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<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "//www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="//www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8" /><meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1" /><title>Genesis 17:26 Abraham and his son Ishmael were circumcised on the same day.</title><link rel="canonical" href="https://biblehub.com/genesis/17-26.htm" /><link rel="stylesheet" href="/new9.css" type="text/css" media="Screen" /><meta property="og:image" content="https://biblehub.com/visuals/11/01_Gen_17_26.jpg" /><meta property="og:title" content="Genesis 17:26 - The Covenant of Circumcision" /><meta property="og:site_name" content="Bible Hub" /><meta property="og:description" content="Abraham and his son Ishmael were circumcised on the same day." /><script type="application/javascript" 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class="vheadingv"><b>Verse</b><a href="/bsb/genesis/17.htm" class="clickchap" style="color:#001320" title="Click any translation name for full chapter">  (Click for Chapter)</a></div><div id="par"><span class="versiontext"><a href="/niv/genesis/17.htm">New International Version</a></span><br />Abraham and his son Ishmael were both circumcised on that very day.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/nlt/genesis/17.htm">New Living Translation</a></span><br />Both Abraham and his son, Ishmael, were circumcised on that same day,<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/esv/genesis/17.htm">English Standard Version</a></span><br />That very day Abraham and his son Ishmael were circumcised.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/bsb/genesis/17.htm">Berean Standard Bible</a></span><br />Abraham and his son Ishmael were circumcised on the same day.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/kjv/genesis/17.htm">King James Bible</a></span><br />In the selfsame day was Abraham circumcised, and Ishmael his son.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/nkjv/genesis/17.htm">New King James Version</a></span><br />That very same day Abraham was circumcised, and his son Ishmael;<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/nasb_/genesis/17.htm">New American Standard Bible</a></span><br />On this very same day Abraham was circumcised, as well as his son Ishmael.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/nasb/genesis/17.htm">NASB 1995</a></span><br />In the very same day Abraham was circumcised, and Ishmael his son.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/nasb77/genesis/17.htm">NASB 1977 </a></span><br />In the very same day Abraham was circumcised, and Ishmael his son.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/lsb/genesis/17.htm">Legacy Standard Bible </a></span><br />In the very same day Abraham was circumcised, and Ishmael his son.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/amp/genesis/17.htm">Amplified Bible</a></span><br />On the very same day Abraham was circumcised, as well as Ishmael his son.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/csb/genesis/17.htm">Christian Standard Bible</a></span><br />On that very day Abraham and his son Ishmael were circumcised.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/hcsb/genesis/17.htm">Holman Christian Standard Bible</a></span><br />On that same day Abraham and his son Ishmael were circumcised. <span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/asv/genesis/17.htm">American Standard Version</a></span><br />In the selfsame day was Abraham circumcised, and Ishmael his son.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/erv/genesis/17.htm">English Revised Version</a></span><br />In the selfsame day was Abraham circumcised, and Ishmael his son.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/gwt/genesis/17.htm">GOD'S WORD® Translation</a></span><br />That same day Abraham and his son Ishmael were circumcised.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/gnt/genesis/17.htm">Good News Translation</a></span><br />They were both circumcised on the same day, <span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/isv/genesis/17.htm">International Standard Version</a></span><br />Both Abraham and his son Ishmael were circumcised on that very day. <span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/msb/genesis/17.htm">Majority Standard Bible</a></span><br />Abraham and his son Ishmael were circumcised on the same day.