8 Bible Verses about Circumcision

Some people came down from Judea and began to teach the brothers that unless they were circumcised as Moses prescribed, they could not be saved.

Paul wished to take this man on with him, and so on account of the Jews in that district he had him circumcised, for they all knew that his father was a Greek.

and through his human nature put an end to the feud between us, and abolished the Law with its rules and regulations, in order to make peace and create out of the two parties one new man by uniting them with himself,

Here, what matters is not "Greek" and "Jew," the circumcised and the uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, freeborn, but Christ is everything and in us all.

These men who are trying to force you to let yourselves be circumcised want to present a good appearance externally, to save themselves from having to stand persecution for the cross of Jesus the Christ.

But some members of the Pharisees' party who had become believers got up and said that such converts ought to be circumcised and told to obey the Law of Moses. The apostles and elders had a meeting to look into this matter. After a long discussion, Peter got up and said to them, "Brothers, you know that in the early days God chose that of you all I should be the one from whose lips the heathen should hear the message of the good news and believe it. read more.
And God who knows men's hearts testified for them by giving them the holy Spirit just as he had done to us, making no difference between us and them, but cleansing their hearts by faith. Then why do you now try to test God, by putting on the necks of these disciples a yoke that neither our forefathers nor we have been able to bear? Why, we believe that it is by the mercy of the Lord Jesus that we are saved just as they are." This quieted the whole meeting, and they listened while Barnabas and Paul told of the signs and wonders which God had done among the heathen through them. When they finished James made this response: "Brothers, listen to me. Symeon has told how God first showed an interest in taking from among the heathen a people to bear his name. And this agrees with the predictions of the prophets which say, " 'Afterward I will return, and rebuild David's fallen dwelling. I will rebuild its very ruins, and set it up again, So that the rest of mankind may seek the Lord, And all the heathen who are called by my name, Says the Lord, who has been making this known from of old.' In my opinion, therefore, we ought not to put obstacles in the way of those of the heathen who are turning to God, but we should write to them to avoid anything that has been contaminated by idols, immorality, the meat of strangled animals, and the tasting of blood. For Moses for generations past has had his preachers in every town, and has been read aloud in the synagogues every Sabbath." Then the apostles and elders with the whole church resolved to select representatives and send them with Paul and Barnabas to Antioch. They were Judas who was called Barsabbas, and Silas, both leading men among the brothers. They were the bearers of this letter: "The apostles and the brothers who are elders send greeting to the brothers of heathen birth in Antioch, Syria, and Cilicia. As we have heard that some of our number, without any instructions from us, have disturbed you by their teaching and unsettled your minds, we have unanimously resolved to select representatives and send them to you with our dear brothers Barnabas and Paul, who have risked their lives for the sake of our Lord Jesus Christ. So we send Judas and Silas to you, to give you this same message by word of mouth. For the holy Spirit and we have decided not to lay upon you any burden but this indispensable one, that you avoid whatever has been sacrificed to idols, the tasting of blood and of the meat of animals that have been strangled, and immorality. Keep yourselves free from these things and you will get on well. Goodbye."

there is but one God, and he will make the circumcised upright on the ground of their faith and the uncircumcised upright because of theirs."

I hold that Christ has become an agent of circumcision to show God's truthfulness in carrying out the promises made to our forefathers,

Here, what matters is not "Greek" and "Jew," the circumcised and the uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, freeborn, but Christ is everything and in us all.

Through your relation to him you have received not a physical circumcision, but a circumcision effected by Christ, in stripping you of your material nature,

Through your relation to him you have received not a physical circumcision, but a circumcision effected by Christ, in stripping you of your material nature,

The real Jew is the man who is one inwardly, and real circumcision is a matter of the heart, a spiritual, not a literal, thing. Such a man receives his praise not from men, but from God.

