Transcript

Week 3 (Days 015-021): Why was circumcision the sign of the covenant?

From The Bible Recap · Episode page · Watch on YouTube

· 39 min · 6,972 words · 131 timestamped sections

This is the full, timestamped transcript of "Week 3 (Days 015-021): Why was circumcision the sign of the covenant?", an episode of The Bible Recap published January 21, 2026 (39 min, about 6,972 words). It mentions 16 people, works and ideas, including God, Job, Terry Lee Cobble, Abram, Genesis.

What this episode is about

The discussion explores the concept of restoration in the story of Job, particularly in Job 42:10, highlighting that the term "restore" refers more to Job's material fortunes rather than the emotional loss of his children. The conversation emphasizes the complexities of this idea, especially for those who have experienced similar personal tragedies, and seeks to provide understanding and comfort regarding the narrative of suffering and restoration in the biblical context.

Key takeaways

  • Job's restoration reveals that blessings don't erase grief—they coexist in life's complex tapestry.
  • The restoration in Job's story is about material fortunes, not the irreplaceable souls lost to grief.
  • Expecting perfection in this life invites disappointment; true restoration awaits in the eternal embrace of God.
  • God's mercy to Job illustrates divine sovereignty, but individual stories of loss and response vary widely.
  • True wholeness transcends earthly restoration—it's the hope of a future where every tear is wiped away.

Who speaks in this episode?

What is discussed, and when

  1. – 5:00: Job, God, Terry Lee Cobble, Emma Daughter
  2. – 10:00: Abram, Melchizedek, Cheddar Mur, Sodom
  3. – 15:00: Genesis, Covenant, Terry Lee Cobble, Emma Daughter
  4. – 20:00: Israel, God, Genesis, Covenant
  5. – 25:00: Covenant, Circumcision, Genesis, Israel
  6. – 30:00: Covenant, Circumcision, Genesis, Kirsten McCloskey
  7. – 35:00: Genesis, God, Emma Daughter, Circumcision
  8. – 38:51: Genesis

Notable quotes from "Week 3 (Days 015-021): Why was circumcision the sign of the covenant?"

  • The question reads from one of our recaptains. I'm getting hung up on the word restore in the story of Job. To restore means to make whole or to make new again. Job suffered, including the loss of his children. Sure, he was given.
    about Job · at
  • And this is specifically from Genesis 14:20 and the question is why does Abraham give Melkchisedc a tenth of his stuff?
    about Abram · at
  • With what you're just talking about. So, so another view would say, hey, the land was uniquely important, not solely for Israel's sake. And when I say Israel there, that's…
    about Israel · at
  • The third view is that the land is pointing beyond itself. beyond. It's not about the land as just land. Hebrews 11:10 says, Abram was looking forward to a city with foundations whose architect and builder is God.
    about Hebrews · at
  • They just didn't carry the specific sign of this covenant on their bodies the way that the men did. Circumcision was a physical sign of God's covenant. It was the way that Abraham and his offspring were set apart as God's chosen people.
    about Covenant · at
  • I was thinking, Kirsten, about what you said at the very beginning about the women.
    about Kirsten McCloskey · at
  • Different views on this, but let me just give a quick refresher of where we're at in the story and then Emma, why don't you unpack these views for us? Sure thing.
    about Emma Daughter · at
  • So Jacob suddenly in this moment realizes that the God of his fathers has met him personally. And that kind of encounter shook him. It humbled him.
    about God · at

Who and what is mentioned in this episode?