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/net/genesis/17.htm">NET Bible</a></span><br />Abraham and his son Ishmael were circumcised on the very same day.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/nheb/genesis/17.htm">New Heart English Bible</a></span><br />In the same day both Abraham and Ishmael, his son, were circumcised.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/wbt/genesis/17.htm">Webster's Bible Translation</a></span><br />In the same day was Abraham circumcised, and Ishmael his son.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/web/genesis/17.htm">World English Bible</a></span><br />In the same day both Abraham and Ishmael, his son, were circumcised. <div class="vheading2"><b>Literal Translations</b></div><span class="versiontext"><a href="/lsv/genesis/17.htm">Literal Standard Version</a></span><br />in this very same day Abraham has been circumcised, and his son Ishmael;<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/ylt/genesis/17.htm">Young's Literal Translation</a></span><br /> in this self-same day hath Abraham been circumcised, and Ishmael his son;<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/slt/genesis/17.htm">Smith's Literal Translation</a></span><br />And in the self-same day was Abraham circumcised, and Ishmael his son;<div class="vheading2"><b>Catholic Translations</b></div><span class="versiontext"><a href="/drb/genesis/17.htm">Douay-Rheims Bible</a></span><br />The selfsame day was Abraham circumcised and Ismael his son. <span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/cpdv/genesis/17.htm">Catholic Public Domain Version</a></span><br />On the very same day, Abraham was circumcised with his son Ishmael.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/nabre/genesis/17.htm">New American Bible</a></span><br />Thus, on that same day Abraham and his son Ishmael were circumcised;<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/nrsvce/genesis/17.htm">New Revised Standard Version</a></span><br />That very day Abraham and his son Ishmael were circumcised;<div class="vheading2"><b>Translations from Aramaic</b></div><span class="versiontext"><a href="/lamsa/genesis/17.htm">Lamsa Bible</a></span><br />In that very day was Abraham circumcised and Ishmael his son<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/hpbt/genesis/17.htm">Peshitta Holy Bible Translated</a></span><br />And all the men in his house, born in his house and purchased with his money, and also he circumcised with him some sons of foreigners. <div class="vheading2"><b>OT Translations</b></div><span class="versiontext"><a href="/jps/genesis/17.htm">JPS Tanakh 1917</a></span><br />In the selfsame day was Abraham circumcised, and Ishmael his son.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/sep/genesis/17.htm">Brenton Septuagint Translation</a></span><br />And at the period of that day, Abraam was circumcised, and Ismael his son,<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/parallel/genesis/17-26.htm">Additional Translations ...</a></span></div></div></div><div id="centbox"><div class="padcent"><a name="audio" id="audio"></a><div class="vheadingv"><b>Audio Bible</b></div><iframe width="100%" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/7ehevn8iSgc?start=3679" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen></iframe><span class="p"><br /><br /><br /></span><div class="vheadingv"><b>Context</b></div><span class="hdg"><a href="/bsb/genesis/17.htm">The Covenant of Circumcision</a></span><br>…<span class="reftext">25</span>and his son Ishmael was thirteen; <span class="reftext">26</span><span class="highl"><a href="/hebrew/85.htm" title="85: ’aḇ·rā·hām (N-proper-ms) -- Contracted from 'ab and an unused root; father of a multitude; Abraham, the later name of Abram.">Abraham</a> <a href="/hebrew/1121.htm" title="1121: bə·nōw (N-msc:: 3ms) -- Son. From banah; a son, in the widest sense (like 'ab, 'ach, etc.).">and his son</a> <a href="/hebrew/3458.htm" title="3458: wə·yiš·mā·‘êl (Conj-w:: N-proper-ms) -- From shama' and 'el; God will hear; Jishmael, the name of Abraham's oldest son, and of five Israelites.">Ishmael</a> <a href="/hebrew/4135.htm" title="4135: nim·mō·wl (V-Nifal-Perf-3ms) -- To circumcise. A primitive root; to cut short, i.e. Curtail; by implication, to blunt; figuratively, to destroy.">were circumcised</a> <a href="/hebrew/2088.htm" title="2088: haz·zeh (Art:: Pro-ms) -- This, here. A primitive word; the masculine demonstrative pronoun, this or that.">on the</a> <a href="/hebrew/6106.htm" title="6106: bə·‘e·ṣem (Prep-b:: N-fsc) -- Bone, substance, self. From atsam; a bone; by extension, the body; figuratively, the substance, i.e. Selfsame.">same</a> <a href="/hebrew/3117.htm" title="3117: hay·yō·wm (Art:: N-ms) -- Day. From an unused root meaning to be hot; a day, whether literal, or figurative.">day.</a> </span><span class="reftext">27</span>And all the men of Abraham’s household—both servants born in his household and those purchased from foreigners—were circumcised with him.…<div class="cred"><a href="//berean.bible">Berean Standard Bible</a> · <a href="//berean.bible/downloads.htm">Download</a></div><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><a name="crossref" id="crossref"></a><div class="vheading">Cross References</div><div id="crf"><span class="crossverse"><a href="/genesis/21-4.htm">Genesis 21:4</a></span><br />When his son Isaac was eight days old, Abraham circumcised him, as God had commanded him.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/genesis/12-1.htm">Genesis 12:1-3</a></span><br />Then the LORD said to Abram, “Leave your country, your kindred, and your father’s household, and go to the land I will show you. / I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. / I will bless those who bless you and curse those who curse you; and all the families of the earth will be blessed through you.”<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/genesis/15-18.htm">Genesis 15:18</a></span><br />On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, “To your descendants I have given this land—from the river of Egypt to the great River Euphrates—<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/genesis/22-17.htm">Genesis 22:17-18</a></span><br />I will surely bless you, and I will multiply your descendants like the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will possess the gates of their enemies. / And through your offspring all nations of the earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice.”<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/genesis/26-3.htm">Genesis 26:3-5</a></span><br />Stay in this land as a foreigner, and I will be with you and bless you. For I will give all these lands to you and your offspring, and I will confirm the oath that I swore to your father Abraham. / I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky, and I will give them all these lands, and through your offspring all nations of the earth will be blessed, / because Abraham listened to My voice and kept My charge, My commandments, My statutes, and My laws.”<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/genesis/28-13.htm">Genesis 28:13-14</a></span><br />And there at the top the LORD was standing and saying, “I am the LORD, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you now lie. / Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and east and north and south. All the families of the earth will be blessed through you and your offspring.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/exodus/12-48.htm">Exodus 12:48</a></span><br />If a foreigner resides with you and wants to celebrate the LORD’s Passover, all the males in the household must be circumcised; then he may come near to celebrate it, and he shall be like a native of the land. But no uncircumcised man may eat of it.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/leviticus/12-3.htm">Leviticus 12:3</a></span><br />And on the eighth day the flesh of the boy’s foreskin is to be circumcised.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/deuteronomy/30-6.htm">Deuteronomy 30:6</a></span><br />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, so that you may live.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/joshua/5-2.htm">Joshua 5:2-9</a></span><br />At that time the LORD said to Joshua, “Make flint knives and circumcise the sons of Israel once again.” / So Joshua made flint knives and circumcised the sons of Israel at Gibeath-haaraloth. / Now this is why Joshua circumcised them: All those who came out of Egypt—all the men of war—had died on the journey in the wilderness after they had left Egypt. ...