Define

• Hebrew: nēkār (נֵכָר) foreign, strange
  • Isaiah 56 - “Let not the foreigner say…” → God overrides Deut 23:3-5
  • Gen 17:12, 27 – Uncircumcised males are “foreign” (nēkār) to the covenant
  • Exod 21:8 – A master must not sell a Hebrew servant-girl to a foreign (nēkār) people
  • Isa 28:21 – God’s judgment is “strange” (nēkār) work, alien to His usual mercy.
• Greek: allotrios (ἀλλότριος) Belonging to another; not one’s own; alien, foreign, or hostile
  • (allotrios) in NT = former status of Gentile
  • Luke 16:12 – “If you have not been faithful in that which is another’s (allotrios), who will give you your own?”
  • Heb 11:34 – Heroes of faith “escaped the edge of the sword… put foreign (allotrios) armies to flight.”
  • Acts 7:6 – Abraham’s offspring would be “sojourners in a land belonging to others” (allotrios).
  • Col 1:21 – Once alienated (allotrios) in mind, now reconciled
  • Eph 2:12 – “alienated (allotrios) from the commonwealth of Israel

Connections

Additional Info

A Foreigner was someone who was not a native born Israelite who wanted to follow Yahweh / God. In the New Testament these would be Gentiles who wanted to follow Jesus.

E xodus 12:37-39

^ 37
{ #Then}
Bnei-Yisrael journeyed from Rameses to Succoth, about 600,000 men on foot, as well as children.

{ #Also}
a mixed multitude went up with them, along with the flocks, herds and heavy livestock.

{ #They}
had baked matzot cakes from the dough that they brought out of Egypt. It had no hametz, because they were thrust out of Egypt and could not delay, so they had not made provisions for themselves.

E xodus 12:43-49

4 3 Then Adonai said to Moses and Aaron, “This is the ordinance of the Passover. No foreigner may eat it, 44 but every man’s servant that is bought for money, after you have circumcised him, may eat it. 45 Nor should a visitor or hired servant eat it. 46 It is to be eaten inside a single house. You are not to carry the meat out of the house, nor are you to break any of its bones. [a] 47 All the congregation of Israel must keep it. 48 But if an outsider dwells with you, who would keep the Passover for Adonai, all his males must be circumcised. Then let him draw near and keep it**. He** will be like one who is nativ e to the land. But no uncircumcised person may eat from it. 49 The same Torah applies to the native as well as the outsider who dwells among you.”

E xodus 20:8 -11

8 “ Remember Yom Shabbat, to keep it holy. 9 You are to work six days, and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a Shabbat to Adonai your God. In it you shall not do any work —not you, nor your son, your daughter, your male servant, your female servant, your cattle, nor the outsider that is within your gates. 11 For in six days Adonai made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Thus Adonai blessed Yom Shabbat, and made it holy.

L eviticus 16:28-30 - Yom Kippur

2 9 “It is to be a statute to you forever, that in the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, you are to afflict your souls, and do no kind of work — both the native-born and the outsider dwelling among you. 30 For on this day atonement will be made for you, to cleanse you. From all your sins you will be clean before Adonai.

L eviticus 17:14-16 - Eating Blood

1 4 For the life of every creature, its blood is in its life. Therefore I said to Bnei-Yisrael: You are not to eat the blood of any kind of creature, for the life of every creature is its blood. Whoever eats it is to be cut off. 15 “Everyone who eats what dies naturally or is torn by animals —whether he is native-born or a foreigner —is to wash his clothes and bathe himself in water. He will be unclean until the evening, then he will be clean. 16 But if he does not wash them or bathe his body, then he will bear his iniquity.”

L eviticus 18:25-27

2 5 The land has become defiled, so I will punish its iniquity, and the land will vomit out its inhabitants. 26 You, however, are to keep My statutes and My ordinances, and do none of these abominations, neither the native-born, nor the outsider dwelling among you. 27 “For all these abominations were done by the men of the land who were before you, and the land became defiled.

