The same law shall apply to both the native and the foreigner who resides among you.”
Parallel translations
- WEB One law shall be to him who is born at home, and to the stranger who lives as a foreigner among you.”
- KJV One law shall be to him that is homeborn, and unto the stranger that sojourneth among you.
- NKJV One law shall be for the native-born and for the stranger who dwells among you.”
- NASB The same law shall apply to the native as to the stranger who resides among you.”
- NLT This instruction applies to everyone, whether a native-born Israelite or a foreigner living among you.”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
One and the same law applies to the native-born and to the foreigner who lives among them.
Overview
God establishes equal standing under His law for the native Israelite and the covenant-joining stranger. This principle of one law affirms the impartiality of God and the unity of His people. It foreshadows the New Testament truth that in Christ there is no distinction between Jew and Gentile, but one body governed by the one Lord (Galatians 3:28).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 6
- Num 15:15–16The assembly is to have the same statute both for you and for the foreign resident; it is a permanent statute for the generations to come. You and the foreigner shall be the same before the LORD.
- Num 15:29You shall have the same law for the one who acts in error, whether he is a native-born Israelite or a foreigner residing among you.
- Lev 24:22You are to have the same standard of law for the foreign resident and the native; for I am the LORD your God.’”
- Num 9:14If a foreigner dwelling among you wants to observe the Passover to the LORD, he is to do so according to the Passover statute and its ordinances. You are to apply the same statute to both the foreigner and the native of the land.’”
- Gal 3:28There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
- Col 3:11Here there is no Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, or free, but Christ is all and is in all.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
The Passover lamb whose blood turns away death, the exodus through the sea, the manna, the rock, and the tabernacle where God dwells with his people all foreshadow Jesus — our Passover, our redemption, the bread from heaven, and God-with-us in the flesh.
How Exodus 12:49 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.