<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/2_samuel/7-12.htm">2 Samuel 7:12-16</a></span><br />And when your days are fulfilled and you rest with your fathers, I will raise up your descendant after you, who will come from your own body, and I will establish his kingdom. / He will build a house for My Name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. / I will be his Father, and he will be My son. When he does wrong, I will discipline him with the rod of men and with the blows of the sons of men. ...<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/psalms/105-8.htm">Psalm 105:8-10</a></span><br />He remembers His covenant forever, the word He ordained for a thousand generations— / the covenant He made with Abraham, and the oath He swore to Isaac. / He confirmed it to Jacob as a decree, to Israel as an everlasting covenant:<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/isaiah/51-2.htm">Isaiah 51:2</a></span><br />Look to Abraham your father, and to Sarah who gave you birth. When I called him, he was but one; then I blessed him and multiplied him.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/jeremiah/31-31.htm">Jeremiah 31:31-34</a></span><br />Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. / It will not be like the covenant I made with their fathers when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt—a covenant they broke, though I was a husband to them,” declares the LORD. / “But this is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the LORD. I will put My law in their minds and inscribe it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they will be My people. ...<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/ezekiel/16-60.htm">Ezekiel 16:60</a></span><br />But I will remember the covenant I made with you in the days of your youth, and I will establish an everlasting covenant with you.</div><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><a name="tsk" id="tsk"><div class="vheading">Treasury of Scripture</div><p class="tsk2">In the selfsame day was Abraham circumcised, and Ishmael his son.</p><p class="tskverse"><b><a href="/genesis/12-4.htm">Genesis 12:4</a></b></br> So Abram departed, as the LORD had spoken unto him; and Lot went with him: and Abram <i>was</i> seventy and five years old when he departed out of Haran.</p><p class="tskverse"><b><a href="/genesis/22-3.htm">Genesis 22:3,4</a></b></br> And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and saddled his ass, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son, and clave the wood for the burnt offering, and rose up, and went unto the place of which God had told him… </p><p class="tskverse"><b><a href="/psalms/119-60.htm">Psalm 119:60</a></b></br> I made haste, and delayed not to keep thy commandments.</p><div class="vheading">Jump to Previous</div><a href="/genesis/17-24.htm">Abraham</a> <a href="/genesis/17-25.htm">Circumcised</a> <a href="/genesis/17-25.htm">Circumcision</a> <a href="/genesis/17-25.htm">Ishmael</a> <a href="/genesis/17-25.htm">Ish'mael</a> <a href="/genesis/17-23.htm">Selfsame</a> <a href="/genesis/7-13.htm">Self-Same</a> <a href="/genesis/17-25.htm">Underwent</a><div class="vheading2">Jump to Next</div><a href="/genesis/18-1.htm">Abraham</a> <a href="/genesis/17-27.htm">Circumcised</a> <a href="/genesis/21-4.htm">Circumcision</a> <a href="/genesis/25-9.htm">Ishmael</a> <a href="/genesis/25-9.htm">Ish'mael</a> <a href="/exodus/12-17.htm">Selfsame</a> <a href="/exodus/12-17.htm">Self-Same</a> <a href="/genesis/17-27.htm">Underwent</a><div class="vheading2">Genesis 17</div><span class="reftext">1. </span><span class="outlinetext"><a href="/genesis/17-1.htm">God renews the covenant with Abram, </a></span><br><span class="reftext">5. </span><span class="outlinetext"><a href="/genesis/17-5.htm">and changes his name to Abraham, in token of a greater blessing.</a></span><br><span class="reftext">9. </span><span class="outlinetext"><a href="/genesis/17-9.htm">Circumcision is instituted.</a></span><br><span class="reftext">15. </span><span class="outlinetext"><a href="/genesis/17-15.htm">Sarai's name is changed to Sarah, and she is blessed.