People

  • Job — Person · Biblical figure discussed (core example) · 3 mentions · first at
    Central to the first Q&A: what 'restore' means in Job 42:10 and how restoration relates to grief and loss.
  • Terry Lee Cobble — Person · Main guest · 2 mentions · first at
    Featured guest who helps answer listener questions about Job, Abram/Abraham, Melchizedek, covenants, and Jacob.
    Hey Bible readers, I'm Emma Daughter. I'm Kirsten McCloskey. And here with us today, you know her and you love her, Terry Lee Cobble.
  • Abram — Person · Biblical figure discussed (core example) · 2 mentions · first at
    Key to Genesis Q&As: gives a tenth to Melchizedek, receives land covenant promises, and is discussed as a model of worshipful giving.
  • Kirsten McCloskey — Person · Host / co-host · 4 mentions · first at
    Co-host who reads passages, frames questions, and adds interpretive points (e.g., covenant sign vs covenant itself).
  • Emma Daughter — Person · Host / co-host · 3 mentions · first at
    Introduces the episode and participates in answering questions, offering application and reflections (generosity, fear of the Lord, etc.).
  • Melchizedek — Person · Biblical figure discussed (supporting but significant) · 2 mentions · first at
    Discussed as 'king of Salem' and 'priest of God Most High'; used to explain Abram's tenth and NT linkage in Hebrews 7.
    King of Sodom went out to meet him at the valley of Shabba, that is the king's valley. And MelkiseDC, king of Salem, brought out bread and wine. He was the priest of God most…
  • Sir Mix a Lot — Person · Biblical figure referenced (supporting) · 1 mention · first at
    Mentioned as the person Abram rescued, providing narrative context for the spoils Abram later gives a tenth of.
    Name your first child, please. Abram rescued Lot. He defeated the kings. He meets MelkiseDC who's this mysterious king of Salem. We don't know much about him. The priest of God most high.
  • Cheddar Mur — Person · Referenced figure (likely mis-transcription of a biblical king) · 2 mentions · first at
    Named as the defeated enemy in the Genesis 14 battle context; appears to be a phonetic rendering of Chedorlaomer.
    Just so we can kind of get into the story here. So after his Abram<unk>'s return from the defeat of Cheddar Mur and the kings who were with him, the king of Sodom went out to…

Books & papers

  • Genesis — Book · Referenced work · 11 mentions · first at
    Frequently referenced book of the Bible providing context for discussions on covenants and biblical figures.
    We should. Okay. Our next question comes from day 15 and this is specifically from Genesis 14:20 and the question is why does Abraham give Melkchisedc a tenth of his stuff?
  • Hebrews — Book · Referenced work · 2 mentions · first at
    Referenced to provide New Testament commentary on Old Testament events.
  • Revelation — Book · Referenced work · 1 mention · first at
    Referenced to discuss the ultimate fulfillment of God's promises.
    So, I think Job's I see Job's restoration pointing us forward to something even greater, the day when God will wipe away every tear from our eyes and make all things new.

Concepts & topics

  • God — Concept · Core topic · 3 mentions · first at
    Central theme of the episode, discussing God's character, promises, and interactions with biblical figures.
  • Covenant — Concept · Key argument · 13 mentions · first at
    Discussed as a central biblical concept, especially in relation to God's promises to Abraham.
  • Circumcision — Concept · Key argument · 9 mentions · first at
    Discussed as a sign of God's covenant with Abraham and its significance.
    So women would share in the covenant blessings just as much as the men would because they had a place in Abraham's family. So I thought, hey, circumcision, it marks the men as the.
  • Israel — Concept · Key argument · 6 mentions · first at
    Discussed in the context of God's promises and the land given to Abraham's descendants.

Places & events

  • Sodom — Place · Setting · 2 mentions · first at
    Mentioned in the context of biblical stories involving Abraham and Lot.
    Story here. So after his Abram<unk>'s return from the defeat of Cheddar Mur and the kings who were with him, the king of Sodom went out to meet him at the valley of Shabba…

Full transcript with timestamps

Hey Bible readers, I'm Emma Daughter. I'm Kirsten McCloskey. And here with us today, you know her and you love her, Terry Lee Cobble.

Hey Bible readers, welcome back Terry Lee. Great to be back here. Got some good questions.

I'm excited to talk about it. The first one comes from day 15. It's a general job question. Mhm.

The question reads from one of our recaptains. I'm getting hung up on the word restore in the story of Job. To restore means to make whole or to make new again. Job suffered, including the loss of his children. Sure, he was given new ones, but how can that be considered restored? As someone who has lost a child, I struggle with this idea. I don't feel restored. Job 42:10 reads, "The Lord restored the fortunes of Job when he had prayed for his friends. And the Lord gave Job twice as much as he had before."

Okay. So, first of all, I just want to say for the person who wrote this question in, thank you for your vulnerability.

Thank you for asking this and for genuinely wanting to know the answer and for kind of struggling through what this looks like for you. So, uh, we just really appreciate that and hopefully some of the information that we have and the way that we are going to unpack this will be a help to you. So, thank you for your question. Um, so this is coming out of again Job 42:10. And what I want to be clear about is that where the word restore comes in in this verse is actually about the fortunes of Job. So just to read that again, it says, "The Lord restored the fortunes of Job." And then the second part says, "And the Lord gave Job twice as much as he had before." And so I think with this story really what we're seeing is the restoration is more with the physical aspects of what Job lost. and the blessing would be that he has more children and is able to see them and love them and and that is a blessing,

but that's not where the restoration is necessarily coming from. So even just that might be kind of a helpful distinction. Um so I think maybe the author is making making a point that fortunes, wealth, material possessions, it's possible for those to be restored. the loss of people and the grief that comes with that that does not fall under this category I don't think um

this side of eternity right yeah um but there can be blessings and so I think again that's where we see that God blessed Job with his children uh but I I don't think that that would fall under this restoration piece

so which I think is probably a comfort to the person reading this and asking this because they might feel like that restored that I feel like there's this gap that God did this for Job. Why isn't God doing this for me? And so I think that is a really helpful thing to point out.