The Jewish believers who had come with Peter were amazed because the gift of the holy Spirit had been showered upon the heathen too,

there is but one God, and he will make the circumcised upright on the ground of their faith and the uncircumcised upright because of theirs."

and when Peter returned to Jerusalem, the advocates of circumcision took him to task,

Does this happiness apply to those who are circumcised, or to those who are uncircumcised as well? What we say is, Abraham's faith was credited to him as uprightness.

The Jewish believers who had come with Peter were amazed because the gift of the holy Spirit had been showered upon the heathen too,

For there are many undisciplined people, who deceive themselves with their empty talk, especially those of the party of circumcision.

So remember that you were once physically heathen, and called uncircumcised by those who called themselves circumcised, though only physically, by human hands.

and when Peter returned to Jerusalem, the advocates of circumcision took him to task,

And he made the agreement of circumcision with him, and so Abraham became the father of Isaac and circumcised him on the eighth day, and Isaac became the father of Jacob, and Jacob of the twelve patriarchs.

What advantage is there then in being a Jew, and what is the use of circumcision?

and he was afterward given the mark of circumcision as the stamp of God's acknowledgment of the uprightness based on faith that was his before he was circumcised, so that he should be the forefather of all who, without being circumcised, have faith and so are credited with uprightness,

nor are they all children of Abraham because they are descended from him, but he was told, "The line of Isaac will be called your descendants." That is to say, it is not his physical descendants who are children of God, but his descendants born in fulfilment of the promise who are considered his true posterity. For this is what the promise said: "When I come back at this time next year, Sarah will have a son." read more.
And that is not all, for there was Rebecca too, when she was about to bear twin sons to our forefather Isaac. For before the children were born or had done anything either good or bad, in order to carry out God's purpose of selection, which depends not on what men do but on his calling them, she was told, "The elder will be the younger's slave." As the Scripture says, "I loved Jacob, but I hated Esau."

He said, "It is not right to take the children's bread and throw it to the dogs!" But she said, "O yes, sir! For even dogs eat the scraps that fall from their masters' table!"

And he made the agreement of circumcision with him, and so Abraham became the father of Isaac and circumcised him on the eighth day, and Isaac became the father of Jacob, and Jacob of the twelve patriarchs.

and he was afterward given the mark of circumcision as the stamp of God's acknowledgment of the uprightness based on faith that was his before he was circumcised, so that he should be the forefather of all who, without being circumcised, have faith and so are credited with uprightness,

Yet Moses gave you the rite of circumcision??ot that it began with Moses but with your forefathers??nd you practice it even on the Sabbath.

For in union with Christ Jesus, neither circumcision nor the want of it counts for anything, but only faith acting through love.

For neither circumcision nor the want of it is of any importance, but only a new creation.

Being circumcised or being uncircumcised does not make any difference; all that matters is keeping God's commands.

As we have heard that some of our number, without any instructions from us, have disturbed you by their teaching and unsettled your minds,

For there are many undisciplined people, who deceive themselves with their empty talk, especially those of the party of circumcision.

These men who are trying to force you to let yourselves be circumcised want to present a good appearance externally, to save themselves from having to stand persecution for the cross of Jesus the Christ.

and he said to them, "You know that it is against the Law for a Jew to associate with a foreigner or to visit one; but God has taught me not to call anyone vulgar or unclean.

charging him with having visited and eaten with men who were not Jews.

For until some people came from James, he used to eat with the heathen, but after they came, he began to draw back and hold aloof, for fear of the party of circumcision.

I hold that Christ has become an agent of circumcision to show God's truthfulness in carrying out the promises made to our forefathers, and causing the heathen to praise God for his mercy; as the Scripture says, "I will give thanks to you for this among the heathen, And sing in honor of your name."