</a></span><br><span class="reftext">17. </span><span class="outlinetext"><a href="/genesis/17-17.htm">Isaac is promised, and the time of his birth fixed.</a></span><br><span class="reftext">23. </span><span class="outlinetext"><a href="/genesis/17-23.htm">Abraham and Ishmael are circumcised.</a></span><br></div></div><div id="mdd"><div align="center"><div class="bot2"><table align="center" width="100%"><tr><td><div align="center"> <script id="3d27ed63fc4348d5b062c4527ae09445"> (new Image()).src = 'https://capi.connatix.com/tr/si?token=51ce25d5-1a8c-424a-8695-4bd48c750f35&cid=3a9f82d0-4344-4f8d-ac0c-e1a0eb43a405'; </script> <script id="b817b7107f1d4a7997da1b3c33457e03"> (new Image()).src = 'https://capi.connatix.com/tr/si?token=cb0edd8b-b416-47eb-8c6d-3cc96561f7e8&cid=3a9f82d0-4344-4f8d-ac0c-e1a0eb43a405'; </script><br /><br />  <div id='div-gpt-ad-1529103594582-2'> </div><br /><br />  <div id='div-gpt-ad-1529103594582-0' style='max-width: 300px;'> </div><br /><br />  <div id='div-gpt-ad-1529103594582-3'> </div><br /><br />  <div id='div-gpt-ad-1529103594582-1' style='max-width: 300px;'> </div><br /><br />  <div align="center" id='div-gpt-ad-1531425649696-0'> </div><br /><br /> <ins class="adsbygoogle" style="display:inline-block;width:200px;height:200px" data-ad-client="ca-pub-3753401421161123" data-ad-slot="3592799687"></ins> <script> (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); </script> <br /><br /> </div> </td></tr></table></div></div></div><div id="combox"><div class="padcom"><a name="study" id="study"></a><div class="vheading"><table width="100%"><tr><td width="99%" valign="top"><a href="/study/genesis/17.htm">Study Bible</a></td><td width="1%" valign="top"><a href="/study/genesis/" title="Book Summary and Study">Book ◦</a> <a href="/study/chapters/genesis/17.htm" title="Chapter summary and Study">Chapter </a></tr></table></div><b>Abraham and his son Ishmael</b><br>This phrase highlights the familial relationship between Abraham and Ishmael. Abraham, originally named Abram, is a central patriarchal figure in the Bible, known for his covenant with God. Ishmael is his firstborn son through Hagar, Sarah's Egyptian maidservant. The mention of both together emphasizes the inclusion of Ishmael in the covenantal sign of circumcision, despite the later focus on Isaac as the child of promise. This act signifies the importance of the entire household being part of God's covenant, not just the direct line of promise.<p><b>were circumcised</b><br>Circumcision is introduced in <a href="/genesis/17.htm">Genesis 17</a> as the physical sign of the covenant between God and Abraham. It is a significant ritual in Jewish tradition, symbolizing purity, obedience, and belonging to God's chosen people. The act of circumcision here is a demonstration of Abraham's obedience to God's command. It also prefigures the New Testament concept of circumcision of the heart, as mentioned in <a href="/romans/2-29.htm">Romans 2:29</a>, where true belonging to God is marked by inward transformation rather than external rituals.<p><b>on the same day</b><br>The phrase "on the same day" underscores the immediacy and completeness of Abraham's obedience to God's command. It reflects a sense of urgency and total commitment to fulfilling God's requirements. This simultaneous act of circumcision for both Abraham and Ishmael signifies unity and collective participation in the covenant. It also foreshadows the New Testament teaching of unity in Christ, where all believers, regardless of background, are part of the same spiritual family (<a href="/galatians/3-28.htm">Galatians 3:28</a>).<div class="vheading2">Persons / Places / Events</div>1. <b><a href="/topical/a/abraham.htm">Abraham</a></b><br>Originally named Abram, he is the patriarch of the Israelites, chosen by God to be the father of many nations. In <a href="/bsb/genesis/17.htm">Genesis 17</a>, God establishes His covenant with Abraham, which includes the rite of circumcision as a sign of this covenant.<br><br>2. <b><a href="/topical/i/ishmael.htm">Ishmael</a></b><br>The first son of Abraham, born to Hagar, Sarah's Egyptian maidservant. Ishmael is also included in the covenant through the act of circumcision, signifying his connection to Abraham and God's promises.<br><br>3. <b><a href="/topical/c/circumcision.htm">Circumcision</a></b><br>A physical sign of the covenant between God and Abraham's descendants. It is a significant event marking obedience and commitment to God's commands.