Leviticus 19:33-35

33 “If an outsider dwells with you in your land, you should do him no wrong. 34 The outsider dwelling among you shall be to you as the native-born among you. You should love him as yourself—for you dwelled as outsiders in the land of Egypt. I am Adonai your God.

Leviticus 24:15-17

15 “Then you will speak to Bnei-Yisrael, saying: Whoever curses his God will bear his sin. 16 Whoever blasphemes the Name of Adonai must surely be put to death. The whole congregation must stone him. The outsider as well as the native-born, when he blasphemes the Name, is to be put to death.

Leviticus 24:21-23

21 “Whoever kills an animal is to make restitution, but the one who kills a man is to be put to death. 22 You are to have one standard of justice for the outsider as well as the native-born, for I am Adonai your God.”

Numbers 9:13-15

13 “But the person who is clean and not away on a journey, yet neglects to celebrate Passover, that soul shall be cut off from his people because that person did not present Adonai’s offering at the appointed time. That man will bear his sin. 14 “If an outsider living among you would celebrate Passover to Adonai according to the requirement, so he should do. There will be for you the same regulation for the outsider and the native of the land.’”

Numbers 15:28-30

28 The kohen is to make atonement before Adonai for that person who erred by sinning without intent, and he is to be forgiven when atonement has been made for him. 29 Whether a native-born of Bnei-Yisrael or an outsider living among them, one Torah applies to you for the one sinning unintentionally. 30 “But the person who sins defiantly, whether native or outsider, reviles Adonai and that person is to be cut off from his people.

Numbers 15:29-31

29 Whether a native-born of Bnei-Yisrael or an outsider living among them, one Torah applies to you for the one sinning unintentionally. 30 “But the person who sins defiantly, whether native or outsider, reviles Adonai and that person is to be cut off from his people. 31 Because he has despised the word of Adonai and has broken His commandment, that person will certainly be cut off—his guilt will remain on him.”

Deuteronomy 5:12-15

12 ‘Observe Yom Shabbat to keep it holy, as Adonai your God commanded you. 13 Six days you are to labor and do all your work, 14 but the seventh day is a Shabbat to Adonai your God. In it you are not to do any work—not you or your son or your daughter, or your slave or your maid, or your ox, your donkey or any of your livestock or the outsider within your gates, so that your slave and your maid may rest as you do. 15 You must remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and Adonai your God brought you out from there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. Therefore Adonai your God commanded you to keep Yom Shabbat.

Joshua 8:32-34

32 There on the stones he wrote a copy of the Torah of Moses, which he had written, in the presence of Bnei-Yisrael. 33 Then all Israel, with their elders and officials, and their judges, were standing on both sides of the ark facing the Levitical kohanim carrying the ark of the covenant of Adonai— the outsider as well as the native-born. Half of them stood in front of Mount Gerizim and half of them in front of Mount Ebal—just as Moses the servant of Adonai had commanded before—in order to bless the people of Israel.

Ezekiel 47:21-23

21 You are to divide this land for yourselves to the tribes of Israel. 22 So you are to divide it by lot for an inheritance for you and for the outsiders who dwell among you, whoever bears children among you. They will be to you like the native-born of Bnei-Yisrael; they will be allotted an inheritance along with you among the tribes of Israel. 23 In whatever tribe the outsider lives, there you will give him his inheritance.” It is a declaration of Adonai.

Isaiah 56 Thus says Adonai:

“Preserve justice, do righteousness. For My salvation is about to come, and My righteousness to be revealed.2 Blessed is the one who does this, the son of man who takes hold of it, who keeps from profaning Shabbat, and keeps his hand from doing any evil.

3 Do not let a son of a foreigner who has joined himself to Adonai[a] say, ‘Adonai will surely exclude me from His people.”

6 Also the foreigners who join themselves to Adonai, to minister to Him, and to love the Name of Adonai, and to be His servants—

all who keep from profaning Shabbat, and hold fast to My covenant—7 these I will bring to My holy mountain, and let them rejoice in My House of Prayer. Their burnt offerings and sacrifices will be acceptable on My altar. For My House will be called a House of Prayer for all nations.”[c]