Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart, and be no longer stubborn.
English Standard Version (ESV)
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Deuteronomy 10:16
What does Deuteronomy 10:16 mean?
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Deuteronomy 10:16
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This verse flips the physical act of circumcision into a call for inner transformation. It's not just about removing a part of the body, but about actively cutting away stubbornness and resistance in our hearts, making us receptive to God's way.
Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart, and be no longer stubborn.
English Standard Version (ESV)
God has just reminded Israel that He alone owns the heavens and the earth, yet He chose their ancestors out of all peoples to be His own. Moses then exhorts them to fear, love, and serve God, not just with outward rituals like flesh circumcision, but with a genuine, purified heart, urging them to break free from their habitual disobedience and stubbornness.
God commanded circumcision for Israel, but what did He really want? This verse reveals it's not about the physical cut, but a deep inner transformation.
Moses uses the physical act of circumcision – a sign of belonging to God's people – to point to something far more profound: the 'circumcision of the heart.'
What it Means:
This isn't about earning God's favor through rituals, but about responding to His grace with a transformed inner life.
Israel was often called 'stiff-necked.' What does that stubbornness look like in our lives, and how do we overcome it?
The second part of this verse is a direct call to change: 'and be no longer stubborn.' This isn't a suggestion; it's a command that flows directly from the call to circumcise the heart.
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Understanding Stubbornness:
When our hearts are truly surrendered to God, our natural tendency to resist Him begins to fade, replaced by a willing obedience.
Understand the original words
mul · Hebrew Verb
The act of cutting off the foreskin, symbolizing the removal of uncleanness and the covenantal separation of Israel unto God. Figuratively, it refers to the spiritual renewal and cleansing of the inner person to make them receptive and obedient to God.
lebab · Hebrew Noun
Used metaphorically to describe the seat of the inner life—the mind, will, and affections. A 'hardened' or 'uncircumcised' heart is one that resists God's authority and persists in rebellion, whereas a circumcised heart is responsive to His word.
'oreph · Hebrew Adjective
Often associated with a stiff neck, this describes a recalcitrant or obstinate attitude that refuses to submit to divine instruction or correction. It represents a fundamental rejection of God's sovereignty and a commitment to one's own way.
This passage uses the same powerful metaphor of circumcising the heart, urging the people to dedicate themselves to the Lord and remove their wickedness before His anger flares.
Romans 2:29The Apostle Paul directly echoes this concept, explaining that true circumcision is of the heart, in the spirit, not merely in the physical flesh, highlighting the internal transformation God desires.
Colossians 2:11Here, Paul again links spiritual circumcision to a 'circumcision performed by Christ' that frees believers from the sinful nature, directly paralleling the internal heart-change commanded in Deuteronomy.
Ezekiel 36:26This prophetic passage describes God's future work of giving a 'new heart' and putting a 'new spirit' within His people, a divine enablement that fulfills the call for a circumcised heart.
Acts 7:51Stephen, in his defense, confronts his accusers with this very charge: they are 'always resisting the Holy Spirit' and are 'uncircumcised in heart and ears,' showing the persistent struggle against inner rebellion that the Deuteronomy passage addresses.
gillDeuteronomy 10:16: "Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart, and be no more stiffnecked."
Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart,.... Content not yourselves with, nor put your confidence in outward circumcision of the flesh, but be concerned for the circumcision of the heart; for removing from that whatever is disagreeable to the Lord, even all carnality, sensuality, hypocrisy, and superfluity of naughtiness, and for having that put there which is well pleasing in his sight; an…
clarkeDeuteronomy 10:16: "Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart, and be no more stiffnecked."
Circumcise - the foreskin of your heart - A plain proof from God himself that this precept pointed out spiritual things, and that it was not the cutting away a part of the flesh that was the object of the Divine commandment, but the purification of the soul, without which all forms and ceremonies are of no avail. Loving God with all the heart, soul, mind, and strength, the heart being circumcised t…
This verse flips the physical act of circumcision into a call for inner transformation. It's not just about removing a part of the body, but about actively cutting away stubbornness and resistance in our hearts, making us receptive to God's way.
God has just reminded Israel that He alone owns the heavens and the earth, yet He chose their ancestors out of all peoples to be His own. Moses then exhorts them to fear, love, and serve God, not just with outward rituals like flesh circumcision, but with a genuine, purified heart, urging them to break free from their habitual disobedience and stubbornness.
God has just reminded Israel that He alone owns the heavens and the earth, yet He chose their ancestors out of all peoples to be His own. Moses then exhorts them to fear, love, and serve God, not just with outward rituals like flesh circumcision, but with a genuine, purified heart, urging them to break free from their habitual disobedience and stubbornness.
"Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart, and be no longer stubborn." — This verse flips the physical act of circumcision into a call for inner transformation. It's not just about removing a part of the body, but about actively cutting away stubbornness and resistance in…
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Last reviewed October 2026