<br><br>4. <b><a href="/topical/c/covenant.htm">Covenant</a></b><br>A solemn agreement between God and Abraham, promising that Abraham would be the father of many nations and that his descendants would inherit the land of Canaan.<br><br>5. <b><a href="/topical/o/on_that_very_day.htm">On that very day</a></b><br>This phrase emphasizes the immediacy and obedience of Abraham to God's command, highlighting the importance of promptness in following God's instructions.<div class="vheading2">Teaching Points</div><b><a href="/topical/o/obedience_to_god's_commands.htm">Obedience to God's Commands</a></b><br>Abraham's immediate compliance with God's command to circumcise himself and his household demonstrates the importance of obedience in our relationship with God.<br><br><b><a href="/topical/s/sign_of_the_covenant.htm">Sign of the Covenant</a></b><br>Circumcision was a physical sign of the covenant, reminding us of the importance of outward expressions of our inward faith and commitment to God.<br><br><b><a href="/topical/g/generational_faithfulness.htm">Generational Faithfulness</a></b><br>The inclusion of Ishmael in the covenant through circumcision shows the importance of passing down faith and obedience to future generations.<br><br><b><a href="/topical/f/faith_and_works.htm">Faith and Works</a></b><br>While circumcision was a work, it was a response to the faith Abraham already had, illustrating the relationship between faith and works in the life of a believer.<br><br><b><a href="/topical/i/immediate_action.htm">Immediate Action</a></b><br>The phrase "on that very day" challenges us to act promptly in obedience to God's instructions, without delay or hesitation.<div class="vheading2">Lists and Questions</div><a href="/top10/lessons_from_genesis_17.htm">Top 10 Lessons from Genesis 17</a><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><a href="/q/why_does_god_require_circumcision.htm">Why would an all-powerful God require the physical sign of circumcision, and does this practice have non-biblical parallels (Genesis 17:10)?</a><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><a href="/q/why_does_god_support_expelling_ishmael.htm">Why does God endorse Sarah's demand to expel Hagar and Ishmael in Genesis 21:10-14 despite earlier promises to Ishmael?</a><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><a href="/q/why_do_galatians_4_22-23_and_genesis_differ.htm">Why does Galatians 4:22-23, referring to Abraham's two sons, contradict other accounts of their significance in Genesis?</a><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><a href="/q/who_was_ishmael_in_the_bible.htm">Who was Ishmael in the Bible?</a><a name="commentary" id="commentary"></a><div class="vheading2"><a href="/commentaries/ellicott/genesis/17.htm">Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers</a></div>(26) <span class= "bld">In the selfsame day.</span>--Heb., <span class= "ital">In the bone of this day, </span>and so in <a href="/genesis/17-23.htm" title="And Abraham took Ishmael his son, and all that were born in his house, and all that were bought with his money, every male among the men of Abraham's house; and circumcised the flesh of their foreskin in the selfsame day, as God had said to him.">Genesis 17:23</a> (see <a href="/genesis/2-23.htm" title="And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.">Genesis 2:23</a>). In the circumcising of the household together with Abraham and his son we see that no impassable interval separated the Hebrew slave from his master, but that he was to share all the national and religious privileges of the freeman.<p><span class= "bld"><div class="vheading2"><a href="/commentaries/pulpit/genesis/17.htm">Pulpit Commentary</a></div><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verses 26, 27.</span> - <span class="cmt_word">In the self-same day was Abraham circumcised, and Ishmael his son.</span> <span class="cmt_word">And all the men of his house, born in the house, and bought with money of the stranger, wore circumcised with him.</span> The usual charges of needless repetition which are preferred against the closing verses of this chapter may be disposed of by observing that Ver. 23 intimates that the sacrament of circumcision was administered to the patriarch and his household on the very day that God had enjoined it, <span class="accented">i.e.