The Great God Who Loves the Stranger

Deuteronomy 10:17–22 is the movement “The Great God Who Loves the Stranger.” Read it inside Moses’ final covenant instruction to Israel on the eastern side of the Jordan as the people prepare for life in the land. The section opens with: “For the LORD your God is God of gods, and Lord of lords, a great God, a mighty, and a terrible, which regardeth not persons, nor taketh reward:” It closes with: “Thy fathers went down into Egypt with threescore and ten persons; and now the LORD thy God hath made thee as the stars of heaven for multitude.”

Within the book’s larger story, this section advances several important biblical threads. The Divine Name and Character: The God of gods and Lord of lords is impartial, executes justice, and loves the stranger. Nations, Israel, Blessing, and Judgment: Israel’s own immigrant history becomes the reason it must love the stranger.