Amplified Bible
Exodus 22:21
21“You shall not wrong a stranger or oppress him, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt.
Exodus 22:21 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Thou shalt neither vex a stranger, nor oppress him: for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt.
- New International Version (NIV)“Do not mistreat or oppress a foreigner, for you were foreigners in Egypt.
- English Standard Version (ESV)"You shall not wrong a sojourner or oppress him, for you were sojourners in the land of Egypt.
- New King James Version (NKJV)“You shall neither mistreat a stranger nor oppress him, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt.
Context of Exodus 22:21
19“Whoever lies with an animal must be put to death. 20“He who sacrifices to any god, other than to the Lord alone, shall be put under a ban (designated) for destruction (execution). “You shall not wrong a stranger or oppress him, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt. 22You shall not harm or oppress any widow or fatherless child. 23If you harm or oppress them in any way, and they cry at all to Me [for help], I will most certainly hear their cry;
Read all of Exodus 22Exodus 22:21 word by word
וְגֵ֥ר לֹא־תוֹנֶ֖ה וְלֹ֣א תִלְחָצֶ֑נּוּ כִּֽי־גֵרִ֥ים הֱיִיתֶ֖ם בְּאֶ֥רֶץ מִצְרָֽיִם׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Exodus 22:21
- Exodus 23:9“You shall not oppress a stranger, for you know the soul [the feelings, thoughts, and concerns] of a stranger, for you were strangers in Egypt.
- Leviticus 19:33‘When a stranger resides with you in your land, you shall not oppress or mistreat him.
- Leviticus 25:35‘Now if your fellow countryman becomes poor and his hand falters with you [that is, he has trouble repaying you for something], then you are to help and sustain him, [with courtesy and consideration] like [you would] a stranger or a temporary resident [without property], so that he may live among you.
- Deuteronomy 10:19Therefore, show your love for the stranger, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt.
- Jeremiah 7:6if you do not oppress the transient and the foreigner, the orphan, or the widow, and do not shed innocent blood [by oppression and by unjust judicial murders] in Jerusalem, nor follow after other gods to your own ruin,
- Jeremiah 22:3Thus says the Lord, “Execute justice and righteousness, and rescue the one who has been robbed from the hand of his oppressor. And do no wrong; do no violence to the stranger, the fatherless, or the widow, nor shed innocent blood in this place.
- Zechariah 7:10and do not oppress or exploit the widow or the fatherless, the stranger or the poor; and do not devise or even imagine evil in your hearts against one another.’
- Malachi 3:5“Then I will come near you for judgment; I will be a swift witness against sorcerers, against adulterers, against perjurers, and against those who oppress the laborer in his wages and widows and the fatherless, and against those who turn away the alien [from his right], and those who do not fear Me [with awe-filled reverence],” says the Lord of hosts.
- Exodus 20:2“I am the Lord your God, who has brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.
- Deuteronomy 15:15And you shall remember and thoughtfully consider that you were [once] a slave in the land of Egypt, and the Lord your God redeemed you; therefore, I am commanding you these things today.
- Deuteronomy 23:7“You shall not detest an Edomite, for he is your brother [Esau’s descendant]. You shall not detest an Egyptian, because you were a stranger (resident alien, foreigner) in his land.
Commentaries on Exodus 22:21
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 21Thou shalt neither vex a stranger, nor oppress him - This was not only a very humane law, but it was also the offspring of a sound policy: "Do not vex a stranger; remember ye were strangers. Do not oppress a stranger; remember ye were oppressed. Therefore do unto all men as ye would they should do to you." It was the produce of a sound policy: "Let strangers be well treated among you, and many will come to take refuge among you, and thus the strength of…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 21A stranger - See Exodus 20:10 note.Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 21The Hebrews were to treat foreigners kindly because they, too, had once been foreigners (see also 23:9; Deuteronomy 10:18–19). For more on this principle, see Luke 6:31.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1-311-4. If a man shall steal an ox, or a sheep--The law respects the theft of cattle which constituted the chief part of their property. The penalty for the theft of a sheep which was slain or sold, was fourfold; for an ox fivefold, because of its greater utility in labor; but, should the stolen animal have been recovered alive, a double compensation was all that was required, because it was presumable he (the thief) was not a practised adept in dishonesty…Read the comment
Topics related to Exodus 22:21
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Exodus 22
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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