah told the people of Judah to remove the foreskins of their hearts. This meant that they needed to turn away from their evil ways so that they would not face God’s judgment (Jeremiah 4:4). He also warned that the people's “ears are closed” (Jeremiah 6:10, see marginal note). The Hebrew expression translated this way literally means “uncircumcised ears.” This meant that the people were unwilling to listen to the word of the Lord.

God also declared that judgment would come on Egypt, Judah, Edom, Ammon, and Moab. He said, “I will punish all who are circumcised yet uncircumcised … For all these nations are uncircumcised, and the whole house of Israel is uncircumcised in heart” (Jeremiah 9:25–26). Through Ezekiel, the Lord said that foreigners who were uncircumcised in both heart and flesh had made the temple unclean (Ezekiel 44:7, 9). Isaiah looked forward to a future Jerusalem where people who were “uncircumcised and unclean” would no longer enter (Isaiah 52:1).

See also Baptism; Regulations Concerning Cleanness and Uncleanness; Uncircumcision.