Genesis 17:13-14

17:13 They must indeed be circumcised, ¹  whether born in your house or bought with money. The sign of my covenant ²  will be visible in your flesh as a permanent ³  reminder. 17:14 Any uncircumcised male ⁴  who has not been circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin will be cut off ⁵  from his people – he has failed to carry out my requirement.” ⁶ 

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¹ tn The emphatic construction employs the Niphal imperfect tense (collective singular) and the Niphal infinitive.

² tn Heb “my covenant.” Here in v. 13 the Hebrew word בְּרִית (bÿrit) refers to the outward, visible sign, or reminder, of the covenant. For the range of meaning of the term, see the note on the word “requirement” in v. 9.

³ tn Or “an eternal.”

⁴ tn The disjunctive clause calls attention to the “uncircumcised male” and what will happen to him.

⁵ tn Heb “that person will be cut off.” The words “that person” have not been included in the translation for stylistic reasons.

sn The meaning of “cut off” has been discussed at great length. An entire tractate in the Mishnah is devoted to this subject (tractate Keritot). Being ostracized from the community is involved at the least, but it is not certain whether this refers to the death penalty.

⁶ tn Heb “he has broken my covenant.” The noun בְּרִית (bÿrit) here refers to the obligation required by God in conjunction with the covenantal agreement. For the range of meaning of the term, see the note on the word “requirement” in v. 9.