Yeah. Yeah. Job's story didn't end with a simple replacement. Yes. The like the recaptain who asked this like you're right because a new child could never replace the the child that he had lost or the children that he had lost. It's not a one for one.

And I think it's really important to recognize restoration in the biblical sense isn't about erasing grief or erasing what was lost or undoing the past.

Oh, amen. That's such a good point. It's it's God's ability to bring blessing and healing and even joy after loss, after suffering, after grief without denying the reality of what was experienced. So,

it can mean an increase or a renewal. You can lose a child and experience grief and then have more children and that will bring joy but it doesn't wait it doesn't take away the grief that was initially experienced and that will probably come in come in waves throughout the rest of life on this earth.

Uh so I think Job's I don't I don't think we see this in the text. Job's I can say this with confidence. We know Job's later blessings showed God's faithfulness that that he saw him

but they didn't erase the pain of his earlier suffering. And even if God hadn't given him those those blessings at the end of the story, God would have still been faithful. Yeah.

Because he he tells us there were suffering, his goodness isn't determined by our circumstances.

Uh some scholars look at this restoration of Job at the end and they they'd say, "Hey, this is a sign of mercy,

not a reversal of history." I think that language is helpful. Like this is God going above and beyond to show, hey, I I'm God. I'm in control. I am merciful. Uh, but being restored isn't the same thing as being perfected, which is what we long for when we experience loss and whatever comes afterward doesn't seem to make up for what we've lost.

So, I think Job's I I see Job's restoration pointing us forward to to something even greater, the day when God will wipe away every tear from our eyes and make all things new. Revelation 21 4 and 5. So in this life now, restoration can look like God's provision giving us more children,

but it can also look like his comfort and grace to keep us going. But perfection, the wholeness that our hearts long for,

that that's complete restoration and that awaits all believers when we're in his presence at the end of our lives on this earth or when he returns.

Yeah. And that's such a good distinction because especially when we're dealing with something like death specifically, that is just not going to be able to be restored on this side of eternity. And so if we're looking for that restoration like what you're talking about, if we're looking for that perfection here, we're just constantly going to be disappointed and confused. And I think it's important for us to not look at Job's story as the way that everything is going to happen for all of us.

Exactly. We are. This is just the story of one man's circumstances. We're all we're going to see different stories as we continue to read scripture of other people experiencing loss in ways that God responded differently. What we're looking for here is not a mathematical equation of how things will go when things are hard for you. We're looking for the character of God. And we see in this the character of God is to bless.

Y I think that's a really good distinction. Yeah. Should we move on to the next question?

We should. Okay. Our next question comes from day 15 and this is specifically from Genesis 14:20 and the question is why does Abraham give Melkchisedc a tenth of his stuff?

I love it phrased that way. Was he tithing? Yeah. Of his stuff. So uh this comes from again Genesis 14:20, but I'm going to start in 14:17 just so we can kind of get into the story here. So after his Abram<unk>'s return from the defeat of Cheddar Mur and the kings who were with him, the king of Sodom went out to meet him at the valley of Shabba, that is the king's valley. And MelkiseDC, king of Salem, brought out bread and wine. He was the priest of God most high. And he blessed him and said, "Blessed be Abram by Godmost high, possessor of heaven and earth. And blessed be God most high, who has delivered your enemies into your hand." And Abram gave him a tenth of everything.

There's a lot going on there. There's a lot going on there. Cheddar. Yeah, that was great.

I think I said that right. I think you did. Sounds like a restaurant. Name your first child, please. Uh, Abram rescued Lot. He defeated the kings. He meets MelkiseDC who's this mysterious king of Salem. We don't know much about him. The priest of God most high. MelkiseDC blessed Abram.

And then Abram's like, "Let me give you a tenth of the spoils of the battle." That's that's the stuff.

His stuff. So the question, was Abram tithing here? We could say no, at least not in the formal sense, pretty definitively because the law of Moses had not yet been established, right? So the um principle of you've got to give 10% did not yet exist. It wasn't established for centuries.

