How does Ephesians 2:11 connect to God's covenant with Israel? Remembering Our Past Separation (Ephesians 2:11) “Therefore remember that formerly you who are Gentiles in the flesh, and called ‘uncircumcision’ by the so-called ‘circumcision,’ done in the body by human hands—” • Paul asks Gentile believers to call to mind a time when they were labeled “uncircumcision.” • The label highlighted a covenantal line: circumcised Israel inside God’s promises; uncircumcised nations outside. • “Done in the body by human hands” stresses the visible, flesh-level marker that once defined access to covenant blessings. Circumcision: Covenant Sign with Israel • Genesis 17:10-11—“Every male among you must be circumcised… this will be a sign of the covenant between Me and you”. • The sign marked Abraham’s descendants as a people set apart for God’s purposes (cf. Deuteronomy 7:6-8). • Exodus 12:48-49 shows circumcision as the entry ticket even for foreigners who wished to share Israel’s Passover. • By Paul’s day “the circumcision” became shorthand for ethnic Israel, heirs of “the covenants of promise” (Ephesians 2:12). Gentiles: Outside Looking In • Ephesians 2:12 continues the thought: “alienated from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world”. • Romans 9:4 echoes it—Israel possessed “the divine glory, the covenants… and the promises.” • The Gentile problem was not merely moral but covenantal: no sign, no citizenship, no share in promised Messianic hope. Christ Fulfills and Extends the Covenant • Ephesians 2:13—“But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ”. • His cross tears down “the dividing wall of hostility” (2:14-16), creating one new humanity that enjoys the covenant blessings together. • Galatians 3:13-14 links the blessing of Abraham to Gentiles “in Christ Jesus.” • Colossians 2:11 points to a deeper, spiritual circumcision: “In Him you were also circumcised… with the circumcision performed by Christ and not by human hands”. • Romans 2:28-29 underscores the shift from external sign to inward reality, yet without cancelling God’s faithfulness to Israel’s promises (cf. Romans 11:1-2, 29). Why Ephesians 2:11 Matters Today • It keeps believers mindful of grace: once outside, now welcomed in. • It guards against pride: inclusion came by Christ’s blood, not human merit. • It celebrates continuity: the church stands on Israel’s covenant foundation, now fulfilled and widened in the Messiah. • It fuels unity: Jewish and Gentile believers share one covenant family, one Savior, one future inheritance. |
    |