An Egyptian Record of The Rite of Circumcision | 2,300 BCE

This is perhaps the oldest record of circumcision in the ancient Near East, dating to about 2,300 BCE. The text likely describes a man presenting an offering to the gods and entering into the rite of circumcision. His description leads one to believe that many men found this process to be quite painful yet the author here is pleased that he was able to endure the pain without lashing out at the ones doing the cutting. Original text sourced and modified from: () and compared with: James Bennett Pritchard, ed., The Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to the Old Testament.