Yeah. Later at Cyani, that's Leviticus 27:30 through32 in Numbers 18:21. So what Abram's doing here is more like a a voluntary act of worship,

not a I got to keep the law and give my 10% obligatory kind of response. Voluntary act of worship. So MelkiseDC as God's priest is God's priest or the the priest of God most high. And so by giving a tenth, Abram was declaring this victory, these possessions I just acquired, they came from God. They they didn't come they didn't come from me. So his gift was a way of honoring God as the true source of blessing. And

the New Testament comments on this moment in Hebrews 7 showing MelkiseDC foreshadowing Jesus as our eternal high priest. There's a lot of views mixed in there to that that statement. Uh but ultimately Abram's tithe then in light of Hebrews 7 points us to the bigger truth that giving back to God is never about a rule or rule keeping. It shouldn't be motivated by ruleing. It's about recognizing who he is and what he's done and then responding in worship.

Right? This gratitude that Abram's demonstrating here, it's this humble gratitude. It's not stingy. It does not have a scarcity mentality. Gratitude to be able to give of something that isn't asked of you.

Uh that isn't even expected of you. I think it's just it's so beautiful. And uh one of the things that I love as I've been just studying passages about um how God tells us to think is when we when we have gratitude as a system in our in our brain, the way we work um it actually changes your brain.

Yeah. And so does complaining. Complaining changes your brain. The way we think both ways, right? It can rewire everything. And so one of the best ways to change your thoughts is to change your actions. And so when I don't particularly want to be generous, that's the most important time probably for me to actually give, to be uh sacrificial, to show gratitude, and um to consider others as more important than myself. And uh

it's kind of an act of war against my fear that God won't provide. And um that's sort of stepping out of this a little bit and talking about

more like how do I cultivate a heart of generosity, right? Yeah. And so even when we're even if you don't believe in tithing, gratitude and generosity are still a thing that that God wants his people to demonstrate. And I love that we get this before the law is brought,

right? We see that this is how God's people are conducting themselves. Yeah. And Abram can give us a great example of that. Yeah. Because I agree with you, Emma and Turley, that this is this is not tithing as in the way that the Old Testament like the Israelites are going to think about tithing or the way that probably Christians think about tithing just because Abram has no sense of this at this point. But it was giving as a response to the victory that Abram was recognizing that God gave to him.

And so it's it's Abram responding to God's blessing. God's provision and God's protection. And I feel like that as we're kind of bringing it a little bit to application for us, that's one of the principles of tithing that

God is the reason that we have anything to give and he's the reason that we're successful in anything. The reason that we have exist Yeah. that we have any provision.

And so without him, we truly have nothing. And that's a really important thing to remind ourselves of that without God, we truly have nothing. And so we should be giving out of all the things that God has given to us. Um, and yeah, there's lots of different opinions about tithing and in the New Testament and in the church today and how we're supposed to do that. But I think this principle that Abram is giving us this example for so early on is God is generous and we are going to give from that generosity and giving is incredibly important for Christians.

Yeah. Yeah. Um, I remember as a child in church, we didn't have an allowance as children and so I didn't have anything to tithe from, but I remember sitting beside my mom in church and she would hand me money to put in the offering plate, like just not their full tithe, but she would give me some some coins. And it felt so good to do that. Like I was like, I love this.

Yeah. And it felt better than if she had just given me the coins. it felt better for me to be able to give them. And I love that my parents from a young age were training at this heart of generosity and this um act of giving because that was probably going to become harder when it was me giving of things that were my own

and it was actually a sacrifice of something that was my own. Um but I love I love just seeing God's generosity, the generosity of the people of God. Um and just this act of worship that Abram demonstrates here.

Yeah. Yeah. That's very interesting. All right. Well said. Should we move on to the next question?

Let's do it. All right. Our next question. This one comes from day 16. It's from Genesis 15:8. The question is, why did God make a covenant about land? Why was land such a big deal? Or was it d right? Uh so let's look at the verses that this is anchored in. Um, the question comes from Genesis 15:8, but we're going to back up to Genesis 12 1-3 to get the context. The Lord said to Abram, "Go from your country and your kindred and your father's house to the land that I will show you, and I will make you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you, I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed." So that's Genesis 12 1-3.

We'll go forward to Genesis 15:7-8 where the question is anchored. He said to him, "I am the Lord who brought you out from of the Calaldanss to give you this land to possess." But he said, "Oh Lord God, how am I to know that I shall possess it?"

Okay, so love the story. There's a lot going on. Mhm. Abram's basically being really relatable in this moment because he's like, "God, how will I actually know

that I'm I'm going to get this land?" And as the story goes, God makes this covenant literally passing through sacrificed animals that were cut in half, literally chopped in half to guarantee his promise.

