3271

Lexical Summary

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Part of Speech:
Transliteration: (Not Used)
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Topical Lexicon

Linguistic and Cultural Setting

Strong’s Greek 3271 designates a term that described a “resident foreigner,” one living outside his native homeland yet dwelling under the laws and protection of another city-state or kingdom. In classical usage it could refer to an exile, an immigrant, or anyone whose social identity was defined by displacement. Though this precise form never appears in the Greek New Testament, the concept it carries is woven deeply into the biblical narrative, particularly through cognate words found both in Scripture and in the Septuagint.

Appearances in the Septuagint

The Septuagint regularly uses the cognate family to translate Hebrew גר (gēr, “sojourner”) and תושׁב (tōshāb, “resident alien”). Key examples include:
• Genesis 23:4 – Abraham admits, “I am a foreigner and a sojourner among you.”
• Leviticus 25:23 – Israel is reminded, “For you are foreigners and sojourners with Me.”
• Psalm 39:12 – “For I am a foreigner with You, a sojourner like all my fathers.”

These texts supplied the early church’s Scripture and shaped New Testament language about the believer’s identity as a pilgrim people.

Biblical Theology: Exile and Pilgrimage

1. Patriarchal Paradigm. From Genesis onward, faith entails leaving one’s country (Genesis 12:1). The promise is attached to pilgrimage, reinforcing that God’s people are “looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God” (Hebrews 11:10).
2. National Exile. Israel’s deportations to Assyria and Babylon (2 Kings 17:23; 2 Kings 25:21) gave concrete historical weight to the vocabulary of displacement. The prophets interpreted exile as both judgment and purification, yet always with the hope of restoration (Jeremiah 29:11-14).
3. Messianic Fulfillment. Jesus embodies the sojourner motif. “Foxes have dens and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay His head” (Matthew 8:20). In Him the tension between exile and home finds its resolution: He is rejected outside the city (Hebrews 13:12) so that His people can be brought into the Father’s house (John 14:2-3).

New Testament Resonance through Related Terms

• 1 Peter 2:11 – “Beloved, I urge you as foreigners and exiles to abstain from the desires of the flesh.”
• Ephesians 2:19 – “Therefore you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of God’s household.”

Though Strong’s 3271 itself is absent, the apostolic writers consciously draw on the same conceptual reservoir, applying it to the church’s present condition in a hostile world and its future inheritance in the kingdom.

Historical and Ministry Significance

1. Spiritual Identity. Understanding the “resident foreigner” motif guards against worldly assimilation. The church is present within society yet distinct in allegiance (Philippians 3:20).
2. Mission Perspective. Pilgrims are mobile by nature. The Great Commission assumes believers will cross cultural and geographic borders (Matthew 28:18-20; Acts 1:8).
3. Pastoral Comfort. Congregations suffering marginalization find encouragement in knowing that displacement has always accompanied redemptive history. Hebrews 11:13 affirms that the faithful “acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth.”
4. Civic Engagement. Jeremiah’s letter to the exiles—“Seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you” (Jeremiah 29:7)—remains instructive: pilgrims can bless their temporary surroundings without compromising ultimate loyalty.

Practical Applications for Today

• Cultivate a pilgrim mindset: hold material possessions loosely, invest in eternal rewards (Matthew 6:19-21).
• Embrace diversity within the body of Christ as fellow “foreigners” finding common citizenship in heaven (Revelation 7:9).
• Offer hospitality to modern immigrants and refugees, mirroring God’s compassion for the sojourner (Leviticus 19:34; Romans 12:13).
• Preach and teach eschatological hope: present exile will yield to a permanent dwelling in the New Jerusalem (Revelation 21:3).

Summary

Although Strong’s Greek 3271 does not surface in the New Testament text, its background illuminates a pervasive biblical theme: God forms a people who sojourn in faith until He gathers them home. This identity shapes personal holiness, communal mission, and unwavering hope amid every form of displacement.

Englishman's Concordance

μελῶν — 2 Occ.
μέλος — 5 Occ.
Μελχὶ — 2 Occ.
Μελχισεδέκ — 8 Occ.
ἔμελεν — 2 Occ.
μέλει — 7 Occ.
μελέτω — 1 Occ.
μεμβράνας — 1 Occ.
μέμφεται — 1 Occ.
μεμφόμενος — 1 Occ.
μὲν — 182 Occ.
Μενοῦν — 1 Occ.
μενοῦνγε — 2 Occ.
μέντοι — 8 Occ.
ἐμείναμεν — 2 Occ.
ἔμειναν — 2 Occ.
ἔμεινεν — 10 Occ.
ἔμενεν — 3 Occ.
ἔμενον — 1 Occ.
μεῖναι — 6 Occ.