In the Mosaic Law, the treatment of strangers, or foreigners, is a significant theme, reflecting God's justice and compassion. The Israelites were reminded of their own history as strangers in Egypt and were commanded to extend kindness and fairness to those who sojourned among them.

Protection and Fair Treatment

The Mosaic Law explicitly commands the Israelites to treat strangers with justice and equity. In Exodus 22:21 , it is written, "You must not exploit or oppress a foreign resident, for you yourselves were foreigners in the land of Egypt." This command underscores the importance of empathy and justice, rooted in the Israelites' own experience of oppression.

Leviticus 19:33-34 further elaborates on this principle: "When a foreigner resides with you in your land, you must not oppress him. You must treat the foreigner living among you as native-born and love him as yourself, for you were foreigners in the land of Egypt. I am the LORD your God." This passage not only prohibits oppression but also calls for love and equal treatment, elevating the stranger to the status of a native-born citizen.

Legal Rights and Equality

The Mosaic Law also ensures that strangers have access to justice and legal rights. In Deuteronomy 1:16 , Moses instructs the judges, "Hear the disputes between your brothers and judge fairly between a man and his brother or a foreign resident." This directive emphasizes impartiality in legal matters, ensuring that strangers receive the same fair treatment as Israelites.

Moreover, Deuteronomy 24:17 commands, "Do not deny justice to the foreigner or the fatherless, and do not take a widow’s cloak as security." This law protects the vulnerable, including strangers, from being deprived of justice or basic necessities.

Participation in Religious and Social Life

Strangers were also included in the religious and social life of Israel. They were allowed to participate in certain religious observances, provided they adhered to the same laws as the Israelites. For instance, Numbers 15:15-16 states, "The assembly is to have the same statute for both you and the foreign resident; it is a permanent statute for the generations to come. You and the foreigner shall be the same before the LORD. The same law and the same ordinance will apply both to you and to the foreigner residing with you."

This inclusion reflects the broader theological principle that God's covenant and blessings were not limited to ethnic Israel but extended to all who aligned themselves with His laws and worship.

Provision and Care

The Mosaic Law also made provisions for the material needs of strangers. In Deuteronomy 10:18-19 , it is declared, "He executes justice for the fatherless and widow, and He loves the foreigner, giving him food and clothing. So you also must love the foreigner, since you yourselves were foreigners in the land of Egypt." This passage highlights God's care for the stranger and commands the Israelites to emulate this divine love through tangible acts of provision.

Additionally, the practice of gleaning, as outlined in Leviticus 19:9-10 , allowed strangers to gather leftover crops from the fields: "When you reap the harvest of your land, you are not to reap to the very edges of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest. You must leave them for the poor and the foreigner. I am the LORD your God." This law ensured that strangers, along with other marginalized groups, had access to food and sustenance.

In summary, the Mosaic Law provides a comprehensive framework for the just and compassionate treatment of strangers, reflecting God's character and the ethical demands placed upon His people. Through these laws, the Israelites were called to remember their own history and to act with justice, love, and mercy towards those who lived among them.Exodus 12:49
One law shall be to him that is home born, and to the stranger that sojournes among you.
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Leviticus 24:22
You shall have one manner of law, as well for the stranger, as for one of your own country: for I am the LORD your God.
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Numbers 9:11
The fourteenth day of the second month at even they shall keep it, and eat it with unleavened bread and bitter herbs.
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Deuteronomy 1:16
And I charged your judges at that time, saying, Hear the causes between your brothers, and judge righteously between every man and his brother, and the stranger that is with him.
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Jeremiah 22:3
Thus said the LORD; Execute you judgment and righteousness, and deliver the spoiled out of the hand of the oppressor: and do no wrong, do no violence to the stranger, the fatherless, nor the widow, neither shed innocent blood in this place.
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1 Cor. v. 11-Sep
... the angels, in contradistinction to "things relating to this ... if news get abroad among
strangers of what ... he saith these things about the Mosaic Law, much more ...
/.../homilies on the epistles of paul to the corinthians/homily xvi 1 cor v.htm

Exposition of the Moral Law.
... of an evangelical, to supply the deficiency of the Mosaic Law. ... But although the whole
Law is contained in two ... in Ten Commandments, every thing relating to his ...
/.../calvin/the institutes of the christian religion/chapter 8 exposition of the.htm

Period iii. The Dissolution of the Imperial State Church and the ...
... and further concerning lodging-places for strangers, poor-houses ... to all by this present
law that they ... Councils and Ecclesiastical Documents relating to Great ...
/.../ayer/a source book for ancient church history/period iii the dissolution of.htm

Memoir of John Bunyan
... of my lusts, and delighted in all transgression against the law of God ... This spiritual
meaning of part of the Mosaic dispensation is admirably introduced into ...
/.../bunyan/the works of john bunyan volumes 1-3/memoir of john bunyan.htm

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