περιτομῇ (peritome) in Colossians 2:11: Noun Dative Singular Feminine
περιτομῇ (peritome) in Colossians 2:11
Textual Witness
The witness reads περιτομῇ in Colossians 2:11, within a Textus Receptus form that places it in a compact explanatory clause about believers and circumcision.
How The Form Affects Interpretation
The form nudges interpretation toward circumcision as a descriptive covenantal image joined to Christ's work, not merely a surgical or ethnic label.
How To Communicate It
In communication, this form can be rendered with a phrase such as by or in a circumcision of a certain kind, while preserving the verse's emphasis on divine action.
What Not To Say
- Grammatical form should serve context, not override it.
- Dative case here suggests relation or description, but the verse must decide the exact nuance.
- Feminine gender is grammatical only and should not be turned into a theological gender claim.
What Does The Label Mean?
Noun: this word names circumcision, whether the rite, the state, or a related covenantal reality in context.
Dative: the form usually marks a related sphere, means, or reference, and here it is best read by its link to the surrounding phrase.
Singular: the form is grammatically singular in this occurrence, presenting circumcision as one concept or frame of action.
Feminine: the noun belongs to the feminine grammatical class, which here is only a language feature and not a theological gender claim.
What The Form Does In This Verse
περιετμήθητε and the nearby phrase ἀχειροποιήτῳ
The dative is shaped by the clause and the following modifiers, so it functions as part of a descriptive circumcision phrase rather than as a stand-alone subject.
It describes the kind or manner of circumcision being spoken of, and in this verse it points toward a nonphysical, Christ-centered meaning.
It does not by itself make circumcision the main subject of the sentence, and it does not force a ritual-only reading against the broader context.
How Much The Form Matters Here
High: The dative circumcision noun is central to Colossians 2:11 and its non-handmade, Christ-centered claim.
Dative noun in a descriptive circumcision phrase. frames the kind or sphere of circumcision being described. Attached to περιτομῇ ἀχειροποιήτῳ. Governed by the clause about being circumcised in Christ. The form supports a descriptive relation, while the modifiers and context establish that the meaning is not merely physical ritual.
What kind of circumcision is being described? The phrase describes a non-handmade circumcision linked to Christ.
Supporting: The form supports relational renderings such as in or with a circumcision, but the surrounding modifiers carry much of the translation force.
The dative can be explained as sphere, means, or descriptive relation; the surrounding phrase should decide the wording. The record should not collapse physical, covenantal, and Christ-centered uses into one flat sense.
Case ending alone proves the theology of circumcision: The dative frames the phrase; the modifiers and passage explain the Christ-centered meaning.
How The Interpretation Is Derived
The witness reads περιτομῇ in Colossians 2:11, within a Textus Receptus form that places it in a compact explanatory clause about believers and circumcision.
The lemma περιτομή means circumcision, and the lexicon summary allows literal, covenantal, or metaphorical use as context requires.
Because the form is dative singular feminine, it works with the surrounding words to describe the kind of circumcision in view, not to redefine the lemma.
The verse presents believers as having undergone a circumcision that is not made by hands, so the focus falls on inward or Christ-related transformation rather than physical marking.
This fits the broader biblical pattern in which circumcision can mark covenant identity, yet here the emphasis is on its fulfillment in Christ and on inward change.
For teaching or translation notes, this form supports the idea of a defining phrase like circumcision of a certain kind, while keeping the main stress on what God has done.
Do not derive a claim that the noun changes into a different word, or that grammatical gender alone teaches theology about persons or covenants.