But that I I could see that could lead this recap into wondering like why was the land such a big deal? Why? Why was that the thing that prompted Abraham to ask God, "How will I know what's going on?" Not, "Hey, you and your really old wife are going to have a ton of kids." Like,

yeah, interesting. The land is what he what he questioned. And so, one view is that the land was central because it represented security and provision, which think about culture in the ancient world,

land meant survival. like land equals you will live. Food, water, protection, you're covered. So for Abram's descendants, the land was tied to God's tangible blessing, not just their identity as his people.

Yeah. Well, and can I just say pop in one thing there. Remember God, what Taylor just read for us? God had asked Abram to leave where he was. So it's like,

okay, God, well, I'm going to need you to give me this land kind of, you know. So I think that makes a lot of sense with with what you're just talking about. So, so another view would say, hey, the land was uniquely important, not solely for Israel's sake. And when I say Israel there, that's referring to Abram's immediate descendants, specifically the nation that would immediately come from Abraham's line. Think within the context of the Old Testament, that time period,

but rather the land was significant for God's broader plan for Israel, cover to cover. So not solely for Israel but also both and

yes future present old testament yeah or past old testament for us and present future Israel. So it's the stage where God's people would live under God's rule and display God's glory to the surrounding nations. So from this angle it wasn't just real estate. This was like the stage for God's mission through Israel.

Yeah. The third view is that the land is pointing beyond itself. beyond. It's not about the land as just land. Uh Hebrews 11:10 says, "Abram was looking forward to a city with foundations whose architect and builder is God."

So in other words, this view would say the promise of the land anticipates something greater, God's eternal kingdom. The land was real and important,

but maybe it wasn't the end goal in and of itself. So, Christians don't always agree on exactly how this land promise plays out. If you didn't know,

these three views, these three views, and there's maybe some variations, maybe a few more. Uh, some focus on the more literal ongoing role for the land itself, while others focus on the promise of God ultimately fulfilled in his kingdom, maybe even through believers, like gentile believers. But instead of dividing us, this this should remind us of something that's much deeper and really more important than the specifics. And it's that no matter how we parse the details,

God is covenant keeping and he can be trusted. So, however God intended this to play out is how it is playing out and will play out and has played out in the past. Our hope isn't in geography, but in him. And every believer, no matter where you fall or if you even have an opinion on the land promise,

can rest that God keeps his promises and he knows all. We don't. Yeah. My pastor recently said, "Don't confuse a biblical conversation about Israel and land with a political conversation about Israel and land."

And and I think that's really helpful because in this context in Genesis 12, we're not talking about modern day Israel. We're talking about Abraham. And Abraham's asking this question because he's wrestling with with something and that's really relatable. All of us have moments where we wrestle with things God has said to be true and we doubt.

Yh. Yep. And I think one one thing just kind of as we're unpacking this that can be helpful for us as we're at the beginning of reading through the Bible starting with the Old Testament is we need to balance meeting these people where they're at. So meeting Abram in this place where he's asking God, hey, you made me leave my land, so what are you going to do about this land that you promised me

and then us on the other side who get to see so much more of of the fuller picture. So it's

there are implications. You're right. Yes, there are implications, but it can also be it's like a fun place to kind of try to put yourself in the story where they're at all the while also knowing how some of the the things are going to play out. So I think I'll answer this kind of more from like maybe a personal perspective on my end is

I think there is something about the land that's a big deal. That would be my personal perspective because God chose the promised land to be the place where his people would live where they would display his kingdom to the nations. So this is where God's kingdom was going to be and it was meant to then fill the whole earth just in the same way that from the garden they were meant to go out and fill the whole earth. So that's where we're seeing that kind of tied to the land. But the land was supposed to just be the starting point. Like it's not this hoarding ground that we kind of start to see maybe a little bit too much of a tight-fisted grasp on it potentially. Um, it was supposed to be a jumping off point where the nations would see how wonderful and glorious Yahweh was and they would be drawn to it and they would go out from it. So, I I definitely think there's something there about Yeah. Like I think it was

important. It was given to Abraham and his descendants, but again, maybe we're we can't see the whole picture. Does that make sense?

Oh, yeah. I I even wrestle with this is a thing that like my understanding of it and my view of it continues to develop over time and even having having gone to Israel many times.

