Deuteronomy 30:6

 Deuteronomy 30:6

And the LORD thy God will circumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, that thou mayest live.

a. NASB 1995: “Moreover the LORD your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your descendants, to love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, so that you may live.  [New American Standard Bible 1995 (NASB1995) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.]

b. YLT: 'And Jehovah thy God hath circumcised thy heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love Jehovah thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, for the sake of thy life;  [The Young's Literal Translation was translated by Robert Young, who believed in a strictly literal translation of God's word. This version of the Bible is in the public domain.]

c. Classic Amplified: And the Lord your God will circumcise your hearts and the hearts of your descendants, to love the Lord your God with all your [mind and] heart and with all your being, that you may live.  [Amplified Bible, Classic Edition (AMPC) Copyright © 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation]

d. Stone Edition THE CHUMASH, Rabbinic Commentary: HASHEM, your God, will circumcise your heart and the heart of your offspring, to love HASHEM, your God with  all your heart and with all your soul, that you may live.  [The Artscroll Series/Stone Edition, THE CHUMASH Copyright 1998, 2000 by MESORAH PUBLICATIONS, Ldt.]

e. ESV: And the LORD your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your offspring, so that you will love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, that you may live.  [Scripture quotations are from the Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001, 2007, 2011, 2016 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.]

f. Unless otherwise stated, all Greek and Hebrew definitions are from Blue Letter Bible

1. “And the LORD thy God will circumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, that thou mayest live.”

a. [And the] LORD [Strong: 3068 Yᵉhôvâh, yeh-ho-vaw'; from H1961; (the) self-Existent or Eternal; Jeho-vah, Jewish national name of God:—Jehovah, the Lord.]

b. [thy] God [StrongL 430 ʼĕlôhîym, el-o-heem'; plural of H433; gods in the ordinary sense; but specifically used (in the plural thus, especially with the article) of the supreme God; occasionally applied by way of deference to magistrates; and sometimes as a superlative:—angels, × exceeding, God (gods) (-dess, -ly), × (very) great, judges, × mighty.]

c. [will] circumcise [Strong: 4135 mûwl, mool; a primitive root; to cut short, i.e. curtail (specifically the prepuce, i.e. to circumcise); by implication, to blunt; figuratively, to destroy:—circumcise(-ing), selves), cut down (in pieces), destroy, × must needs.]

d. [thine] heart [Strong: 4135 mûwl, mool; a primitive root; to cut short, i.e. curtail (specifically the prepuce, i.e. to circumcise); by implication, to blunt; figuratively, to destroy:—circumcise(-ing), selves), cut down (in pieces), destroy, × must needs.]

1). The circumcision spoken of here is the new birth circumcision of the New Covenant that the nation of Israel will experience. It was mentioned in other words in Ezekiel 36. It is when all Israel shall be saved during the events of the return of Christ.

a). Ezekiel 36:24-26 For I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries, and will bring you into your own land.

36:25 Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you.

36:26 A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.

2). Spiritual aspect of Old Covenant Circumcision

 

a). Israel’s responsibility: Deuteronomy 10:16 “Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart, and be no more stiffnecked.”

 

b). God's responsibility: Deuteronomy 30:6 “And the LORD thy God will circumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, that thou mayest live.”

 

c). Both God and Israel had a part in the spiritual aspect of the Old Covenant circumcision, and there was a limited [limited in the sense of comparison to New Covenant circumcision]work that was done in the heart. A work, enabling them “to love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might”, (Deuteronomy 6:5). I believe that this work that was done in Israel’s heart was part of the reason they continued as a people for thousands of years without being born again.

 

d). What ever the work done in their heart, it was far short of the New Covenant circumcision. Romans 8:3 “For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh,…”

 

e). The law could not give “life”. Galatians 3:21 “…for if there had been a law given which could have given life, verily righteousness should have been by the law.” They could not be born again. The weaknesses of the Old Covenant have already been mentioned, but a very powerful witness to that was preached by the Apostle Paul in Pisidia Antioch.

 

(1) Acts 13:38, 39 Be it known unto you therefore, men and brethren, that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins:

13:39 And by him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the Law of Moses.

 

(2) Spiros Zodhiates Complete Word Study of the New Testament: “In Acts 13:39, dikaioo, the Greek word for “justified” is used with the preposition apo – from, referring to all those things from which the Mosaic Law could not liberate us. In this instance as well as in Romans 6:7 where apo is used with the word “sin”, it refers to our liberation from something, i.e., sin which holds a man a prisoner, a slave…thus dikaioo does not mean the mere declaration of innocence, but the liberation from sin which holds man a prisoner.”

 

2). New Covenant Circumcision

 

a). The New Covenant Circumcision is a spiritual circumcision: Romans 2:25-29.

 

(1) Romans 2:25-29 For circumcision verily profiteth, if thou keep the law: but if thou be a breaker of the law, thy circumcision is made uncircumcision.

