L3. Gentiles Not to Be Excluded from the Jewish Community. [Make a Comment]
We are not to exclude Gentiles from being part of the Jewish Community.
This precept is derived from His Word (blessed be He):
Key Scriptures
MOSES SAVED BY A GENTILE.
Exodus 2:1-10
A man from the family of Levi took a woman also descended from Levi as his
wife. When she conceived and had a son, upon seeing what a fine child he
was, she hid him for three months. When she could no longer hide him, she
took a papyrus basket, coated it with clay and tar, put the child in it and
placed it among the reeds on the riverbank. His sister stood at a distance
to see what would happen to him. The daughter of Pharaoh [a Gentile] came
down to bathe in the river while her maids-in-attendance walked along the
riverside. Spotting the basket among the reeds, she sent her slave-girl to
get it. She opened it and looked inside, and there in front of her was a
crying baby boy! Moved with pity, she said, "This must be one of the
Hebrews' children." At this point, his sister said to Pharaoh's
daughter, "Would you like me to go and find you one of the Hebrew women to
nurse the baby for you?" Pharaoh's daughter answered, "Yes, go." So
the girl went and called the baby's own mother. Pharaoh's daughter
told her, "Take this child away, and nurse it for me, and I will pay you for
doing it." So the woman took the child and nursed it. Then, when the child
had grown some, she brought him to Pharaoh's daughter; and she began to
raise him as her son. She called him Moshe [pull out], explaining, "Because
I pulled him out of the water.
GENTILES BROUGHT WITHIN THE JEWISH COMMUNITY THROUGH MARRIAGE
Exodus 2:15-22
(Zipporah)
When Pharaoh heard of it, he tried to have Moshe put to death. But Moshe
fled from Pharaoh to live in the land of Midyan. One day, as he was sitting
by a well, the seven daughters of the priest of Midyan came to draw water.
They had filled the troughs to water their father's sheep, when the
shepherds came and tried to drive them away. But Moshe got up and defended
them; then he watered their sheep. When they came to Re'u'el their
father, he said, "How come you're back so soon today?" They answered,
"An Egyptian rescued us from the shepherds; more than that, he drew water
for us and watered the sheep." He asked his daughters, "Where is he? Why
did you leave the man there? Invite him to have something to eat." Moshe was
glad to stay on with the man, and he gave Moshe his daughter Tzipporah [a
Gentile] in marriage. She gave birth to a son, and he named him Gershom
[foreigner there], for he said, "I have been a foreigner in a foreign
land."
Ruth 4:9-12
(Ruth)
Bo'az addressed the leaders and all the people: "You are witnesses
today that I am purchasing from Na'omi all that belonged to Elimelekh
and all that belonged to Kilyon and Machlon. Also I am acquiring as my wife
Rut [a Gentile] the woman from Mo'av, the wife of Machlon, in
order to raise up in the name of the deceased an heir for his property; so
that the name of the deceased will not be cut off from his kinsmen and from
the gate of his place. You are witnesses today." All the people at the gate
and the leaders said, "We are witnesses. May ADONAI make the woman who has
come into your house like Rachel and like Le'ah, who between them built
up the house of Isra'el. Do worthy deeds in Efrat; become renowned in
Beit-Lechem. May your house, because of the seed ADONAI will give you from
this young woman, become like the house of Peretz, whom Tamar bore to
Y'hudah."
Matthew 1:5
(Rahab)
Salmon was the father of Bo'az (his mother was Rachav) [a
Gentile], Bo'az was the father of 'Oved (his mother was Rut),
'Oved was the father of Yishai
EXAMPLE OF A GENTILE WHO LIVED AMONG THE JEWISH PEOPLE INDEPENDENT OF MARRIAGE
Joshua 6:25
But Y'hoshua spared Rachav the prostitute [a Gentile], her
father's household and everything she had; and she has continued living
with Isra'el from then until now; because she hid the messengers
Y'hoshua had sent to reconnoiter.
GENTILES ACCOMPANIED THE JEWS IN THEIR EXODUS FROM EGYPT
Exodus 12:37-38
The people of Isra'el traveled from Ra'amses to Sukkot, some six
hundred thousand men on foot, not counting children. A mixed crowd
[Gentiles] also went up with them, as well as livestock in large
numbers, both flocks and herds.
Deuteronomy 29:4-10(5-11)
I led you forty years in the desert. Neither the clothes on your body nor
the shoes on your feet wore out. You didn't eat bread, and you
didn't drink wine or other intoxicating liquor; this was so that you
would know that 'I am ADONAI your God.' When you arrived at this
place, Sichon the king of Heshbon and 'Og the king of Bashan advanced
against us in battle, and we defeated them, took their land and gave it as
an inheritance to the Re'uveni, the Gadi and the M'nashi.