Take care that nobody exploits you through the pretensions of philosophy, guided by human tradition, following material ways of looking at things, instead of following Christ. For it is in him that all the fulness of God's nature lives embodied, and in union with him you too are filled with it. He is the head of all your principalities and dominions. read more.
Through your relation to him you have received not a physical circumcision, but a circumcision effected by Christ, in stripping you of your material nature, when in your baptism you were buried with him, and raised to life with him through your faith in the power of God who raised him from the dead. Yes, you who were dead through your misdeeds and physically uncircumcised, God raised to life with Christ. He forgave us all our misdeeds, canceled the bond which stood against us, with its requirements, and put it out of our way when he nailed it to the cross. He disarmed the principalities and dominions and displayed them openly, triumphing over them through him.

Through your relation to him you have received not a physical circumcision, but a circumcision effected by Christ, in stripping you of your material nature,

We are the true circumcision, who worship God by his Spirit, priding ourselves only on Christ Jesus, and not relying on physical advantages,

For the real Jew is not the man who is one outwardly, and the real circumcision is not something physical and external. The real Jew is the man who is one inwardly, and real circumcision is a matter of the heart, a spiritual, not a literal, thing. Such a man receives his praise not from men, but from God.

We are the true circumcision, who worship God by his Spirit, priding ourselves only on Christ Jesus, and not relying on physical advantages,

Being circumcised or being uncircumcised does not make any difference; all that matters is keeping God's commands.

Circumcision will help you only if you observe the Law; but if you are a lawbreaker, you might as well be uncircumcised.

Are you so senseless? Did you begin with the Spirit only to end now with the flesh?

I insist again to any man who lets himself be circumcised, that he is under obligation to obey the whole Law. You people who propose to be made upright by law have finished with Christ; you have lost your hold upon God's favor.

and through his human nature put an end to the feud between us, and abolished the Law with its rules and regulations, in order to make peace and create out of the two parties one new man by uniting them with himself,

So remember that you were once physically heathen, and called uncircumcised by those who called themselves circumcised, though only physically, by human hands.

I was circumcised when I was eight days old. I am a descendant of Israel. I belong to the tribe of Benjamin. I am a Hebrew, and the son of Hebrews. As to the Law, I was a Pharisee;

and he was afterward given the mark of circumcision as the stamp of God's acknowledgment of the uprightness based on faith that was his before he was circumcised, so that he should be the forefather of all who, without being circumcised, have faith and so are credited with uprightness,

For in union with Christ Jesus, neither circumcision nor the want of it counts for anything, but only faith acting through love.

there is but one God, and he will make the circumcised upright on the ground of their faith and the uncircumcised upright because of theirs."

The Jewish believers who had come with Peter were amazed because the gift of the holy Spirit had been showered upon the heathen too,

Yet Moses gave you the rite of circumcision??ot that it began with Moses but with your forefathers??nd you practice it even on the Sabbath.

On the eighth day they came to circumcise the child, and they were going to name him Zechariah, after his father.

When he was eight days old and it was time to circumcise him, he was named Jesus, as the angel had named him, before his birth was first expected.

For the promise made to Abraham and his descendants that the world should belong to him did not come to him or his descendants through the Law, but through the uprightness that resulted from his faith.

Does this happiness apply to those who are circumcised, or to those who are uncircumcised as well? What we say is, Abraham's faith was credited to him as uprightness.

Circumcision will help you only if you observe the Law; but if you are a lawbreaker, you might as well be uncircumcised.

For the real Jew is not the man who is one outwardly, and the real circumcision is not something physical and external.

Why, even those who let themselves be circumcised do not observe the Law themselves! But they want you to let yourselves be circumcised so that they can boast of that physical fact about you!

and he was afterward given the mark of circumcision as the stamp of God's acknowledgment of the uprightness based on faith that was his before he was circumcised, so that he should be the forefather of all who, without being circumcised, have faith and so are credited with uprightness,

Circumcision will help you only if you observe the Law; but if you are a lawbreaker, you might as well be uncircumcised. So if people who are uncircumcised observe the requirements of the Law, will they not be treated as though they were circumcised? And if, although they are physically uncircumcised, they obey the Law, they will condemn you, who break the Law, although you have it in writing, and are circumcised. read more.
For the real Jew is not the man who is one outwardly, and the real circumcision is not something physical and external. The real Jew is the man who is one inwardly, and real circumcision is a matter of the heart, a spiritual, not a literal, thing. Such a man receives his praise not from men, but from God.

