Topical Bible: Church of Israel: Persons Excluded From

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In the context of the Old Testament, the assembly of Israel, often referred to as the "congregation" or "assembly," had specific regulations regarding who could be included or excluded from its religious and communal life. These regulations were rooted in the covenantal relationship between God and Israel and were intended to maintain the holiness and purity of the community.

1. Illegitimate Births: Deuteronomy 23:2 states, "No one of illegitimate birth may enter the assembly of the LORD, nor may any of his descendants, even to the tenth generation." This exclusion underscores the importance of legitimate lineage and the sanctity of family structures within the Israelite community.

2. Ammonites and Moabites: The Israelites were instructed to exclude Ammonites and Moabites from the assembly. Deuteronomy 23:3-4 declares, "No Ammonite or Moabite or any of their descendants may enter the assembly of the LORD, even to the tenth generation. For they did not meet you with bread and water on your way out of Egypt, and they hired Balaam son of Beor from Pethor in Aram Naharaim to curse you." This exclusion was due to historical enmity and the actions of these nations against Israel.

3. Eunuchs: According to Deuteronomy 23:1, "No man with crushed or severed genitals may enter the assembly of the LORD." This regulation reflects the emphasis on physical wholeness and the symbolic representation of completeness in those who participated in the assembly.

4. Leprosy and Other Physical Impurities: Leviticus 13 and 14 provide detailed instructions on how individuals with leprosy or other skin diseases were to be treated. Those afflicted were considered ceremonially unclean and were excluded from the camp until they were declared clean by the priest. This exclusion was part of the broader Levitical laws concerning purity and holiness.

5. Foreigners and Non-Israelites: While there were provisions for foreigners to live among the Israelites, full participation in the assembly was generally restricted to those who were part of the covenant community. Exodus 12:43-49 outlines the requirements for foreigners to partake in the Passover, emphasizing the need for circumcision and adherence to the covenant.

6. Idolaters and Those Who Practice Witchcraft: The Israelites were commanded to exclude and even execute those who engaged in idolatry or witchcraft. Exodus 22:18 states, "You must not allow a sorceress to live." Such practices were seen as direct violations of the covenant with God and a threat to the spiritual integrity of the community.

7. Rebellious Individuals: Those who were rebellious or disobedient to the covenant laws were subject to exclusion. Deuteronomy 21:18-21 describes the process for dealing with a stubborn and rebellious son, ultimately leading to his removal from the community through stoning.

These exclusions were not merely social or cultural but were deeply theological, reflecting the covenantal holiness that God required of His people. The regulations served to protect the community from spiritual and moral corruption, ensuring that the assembly remained a place where God's presence could dwell among His chosen people.

Torrey's Topical Textbook

Exodus 12:48
And when a stranger shall sojourn with you, and will keep the passover to the LORD, let all his males be circumcised, and then let him come near and keep it; and he shall be as one that is born in the land: for no uncircumcised person shall eat thereof.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Deuteronomy 23:1-4
He that is wounded in the stones, or has his privy member cut off, shall not enter into the congregation of the LORD.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Ezekiel 44:7,9
In that you have brought into my sanctuary strangers, uncircumcised in heart, and uncircumcised in flesh, to be in my sanctuary, to pollute it, even my house, when you offer my bread, the fat and the blood, and they have broken my covenant because of all your abominations.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Library

Israel and the Nations.
... showers of the Holy Spirit descended upon Israel of old ... ie, the Jewish; the other
part is still excluded. ... and that, receiving into the Church persons that come ...
/.../kuyper/the work of the holy spirit/xxvi israel and the nations.htm

The Lord's Day --The Worship of the Apostolic Church --Its ...
... was received into the Church of Israel, it is ... be excluded from the privileges of
their church; and to ... the disciples were to treat such persons with insolence ...
/.../christianbookshelf.org/killen/the ancient church/chapter i the lords daythe.htm

Of the True Church. Duty of Cultivating Unity with Her, as the ...
... It is styled divorce between God and the Church, and yet ... saith the Lord." "Return,
thou backsliding Israel, saith the ... Nay, the very persons who had sinned above ...
/.../calvin/the institutes of the christian religion/chapter 1 of the true.htm

The Letter of the Church of Rome
... individuals the solid and ancient Corinthian Church is in ... rescue the twelve tribes
of Israel when they ... you, moreover, trustworthy and discreet persons who from ...
/.../richardson/early christian fathers/the letter of the church.htm

The Holy Spirit in the New Testament Other than in the Old.
... With the Christian Church we confess that the Holy Spirit ... heaven, but not in hell;
among Israel, but not ... of the Holy Spirit upon individual persons, which was ...
/.../kuyper/the work of the holy spirit/xxv the holy spirit in.htm

Of the Discipline of the Church, and Its Principal Use in Censures ...
... In like manner, therefore, as persons accused were anciently ... formerly happened, to
the great injury of the Church. ... which almost the whole of Israel had revolted ...
/.../the institutes of the christian religion/chapter 12 of the discipline.htm

Whether the Judicial Precepts Regarding Foreigners were Framed in ...
... that God is not a respecter of persons, but in ... of a prostitute shalt not enter into
the church of the ... of Ammon, "was joined to the people of Israel, with all ...
/.../aquinas/summa theologica/whether the judicial precepts regarding.htm

Special Preparation for Baptism.
... and God of Jacob," "The God of Israel," "The God ... only of exorcising Energumens, or
such persons as were ... The Exorcisms were performed in the Church; where also ...
/.../chapter iii special preparation for baptism.htm

Seances Historiques De Geneve --The National Church.
... never treated them as aliens from Israel because they did ... both to lay and to
ecclesiastical persons; practically it ... was any doubt in the Church concerning the ...
/.../seances historiques de genevethe national.htm

Literature of Church History.
... estimated theories and tendencies, and undervalued persons and facts ... the History
of the Jewish Church, Lond ... and results of Ewald's Geschichte Israel's, to which ...
/.../history of the christian church volume i/section 7 literature of church.htm