Whenever I read the passage in scripture that refers to it as the most glorious of all lands, I'm like yes,

yes it is. Like it is double circles. I just am blown away every time I go to that actual and I've seen a lot of the world

and I'm like maybe God does like this place like maybe it is his favorite. Um anyway, that's just

Yeah. No, I think just adding a little color commentary. Yeah, I love that. Okay, so two things that I want to kind of just bring up to sort of land the plane for us. Again, these are more from my personal standpoint as I was thinking about this. Um, and I think it's really kind of this it helps me see a few things. So, first, God always had a plan for the world, which includes phys physical aspects like where his people were going to live.

And this plan was to establish his rule and reign and display his glory throughout the earth. So, I kind of touched on that before, but that really like there's a reason for why God did this. And then two, it actually really helps me marvel at this plan and especially something like how specific God was in his call to Abraham. And he knew God knew where he wanted Abraham to go and why. Abraham might not have, you know, known at this point the whole the whole story. Um, and I think it's just really comforting to me that as God established the way that he was going to work with his people, he did it through these very specific ways in the very specific ways he called his people. And so it just kind of helps me enjoy the big picture of what's going on, right?

Yeah. Yeah. It's good. Shall we move on to our next question? I think we shall.

This one comes from day 17, Genesis 17:10-11. And the question reads, "Why did God make circumcision the sign of his covenant? Does that mean women weren't recipients of God's covenant promises?" And the passage again is Genesis 17:10-11, which reads, "This is my covenant which you shall keep between me and you and your offspring after you. Every male among you shall be circumcised. You shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and you." Okay. Well, first things first, let me be very clear that women were also 100% full recipients of God's covenant promises. Okay, so that's we can just deal with the last part of that. So women were 100% in the covenant. They are part of the covenant people of God.

They just didn't carry the specific sign of this covenant on their bodies the way that the men did. Circumcision was a physical sign of God's covenant. It was the way that Abraham and his offspring were set apart as God's chosen people. So the way that they were kind of like signified that that's that's who they were. And what's interesting about this is there seems to be some significance because this sign is connected to the reproductive organ. M

and so God had promised that God himself would multiply Abraham's and Sarah's offspring. And so the fruitfulness and the blessing that would come through a child that they would have this circumcision sign was supposed to be a reminder of that. That's hard to say.

Circumcision sign. I've heard uh and and I this is an interesting thought, but I've heard a scholar talk about how the fact that this is uh a sign that's connected to a reproductive organ.

And the fact that God calls his people to not reproduce with people who aren't his people

would mean that anytime a man was engaging in sexual activity with a woman who was not one of God's people,

both of them would be aware. Okay. Interesting. That there was a there was a difference. And so it would be this reminder in that moment

like this is not what you're supposed to do. And so it was um a a sign of the covenant and also a physical reminder to them regularly that that God had special laws for them

and um special commandments. That's also it's also interesting because if if you have the person who's walking in promiscuity, then yes, both pe both parties engaged know that it's wrong. But if you're not making that choice, it's hidden. It's covered. It's not like a tattoo or

dying your hair purple. Like no one could see on the outside that this was the case. And and I think that's interesting because

the covenant was about the heart just as much as the body. Deuteronomy 10:16. And so there's also something to Okay, the women didn't didn't have it, but it wasn't supposed to be, hey, look at me. I'm marked, right? It was a very private intimate thing because God's covenant was personal with his people and the women were part of the that people.

Yeah, that's that's very good point. I think there's also potentially some significance with the cutting away which could either be about sin or it could also be those that would be cut off from the covenant if they broke it. So, we see that mentioned in Genesis 17:14 where it says, "Any uncircumcised male who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin shall be cut off from his people. He has broken my covenant." So, there there's a lot I think there's some variety about how to think about this specific sign. And again, we are so far removed from

the specific cultural context in which this was first given and initiated. And so it just can be helpful to kind of remember like, yeah, we some of this stuff as we're reading through is maybe not going to be crystal clear as we're going through and thinking about it. So

Abram might be like listening to this podcast later and be like, oh my goodness,

oh my god, I can't believe you said that. You're like, if you have any thoughts totally wrong, girls,

give me a mic. I love that. Yeah. I was thinking, Kirsten, about what you said at the very beginning about the women.

Yeah. and and that this is the sign, not the covenant itself. So the sign was applied to the males but extended to the whole community.

So women would share in the covenant blessings just as much as the men would because they had a place in Abraham's family. So I I thought, hey, circumcision, it marks the men as the representatives of the household, but then the covenant promise covers un everyone under that umbrella, everyone in the household. So,

uh, I also think though with that in mind, it's important to remember that even in the Old Testament, God made it really clear that the outward act wasn't the main thing, right?

