Leviticus 19:33 · Bible study
Leviticus 19:33 Commentary: Not Wronging the Foreigner
Hebrew · 11 what the commentators say
Meaning in one sentence
Why God commanded Israel not to oppress the foreigner, rooted in their own history, and what it means for Christian hospitality today.
Research Summary
- Meaning: God prohibits oppressing the foreigner living in Israel, grounding the command in Israel's own history as strangers in Egypt.
- Key words: gēr (sojourner, one without inherited rights); yānāh (to maltreat, oppress, do wrong, in Hiphil form).
- Main debate: Whether the stranger refers to any foreigner or only a proselyte of righteousness (full convert). Most commentators take the broader view.
- Theological theme: God’s protective care for the vulnerable; memory as moral teacher; the call to reflect God’s character by loving the outsider.
- Best use: Foundation for Christian hospitality, refugee advocacy, and just treatment of migrants in church and society.
Translation Comparison
BSB Berean Standard Bible 2020
When a foreigner resides with you in your land, you must not oppress him.
WEB World English Bible 2000
“‘If a stranger lives as a foreigner with you in your land, you shall not do him wrong.
KJV King James Version 1769
And if a stranger sojourn with thee in your land, ye shall not vex him.
ASV American Standard Version 1901
And if a stranger sojourn with thee in your land, ye shall not do him wrong.
YLT Young's Literal Translation 1898
`And when a sojourner sojourneth with thee in your land, thou dost not oppress him;
Darby Darby Bible 1890
And if a stranger sojourn with thee in your land, ye shall not molest him.
Douay-Rheims Douay-Rheims Bible 1899
If a stranger dwell in your land, and abide among you, do not upbraid hin:
Translations in other languages (10 available)
Y cuando el extranjero morare contigo en vuestra tierra, no le oprimiréis.
E quando o estrangeiro morar contigo em vossa terra, não o oprimireis.
Si un étranger vient séjourner avec vous dans votre pays, vous ne l’ opprimerez point.
Wenn ein Fremdling bei dir in eurem Lande wohnen wird, den sollt ihr nicht schinden.
En wanneer een vreemdeling bij u in uw land als vreemdeling verkeren zal, gij zult hem niet verdrukken.
Quando qualche forestiero soggiornerà con voi nel vostro paese, non gli farete torto.
Będzieli mieszkał z tobą przychodzień w ziemi waszej, nie czyńcie mu krzywdy;
Когда поселится пришлец в земле вашей, не притесняйте его:
「若有 外人 在你們國中 和你 同居，就不可 欺負 他。
And if a man from another country is living in your land with you, do not make life hard for him;
Verse in Context
Original Language (Biblical Hebrew)
Old Testament · Biblical Hebrew · Leviticus 19:33
Source: STEPBible TAGNT/TEHB (CC-BY 4.0). Click or tap a morphology code to see the full parsing.
Scholars' Consensus
Commentators agree this verse forms part of a sustained biblical mandate to protect the foreigner. The command uses the Hebrew verb yanah (Hiphil), meaning to maltreat, oppress, or do wrong. Adam Clarke calls the law both humane and politic: it protects the most vulnerable while strengthening the nation. John Calvin argues that God specially guards strangers because they lack human defenders, just as He does for widows and orphans. John Wesley specifies that vexing includes both harsh words and unreasonable demands. The grounding in Israel's own history in Egypt (v. 34) is universal: because you know the heart of a stranger, you must not make them suffer what you suffered. There is no dispute about the core prohibition; debate centers on whether the 'stranger' means any foreigner or only a convert to Israel's faith (a 'proselyte of righteousness'). Most commentators, including Clarke, Calvin, and the Cambridge Bible, take the broader reading, noting that the law extends to all who sojourn.
How settled is the interpretation?
Interpretive difficulty: Low
What is clear: God commands Israel not to oppress the foreigner, grounding the command in their own history as foreigners in Egypt, and expects this to shape how they treat every outsider.
