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10 This is the covenant between me and you and your descendants after you that you must keep: every male among you shall be circumcised.[a](A)

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Footnotes

  1. 17:10 Circumcised: circumcision was widely practiced in the ancient world, usually as an initiation rite for males at puberty. By shifting the time of circumcision to the eighth day after birth, biblical religion made it no longer a “rite of passage” but the sign of the eternal covenant between God and the community descending from Abraham.

On the eighth day, the flesh of the boy’s foreskin shall be circumcised,[a](A)

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Footnotes

  1. 12:3 Circumcision is the sign of the covenant between God and Israel (Gn 17:1–27) and allows full participation in the religious community (Ex 12:43–49; Jos 5:2–10). This command was fulfilled after Jesus’ birth (Lk 2:21).