You must not exploit or oppress a foreign resident, for you yourselves were foreigners in the land of Egypt.
Parallel translations
- WEB “You shall not wrong an alien or oppress him, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt.
- KJV Thou shalt neither vex a stranger, nor oppress him: for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt.
- NKJV “You shall neither mistreat a stranger nor oppress him, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt.
- NASB “You shall not oppress a stranger nor torment him, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt.
- NLT “You must not mistreat or oppress foreigners in any way. Remember, you yourselves were once foreigners in the land of Egypt.
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
Israel must not wrong or oppress the foreigner, remembering their own bondage in Egypt. God's redeemed people extend compassion to the outsider.
Overview
Having been aliens themselves, the Israelites are called to treat resident foreigners with justice and kindness. This grounds ethics in gratitude for God's own redemptive mercy. The welcome of the stranger anticipates the gospel, in which formerly alienated Gentiles are brought near and made fellow citizens through Christ (Ephesians 2:12-13).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 11
- Exod 23:9Do not oppress a foreign resident, since you yourselves know how it feels to be foreigners; for you were foreigners in the land of Egypt.
- Deut 10:19So you also must love the foreigner, since you yourselves were foreigners in the land of Egypt.
- Lev 19:33When a foreigner resides with you in your land, you must not oppress him.
- Zech 7:10Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless, the foreigner or the poor. And do not plot evil in your hearts against one another.’
- Deut 23:7Do not despise an Edomite, for he is your brother. Do not despise an Egyptian, because you lived as a foreigner in his land.
- Jer 7:6if you no longer oppress the foreigner and the fatherless and the widow, and if you no longer shed innocent blood in this place or follow other gods to your own harm,
- Lev 25:35Now if your countryman becomes destitute and cannot support himself among you, then you are to help him as you would a foreigner or stranger, so that he can continue to live among you.
- Exod 20:2“I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.
- Mal 3:5“Then I will draw near to you for judgment. And I will be a swift witness against sorcerers and adulterers and perjurers, against oppressors of the widowed and fatherless, and against those who defraud laborers of their wages and deny justice to the foreigner but do not fear Me,” says the LORD of Hosts.
- Jer 22:3This is what the LORD says: Administer justice and righteousness. Rescue the victim of robbery from the hand of his oppressor. Do no wrong or violence to the foreigner, the fatherless, or the widow. Do not shed innocent blood in this place.
- Deut 15:15Remember that you were slaves in the land of Egypt, and the LORD your God redeemed you; that is why I am giving you this command today.
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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 22:21 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
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