Milah binds body to the soul's light

במדרש ואחר עורי נקפו זאת אחר שמלתי עצמי הרבה גרים באו לדבוק בזאת הברית ומבשרי אחזה אלקי אלולי שמלתי עצמי מהיכן הי' הקב"ה נגלה עלי.

In the Midrash on "And after my skin has been scraped away, this" — after I circumcised myself, many converts came to cling to this covenant; "and from my flesh I behold God" — had I not circumcised myself, from where would Hashem have been revealed to me?

The Midrash, expounding Iyov's words, has Avraham say that only after he performed the bris milah did he merit gerim joining the covenant and direct revelation of Hashem "from his own flesh."

אף שגם מקודם נראה אליו השי"ת אך ההפרש שמקודם הי' המראה בחסד עליון כמ"ש ויחשבה לו צדקה ועתה זכה במעשיו להיות נגלה אליו.

Although Hashem had appeared to him beforehand as well, the difference is that earlier the vision came through supernal chesed (kindness), as it is written "and He reckoned it to him as righteousness," whereas now he merited through his own deeds that He be revealed to him.

Before the milah, revelation was a free gift of Hashem's chesed; afterward, Avraham earned the revelation through his own act, making it truly his own.

כי בודאי צדקתו של אברהם אע"ה הי' טמון בו אך כי לא הי' יכול להוציא מכח אל הפועל בלי המילה שהוא תיקון הגוף ונקרא ברית שע"י המילה מתקשר כח הנשמה בהגוף.

For certainly Avraham Avinu's righteousness was hidden within him, but he could not bring it from potential into actuality without the milah, which is the rectification of the body; and it is called a "bris" (covenant) because through the milah the power of the neshamah is bound to the body.

Avraham's tzidkus was latent inside him, but only the milah — by refining the body — could actualize it, binding the soul's power into the physical body.

וכן שבת נק' ברית עולם כמו מילה בנפש.

And likewise Shabbos is called an "everlasting covenant," like the milah in the soul.

Shabbos is the parallel covenant — what milah accomplishes in the body, Shabbos accomplishes in the realm of the soul.

ואחז"ל שבשבת יש לכל איש ישראל נשמה יתירה.

And Chazal said that on Shabbos every Jew has an additional soul (neshamah yeseirah).

The extra dimension of soul granted on Shabbos is the spiritual counterpart to the bond forged by milah.

ביאור הענין דכתיב ויפח באפיו נשמת חיים וכח ההשפעה שבא מהשי"ת אין ביכולת כלי הגוף לקבל הכל וכמו כלי שממלאין אותה עד שנשפך על שפתה מבחוץ כמו כן נשאר כח הנשמה שאינה נכנסת באדם.

The explanation: it is written "and He blew into his nostrils the breath of life," but the power of this flow that comes from Hashem is too great for the vessel of the body to receive all of it — and like a vessel that is filled until it overflows past its rim, so too there remains a portion of the soul's power that does not enter into the person.

The neshamah Hashem breathes in is so vast that the body cannot contain it all; like an overfilled cup, part of the soul's light remains outside, surrounding rather than entering the person.

וכפי מה שמתקן הגוף נמשך בו יותר כח הנשמה.

And to the degree that one rectifies the body, more of the soul's power is drawn into him.

The more a person refines and prepares his body, the more of that overflowing soul-light can be drawn inside him.

ולזאת בש"ק ניתוסף קדושה בעולם ומאיר אור הנשמה.

And therefore on Shabbos Kodesh additional holiness is added to the world, and the light of the soul shines.

On Shabbos the added kedushah in the world allows the soul's light to shine into a person more fully than on weekdays.

וכמו כן ע"י המילה מתקשר הגוף להארת הנשמה.

And likewise, through the milah the body becomes bound to the illumination of the soul.

Milah accomplishes in the body the same connection — linking the physical body to the radiance of the neshamah.

וז"ש מבשרי אחזה.

