Good Morning.
You shall neither mistreat a stranger nor oppress him, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt.
(Exodus 22:21)
Some of you might find it interesting to learn that the term “barbarian” was coined by Greeks for all non-Greeks; in other words, they tended to look down their noses as foreigners. On the other hand, God’s people should always consider the plight of those who are aliens and sojourners because, throughout their history, Israel was in the same situation. Abraham sojourned in the land of Canaan; Jacob and his family sojourned in the land of Egypt. Consequently, Israel should remember what it feels like to be in a strange land and be despised — that was the situation in Egypt.
As for the followers of Messiah, we are commanded to “Love your neighbor as yourself” and sometimes your neighbor is the dreaded “Samaritan” — the guy you don’t particularly like. In fact, the commands to “love your neighbor” and not “oppress” him is mentioned thirty-six times just in the Five Books of Moses, demonstrating that God is pretty serious about how we treat one another. No one should not be mistreated or despised just because they are a stranger. Each person should be treated with respect because he is a human being, created in the image of the Almighty.
It is written within Jewish commentary that, when given power, those who have been downtrodden by others prove to be worse oppressors than their antagonists. Given the volatile situation in the world currently, ones has to wonder if this is not what we’re seeing. In other words, are we seeing the consequences of man’s inability and unwillingness to treat others with kindness? Even if so, it is our duty as followers of Yeshua to treat all with kindness, long suffering and respectful consideration. We are His ambassadors sojourning in a world that is not our home. While we are here, we must represent Him well.
Blessings and Shalom,
Bill
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