In the biblical context, the term "strangers" refers to non-Israelites or foreigners residing among the Israelites. The Mosaic Law provided specific guidelines on how these individuals were to be treated and integrated into the community. While the Israelites were commanded to show kindness and justice to strangers, certain roles and privileges were reserved exclusively for native-born Israelites. One such role was that of the king.

The prohibition against appointing a foreigner as king is explicitly stated in the book of Deuteronomy. As the Israelites prepared to enter the Promised Land, God, through Moses, provided instructions for the establishment of a monarchy. In Deuteronomy 17:14-15 , it is written: "When you enter the land the LORD your God is giving you and have taken possession of it and settled in it, and you say, 'Let us set a king over us like all the nations around us,' you are to appoint over yourselves the king the LORD your God will choose. Appoint a king from among your brothers; you are not to set a foreigner over you, or one who is not of your brothers."

This directive underscores the importance of maintaining a leadership that is intimately connected with the people, their covenant with God, and their cultural and religious heritage. The king was to be a fellow Israelite, someone who shared in the covenantal promises and responsibilities. This requirement ensured that the king would have a vested interest in the welfare of the nation and would be more likely to adhere to the laws and commandments given by God.

The restriction against appointing a foreigner as king also served to prevent the introduction of foreign influences and practices that could lead the Israelites away from their covenantal obligations. Throughout the Old Testament, there are numerous instances where foreign alliances and influences led to idolatry and moral decline among the Israelites. By ensuring that the king was an Israelite, the law aimed to safeguard the spiritual and cultural integrity of the nation.

Furthermore, the king was expected to be a model of obedience to God's law. Deuteronomy 17:18-20 emphasizes the king's duty to write for himself a copy of the law and to read it all the days of his life, so that he may learn to fear the LORD, keep His commandments, and not consider himself better than his fellow Israelites. This requirement highlights the king's role as a servant leader, accountable to God and the people.

In summary, the law prohibiting the appointment of a foreigner as king in Israel was rooted in the desire to maintain a leadership that was faithful to God's covenant, culturally aligned with the people, and committed to upholding the divine laws that governed the nation.Deuteronomy 17:15
You shall in any wise set him king over you, whom the LORD your God shall choose: one from among your brothers shall you set king over you: you may not set a stranger over you, which is not your brother.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

The Kingdom Given to the Saints at the Resurrection of the Just.
... not expressed by any of the admitted laws of language. ... them, and confessed that they
were strangers and pilgrims ... promises are thus made good to Israel, all who ...
/.../bliss/a brief commentary on the apocalypse/the kingdom given to the.htm

Of the Commissioners Hellebichus Commander of the Troops, and ...
... together, "Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, who only ... of the inhabitants of the
city, but of strangers and corrupt ... were brought up in the same laws, they have ...
/.../chrysostom/on the priesthood/homily xvii of the commissioners.htm

Book ii. Jerome Answers the Second, Third, and Fourth Propositions ...
... writes that at Athens out of all the laws of [4776 ... And hence it is a reproach against
Israel: [4805] "Ye ... sinners, I am to infer His wishes respecting ourselves. ...
/.../jerome/the principal works of st jerome/book ii jerome answers the.htm

Against Jovinianus.
... had with authority laid down the law respecting husbands and ... epistle of Jude, saved
the people of Israel and led ... over endless details (for it is not my purpose ...
/.../jerome/the principal works of st jerome/against jovinianus.htm

Third Sunday after Trinity Humility, Trust, Watchfulness ...
... condemned by the whole world, even by strangers whom they ... examples of the kings of
Judah and Israel, whom the ... of the world, and have admirable laws and statutes ...
/.../luther/epistle sermons vol iii/third sunday after trinity humility.htm

Penitence, as Explained in the Sophistical Jargon of the Schoolmen ...
... the Lord anciently enjoined the people of Israel that they ... the souls of believers
by their laws, whether justly ... Cor.5:20), is not directed to strangers, but to ...
/.../the institutes of the christian religion/chapter 4 penitence as explained.htm

The Pharisee and the Publican
... unto which our sense, feeling, reason, &c., are strangers. ... glorious, so that the
children of Israel could not ... This misplacing of God's laws cannot, I say, but ...
/.../bunyan/the pharisee and publican/the pharisee and the publican.htm

A Discourse Upon the Pharisee and the Publican
... unto which our sense, feeling, reason, &c., are strangers. ... was glorious, so that
the children of Israel could not ... thy adding of laws to God's laws, precepts to ...
/.../bunyan/the works of john bunyan volumes 1-3/a discourse upon the pharisee.htm

Exposition of the Moral Law.
... In enacting laws, the first thing to be guarded against is ... to myself, as a people
to whom I shall not only do ... It is true, indeed, he was reminding Israel of a ...
/.../calvin/the institutes of the christian religion/chapter 8 exposition of the.htm

Period ii. The Church from the Permanent Division of the Empire ...
... of the position of Augustine respecting Predestination and ... the enforcement of terrible
but salutary laws, and are ... begun to be possessed by strangers, to bring ...
/.../ayer/a source book for ancient church history/period ii the church from.htm

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