Acts 7:8
Translations
King James Version (KJV)
And he gave him the covenant of circumcision: and so Abraham begat Isaac, and circumcised him the eighth day; and Isaac begat Jacob; and Jacob begat the twelve patriarchs.
American King James Version (AKJV)
And he gave him the covenant of circumcision: and so Abraham begat Isaac, and circumcised him the eighth day; and Isaac begat Jacob; and Jacob begat the twelve patriarchs.
American Standard Version (ASV)
And he gave him the covenant of circumcision: and so Abraham begat Isaac, and circumcised him the eighth day; and Isaac begat Jacob, and Jacob the twelve patriarchs.
Basic English Translation (BBE)
And he made with him the agreement of which circumcision was the sign. And so Abraham had a son, Isaac, and gave him circumcision on the eighth day; and Isaac had a son, Jacob, and Jacob was the father of the twelve heads of the families of Israel.
Webster's Revision
And he gave him the covenant of circumcision. And so Abraham begat Isaac, and circumcised him the eighth day; and Isaac begat Jacob, and Jacob begat the twelve patriarchs.
World English Bible
He gave him the covenant of circumcision. So Abraham became the father of Isaac, and circumcised him the eighth day. Isaac became the father of Jacob, and Jacob became the father of the twelve patriarchs.
English Revised Version (ERV)
And he gave him the covenant of circumcision: and so Abraham begat Isaac, and circumcised him the eighth day; and Isaac begat Jacob, and Jacob the twelve patriarchs.
Definitions for Acts 7:8
Clarke's Acts 7:8 Bible Commentary
He gave him the covenant of circumcision - That is, he instituted the rite of circumcision, as a sign of that covenant which he had made with him and his posterity. See Genesis 17:10, etc.
And so Abraham begat Isaac - Και οὑτως, And thus, in this covenant, he begat Isaac; and as a proof that he was born under this covenant, was a true son of Abraham and inheritor of the promises, he circumcised him the eighth day; and this rite being observed in the family of Isaac, Jacob and his twelve sons were born under the covenant; and thus their descendants, the twelve tribes, being born under the same covenant, and practising the same rite, were, by the ordinance of Gods legal inheritors of the promised land, and all the secular and spiritual advantages connected with it.
Barnes's Acts 7:8 Bible Commentary
And he gave him - That is, God appointed or commanded this, Genesis 17:9-13.
The covenant - The word "covenant" denotes properly "a compact or agreement between two or more persons," usually attended with seals, pledges, or sanctions. In Genesis 17:7, and elsewhere, it is said that God would establish his "covenant" with Abraham; that is, he made him certain definite promises, attended with pledges and seals, etc. The idea of a strict "compact" or "agreement" between God and man, as between "equal parties"; is not found in the Bible. The word is commonly used, as here, to denote "a promise on the part of God," attended with pledges, and demanding, on the part of man, in order to avail himself of its benefits, a specified course of conduct. The "covenant" is therefore another name for denoting two things on the part of God:
(1) A "command," which man is not at liberty to reject, as he would be if it were a literal covenant; and,
(2) A "promise," which is to be fulfilled only on the condition of obedience. The covenant with Abraham was simply a "promise" to give him the land, and to make him a great nation, etc. It was never proposed to Abraham with the supposition that he was at liberty to reject it, or to refuse to comply with its conditions. Circumcision was appointed as the mark or indication that Abraham and those thus designated were the persons included in the gracious purpose and promise. It served to separate them as a special people; a people whose unique characteristic it was that they obeyed and served the God who had made the promise to Abraham. The phrase "covenant of circumcision" means, therefore, the covenant or promise which God made to Abraham, of which circumcision was the distinguishing "mark" or "sign."
The twelve patriarchs - The word "patriarch" properly denotes "the father and ruler of a family." But it is commonly applied, by way of eminence, to "the progenitors" of the Jewish race, particularly to "the twelve sons of Jacob." See the notes on Acts 2:29.
Wesley's Acts 7:8 Bible Commentary
7:8 And so he begat Isaac - After the covenant was given, of which circumcision was the seal. Genesis 17:10 .