Therefore, observe the words of this covenant and obey them; so that you can
make everything you do prosper. Today you are standing, all of you, before
ADONAI your God - your heads, your tribes, your leaders and your officers -
all the men of Isra'el, along with your little ones, your wives and
your foreigners [Gentiles] here with you in your camp, from the one
who chops your wood to the one who draws your water.
GENTILE MEMBERS OF THE JEWISH COMMUNITY STOOD ALONGSIDE JEWS OF THE COMMUNITY & HEARD THE MOSAIC COVENANT GIVEN
Deuteronomy 29:8-12(9-13)
Therefore, observe the words of this covenant and obey them; so that you can
make everything you do prosper. Today you are standing, all of you, before
ADONAI your God - your heads, your tribes, your leaders and your officers -
all the men of Isra'el, along with your little ones, your wives and
your foreigners [Gentiles] here with you in your camp, from the one
who chops your wood to the one who draws your water. The purpose is that you
should enter into the covenant of ADONAI your God and into his oath which
ADONAI your God is making with you today, so that he can establish you today
for himself as a people, and so that for you he will be God - as he said to
you and as he swore to your ancestors, to Avraham, Yitz'chak and
Ya'akov.
GENTILES WHO LIVE AMONG JEWS ALLOWED TO EAT THE PASSOVER LAMB IF THEY ARE CIRCUMCISED
Exodus 12:23-49
ADONAI said to Moshe and Aharon, "This is the regulation for the Pesach
lamb: no foreigner [Gentile] is to eat it. But if anyone has a slave
he bought for money, [a Gentile] when you have circumcised him, he
may eat it. Neither a traveler nor a hired servant may eat it. It is to be
eaten in one house. You are not to take any of the meat outside the house,
and you are not to break any of its bones. The whole community of
Isra'el is to keep it. If a foreigner [a Gentile] staying with
you wants to observe ADONAI's Pesach, all his males must be
circumcised. Then he may take part and observe it; he will be like a
citizen of the land. But no uncircumcised person is to eat it. The same
teaching [Torah] is to apply equally to the citizen and to the foreigner
[Gentile] living among you.
OBSERVING THE APPOINTED TIMES REQUIRED OF GENTILES WHO LIVE AMONG THE JEWISH PEOPLE
Deuteronomy 16:10-11
You are to observe the festival of Shavu'ot [weeks] for ADONAI your God
with a voluntary offering, which you are to give in accordance with the
degree to which ADONAI your God has prospered you. You are to rejoice in
the presence of ADONAI your God - you, your sons and daughters, your male
and female slaves, the L'vi'im living in your towns, and the
foreigners [Gentiles], orphans and widows living among you - in the
place where ADONAI your God will choose to have his name live.
Deuteronomy 16:13-14
You are to keep the festival of Sukkot for seven days after you have
gathered the produce of your threshing-floor and winepress. Rejoice at your
festival - you, your sons and daughters, your male and female slaves, the
L'vi'im, and the foreigners [Gentiles], orphans and widows
living among you.
Deuteronomy 31:10-13
Moshe gave them these orders: "At the end of every seven years, during the
festival of Sukkot in the year of sh'mittah, when all Isra'el have
come to appear in the presence of ADONAI at the place he will choose, you
are to read this Torah before all Isra'el, so that they can hear it.
Assemble the people - the men, the women, the little ones and the foreigners
[Gentiles] you have in your towns - so that they can hear, learn,
fear ADONAI your God and take care to obey all the words of this Torah; and
so that their children, who have not known, can hear and learn to fear
ADONAI your God, for as long as you live in the land you are crossing the
Yarden to possess.
GENTILES WERE CUT OFF FROM THE JEWISH COMMUNITY IF THEY ATE BLOOD, OR ATE CHAMETZ DURING THE FEAST OF MATZAH
Exodus 12:18-19
From the evening of the fourteenth day of the first month until the evening
of the twenty-first day, you are to eat matzah. During those seven days, no
leaven is to be found in your houses. Whoever eats food with hametz in it is
to be cut off from the community of Isra'el - it doesn't matter
whether he is a foreigner [a Gentile] or a citizen of the land.
Leviticus 17:10
When someone from the community of Isra'el or one of the foreigners
living with you [a Gentile] eats any kind of blood, I will set myself
against that person who eats blood and cut him off from his people.
