Exodus 22 · Verse 21

Exodus 22:21

Thou shalt neither vex a stranger, nor oppress him: for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt.
Exodus 22:21, King James Version

Exodus 22:21 in other translations

BSBYou must not exploit or oppress a foreign resident, for you yourselves were foreigners in the land of Egypt.
WEB“You shall not wrong an alien or oppress him, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt.
ASVAnd a sojourner shalt thou not wrong, neither shalt thou oppress him: for ye were sojourners in the land of Egypt.
YLT‘And a sojourner thou dost not oppress, nor crush him, for sojourners ye have been in the land of Egypt.
DARBYThou shalt neither vex a stranger, nor oppress him; for ye have been strangers in the land of Egypt.
BBEDo no wrong to a man from a strange country, and do not be hard on him; for you yourselves were living in a strange country, in the land of Egypt.
WebsterThou shalt neither vex a stranger, nor oppress him; for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt.

What does Exodus 22:21 mean?

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 21 Thou 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 your country will be increased. If refugees of this kind be treated well, they will become proselytes to your religion, and thus their souls may be saved." In every point of view, therefore, justice, humanity, sound policy, and religion, say. Neither vex nor oppress a stranger.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Exodus 22:21 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

וְגֵ֥רve.Gerand a sojournerH1616
לֹא\־lo'-notH3808
תוֹנֶ֖הto.Nehyou must maltreatH3238
וְלֹ֣אve.Lo'and notH3808
תִלְחָצֶ֑נּוּtil.cha.Tze.nuyou must oppress himH3905
כִּֽי\־ki-forH3588
גֵרִ֥יםge.RimsojournersH1616
הֱיִיתֶ֖םhe.yi.Temyou wereH1961
בְּאֶ֥רֶץbe.'E.retzin [the] land ofH776
מִצְרָֽיִם\׃mitz.Ra.yimEgyptH4714

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Exodus 22:21

  • Deuteronomy 10:19

    Love ye therefore the stranger: for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt.

  • Exodus 23:9

    Also thou shalt not oppress a stranger: for ye know the heart of a stranger, seeing ye were strangers in the land of Egypt.

  • Leviticus 19:33

    And if a stranger sojourn with thee in your land, ye shall not vex him.

  • Zechariah 7:10

    And oppress not the widow, nor the fatherless, the stranger, nor the poor; and let none of you imagine evil against his brother in your heart.

  • Malachi 3:5

    And I will come near to you to judgment; and I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, and against the adulterers, and against false swearers, and against those that oppress the hireling in his wages, the widow, and the fatherless, and that turn aside the stranger from his right, and fear not me, saith the Lord of hosts.

  • Deuteronomy 23:7

    Thou shalt not abhor an Edomite; for he is thy brother: thou shalt not abhor an Egyptian; because thou wast a stranger in his land.

  • Jeremiah 7:6

    If ye oppress not the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow, and shed not innocent blood in this place, neither walk after other gods to your hurt:

  • Exodus 20:2

    I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.

  • Leviticus 25:35

    And if thy brother be waxen poor, and fallen in decay with thee; then thou shalt relieve him: yea, though he be a stranger, or a sojourner; that he may live with thee.

  • Jeremiah 22:3

    Thus saith the Lord; Execute ye judgment and righteousness, and deliver the spoiled out of the hand of the oppressor: and do no wrong, do no violence to the stranger, the fatherless, nor the widow, neither shed innocent blood in this place.

  • Deuteronomy 15:15

    And thou shalt remember that thou wast a bondman in the land of Egypt, and the Lord thy God redeemed thee: therefore I command thee this thing to day.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
vex a stranger.
23:9; Le 19:33; 25:35; De 10:19; Jer 7:6; 22:3; Zec 7:10; Mal 3:5
for ye were strangers.
20:2; 23:9; De 10:19; 15:15; 23:7

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • Exodus 22:20

    He that sacrificeth unto any god, save unto the Lord only, he shall be utterly destroyed.

  • Exodus 22:21

    Thou shalt neither vex a stranger, nor oppress him: for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt.

  • Exodus 22:22

    Ye shall not afflict any widow, or fatherless child.

Read all of Exodus 22

Exodus 22:21 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		Y al extranjero no engañarás, ni angustiarás, porque extranjeros fuisteis vosotros en la tierra de Egipto.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		Vous n’affligerez aucune veuve, ni aucun orphelin.
German
Elberfelder 1871		Und den Fremdling sollst du nicht bedrängen und ihn nicht bedrücken, denn Fremdlinge seid ihr im Lande Ägypten gewesen.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		Advenam non contristabis, neque affliges eum: advenæ enim et ipsi fuistis in terra Ægypti.