And this is the meaning of "from my flesh I behold."

Avraham could now perceive Hashem "from his flesh" because the milah had bound his very body to the soul's light.

שע"י המילה הי' דביקות להגוף במראה אלקות ומקודם כ' ויפול על פניו כו' כי לא הבין מקודם איך להתדבק בהמראה ז"ש מהיכן הי' הקב"ה נגלה אלי פי' שלא הייתי משיג אופן המראה.

For through the milah the body attained cleaving to the vision of Godliness; whereas earlier it is written "and he fell on his face," since beforehand he did not understand how to cling to the vision — this is "from where would Hashem have been revealed to me," meaning that I could not grasp the manner of the vision.

Before the milah, Avraham fell on his face, unable to sustain or "hold onto" the divine vision; the milah gave his body the capacity for devekus, so he could now stand within the revelation.

אך כי היפלא מה' דבר והקב"ה נתגלה עליו מקודם בדרך נס ופלא.

But "is anything too wondrous for Hashem" — and Hashem had revealed Himself to him earlier in a way of miracle and wonder.

The earlier revelations were miraculous, supernatural gifts that bypassed Avraham's own capacity to receive.

ועתה נאמר והוא יושב פתח האהל פי' שנפתח לו שערי הנבואה בזכותו כנ"ל.

And now it says "and he was sitting at the entrance of the tent," meaning that the gates of prophecy were opened to him by his own merit, as above.

"Sitting at the entrance" hints that, after the milah, the gateways of nevuah opened to Avraham through his own earned merit rather than as a pure miracle.

ואיתא במדרש כי ירא אאע"ה שע"י המילה יתרחקו ממנו הבריות.

And it is brought in the Midrash that Avraham Avinu feared that through the milah people would distance themselves from him.

Avraham worried that becoming circumcised — set apart — would drive away the people he had been drawing close to Hashem.

ועתה אמר הרבה גרים באו כו'.

And now he said: many converts came…

His fear was answered: rather than being distanced, many gerim were drawn to join the covenant precisely because of the milah.

שבאמת מאחר שראינו שהקב"ה בחר בנו והבדילנו מן העמים אף כי המכוון שבנ"י ימשיכו כל הברואים אליו ית'.

For in truth, since we see that Hashem chose us and separated us from the nations — even though the ultimate purpose is that Bnei Yisrael should draw all creatures toward Him —

Although the goal is for Bnei Yisrael to bring all of creation close to Hashem, He nonetheless first set them apart from the other nations, which seems to work against that goal.

מוכח כי זה לטובה יחשב להם שע"י שבנ"י יכולין להתקדש כראוי ואין מעשיהם הרעים מעכבים לבנ"י ע"י שהם נבדלין מהם ועל ידי זה יכולין בנ"י לתקן עצמם כראוי וממילא יוכל להתמשך מהם הארות הראוים לכל הנבראים כפי מדריגותיהם:

It is proven that this separation is reckoned for the good of the nations themselves — for by it Bnei Yisrael are able to sanctify themselves properly, and the evil deeds of the nations do not hold Bnei Yisrael back, since they are separated from them; and through this Bnei Yisrael can rectify themselves properly, and consequently the illuminations fitting for all creatures, each according to its level, can be drawn forth from them.

The separation actually benefits the nations: insulated from their negative influence, Bnei Yisrael can perfect themselves, and from that perfection the appropriate spiritual light flows out to every creature according to its capacity.

Summary: The bris milah refines the body so that Avraham's hidden righteousness could be actualized, binding the body to the soul's light — paralleled by Shabbos and the neshamah yeseirah in the realm of the soul. Because the body cannot hold the full neshamah Hashem breathes in, only a refined body draws that light inward; thus milah opened the gates of prophecy to Avraham by his own merit. And Bnei Yisrael's separation from the nations, far from harming them, ultimately enables Yisrael's self-perfection and the flow of light to all creation.