29 matching verse commentaries
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
INTRODUCTION TO Genesis 17 This chapter treats of a covenant made with Abram, sometimes called the covenant of circumcision, the time when God appeared to him, and promised to make it, and did, Genesis 17:1; the particulars of it, both with respect to himself, whose name was now changed, and to his posterity, Genesis 17:4; the token of it,...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
And when Abram was ninety years old and nine,.... Which was thirteen years after the birth of Ishmael last mentioned; so many years more it was before be is expressly told he should have a son by Sarai, or had the promise of Isaac, which was for the trial of his faith; and his age is here observed, that the power of God might be more manifest in...
Matthew Henry - Complete Commentary - Matthew Henry
This chapter contains articles of agreement covenanted and concluded upon between the great Jehovah, the Father of mercies, on the one part, and pious Abram, the father of the faithful, on the other part. Abram is therefore called "the friend of God," not only because he was the man of his counsel, but because he was the man of his covenant; both...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
And I will make my covenant between me and thee,.... The covenant of circumcision, so called from the token of it, which God is said to make or give (e), being his own constitution, and depended on his sovereign will and pleasure, see Acts 7:8; and will multiply thee exceedingly; as he had before promised at several times, and now renews it, lest...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
And Abram fell on his face,.... At the sight of so glorious a Person that appeared to him, and in reverence of his majesty, and as sensible of his unworthiness of such a visit, and of having such favours bestowed upon him; and not because he was not as yet circumcised, as the Targum of Jonathan expresses it; and so other Jewish (f) writers...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
As for me, behold, my covenant [is] with thee,.... Who was gracious to make it, faithful to keep it, and immutable in it, though Abram was but a man, and sinful: and thou shalt be a father of many nations: as he was of many Arabian nations, and of the Turks in the line of Ishmael; and of the Midianites, and others, in the line of his sons by...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
Neither shall thy name be any more called Abram,.... Which signifies an "high father", which name he bore for many years before he was the father of anyone: but thy name shall be Abraham: with all addition of the letter ה inserted into it, and makes the last syllable two, "raham": which word in the Arabic language, as Hottinger (g) observes,...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
And I will make thee exceeding fruitful,.... In children, for he had not only a son by Sarai, from whom sprung a numerous offspring, but he had six sons by Keturah, who became the heads of large nations: and I will make nations of thee; as the nations of Israel and Judah, of the Midianites and Edomites, of the Arabs, Saracens, and Turks: and kings...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
And I will establish my covenant between me and thee,.... Not only renew it, but confirm it by the following token of circumcision: and thy seed after thee, in their generation; such blessings in it as belonged to his natural seed, as such he confirmed to them, to be enjoyed by them in successive ages; and such as belonged to his spiritual seed,...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee,.... To him in right, and to them in possession, and for an inheritance: the land wherein thou art a stranger; or "the land of sojournings" or "pilgrimages" (l), which were many; for he often removed from place to place, and sometimes sojourned in one place, and sometimes in another: all the...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
And God said unto Abraham, thou shalt keep my covenant therefore,.... Observe the sign or token of it, circumcision, in the manner after related: thou, and thy seed after thee, in their generations; in successive ages until the Messiah come, the end of the law for righteousness.
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
This [is] my covenant,.... The token of it, for the promise itself was given before, which is more properly the covenant; circumcision is so called in an improper sense, being only the sign of it: which ye shall keep between me and you, and thy seed after thee; which was to be observed by Abraham, and the males in his house then with him, as...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
And ye shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin,.... Or "the foreskin of your flesh" (u); by an hypallage (v), the manner in which this was performed may be seen in the Jewish writers (w), as well as the cure of the wound made, is particularly described by Leo Modena (x), and which when performed, they used to provide a dish full of sand to put...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
And he that is eight days old shall be circumcised among you,.... A son or infant of eight days old; it might not be circumcised before, but for some reasons might be deferred longer. The reasons why this rite was ordered to be performed in infancy, according to Maimonides (d), were, because if it had been deferred to riper age it might have been...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
He that is born in thine house, and he that is bought with thy money, must needs be circumcised,.... Or "in circumcising shall be circumcised" (l), shall certainly be circumcised; this is repeated to denote the necessity of it, and what care should be taken that this be done, because there was to be no uncircumcised male among them, Genesis 17:10;...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
And the uncircumcised man child, whose flesh of his foreskin is not circumcised,.... Whose circumcision was neglected by his father, or by his mother, or by the civil magistrate, or by himself; for each of these, according to the Jewish canons, were obliged to see this performed; "the commandment lies upon a father to circumcise his son, and upon...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
And God said unto Abraham,.... After he had changed his name, and given him the covenant of circumcision: as for Sarai thy wife, thou shalt not call her name Sarai, but Sarah her name [shall be]; her former name Sarai signifies "my princess", or rather "princesses", being to him in the room of many, and better than ten thousand; yet only a...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
And I will bless her,.... The Targum of Jonathan adds, "in her body", with fruitfulness, who before was barren, and in her soul with spiritual blessings, and in both with the blessing of eternal life: and give thee a son also of her; as he had given him one of Hagar: God had before promised Abraham a son that should be his heir, but he had not...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
Then Abraham fell upon his face,.... In reverence of the divine Being, and as amazed at what was told him: and laughed; not through distrust and diffidence of the promise, as Sarah did, for he staggered not at that through unbelief, but for joy at such good news; and so Onkelos renders it, "and he rejoiced", with the joy of faith; it may be our...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
And Abraham said unto God,.... Being told he should have a son by Sarah, that should be his heir, he is concerned for Ishmael what would become of him; and who, being grown up, had doubtless a large share in his affections, and it is highly probable he began to think he was the promised seed, since he had lived to such an age, and had no other...