I was going through some interesting questions in the community regarding Philippians 3, namely
yet, I believe they don't really address an important aspect of it.
In Philippians 3:2 NLT, we read
Watch out for those dogs, those people who do evil, those mutilators who say you must be circumcised to be saved.
Who are "those dogs"?
Unlike Paul's Rabbi גַּמְלִיאֵל Gamaliel:"Γαμαλιὴλ" [Acts 22:3] who in [Shabbat 137.b:4] argued that covenantal blood of circumcision (Leviticus 12:3) was not necessary to observe if 8-day-old infants appeared circumcised, Opposing students from Beit Shammai שַׁמַּאי and Hillel הִלֵּל viewed Dam Brit (דַּם בְּרִית):"covenantal blood" of Circumcision [Shabbat 135.a:2] as necessary (based on Genesis 17:10) for sons of Israel .
The Laws of [Circumcision 1:1]
Circumcision is an affirmative precept, the neglect of which entails the penalty of excision, as it is said, "And the uncircumcised male who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin—that soul shall be cut off from his people" (Gen. 17:14). It is a duty incumbent upon the father to circumcise his son, and upon the master to circumcise his male slave, whether "born in the house" or bought with money. If the father or master failed to perform the circumcision, he has neglected the fulfillment of an affirmative precept but has not incurred the penalty of excision, to which only the uncircumcised person is made liable. In such case of neglect, the court is charged with the duty of circumcising the infant or slave at the appointed time, and must not leave any male uncircumcised among the Israelites or their slaves. (מִילָה מִצְוַת עֲשֵׂה שֶׁחַיָּבִין עָלֶיהָ כָּרֵת שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (בראשית יז יד) ״וְעָרֵל זָכָר אֲשֶׁר לֹא יִמּוֹל אֶת בְּשַׂר עָרְלָתוֹ וְנִכְרְתָה הַנֶּפֶשׁ הַהִוא מֵעַמֶּיהָ״. וּמִצְוָה עַל הָאָב לָמוּל אֶת בְּנוֹ וְעַל הָרַב לָמוּל אֶת עֲבָדָיו (בראשית יז יב) ״יְלִיד בַּיִת וּמִקְנַת כֶּסֶף״. עָבַר הָאָב אוֹ הָאָדוֹן וְלֹא מָל אוֹתָן בִּטֵּל מִצְוַת עֲשֵׂה וְאֵינוֹ חַיָּב כָּרֵת שֶׁאֵין הַכָּרֵת תָּלוּי אֶלָּא בֶּעָרֵל עַצְמוֹ. וּבֵית דִּין מְצֻוִּים לָמוּל אוֹתוֹ הַבֵּן אוֹ הָעֶבֶד בִּזְמַנּוֹ וְלֹא יַנִּיחוּ עָרֵל בְּיִשְׂרָאֵל וְלֹא בְּעַבְדֵיהֶן)
Descendants of Hillel like יְהוּדָה הַנָשִׂיא Yehudah Ha-Nasi would later maintain the demand Dam Brit (דַּם בְּרִית) in the Circumcision of כָּל־זָכָר 'every Male' (based on Genesis 17:10) Convert to Judaism [Shabbat 137a], as stated in [Shabbat 137.b:8]
One who circumcises converts says: Blessed are You, Lord, our God, King of the universe, Who made us holy with His commandments, and commanded us concerning circumcision. And the one who recites the additional blessing recites: Who has made us holy with His commandments, and commanded us to circumcise converts, and to drip from them covenantal blood, as were it not for the blood of the covenant, the heaven and earth would not be sustained, as it is stated: “If My covenant would not be with day and night, the ordinances of heaven and earth I would not have placed” (Jeremiah 33:25), **which is interpreted to mean that were it not for the covenant of circumcision that is manifest both day and night, the world would cease to exist.** He concludes the blessing with the phrase: Blessed are You, Lord, Who establishes the covenant.
If Paul was aware of Gamaliel's response from [Shabbat 137.b:4] then circumcision would not be essential for σωτηρίαν(sōtēria):"salvation" from sin.
In Phil 3:2, Paul is essential repeating the instruction he give in Gal 5:1-15 which is partially quoted below:
2 Take notice: I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no value to you at all. 3 Again I testify to every man who gets himself circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law. 4 You who are trying to be justified by the law have been severed from Christ; you have fallen away from grace.
11 Now, brothers, if I am still preaching circumcision, why am I still being persecuted? In that case the offense of the cross has been abolished. 12 As for those who are agitating you, I wish they would proceed to emasculate themselves!
Paul's extremely strong language here is unmistakable! We cannot earn salvation by works of the Levitical law, it is a free gift of God. This teaching is consistent with that in Acts 15 where circumcision was declared obsolete.
In Phil 3, Paul repeats his strong language and calls such teachers of works (as opposed to grace) are "dogs", an allusion to the notion that dogs are excluded from the heavenly kingdom (Rev 22:15). The same language was used with the Syro-Phoenician woman in Matt 15:26.
Paul then confirms this describing these "dogs" as "evil workers".
Ellicott sums this well:
(2) Beware of (the) dogs.—In Revelation 22:15 “the dogs” excluded from the heavenly Jerusalem seem to be those who are impure. In that sense the Jews applied the word to the heathen, as our Lord, for a moment appearing to follow the Jewish usage, does to the Syro-Phœnician woman in Matthew 15:26. But here the context appropriates the word to the Judaising party, who claimed special purity, ceremonial and moral, and who probably were not characterised by peculiar impurity—such as, indeed, below (Philippians 3:17-21) would seem rather to attach to the Antinomian party, probably the extreme on the other side. Chrysostom’s hint that the Apostle means to retort the name upon them, as now by their own wilful apostasy occupying the place outside the spiritual Israel which once belonged to the despised Gentiles, is probably right. Yet perhaps there may be some allusion to the dogs, not as unclean, but as, especially in their half-wild state in the East, snarling and savage, driving off as interlopers all who approach what they consider their ground. Nothing could better describe the narrow Judaising spirit.
3 For we are the circumcision, which worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh. 4 Though I might also have confidence in the flesh. If any other man thinketh that he hath whereof he might trust in the flesh, I more: 5 Circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, an Hebrew of the Hebrews; as touching the law, a Pharisee; 6 Concerning zeal, persecuting the church; touching the righteousness which is in the law, blameless. 7 But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. 8 Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung (scraps thrown to dogs), that I may win Christ,
4657 skýbalon (from 2965 /kýōn, "dog" and 906 /bállō, "throw") – properly, waste thrown to dogs.
2 Beware of dogs, beware of evil workers, beware of the concision.
The dogs of the verse 2 are the ones that still find value in what Paul calls dog's scraps in verses 4-6, the Judaizers.
