4:9-10 If justification is by faith alone why did God command Abraham to be circumcised?
4:9-10 If justification is by faith alone why did God command Abraham to be circumcised?
Abraham was justified by faith at least 14 years before God commanded him to be circumcised (CP Gen 17:1-19, 24-27).
Abraham was 99 years old here, and Ishmael, his son from Hagar, his wife Sarah's handmaid, was 13 years old, which means that he was conceived approximately 14 years earlier (CP 16:1-4).
We see here that Abraham had been in Caanan 10 years when he and Hagar conceived Ishmael, and it was during this time that Abraham believed God and it was accounted to him for righteousness (CP 15:1-6).
Abraham's circumcision was a sign of his righteousness, not a cause of it. It was an outward demonstration of the righteousness God had credited to him by faith while uncircumcised (CP Ro 4:11-12).
It should be noted here that circumcision is not a prerequisite for New Testament Christians
(see comments on Ac 15:1-29).