Do not mistreat or oppress a foreigner, for you were foreigners in Egypt. The protection of the foreigner is the covenant community's most explicit act of neighbor-love for those outside the community. The motivation — you were foreigners in Egypt — is the foundational ethical argument of the covenant: what you experienced, do not inflict on others. Leviticus 19:34 repeats this: the foreigner residing among you must be treated as your native-born. Love them as yourself, for you were foreigners in Egypt. Matthew 25:35 records Jesus saying: I was a stranger and you invited me in — the protection of the foreigner in Exodus 22:21 is the legal foundation of the eschatological judgment on how communities treat those who are vulnerable and outside.

COMMUNITY REFLECTIONS

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