GENTILES LIVING AMONG THE JEWISH PEOPLE GIVEN AN INHERITANCE OF LAND IN THE TERRITORY OF THE TRIBES WITH WHOM THEY WERE LIVING
Ezekiel 47:21-23
'This is the territory you are to divide among the tribes of
Isra'el. You are to divide it by lot as an inheritance both to you and
to the foreigners [Gentiles] living among you who give birth to
children living among you; for you they are to be no different from the
native-born among the people of Isra'el - they [the Gentiles]
are to have an inheritance with you among the tribes of Isra'el. You
are to give the foreigner [Gentile] an inheritance in the territory
of the tribe with whom he is living,' says Adonai ELOHIM.
GENTILES WHO KEEP GOD'S SABBATHS & HOLD FAST TO HIS COVENANT WILL BECOME HIS CHILDREN AND WILL NOT BE SEPARATED FROM GOD'S PEOPLE
Isaiah 56:3-7
A foreigner [Gentile] joining ADONAI should not say, "ADONAI will
separate me from his people"; likewise the eunuch [emasculated
Gentile] should not say, "I am only a dried-up tree." For here is what
ADONAI says: "As for the eunuchs [emasculated Gentiles] who keep my
Shabbats, who choose what pleases me and hold fast to my covenant: in my
house, within my walls, I will give them power and a name greater than sons
and daughters; I will give him an everlasting name that will not be cut off.
And the foreigners [Gentiles] who join themselves to ADONAI to serve
him, to love the name of ADONAI, and to be his workers, all who keep Shabbat
and do not profane it, and hold fast to my covenant, I will bring them to my
holy mountain and make them joyful in my house of prayer; their burnt
offerings and sacrifices will be accepted on my altar; for my house will be
called a house of prayer for all peoples."
EXAMPLE OF A GENTILE WHO MADE A BURNT OFFERING AND SACRIFICE TO GOD, & WAS SUBSEQUENTLY JOINED BY ALL THE LEADERS OF ISRAEL TO HELP EAT IT
Exodus 18:12
Yitro Moshe's father-in-law [a Gentile] brought a burnt offering
and sacrifices to God, and Aharon came with all the leaders of Isra'el
to share the meal before God with Moshe's father-in-law.
EXAMPLE OF A GENTILE WHO ADVISED MOSES ON GOVERNING THE JEWISH COMMUNITY
Exodus 18:13-24
The following day Moshe sat to settle disputes for the people, while the
people stood around Moshe from morning till evening. When Moshe's
father-in-law [a Gentile] saw all that he was doing to the people, he
said, "What is this that you are doing to the people? Why do you sit there
alone, with all the people standing around you from morning till evening?"
Moshe answered his father-in-law, "It's because the people come to me
seeking God's guidance. Whenever they have a dispute, it comes to me;
I judge between one person and another, and I explain to them God's
laws and teachings." Moshe's father-in-law said to him, "What you are
doing isn't good. You will certainly wear yourself out - and not only
yourself, but these people here with you as well. It's too much for you
- you can't do it alone, by yourself. So listen now to what I [a
Gentile] have to say. I will give you some advice, and God will be with
you. You should represent the people before God, and you should bring their
cases to God. You should also teach them the laws and the teachings, and
show them how to live their lives and what work they should do. But you
should choose from among all the people competent men who are God-fearing,
honest and incorruptible to be their leaders, in charge of thousands,
hundreds, fifties and tens. Normally, they will settle the people's
disputes. They should bring you the difficult cases; but ordinary matters
they should decide themselves. In this way, they will make it easier for you
and share the load with you. If you do this - and God is directing you to
do it - you will be able to endure; and all these people too will arrive at
their destination peacefully." Moshe paid attention to his
father-in-law's counsel and did everything he said.
EXAMPLE OF A GENTILE WHO, ALONG HIS MEN & HIS FAMILY, JOINED THOSE OF THE JEWISH PEOPLE WHO WERE LOYAL TO KING DAVID AND WERE FLEEING FROM SAUL
2 Samuel 15:19-22
(Ittai the Gittite)
Then the king said to Ittai the Gitti [a Gentile], "You too? Why are
you going with us? Go back, and stay with your king, since you are both a
foreigner and in exile from your own place. You arrived only yesterday;
should I ask you to wander around with us? There's no telling where I
may go. Return, and take your kinsmen back with you. Grace and truth be with
you." But Ittai answered the king, "As ADONAI lives, and as my lord the
king lives, wherever my lord the king may be, whether for death or for life,
your servant will be there too." "Go, move along," said David to Ittai; and
Ittai the Gitti moved on, accompanied by all his men and the little ones
with him.