</span> without delay; that Vers. 24, 25 declare the respective ages of Abraham and Ishmael when they received the Divinely-appointed rite; and that Vers. 26, 27 state the fact that the entire household of the patriarch was circumcised simultaneously with himself. THE ORIGIN OF CIRCUMCISION. The determination of this question does not appear of paramount importance, yet the ascertained results may be briefly indicated. <p><span class="note_emph">(1)</span> According to Herodotus (2. 104) circumcision was observed as a custom of primitive antiquity among the Colchiaus, Ethiopians, and Egyptians, by the last of whom it was communicated to the Syrians of Palestine and the Phoenicians. It is, however, uncertain Whether among the Egyptians the practice was universal, as Philo and Herodotus assert, or limited to the priesthood, as Origen believed; and equally doubtful whether the Egyptians themselves may not have adopted it from the Hebrews in the time of Joseph, instead of from the Ethiopians, as appears to be the judgment of Kalisch. Against the idea that circumcision was a national and universal observance among the Egyptians in the time of Abraham, it has been urged that the male servants of the patriarch, some of whom were Egyptians (<a href="/genesis/12-16.htm">Genesis 12:16</a>), were not circumcised till Abraham was commanded to perform the rite; that Ishmael, the son of an Egyptian mother, remained uncircumcised till the same time; and that the daughter of Pharaoh recognized Moses as a Hebrew child, which, it is supposed, she could not have done had circumcision been generally practiced among her own people. On the other hand, it is contended that the absence of details as to how the rite should be performed seems to imply that already circumcision was familiar to Abraham; and by some modern Egyptologists it is asserted that an examination of ancient mummies and sculptures, in which circumcision is a distinctive mark between the Egyptians and their enemies, shows that the ceremony must have been in use not among the priests only, but throughout the nation generally so early as the time of the fourth dynasty, <span class="accented">i.e.</span> , or considerably earlier than the time of Abraham. Still <p><span class="note_emph">(2)</span> though it should be held as indubitably established that circumcision was a prevalent custom among the Egyptians in the time of Abraham, it would not follow that the Hebrews adopted it from them. On the contrary, the Biblical narrative expressly mentions that its observance by the patriarch and- his household was due to a Divine command, and was connected with a religious significance which was altogether foreign to the Egyptians and others by whom that rite was practiced. Among the reasons for its adoption by the heathen nations of antiquity have been assigned, among the Ethiopians, a prophylactic design to ward off certain painful, and often incurable, disorders; among the Egyptians, a regard to cleanliness; and perhaps among the priesthood of the latter country a semi-religious idea (the deification of the generative powers) was associated with a practice which was commonly regarded as enhancing productivity; but the import of the ceremony as enjoined upon the father of the faithful was as widely as possible removed from every one of these ideas, being connected with spiritual conceptions of which the heathen world was entirely ignorant. That a heathen custom should have been adopted by Jehovah and elevated to the rank and connected with the spiritual significance of a religious sign will not occur as a difficulty to those who remember that the rainbow, a well-known natural phenomenon, was selected as the sign for Noah's covenant, and that Christian baptism is a similar transformation of a previously existing ceremony by which Gentile proselytes were admitted to the Hebrew Church. <p> . . . <span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/commentaries/genesis/17-26.htm">Parallel Commentaries ...