Genesis 17:1-27
Circumcision, the Sign of the Covenant

17:1-2. El Shaddai. El Shaddai (“God Almighty”) in verse 1 is a relatively common name used for the Lord in the Old Testament (48 times), though the conventional translations are little more than guesses. It appears only once outside the Old Testament in the name “Shaddai-Ammi” on an Egyptian statue from the Judges period, though there may be a reference to Shaddai-beings in the Deir Allah inscription. One of the most frequent suggestions understands Shaddai as related to the Babylonian sadu, “steppe, mountain,” but evidence is sparse.

17:3-8. name changing. Names had power in the ancient world. By naming the animals, Adam demonstrated his mastery over them. In a similar way, God's changing Abram's name to Abraham and Sarai's name to Sarah signifies both a reiteration of the covenant promise and the designation of these people as God's chosen servants.

17:4. covenanting with God. There are no parallels in the ancient world to covenants between deity and mortal, though certainly gods are known to make demands and promise favorable treatment. In most of these cases kings report their care of the sanctuaries of the god and then tell how the deity responded with blessing. But these fall far short of a covenant relationship initiated by deity for his own purposes.

17:9-14. circumcision. Circumcision was practiced widely in the ancient Near East as a rite of puberty, fertility or marriage. Although the Israelites were not the only people to circumcise their sons, this sign was used to mark them as members of the covenantal community. When used in relation to marriage, terminology suggests it was performed by the new male in-laws, indicating that the groom was coming under the protection of their family in this new relationship. Performed on infants, it is more a ritual scarring than something done for health reasons. The fact that blood is shed also signifies that this is a sacrificial ritual and may function as a substitution for human sacrifice, which was practiced by other people. Waiting until the eighth day to perform this ritual may reflect the high infant mortality rate and the desire to determine if the child was viable. The Hittites also had a ritual for the seventh day of the newborn's life. Circumcision can be seen as one of many cases where God transforms a common practice to a new (though not necessarily unrelated) purpose in revealing himself and relating to his people.

17:15-22. divine announcement of sons. The divine announcement of a son to be born is a common motif found throughout ancient Near Eastern literature. Perhaps most notable is the announcement by the Canaanite deity El to King Danil that he would finally have a son in his old age, in the Ugaritic story of Aqhat. Additional examples are found in the Hittite tale where the sun god tells Appu he will have a son, and in Mesopotamian literature where the god Shamash advises Etana, king of Kish, how to procure a son. Also notable in this text is the statement that Sarah will be the mother of kings. This would be an indication of long survival of the line and great success for the line.