Which can be slightly confusing given what you just read. If you don't get this outward act, you're going to be cut off. But in Jeremiah 9:25-26, Jeremiah warned Israel that physical circumcision without the changed heart is totally meaningless.

Y So, and the New Testament echoes this. So I I think there's a tension to hold here in this conversation that yes, in Abraham's context in Genesis,

this was really significant and important, but at the same time, the more important thing was the condition of their heart and believing that God would keep his covenant in faith. And we see that played out in the New Testament because letter after letter when Paul's writing to the churches, they keep having to have this conversation about circumcision. And we end up at the Jerusalem council where they're having to make a big decision about this

because as Gentiles were coming to faith in Jesus, some Jews were saying, "You got to be circumcised." Like that's the whole thing.

And praise God, the the conclusion that was reached by the power of the Holy Spirit uh and and that Paul is relaying in his letters is

you don't have to become a Jew to become a Christian. That Jesus is for everyone. And so this served as a sign for God's people.

And Jesus is the fulfillment. Yes. Of all they had been waiting for. And all that sign had been that covenant had been pointing them toward. So it wasn't about the physical mark being on bodies forever. It was about belonging to God. So men and women alike were in that promise. And now in Christ, we don't rely on an outward sign to show us that we're his. We we've been given in him a new heart and a new identity, the spirit. And that's what marks us as part of his his covenant family. So for us today as non-Jews, we have been grafted into the promise that they were granted.

We're recipients of grace. So that doesn't mean we have to carry a physical mark on our bodies or we're women, but if we were men that we would have to carry this mark.

It means that we live with hearts that are devoted to him. And Paul in Romans 2 calls this the circumcision of the heart. And so the question isn't do I carry this outward physical marker or sign. It's does my life show that I belong to God and have been sealed by his spirit.

Yes. So it's it's freeing and challenging. It's freeing because both men and women alike are fully included in God's promises and and receive entrance into the faith family through through Christ. Nobody's left out. But it's also challenging because being marked by him should change how we live. So our choices, priorities, even our identity, what we value should look different than the rest of the world.

Yeah. Well, and I was thinking about like in John 13:35, by this all people will know that you are my disciples if you have love for one another. So I feel like that can be one of our signs of do we have faith in Jesus?

Are we loving one another? It it bears witness to our faith. And so hope can also I feel like be a sign. Christians that are full of hope, Christians that are full of joy in in some ways we have we have these ways that we are meant to be in the world that signify that we are Christians that we believe

by faith in the promises of Jesus. The fruit of the spirit, the evidence of the spirit living in us, love, joy, peace, patience kindness goodness faithfulness gentleness self-control those are all demonstrations to the world around us

that we have been changed by God. Yep. Amen. So good. We got to go to the next question. I know we could keep talking about circumcision for who knows how long, but

All right. Is this our final question? It is our final question. All right. Our final question comes from day 21, Genesis 28:16-1 17. And the question reads, why was Jacob afraid after his dream if God had just promised to bless him? So let me read Genesis 28:16-1 17. Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, "Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it." And he was afraid and said, "How awesome is this place? This is none other than the house of God and this is the gate of heaven.

Okay, great. So, there's a couple different views on this, but let me just give a quick refresher of where we're at in the story and then Emma, why don't you unpack these views for us? Sure thing.

Okay, so in Genesis 28, Jacob has this incredible dream. So, angels are ascending and descending on this stairway to heaven, and God himself is standing above it. And God promises to be with Jacob, to bless him, and to give the land to his descendants. So, you'd think that Jacob would wake up and be like, "Awesome, excited. I'm excited. I'm relieved." But instead, like we read, it says he was afraid and said, "How awesome is this place?" So, why was he afraid? His fear wasn't necessarily the kind of terror that makes you want to run away.

It's more like awe. And so this would be what what we would deem the fear of the Lord in the Bible, which means reverence. It means recognition of God's holiness. So Jacob suddenly in this moment realizes that the God of his fathers has met him personally. And that kind of encounter shook him. It humbled him. Jacob was overwhelmed by the reality that heaven and earth intersected right where he slept.

Um, and so God's promises don't erase this holy awe. They deepen it. So when we realize the holy God of the universe has chosen to bless us, it should move us to both confidence and reverence. So like Jacob, we are meant to stand amazed. The God who dwells in heaven has drawn near to us as well.

That's good. And I think that would be some somewhat terrifying and enticing to him that that

awe. This is a man who is not yet really turned toward God, right? And so to be confronted with God, to literally wrestle with God in that moment

has to be really humbling like you said, but also very exciting. Yeah. Yeah. Okay, two main views.