What Scholars Agree and Debate
| Topic | Agreed | Debated |
|---|---|---|
| Who is the 'stranger'? | The Hebrew <em>ger</em> refers to someone living outside their ancestral land, without full clan membership or inheritance. | Some Jewish interpreters (e.g., Ben Gersom, cited by Gill) restrict it to a proselyte of righteousness who has fully converted. Most commentators, including Calvin, Clarke, and the Cambridge Bible, read it as any foreigner living in the land. |
| What does 'not wrong' include? | It covers verbal abuse, economic exploitation, and legal injustice. The verb <em>yanah</em> denotes active oppression. | Some (Wesley, Gill) emphasize verbal vexation and upbraiding; others (Calvin, JFB) focus on systemic vulnerability and God's protection against any form of abuse. |
| Basis of the command: memory vs. divine nature? | The command is grounded in Israel's experience in Egypt (v. 34) and in God's character as the one who brought them out. | The Reformation tradition (Calvin) stresses God's role as defender of the helpless; the Wesleyan tradition (Clarke) adds pragmatic benefits like increased political strength. Both see memory as essential. |
| Application in the New Testament? | Hebrews 13:2 commends hospitality to strangers, linking it to entertaining angels unawares. Jesus identifies with the stranger in Matthew 25. | Some Christians see a direct command to welcome refugees and undocumented migrants; others emphasize order and legality while still affirming care for the foreigner. |
| Relationship to 'love your neighbor'? | The command to love the stranger as yourself (v. 34) echoes and expands the command to love your neighbor (v. 18). | The scope of 'neighbor' in v. 18 was sometimes understood as fellow Israelite; v. 34 explicitly includes the foreigner, showing that neighbor love is universal. |
Historical & Cultural Context
Ancient Israel sat at a crossroads of trade and migration. The gēr (sojourner) was a person living outside their ancestral land, without inherited property or clan protection. Such people relied on the hospitality of the community where they settled. Without a family to defend them in court or a portion in the land, they were vulnerable to exploitation: employers could underpay them, landlords could evict them on a whim, and even verbal abuse could go unchecked.
Israel's own story began with a sojourn. Jacob's family entered Egypt as guests and ended as slaves. That memory, 'you were strangers in the land of Egypt', appears repeatedly in the law (Exodus 22:21, 23:9; Deuteronomy 10:19). God uses their history as a motive, not just a reminder: you know what it feels like; therefore do not inflict it. The command sits within the Holiness Code (Leviticus 17, 26), which calls Israel to reflect God's character in every area of life. Verse 33 follows commands to honor the elderly and precedes commands about honest weights and measures. The foreigner is thus woven into the fabric of holy living.
God's self-identification concludes the passage: 'I am Yahweh your God.' The land belongs to Him; the stranger is His guest. Israelites are stewards, not owners, and must treat every person in the land as God's charge.
Textual Notes
The consulted sources note no significant textual variants for verse 33. The Hebrew text is stable across manuscripts and versions.
Reception History
Jewish tradition has long seen this verse as a cornerstone of ethics. The medieval commentator Rashi, cited by Gill, warned against “upbraiding” the stranger, reminding him of his pagan past. Early church fathers read the command as a shadow of Christ, who came as a stranger and was received by few. Ambrose and Augustine connected it to hospitality, teaching that in the stranger we may entertain angels (Hebrews 13:2). The Reformers, especially Calvin, used it to argue for civil equity and protection of refugees in Christian cities. In modern Christianity, Leviticus 19:33-34 is often quoted in discussions on immigration and refugee policy, calling believers to treat newcomers not as threats but as neighbors.
Preaching This Verse
Three-point outline
- The command: do not wrong the foreigner. The Hebrew verb yanah covers verbal abuse, economic exploitation, and legal manipulation. God does not leave room for exceptions.
- The ground: you were strangers in Egypt. Israel's history is not a badge of privilege but a call to empathy. The memory of suffering becomes the engine of justice.
- The goal: love him as yourself. Verse 34 escalates from prohibition to positive command. The foreigner is to be treated as a native-born member of the covenant community.
Five-point outline
- Who the foreigner is: a person without inherited rights in the land, whether a temporary worker or a long-term resident.
- What wronging looks like: hard words (Gill’s comment on Jarchi), unfair pay, rigged scales, or denial of access to justice.
- Why this matters to God: He defends those who cannot defend themselves. Calvin notes that God interposes His own protection when human aid is absent.
- How memory motivates: Israel’s Egyptian slavery is not just a fact but a felt reality. Scripture repeatedly returns to this point as a moral anchor.
- Where it leads: to active love, the foreigner becomes “as one born among you.” This is not mere tolerance but full inclusion in community life.
Illustration hooks
- A family new to your country struggles with language, finds no one to help them fill out forms, and is charged double for a car repair. The command to not “vex” speaks directly to that unseen vulnerability.
- At work, a colleague from another background is passed over for promotion despite better qualifications. The passage asks whether we are using our insider status to block others.
- In a church, a visitor sits alone for weeks before anyone learns their name. The call to love the stranger as oneself begins with a greeting.
Questions your congregation is asking
- Does this apply only to legal immigrants or to anyone living among us, regardless of status?
- How do we balance responsibility to our own families with the command to care for foreigners?
- What does “wronging” mean in practice, does it include expecting them to adopt our culture?
Leading a Discussion
This passage calls us to see the foreigner as God sees them: a person with a story, needs, and dignity. Israel’s memory of Egypt is meant to shape their response. As your group works through these questions, hold that memory in mind.
Discussion questions
- Read Leviticus 19:33-34. What does the Hebrew word ger (sojourner) tell us about this person’s status in the community?
- Why do you think the command to “not wrong” comes before the positive command to “love”? What does that order suggest about human tendencies?
