מדרש אויף בראשית 17:2

Another interpretation (of Cant. 4:6): UNTIL THE DAY BECOMES COOL. Until the kingdom of the Holy One appears in this world. (Ibid., cont.:) AND THE SHADOWS FLEE, i.e., the shadows of the kingdom. (Ibid., cont.:) I WILL GO UNTO THE MOUNTAIN OF MYRRH, i.e., Jerusalem. Thus it is stated (in Cant. 5:1): WHEN I COME TO MY GARDEN, MY SISTER, MY BRIDE, I HAVE PLUCKED MY MYRRH ALONG WITH MY SPICE. (Josh. 5:3:) UNTO THE MOUND OF FORESKINS,²⁰Buber again suggests emending to fit Cant. 4:6: UNTO THE MOUND OF FRANKINCENSE. since he took the foreskins and made a mound of them. For that reason the Holy One was revealed to him, as stated (in Gen. 18:1): THEN < THE LORD > APPEARED UNTO HIM. Now when the angels saw this, they also came along with the Holy One, as stated (in Gen. 18:2): WHEN HE LIFTED HIS EYES AND LOOKED, BEHOLD, THERE WERE THREE MEN < STANDING NEAR HIM >. And so David gives praise (in Ps. 25:10): ALL THE PATHS OF THE LORD ARE STEADFAST LOVE AND TRUTH. What is the meaning of ALL THE PATHS OF THE LORD ARE STEADFAST LOVE AND TRUTH? < With reference to > the Torah, its beginning is steadfast love,²¹See above, 4:1; below, 5:2. its end is steadfast love, and its middle is steadfast love. Its beginning is steadfast love. Where is it shown? You find that when the Holy One formed Eve, he adorned her and brought her to Adam, as stated (in Gen. 2:22): THEN THE LORD GOD BUILT THE RIB < WHICH HE HAD TAKEN FROM THE HUMAN INTO A WOMAN >. What is the meaning of BUILT? R. Abbahu said: In Arabia they call the plaited coiffure a "building."²²Cf. Ber. 61a; Shab. 95a; ‘Eruv. 18a; Nid. 45b; ARN, A, 4; Gen. R. 18:1; M. Pss. 25:11; above 4:1; below 5:2. Its end is steadfast love, < i.e., > at Moses' death when the Holy One attended him in his glory,²³BKBWDW: perhaps a misprint for BKBWRW, “at his burial.” as stated (in Deut. 34:6): AND HE BURIED HIM IN THE VALLEY. At the middle there is steadfast love in the case of Abraham, as stated (in Gen. 17:2): AND LET ME PUT MY COVENANT BETWEEN ME AND YOU. When the Holy One was revealed to him, he was sitting, as stated (in Gen. 18:1): < THEN THE LORD APPEARED UNTO HIM > … AS HE WAS SITTING AT THE TENT DOOR IN THE HEAT OF THE DAY.²⁴Below, 8:28. Abraham went to stand up. The Holy One said to him: Do not trouble yourself to stand up. Sit down! It is so stated (in Ps. 110:1): THE LORD (God) SAID TO MY LORD (Abraham): SIT DOWN AT MY RIGHT HAND. Abraham said to him: Is this good manners for me to be sitting while you are standing? The Holy One said to him: Do not trouble yourself. You are an old man of a hundred years. Sit down! The Holy One said to him: By your life, because you are sitting while I stand, your children at the age of three years, at the age of four years, are going to be sitting in the academies and in the synagogues with me standing over them. Thus it is stated (in Ps. 82:1): GOD STANDS IN THE DIVINE CONGREGATION. Abraham began to praise²⁵Rt.: QLS, possibly related to the Gk.: kalos, which means “beautifully.” God (according to Ps. 18:36 [35]): YOU ALSO GAVE ME THE SHIELD OF YOUR SALVATION, when the kings had pursued < me >. It is so stated (in Gen. 15:1): FEAR NOT, ABRAM, I AM YOUR SHIELD. (Ps. 18:36 [35], cont.:) YOUR RIGHT HAND SUSTAINED ME, when you grasped the foreskin along with me as I was cutting. (Ibid., cont.:) AND YOUR CONDESCENSION MAGNIFIED ME, in that I was sitting while you were standing.

[2] Another interpretation: "And I will establish My covenant" (Genesis 17:2). This refers to the secret of God for those who fear Him, and His covenant to make it known to them (Psalms 25:14). What is the secret of the Holy One, blessed be He? It is a word that the Holy One, blessed be He, did not reveal, a mystery of a word that passed from person to person for twenty generations, until Abraham came and received it, as it is stated, "The secret of the Lord is with those who fear Him, and He will make known to them His covenant" (Psalms 25:14). This refers to Abraham, as it is said of him, "Now I know that you fear God" (Genesis 22:12). God said to him, "If you perform circumcision, you will take hold of the secret, the secret of the Lord for those who fear Him," which is numerically equivalent to seventy (סו"ד בגימטריא שבעים). "Seventy souls" (Deuteronomy 10:22) "And it establishes from them seventy Sanhedrins, as it is said, 'Gather for Me seventy men...' (Numbers 11:16). I establish from them, and I establish from your descendants Moses, who spoke the Torah in seventy languages, as it is stated, "Beyond the Jordan in the land of Moab" (Deuteronomy 1:5). On account of what? On account of circumcision, as it is stated, "The Lord our God made a covenant with us [at Horeb]" (Deuteronomy 5:2). This covenant is circumcision. [edit ref. Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer 10:10] Therefore, it is said, "The secret of the Lord is with those who fear Him." God said to Abraham, "It is enough for the servant to be like his master." And His covenant, to make it known to them (Psalms 25:14). This can be compared to a king who had a beloved servant who was richer than all others. He said, "What shall I do for this beloved one? What shall I give him? He has gold and silver, he has slaves and maidservants." But then the king said, "Behold, I will take off my belt and give it to him as a sign of my affection." Similarly, God said to Abraham, "What shall I give you? You have gold and silver, as it is said, 'And Abram was very rich' (Genesis 13:2). But what can I give you? I will give you My belt, and establish My covenant between Me and you" (Genesis 17:4). "And Abraham fell on his face"..."Behold, My covenant is with you" ans so on. (Genesis 17:3-4), the secret of the Lord for those who fear Him.

Abraham sat and wondered where he was to be circumcised, after the Holy One, blessed be Him, informed him: I will establish My covenant between Me and thee (Gen. 17:2). What follows this verse? And Abraham fell on his face (ibid., v. 3). Once he fell on his face, the Holy One, blessed be He, indicated that place, and a scorpion bit him there. Forthwith, Abraham found himself circumcised. Whence do we know this? We know it from the verse And God spoke unto him, saying: As for Me, behold, My covenant is with thee (ibid., vv. 3–4); that is, behold, thou art circumcised. Furthermore, it is written: In the self-same day was Abraham circumcised (ibid., v. 26). Scripture does not say “he circumcised himself” but he was circumcised.