All right, let's hear it. View A, some theologians think his his fear, Jacob's fear, wasn't only reverence,

but also some sort of anxious recognition. So remember, he's on the run after deceiving his father and his brother, and he hadn't exactly been walking faithfully with God up to this point. So when God shows up with this promise of blessing, he may have felt the weight of God's holiness pressing against his own unworthiness. He'd made some big mistakes. So in this view, view A, the fear is mixed. There's yes, an awe at God's God's presence, but to your point,

yeah, also trembling at what if what does this mean for me to stand before God knowing I am a sinner? Mhm.

View B, on the other hand, some scholars think Jacob's fear showed that he still didn't fully understand God's grace yet.

So, they're camping out on the sin. And they're suggesting this would take years of wrestling. Literally, is when we get to Genesis 32 before Jacob fully understood and surrendered.

I would say that's a very relatable position. I think so, too. Many Christians today really wrestle to understand God's grace and it takes them years and years and years of walking with God to to let it fully sink in over us. Yes. Yes. Totally. So, and sometimes it's because God's promises feel too good to be true

or um when we're aware that we're failing like those days where it just feels like I keep messing up over and over and over again.

Those days it can be more challenging which Jacob was definitely in a season like that. Um, the greater our awareness of our sin, the more we understand how undeserving we are of God's love. But that's also really beautiful because hopefully the more we or the more I become aware of my own sin, the more I recognize my need for God's grace and my need for Jesus and can better appreciate and respond in worship the magnitude of his grace.

And Jacob's story, it reminds us that God's blessings don't come because we've earned them. we can't,

right? Uh but because of his grace and that truth can be unsettling, but it can also be comforting at the same time.

And that is super relatable. I think no matter where you are in your walk with God, there can be some tension in wrestling with the truth. And um in the greater context of TBR, we talk about fear that makes us run from God and fear that draws us to God. And those two different kinds of fear that we see mapped out in scripture. And I think it's interesting in Genesis 28:18-19, the verses after the verse talking about Jacob being afraid uh because of God's presence, those verses say, "So early in the morning, Jacob took the stone that he had put under his head and set it up for a pillar and poured oil on the top of it. He called the name of that place Bethl, which means house of God."

Regardless of where Jacob landed, he decided to honor God. He decided to walk in obedience. He had a long way to go. He's he's just at the beginning of his journey, but he's moving toward God here, not from God. And this is always helpful for me, too. Um, which way am I moving?

Yeah. Does this thought or this action or this situation draw me to God or push me away from him? And one of my my favorite uh thoughts that was presented to me a few years ago from a pastor was he said I'm going to examine the things in my life and I'm going to ask does this stir my affections for God or does this steal my affections from God. And so uh everything gets filtered through that lens of is this pushing me toward him or is this moving me away from him. And so things like how I spend my free time, who am I hanging out with, what am I eating, how am I sleeping, all those things, it is a step toward God or a step away from God. And just that evaluation um is uh is an opportunity for me to grow in faith and grow in obedience. Am I waking up the next morning and putting up an altar and pouring oil on it and blessing the Lord?

It's good. Yeah, that's awesome. Challenging. Very challenging. All right. Thank you so much for taking a deep dive with us. We will see you next week as we continue to read, understand, and love the Bible and the God who wrote it.

Questions about this episode

Who speaks in "Week 3 (Days 015-021): Why was circumcision the sign of the covenant?"?

Emma Daughter (Host), Kirsten McCloskey (Host), Terry Lee Cobble (Guest).

What is "Week 3 (Days 015-021): Why was circumcision the sign of the covenant?" about?

The discussion explores the concept of restoration in the story of Job, particularly in Job 42:10, highlighting that the term "restore" refers more to Job's material fortunes rather than the emotional loss of his children. The conversation emphasizes the complexities of this idea, especially for those who have experienced similar personal tragedies, and seeks to provide understanding and comfort…

What is mentioned in this The Bible Recap episode?

16 people, works and ideas are mentioned, including God, Job, Terry Lee Cobble, Abram, Genesis, Kirsten McCloskey. Each one on this page links to its own page with every episode that mentions it.

How long is "Week 3 (Days 015-021): Why was circumcision the sign of the covenant?"?

The episode runs 39 min; the transcript is about 6,972 words in 131 timestamped sections.

More from The Bible Recap

About this transcript: the episode's spoken words as captioned on YouTube, split into timestamped sections. Reclip.Me locates every person, work and idea in the text, keeps the time it is first named, and quotes the words around it verbatim. Last updated January 26, 2026.