Circumcision

Genesis 17:1-27

http://www.esvbible.org/Genesis+17/

God has been dealing with Abram for over 20 years by this point in our story. He is almost 100 years old and Sarai is 90. God still continues to reiterate the promise that the two of them would have a child. God could have easily granted them a child 25 years earlier and it still would have been a miracle. But still He waits. This is God’s plan, God’s action, and God’s timing. The center of the text lies in the words “I will”, spoken by God. Notice God says “I will” at least 13 times. This is HIS story.

Abram’s name (meaning exalted father) is now changed by God to Abraham (father of many). Sarai’s name is changed to Sarah. (As near as I can tell, Sarai means leader and Sarah means princess.) God changes their names to help them see that this is a new page. They stand on the brink of parenthood and will birth a nation for Him. God also instructs Abraham to circumcise all of the males of his household. This permanent mark sets Abraham’s family apart from the rest of the people around them. They are God’s chosen people. (The women fell under the protection of the men and thus also fell under the man’s circumcision.) Today, we are baptized into God’s family. That mark sets us apart as members of God’s family in the same way.

While all of the actions in Abraham’s life with God so far have taken well of 20 years, God is clearly moving forward with His plan. So often we look at God and declare that He is doing nothing because He isn’t operating the way we want Him to, which generally means He isn’t doing it our way or right now. In this chapter of Genesis we see that God is still and always firmly in control and the beauty of His plan cannot be disputed.

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