📖 Biblical Definition
A stranger (Hebrew ger, Greek xenos) is a foreigner, sojourner, or person outside the covenant community — and in Scripture the stranger is the object of explicit, repeated divine concern. Moses commands: "Love ye therefore the stranger: for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt" (Deuteronomy 10:19); the law forbids oppressing him (Exodus 22:21; 23:9) and commands leaving the corners of the field for him to glean (Leviticus 19:9-10). Christ identifies Himself with the stranger in the great judgment scene: "I was a stranger, and ye took me in" (Matthew 25:35). Hebrews calls believers themselves "strangers and pilgrims on the earth" (Hebrews 11:13) — every saint a sojourner welcomed by God.
📜 Webster 1828 Definition
STRAN'GER, n.
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1. A foreigner; one who belongs to another country. 2. One of another town, city, or province. 3. One unknown. 4. One not admitted to communion or fellowship. 5. In scripture, one who is not a Jew by birth.
📖 Key Scripture
Deuteronomy 10:19 — "Love ye therefore the stranger: for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt."
Leviticus 19:34 — "The stranger that dwelleth with you shall be unto you as one born among you, and thou shalt love him as thyself."
Matthew 25:35 — "I was a stranger, and ye took me in."
Hebrews 11:13 — "They... confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth."
⚠️ Modern Corruption
Modern church polity often forgets that hospitality is not optional — Scripture commands it.
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Israel's law has more verses about loving the stranger than about almost any social ethic, and the rationale is always the same: ye were strangers in the land of Egypt. The covenant memory of having been outsiders becomes the basis for treating outsiders well. Christianity inherits the principle and expands it: every believer is a stranger and pilgrim on the earth, en route to the city whose builder and maker is God.
Modern church culture often confuses comfort with obedience. We retreat into homogenous tribes; we treat the unfamiliar visitor as an inconvenience; we confuse insularity with discipleship. The Bible is severe about this. The stranger is a pulpit category in Scripture, and Christ Himself takes the stranger's seat at our doors. Welcome him. The man you opened to may be Jesus.
🔗 Greek & Hebrew Roots
Hebrew ger (H1616); Greek xenos (G3581).
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H1616 — ger — sojourner; stranger
G3581 — xenos — foreigner; stranger; host
G3927 — parepidemos — sojourner; pilgrim
Usage
"Israel was a stranger before she was a host; the memory is the basis of the law."
"Every believer is a stranger and pilgrim on earth — insularity is unbelief in disguise."
"The stranger at your door may be Jesus; the parable in Matthew 25 is unsentimental."