- How does Israel’s experience as strangers in Egypt function as a motivation? Does knowing the heart of a stranger give the command more weight than a simple rule?
- What forms of oppression might foreigners face today that are subtle, hard to recognize as “wronging” but still harmful?
- Verse 34 says the stranger shall be to you as the native-born. In what ways can a church community make this concrete?
- Jesus embodied the stranger, born in a borrowed stable, homeless as an adult. How does His example shape our reading of this Old Testament command?
- What is one step our group could take this month to treat a foreigner in our midst as “one born among us”?
Word Study
The key original-language words in this verse. Select any word for its full lexicon entry — meaning, every occurrence in Scripture, and related words.
Cross-References
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (TSK, public domain)
| Exodus 22:21 | “You shall not wrong an alien or oppress him, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt. |
| Exodus 23:9 | “You shall not oppress an alien, for you know the heart of an alien, since you were aliens in the land of Egypt. |
| Deuteronomy 10:18 | He executes justice for the fatherless and widow and loves the foreigner in giving him food and clothing. |
| Deuteronomy 10:19 | Therefore love the foreigner, for you were foreigners in the land of Egypt. |
| Deuteronomy 24:14 | You shall not oppress a hired servant who is poor and needy, whether he is one of your brothers or one of the foreigners who are in your land within your gates. |
| Jeremiah 7:6 | if you don’t oppress the foreigner, the fatherless, and the widow, and don’t shed innocent blood in this place, and don’t walk after other gods to your own hurt, |
| Ezekiel 22:7 | In you have they treated father and mother with contempt. Among you they have oppressed the foreigner. In you they have wronged the fatherless and the widow. |
| Ezekiel 22:29 | The people of the land have used oppression and exercised robbery. Yes, they have troubled the poor and needy, and have oppressed the foreigner wrongfully. |
Interlinear and lexical data from STEPBible (CC BY 4.0). Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0). Commentaries are public domain.
For personal reflection
Read the devotional page — prayer, application, and "for families"
What the Commentators Say
11 public-domain commentaries, condensed into plain language.
Adam Clarke's Commentary Methodist/Wesleyan 1826
Clarke presents three reasons for kindness to strangers: compassion for their desolate state, the political benefit of settlers who strengthen the nation and often become converts, and the religious motive from Scripture. He argues that humanity, wise policy, and faith all unite in the command to love the stranger as oneself.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible Protestant 1832
Barnes clarifies that the word "stranger" in this context means a foreigner, not simply a sojourner or resident alien. He points to earlier passages for the distinction, indicating that the term carries a specific legal and national meaning.
Calvin's Commentaries Reformed 1564
Calvin points out that God specifically commands kindness to strangers so the Israelites would not limit their duty to their own nation. By placing strangers, widows, and orphans under His own protection, God restrains those who would oppress the defenseless, thinking no human will stop them.
Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges Anglican 1880
33, 34 . Cp. Exo_22:21 ; Exo_23:9 ; Deu_10:19 ; cp. Mal_3:5 .
Geneva Bible Notes Reformed 1599
The Geneva note stresses that God directly forbids any form of oppression toward foreigners living among Israel. The command is not merely to avoid harm, but to actively refrain from vexing or troubling the stranger, treating them with the same protection owed to native-born Israelites.
Gill's Exposition of the Bible Baptist 1748
Gill distinguishes between two kinds of strangers: a full convert to Judaism and a temporary resident who has renounced idolatry. He explains that vexing them includes both harsh words that mock their former ignorance and practical oppression in business or legal disputes.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Commentary Protestant 1871
JFB highlights the purpose behind the command: Israel was to treat strangers kindly as friends, not aliens, in order to draw them to the true God. The motivation was Israel's own history—they themselves had been strangers in Egypt and were hospitably received there.
Keil & Delitzsch OT Commentary Protestant 1876
Keil and Delitzsch note that these commands are judicial additions to earlier Exodus laws. They stress that the Israelite must not only avoid oppressing the foreigner but treat him as a native and love him as himself. This goes beyond restraint to active, equal regard.
Lange's Commentary Reformed 1857
Lange sees this chapter as the summing up of the theocratic community's laws, contrasting directly with the heathen inhumanity of the previous chapter. He observes that the repeated phrase "I am Jehovah" functions as a liturgical refrain, grounding every command in God's holy personality. The deliberate order "mother and father" emphasizes reverence for women after the evils just described.
Matthew Henry's Commentary Reformed/Presbyterian 1710
Matthew Henry sees the command as a safeguard against idolatry and immorality, tying Sabbath observance and reverence for the sanctuary together. He then applies the principle to Christian gatherings: though no place is holy by divine institution, the promise of Christ's presence in solemn assemblies still demands respectful behavior.
Wesley's Explanatory Notes Methodist/Wesleyan 1754
Vex him - Either with opprobrious expressions, or grievous exactions.