Romans 2: 25-29 Paul Address The Idea Of Circumcision

Many people consider Paul to be the apostle to the Gentiles. What many people don’t know is that all the locations that Paul wrote letters to also contained high percentages of Jewish people as well. Paul is aware of the large number of jews in these communities due to his visits as depicted in Acts 18.2 ( Keener (184)). While Paul appears to mostly address Gentiles throughout his letters his messages are also to be read and listened to by Jews. In Romans 2:25-29 Paul address the idea of circumcision a total of ten times. I would argue that when Paul references circumcision he is making a connection to traditional Jewish laws and practices. Paul never calls for an end of these traditional Jewish practices, but rather that the Jewish people …show more content…
In Romans 3:19 Paul states “Now we know that whatever the law says, it speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced, and the whole world may be held accountable to God.” Just as Paul explained to the Jewish teacher he explains to the Gentiles how inner expression of the law is more important than outward physical expression. Paul references the mouths of the people being silenced so that people will stop boasting of their faith, but rather just participate in it. This boasting of one’s faith is a reference to how The fake Jewish teacher felt superior and sin free because he like many Jews participated in the bare minimum practices associated with his …show more content…
Within this covenant Abraham 's descendants are to mark themselves apart from others while also keeping the other practices and traditions as instructed by God. In turn God would provide decedents the chance for the gates of heaven to one day be opened. Now Paul never argues that Jews should stop being circumcised, because God wanted Abraham’s decedents to stand out from other peoples (Gentiles). God does not state that only descendants of abraham (those that are circumcised) can follow him as stated in Romans 8:14 “For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God.” God is merely saying that he wants Abraham 's descendants marked differently than every other group. Circumcision is merely a mark it does not actually determine faith. In Romans 4:13 it says“For the promise that he would inherit the world did not come to Abraham or to his descendants through the law but through the righteousness of faith.” There was faith prior to the creation of the law and of circumcision that connected Abraham to God. Circumcision has no bearing on whether you 're living a sin free life. The one importance it has is to remind you of where you came from and to follow your