</a></span><span class="p"><br /><br /><br /></span><a name="lexicon" id="lexicon"></a><div class="vheading">Hebrew</div><span class="word">Abraham</span><br /><span class="heb">אַבְרָהָ֑ם</span> <span class="translit">(’aḇ·rā·hām)</span><br /><span class="parse">Noun - proper - masculine singular<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_85.htm">Strong's 85: </a> </span><span class="str2">Abraham -- 'exalted father', the father of the Jewish nation</span><br /><br /><span class="word">and his son</span><br /><span class="heb">בְּנֽוֹ׃</span> <span class="translit">(bə·nōw)</span><br /><span class="parse">Noun - masculine singular construct | third person masculine singular<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_1121.htm">Strong's 1121: </a> </span><span class="str2">A son</span><br /><br /><span class="word">Ishmael</span><br /><span class="heb">וְיִשְׁמָעֵ֖אל</span> <span class="translit">(wə·yiš·mā·‘êl)</span><br /><span class="parse">Conjunctive waw | Noun - proper - masculine singular<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_3458.htm">Strong's 3458: </a> </span><span class="str2">Ishmael -- 'God hears', the name of several Israelites</span><br /><br /><span class="word">were circumcised</span><br /><span class="heb">נִמּ֖וֹל</span> <span class="translit">(nim·mō·wl)</span><br /><span class="parse">Verb - Nifal - Perfect - third person masculine singular<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_4135.htm">Strong's 4135: </a> </span><span class="str2">To cut short, curtail, to blunt, to destroy</span><br /><br /><span class="word">on the</span><br /><span class="heb">הַזֶּ֔ה</span> <span class="translit">(haz·zeh)</span><br /><span class="parse">Article | Pronoun - masculine singular<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_2088.htm">Strong's 2088: </a> </span><span class="str2">This, that</span><br /><br /><span class="word">same</span><br /><span class="heb">בְּעֶ֙צֶם֙</span> <span class="translit">(bə·‘e·ṣem)</span><br /><span class="parse">Preposition-b | Noun - feminine singular construct<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_6106.htm">Strong's 6106: </a> </span><span class="str2">A bone, the body, the substance, selfsame</span><br /><br /><span class="word">day.</span><br /><span class="heb">הַיּ֣וֹם</span> <span class="translit">(hay·yō·wm)</span><br /><span class="parse">Article | Noun - masculine singular<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_3117.htm">Strong's 3117: </a> </span><span class="str2">A day</span><br /><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><div class="vheading">Links</div><a href="/niv/genesis/17-26.htm">Genesis 17:26 NIV</a><br /><a href="/nlt/genesis/17-26.htm">Genesis 17:26 NLT</a><br /><a href="/esv/genesis/17-26.htm">Genesis 17:26 ESV</a><br /><a href="/nasb/genesis/17-26.htm">Genesis 17:26 NASB</a><br /><a href="/kjv/genesis/17-26.htm">Genesis 17:26 KJV</a><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><a href="//bibleapps.com/genesis/17-26.htm">Genesis 17:26 BibleApps.com</a><br /><a href="//bibliaparalela.com/genesis/17-26.htm">Genesis 17:26 Biblia Paralela</a><br /><a href="//holybible.com.cn/genesis/17-26.htm">Genesis 17:26 Chinese Bible</a><br /><a href="//saintebible.com/genesis/17-26.htm">Genesis 17:26 French Bible</a><br /><a href="/catholic/genesis/17-26.htm">Genesis 17:26 Catholic Bible</a><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><a href="/genesis/17-26.htm">OT Law: Genesis 17:26 In the same day both Abraham (Gen. Ge Gn)</a></div></div></td></tr></table></div><div id="left"><a href="/genesis/17-25.htm" onmouseover='lft.src="/leftgif.png"' onmouseout='lft.src="/left.png"' title="Genesis 17:25"><img src="/left.png" name="lft" border="0" alt="Genesis 17:25" /></a></div><div id="right"><a href="/genesis/17-27.htm" onmouseover='rght.src="/rightgif.png"' onmouseout='rght.src="/right.png"' title="Genesis 17:27"><img src="/right.png" name="rght" border="0" alt="Genesis 17:27" /></a></div><div id="botleft"><a href="#" onmouseover='botleft.src="/botleftgif.png"' onmouseout='botleft.src="/botleft.png"' title="Top of Page"><img src="/botleft.png" name="botleft" border="0" alt="Top of Page" /></a></div><div id="botright"><a href="#" onmouseover='botright.src="/botrightgif.png"' onmouseout='botright.src="/botright.png"' title="Top of Page"><img src="/botright.png" name="botright" border="0" alt="Top of Page" /></a></div><div id="bot"><iframe width="100%" height="1500" scrolling="no" src="/botmenubhnew2.htm" frameborder="0"></iframe></div></td></tr></table></div></body></html>