2:26 Therefore if the uncircumcision keep the righteousness of the law, shall not his uncircumcision be counted for circumcision?

2:27 And shall not uncircumcision which is by nature, if it fulfil the law, judge thee, who by the letter and circumcision dost transgress the law?

2:28 For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh:

2:29 But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.

 

b). The spiritual circumcision spoken of in Romans is the new birth, the born again experience. Paul wrote about it in Colossians 2:11, “In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ.”

 

c). The “body of the sins of the flesh”, in Colossians 2:11 is the same as the “body of this death”, in Romans 7:24. It is “the law of sin and death”, in Romans 8:2.

 

d). The spiritual circumcision of the Old Covenant was not as effective or complete as the spiritual circumcision under the New Covenant. Under the Old Covenant, the effect was, “…to love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might” Deuteronomy 6:5, while the effect under the New Covenant is, “…putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ” Colossians 2:11.

 

e). We are under a better Covenant, a better Covenant! Under the old Covenant they did not have the authority we have, they did not have the power to break free from the bondages of sin that we have in Christ. Acts 13:39 says it right: “…and through Him everyone who believes is freed from all things, from which you could not be freed through the Law of Moses.”

e. [and the] heart [Strong: 3824 lêbâb, lay-bawb'; from H3823; used also like H3820 the heart (as the most interior organ);:— bethink themselves, breast, comfortably, courage, (faint), (tender-) heart(-ed), midst, mind, × unawares, understanding.]

f. [of thy] seed [Strong: 2233 zeraʻ, zeh'-rah; from H2232; seed; figuratively, fruit, plant, sowing-time, posterity:—× carnally, child, fruitful, seed(-time), sowing-time.]

g. [to] love [Strong: 157 ʼâhab, aw-hab'; or אָהֵב ʼâhêb ; a primitive root; to have affection for (sexually or otherwise):—(be-) love(-d, -ly, -r), like, friend.]

h. [the] LORD [Strong: 3068 Yᵉhôvâh, yeh-ho-vaw'; from H1961; (the) self-Existent or Eternal; Jeho-vah, Jewish national name of God:—Jehovah, the Lord.]

i. [thy] God [StrongL 430 ʼĕlôhîym, el-o-heem'; plural of H433; gods in the ordinary sense; but specifically used (in the plural thus, especially with the article) of the supreme God; occasionally applied by way of deference to magistrates; and sometimes as a superlative:—angels, × exceeding, God (gods) (-dess, -ly), × (very) great, judges, × mighty.]

j. [with] all [Strong: 3605 kôl, kole; or (Jeremiah 33:8) כּוֹל kôwl; from H3634; properly, the whole; hence, all, any or every (in the singular only, but often in a plural sense):—(in) all (manner, (ye)), altogether, any (manner), enough, every (one, place, thing), howsoever, as many as, (no-) thing, ought, whatsoever, (the) whole, whoso(-ever).]

k. [thine] heart [Strong: 3824 lêbâb, lay-bawb'; from H3823; used also like H3820 the heart (as the most interior organ);:— bethink themselves, breast, comfortably, courage, (faint), (tender-) heart(-ed), midst, mind, × unawares, understanding.]

l. [and with] all [Strong: 3605 kôl, kole; or (Jeremiah 33:8) כּוֹל kôwl; from H3634; properly, the whole; hence, all, any or every (in the singular only, but often in a plural sense):—(in) all (manner, (ye)), altogether, any (manner), enough, every (one, place, thing), howsoever, as many as, (no-) thing, ought, whatsoever, (the) whole, whoso(-ever).]

m. [thy] soul [Strong: 5315 nephesh, neh'-fesh; from H5314; properly, a breathing creature, i.e. animal of (abstractly) vitality; used very widely in a literal, accommodated or figurative sense (bodily or mental):—any, appetite, beast, body, breath, creature, × dead(-ly), desire, × (dis-) contented, × fish, ghost, greedy, he, heart(-y), (hath, × jeopardy of) life (× in jeopardy), lust, man, me, mind, mortally, one, own, person, pleasure, (her-, him-, my-, thy-) self, them (your) -selves, slay, soul, tablet, they, thing, (× she) will, × would have it.]

n. that [thou] [Strong: 4616  maʻan, mah'-an; from H6030; properly, heed, i.e. purpose; used only adverbially, on account of (as a motive or an aim), teleologically, in order that:—because of, to the end (intent) that, for (to, ... 's sake), + lest, that, to.]

o. [mayest] live [Strong: 2416 chay, khah'-ee; from H2421; alive; hence, raw (flesh); fresh (plant, water, year), strong; also (as noun, especially in the feminine singular and masculine plural) life (or living thing), whether literally or figuratively:— age, alive, appetite, (wild) beast, company, congregation, life(-time), live(-ly), living (creature, thing), maintenance, merry, multitude, (be) old, quick, raw, running, springing, troop.]