Contemplative Bible Reading

Deuteronomy 10: 18-19 (English Standard Version)

18 He (God) executes justice for the fatherless and the widow, and loves the sojourner, giving him food and clothing. 19 Love the sojourner, therefore, for you were sojourners in the land of Egypt.

In these verses, God is passing instructions to the people on how to treat sojourners.

One good source tells us: A sojourner is a person who resides temporarily in a place.

Okay, so when living in the land given by God, the people were to love those who passed through the land living here and there temporarily. Fine. We understand this. We read that God executes justice for those who cannot protect themselves, and that includes the sojourners.

Then this all falls apart. God describes the people as being sojourners in Egypt. The people were in Egypt 400 years. 400 years. “Residing temporarily in a place” and “400 years” don’t match. Do they? They don’t match in my mind. I mean America is some 240 something years old. That isn’t temporary, is it?

Yes, 240 years, 400 years, a few thousand years, all temporary and just passing through. God’s time and my time are different. This is a specific and concrete example of those differences. Something simple like a few years shows how far apart my brain is from the mind of God.

Oh well, and sometimes I think I am right along with God on these things. Please God, help me realize my place.