Genesis 17:27
in Genesis 17And all the men of Abraham’s household—both servants born in his household and those purchased from foreigners—were circumcised with him.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And all the men of his house, those born in the house, and those bought with money of a foreigner, were circumcised with him.
KJV
And all the men of his house, born in the house, and bought with money of the stranger, were circumcised with him.
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This verse in Genesis 17
Commentary
5 notes on this verseAnd all the men of his house,.... All the males, whether children or adult: born in the house, or bought with money of the stranger, were circumcised with him; by their will, and with their consent; not forced to it, as Aben Ezra rightly observes; and these being before trained up by him in religious exercises, were more easily prevailed upon by him to follow his example; this also is repeated, that it might be served, and be an example to follow in after generations.
This site's exposition
his son Ishmael was thirteen
on Genesis 17:25-27
Ishmael is thirteen, the exact length of the silence since 16:16. Gill records the Arab custom of circumcising at thirteen, taken from Ishmael's age here. The chapter ends with every male in the household circumcised, those born there and those purchased. The two sons stand together again at 25:9, burying their father.
This site's exposition
those purchased from foreigners
John Gill, following Aben Ezra, reads the servants as circumcised by their own consent, men Abraham had already trained in his worship. John Chrysostom notes that the sign marked the household off from other peoples. Foreigners were counted in from the first.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers2 voices
Consider, on the other hand, I ask you, dearly beloved, God's loving kindness and his unspeakable kindness to us. In that case pain and distress resulted from the action and no benefit came from circumcision, except simply making people recognizable through this sign and separating them from the other peoples. Our circumcision, on the contrary—I mean the grace of baptism—involves a painless medicine and is the means of countless good things for us, filling us with the grace of the Spirit. It has no limited span as in that other case, but rather in early years, in middle age and in the very height of old age can a person receive this circumcision—not the work of human hands—which involves not simply endurance but laying aside sin's burden and finding pardon for the faults of all time.… The loving God saw the extraordinary degree of our limitations and the fact that we are suffering from incurable diseases and need a lot of care as well as his ineffable love. [Thus] he is in his provision for our salvation granted us the renewal that comes from the bath of rebirth, so that by setting aside the former person—that is, evil deeds—and putting on the new we may advance along the way of virtue.
Learn fully then, children of love, concerning all things, for Abraham, who first circumcised, did so looking forward in the spirit to Jesus and had received the doctrines of the three letters. For it says, "Abraham circumcised from his household eighteen men and three hundred."
The words behind it
12 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְכָל־ | vekhol | and all | H3605 → | 5413 times |
| אַנְשֵׁ֤י | ʾanshei | [the] men of | H582 → | 566 times |
| בֵיתוֹ֙ | veito | household his | H1004 → | 2046 times |
| יְלִ֣יד | yelid | one born of | H3211 → | 13 times |
| בָּ֔יִת | bayit | [the] household | H1004 → | 2046 times |
| וּמִקְנַת־ | umiknat- | and a purchase of | H4736 → | 15 times |
| כֶּ֖סֶף | kesef | silver | H3701 → | 403 times |
| מֵאֵ֣ת | meet | from with | H854 → | 929 times |
| בֶּן־ | ben- | a son of | H1121 → | 4930 times |
| נֵכָ֑ר | nekhar | foreignness | H5236 → | 36 times |
| נִמֹּ֖לוּ | nimolu | they were circumcised | H4135 → | 37 times |
| אִתּֽוֹ׃ פ | ʾito | with him | H854 → | 929 times |
וְכָל־and all
vekholH3605 →5413 times
אַנְשֵׁ֤י[the] men of
ʾansheiH582 →566 times
בֵיתוֹ֙household his
veitoH1004 →2046 times
יְלִ֣ידone born of
yelidH3211 →13 times
בָּ֔יִת[the] household
bayitH1004 →2046 times
וּמִקְנַת־and a purchase of
umiknat-H4736 →15 times
כֶּ֖סֶףsilver
kesefH3701 →403 times
מֵאֵ֣תfrom with
meetH854 →929 times
בֶּן־a son of
ben-H1121 →4930 times
נֵכָ֑רforeignness
nekharH5236 →36 times
נִמֹּ֖לוּthey were circumcised
nimoluH4135 →37 times
אִתּֽוֹ׃ פwith him
ʾitoH854 →929 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
5 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Genesis 18:19For I have chosen him, so that he will command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the LORD by doing what is right and just, in order that…
it leads to
- 1 Timothy 3:4–5
An overseer must manage his own household well and keep his children under control, with complete dignity.
- Deuteronomy 6:6–7
These words I am commanding you today are to be upon your hearts.
- Deuteronomy 4:9–10
Only be on your guard and diligently watch yourselves, so that you do not forget the things your eyes have seen, and so that they do not slip from your heart as long as…
- Ephesians 6:4
Fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath; instead, bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.
- 2 Timothy 3:15
From infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.
- 1 Timothy 3:4–5
Where this verse is studied
About Genesis
This page draws on John Chrysostom, Homilies on Genesis; John Chrysostom, HOMILIES ON GENESIS 40.16; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Pseudo-Barnabas, EPISTLE OF BARNABAS 9.7-9.