Look out for those dogs, those mischief-makers, with their amputation!

But they did not insist that even my companion Titus, although he was a Greek, should be circumcised, to gratify the false brothers who had been smuggled in, who sneaked in to spy upon the freedom we enjoy in Christ Jesus, so as to reduce us to slavery again. But we did not submit to them for a moment, in order that the truth of the good news might remain yours.

So remember that you were once physically heathen, and called uncircumcised by those who called themselves circumcised, though only physically, by human hands.

Circumcision will help you only if you observe the Law; but if you are a lawbreaker, you might as well be uncircumcised. So if people who are uncircumcised observe the requirements of the Law, will they not be treated as though they were circumcised? And if, although they are physically uncircumcised, they obey the Law, they will condemn you, who break the Law, although you have it in writing, and are circumcised.

I insist again to any man who lets himself be circumcised, that he is under obligation to obey the whole Law.

Her neighbors and relatives heard of the great mercy the Lord had shown her, and they came and congratulated her. On the eighth day they came to circumcise the child, and they were going to name him Zechariah, after his father. But his mother said, "No! He is to be named John." read more.
They said to her, "There is no one among your relatives who bears that name."

Yet Moses gave you the rite of circumcision??ot that it began with Moses but with your forefathers??nd you practice it even on the Sabbath. But if a person undergoes circumcision on a Sabbath, to avoid breaking the Law of Moses, are you angry at me for making a man perfectly well on a Sabbath?

For the real Jew is not the man who is one outwardly, and the real circumcision is not something physical and external.

The real Jew is the man who is one inwardly, and real circumcision is a matter of the heart, a spiritual, not a literal, thing. Such a man receives his praise not from men, but from God.

They have been told that you teach all Jews who live among the heathen to turn away from Moses, and that you tell them not to circumcise their children nor to observe the old customs.

Paul wished to take this man on with him, and so on account of the Jews in that district he had him circumcised, for they all knew that his father was a Greek.

And he made the agreement of circumcision with him, and so Abraham became the father of Isaac and circumcised him on the eighth day, and Isaac became the father of Jacob, and Jacob of the twelve patriarchs.

But if a person undergoes circumcision on a Sabbath, to avoid breaking the Law of Moses, are you angry at me for making a man perfectly well on a Sabbath?

Then why do you now try to test God, by putting on the necks of these disciples a yoke that neither our forefathers nor we have been able to bear?

On the eighth day they came to circumcise the child, and they were going to name him Zechariah, after his father.

Paul wished to take this man on with him, and so on account of the Jews in that district he had him circumcised, for they all knew that his father was a Greek.

When he was eight days old and it was time to circumcise him, he was named Jesus, as the angel had named him, before his birth was first expected.

I was circumcised when I was eight days old. I am a descendant of Israel. I belong to the tribe of Benjamin. I am a Hebrew, and the son of Hebrews. As to the Law, I was a Pharisee;

We are the true circumcision, who worship God by his Spirit, priding ourselves only on Christ Jesus, and not relying on physical advantages,

Some people came down from Judea and began to teach the brothers that unless they were circumcised as Moses prescribed, they could not be saved.

When he was eight days old and it was time to circumcise him, he was named Jesus, as the angel had named him, before his birth was first expected.

and he was afterward given the mark of circumcision as the stamp of God's acknowledgment of the uprightness based on faith that was his before he was circumcised, so that he should be the forefather of all who, without being circumcised, have faith and so are credited with uprightness,

Through your relation to him you have received not a physical circumcision, but a circumcision effected by Christ, in stripping you of your material nature,

The real Jew is the man who is one inwardly, and real circumcision is a matter of the heart, a spiritual, not a literal, thing. Such a man receives his praise not from men, but from God.