How does Leviticus 19:34 connect to Jesus' teaching in Matthew 22:39?

Leviticus 19:34—God’s Heart for the Outsider

“The foreigner who resides with you must be to you like a native-born among you. You must love him as yourself, for you were foreigners in the land of Egypt. I am the LORD your God.”

• Love is action: treat “the foreigner” with the same care you give your own people.

• Motivation: remember Israel’s past slavery and God’s rescue.

• Authority: “I am the LORD your God” roots the command in God’s unchanging character.

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Matthew 22:39—Jesus Summarizes the Law

“And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’”

• Jesus cites Leviticus 19:18, wrapping the whole moral Law into a single relational command.

• In combining Deuteronomy 6:5 (“Love the LORD your God”) with Leviticus 19:18, He shows love for God and love for people are inseparable.

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Connecting the Two Passages

• Same verb, same measure: “love … as yourself.”

• Same scope: Leviticus 19:34 widens “neighbor” to include foreigners; Jesus’ teaching carries that breadth forward (cf. Luke 10:30-37).

• Same source: both commands flow from God’s nature—He is love (1 John 4:8) and shows no partiality (Acts 10:34-35).

• Continuity of covenant: Jesus does not replace the Law’s moral heart; He affirms and fulfills it (Matthew 5:17).

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Consistent Biblical Witness

• Exodus 22:21; Deuteronomy 10:18-19—treat the sojourner with compassion.

• Romans 13:9; Galatians 5:14—“love your neighbor” sums up the commandments.

• James 2:8—calls it “the royal law.”

• Ephesians 2:19—Gentile believers become “fellow citizens,” echoing Leviticus 19:34’s inclusion.

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Practical Takeaways

• Neighbor-love is non-negotiable; it reaches beyond ethnicity, culture, and social status.

• Remembering redemption fuels compassion: God loved us when we were “strangers” (Ephesians 2:12-13).

• Loving outsiders visibly declares the gospel’s power and honors God’s unchanging standard.