SEVERAL OF KING DAVID'S "MIGHTY MEN" WERE GENTILES
1 Chronicles 11:39
(Zelek the Ammonite)
Tzelek the 'Amoni [a Gentile], Nachrai the Be'eroti,
armor-bearer of Yo'av the son of Tz'ruyah, etc.
1 Chronicles 11:41
(Uriah the Hittite)
Uriyah the Hitti [a Gentile], Zavad the son of Achlai, etc.
1 Chronicles 11:46
(Ithmah the Moabite)
Eli'el from Machavim, Yerivai and Yoshavyah the sons of Elna'am,
Yitmah the Mo'avi [a Gentile], etc.
GENTILES ATTENDED SYNAGOGUE SERVICES IN THE FIRST CENTURY
Acts 15:19-21
Therefore, my opinion is that we should not put obstacles in the way of the
Goyim [Gentiles] who are turning to God. Instead, we should write
them a letter telling them to abstain from things polluted by idols, from
fornication, from what is strangled and from blood. For from the earliest
times, Moshe has had in every city those who proclaim him, with his words
being read in the synagogues every Shabbat.
GENTILES WHO WERE ESTRANGED FROM THE NATIONAL LIFE OF ISRAEL HAVE NOW BEEN BROUGHT NEAR THROUGH THE BLOOD OF YESHUA
Ephesians 2:11-14
Therefore, remember your former state: you Gentiles by birth - called
the Uncircumcised by those who, merely because of an operation on their
flesh, are called the Circumcised - at that time had no Messiah. You were
estranged from the national life of Isra'el. You were foreigners
[Gentiles] to the covenants embodying God's promise. You were in
this world without hope and without God. But now, you who were once far off
have been brought near through the shedding of the Messiah's blood. For
he himself is our shalom - he has made us both one and has broken down the
m'chitzah which divided us ...
GENTILES & JEWS WILL WORSHIP TOGETHER AT THE END OF TIME
Revelation 7:9-10
After this, I looked; and there before me was a huge crowd, too large for
anyone to count, from every nation, tribe, people and language [Jews
& Gentiles]. They were standing in front of the throne and in front
of the Lamb, dressed in white robes and holding palm branches in their
hands; and they shouted, "Victory to our God, who sits on the throne, and to
the Lamb!"
Commentary
This Mitzvah prohibits excluding Gentiles from Jewish communities. A Jewish community that is the kind of which I am speaking has Jewish members, governing and pastoral leaders, organized prayer that is culturally Jewish, Bible and/or Torah studies, table fellowship, an adherence to biblical halachah as it applies to Jews, and a shared Jewish style of life. Even a casual perusal of the Scriptures presented in this Mitzvah will demonstrate that, throughout Jewish history, there have always been Gentiles that resided alongside, and participated with, their Jewish brothers within Jewish communities. So close was the communal relationship between Jews and gerim (committed Gentiles) during the Mosaic Covenant era, that God provided for there to be an inheritance of land given to Gentiles that was within the territory of a tribe with whom a Gentile was living (Ezekiel 47:21-23).
The relationship gets even closer in the New Covenant where, according to Romans 11:16-18, Gentile believers in Yeshua become connected to their Messianic Jewish brothers and to the Jewish people globally by figuratively being grafted into, and becoming branches on, a cultivated olive tree that is owned by Israel (the Jewish people):
Now if the hallah offered as firstfruits is holy, so is the whole loaf. And if the root is holy, so are the branches. But if some of the branches were broken off, and you - a wild olive - were grafted in among them and have become equal sharers in the rich root of the olive tree, then don't boast as if you were better than the branches! However, if you do boast, remember that you are not supporting the root, the root is supporting you.
We know that the olive tree into which Gentile believers are grafted belongs to Israel because we read in Romans 11:24:
For if you were cut out of what is by nature a wild olive tree and grafted, contrary to nature, into a cultivated olive tree, how much more will these natural branches be grafted back into their [Israel's] own olive tree!
What is more, we read in Ephesians 2:11-14:
Therefore, remember your former state: you Gentiles by birth - called the Uncircumcised by those who, merely because of an operation on their flesh, are called the Circumcised - at that time had no Messiah. You were estranged from the national life of Isra'el. [Commonwealth of Israel in the New King James translation] You were foreigners to the covenants embodying God's promise. You were in this world without hope and without God. But now, you who were once far off have been brought near through the shedding of the Messiah's blood. For he himself is our shalom - he has made us both one and has broken down the m'chitzah [middle wall of separation] which divided us ...
