Sefat Emet, Genesis, Vayishlach 18:6

בענין מעשה שכם. פרש”י להמול להיות נימול ע”ש. והיינו כי תכלית המילה היא להיות נשאר רשימה מזה הברית בכל האדם. ונקרא אות ברית קודש. ואין המכוון כריתת הערלה מזה האבר עצמו. רק להיות למד על כל הכלל. כי הקב”ה מצרף מחשבה טובה למעשה וע”י שבני ישראל מוכנים להיות דבוקים בה’ ולבטל כל הגוף אליו ומסירין במעשה זה הערלה. עי”ז נמשך רשימה ותיקון לכל הקומה. וכן הם כל המצות כמו תרומות ומעשרות שמניחין הארה לכל השיריים. ובאמת בני שכם לא היה להם שייכות לזה כלל וכריתת הערלה בלבד אינו כלום. רק בנ”י. וכמו כן מי שבא להתגייר כמ”ש להם והיינו לעם אחד. הי’ מתקיים פי’ להמול כנ”ל:

Regarding the matter of the incident of Shechem: Rashi explains that “to be circumcised” means “that they should become circumcised.” And this is so, because the ultimate purpose of circumcision is that a mark of this covenant should remain upon the whole person. It is called the sign of the holy covenant. The intention is not the removal of the foreskin from this particular organ alone, but that this act should teach about the whole of one’s being. For the Holy One, blessed be He, unites a good intention with an action, and since the Children of Israel are prepared to cleave to God and to nullify their entire physical self to Him, and they remove the foreskin through this act, therefore a spiritual imprint and repair are drawn to the entire stature of the person. And so it is with all the commandments, such as terumot and tithes, which leave an illumination for all the remaining portions. But in truth, the people of Shechem had no connection to this at all, and the mere cutting of the foreskin is nothing—this applies only to the Children of Israel. And similarly, one who comes to convert, as was said to them, “and we will be one people,” then the meaning of “to be circumcised” would indeed be fulfilled, as stated above.

The Sefat Emet explains that circumcision is not merely a physical act; it is a covenantal sign meant to permeate a person’s entire being. Israel’s inner readiness to cleave to God gives the act its spiritual power, allowing the physical removal of the foreskin to radiate sanctity throughout the whole person. Other mitzvot function similarly, extending their light beyond the specific act. The people of Shechem, lacking this inner orientation, could not connect to the true meaning of circumcision; the physical action alone is insufficient. Only Israel, or a sincere convert who seeks true unity with God’s people, receives the full covenantal imprint.

Summary: Circumcision has meaning only when joined to inner devotion to God, allowing the covenantal mark to extend through the whole person. Without this inward readiness, as with the people of Shechem, the physical act alone has no spiritual effect.