Another reason that Gentiles should not be excluded from Jewish communities is the matter of table fellowship and hospitality of Jews to Gentiles that is exemplified in the following Scriptures:
John 4:7-10
A woman from Shomron [a Gentile] came to draw some water; and
Yeshua said to her, "Give me a drink of water." (His talmidim had gone into
town to buy food.) The woman from Shomron said to him, "How is it that you,
a Jew, ask for water from me, a woman of Shomron?" (For Jews don't associate
with people from Shomron.) Yeshua answered her, "If you knew God's gift,
that is, who it is saying to you, 'Give me a drink of water,' then you would
have asked him; and he would have given you living water."
Acts 10:25-28
As Kefa entered the house, Cornelius [a Gentile] met him and fell
prostrate at his feet. But Kefa pulled him to his feet and said, "Stand up!
I myself am just a man." As he talked with him, Kefa went inside and found
many people gathered. He said to them, "You are well aware that for a man
who is a Jew to have close association with someone who belongs to another
people, or to come and visit him, is something that just isn't done. But God
has shown me not to call any person common or unclean"
Hebrews 13:2 (NAS)
Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers [presumably includes
Gentiles], for by this some have entertained angels without knowing
it.
Still another reason that Gentiles should not be excluded from Jewish communities is the application of Matthew 7:12 (see also, Luke 6:31):
Always treat others as you would like them to treat you; that sums up the teaching of the Torah and the Prophets.
And even another (and perhaps the best) reason for Jews to not exclude Gentiles from their communities is that it is God's plan for Jews and Gentiles to worship side-by-side at the end of times. We see this in Revelation 7:9-10:
After this, I looked; and there before me was a huge crowd, too large for anyone to count, from every nation, tribe, people and language [Jews & Gentiles]. They were standing in front of the throne and in front of the Lamb, dressed in white robes and holding palm branches in their hands; and they shouted, "Victory to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!"
Would we think it proper for a Gentile community to exclude Jews? There were many such communities in the United States in the past, but thankfully there no longer are - at least officially.
While Gentiles should not be excluded from Jewish congregations and other Jewish community entities, there are some situations where Jews caucusing with Jews may be appropriate - a Jewish discussion group on Jewish topics for example. I do believe it is important for Jewish disciples of Yeshua to fellowship in communities where their Jewish identities, life patterns, and covenant responsibilities are encouraged. For that reason, Gentiles that join and commit themselves to a Messianic Jewish congregation should adopt the congregation's Jewish ways of being, and not try to influence it to become Christian in culture. That notwithstanding, some aspects of Torah apply differently to Jews and Gentiles.
Perhaps this Mitzvah can best be summarized by Psalms 133:1:
Oh, how good, how pleasant it is for brothers to live together in harmony.
In the New Covenant, Jewish and Gentile believers in Yeshua are brothers and sisters in the Lord and should therefore live together in harmony wherever they choose to worship.1
1. Daniel C. Juster, Jewish Roots: A Foundation of Biblical Theology (Shippensburg, PA: Destiny Image Publishers, 1995).
Commentary by Daniel C. Juster
I should like to add perspective to the preceding section 6, "Gentiles who live among Jews allowed to eat the Passover lamb if circumcised" (Exodus 12:43-49). There is a change of application in the New Covenant where Gentiles are not encouraged to be circumcised in order to eat the Passover. Yeshua is now our Passover Lamb, and we share the Lamb together in the Lord's Supper without Gentiles having to be circumcised. The teaching of the New Covenant is that Gentiles are fully included without circumcision, contrary to the orientation of the Mosaic era. There are promises and commands that both share equally while, at the same time, distinctions of calling are preserved and lived out in different ways (Romans 11:28-29). Both share in an equality of priestly status (Ephesians 2:5; 1 Peter 2:10) with different out-workings of their respective priestly callings. An example of this is the general calling of the Jewish people to respond to God's promise of their return to the Land of Israel, and to the events leading to the Messianic Days.
A Social Caveat
There are certain groups where the inclusion of one class of persons and the exclusion of all others is socially acceptable. Examples of these are age-specific groups such as men's and women's Bible studies, B'nei Mitzvah classes, and married couples discussion groups. There are also specific nationality and racial groups that are formed out of their common interests, but their acceptability is usually due to their having a minority status. So, for example, a Hispanic discussion group might be acceptable, whereas an all-white discussion group almost certainly would not be. The problem of social unacceptability surfaces most clearly when persons of a specific race, religion, color, or ethnic origin, are excluded from a community of the kind where people live, work, and worship together.
Classical Commentators
This Mitzvah is not addressed by any of the classical commentators.
NCLA: JMm JFm KMm KFm GMm GFm