Verse
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51

Exodus 12:48
ESV If a stranger shall sojourn with you and would keep the Passover to the Lord, let all his males be circumcised. Then he may come near and keep it; he shall be as a native of the land. But no uncircumcised person shall eat of it.
NIV "A foreigner residing among you who wants to celebrate the Lord’s Passover must have all the males in his household circumcised; then he may take part like one born in the land. No uncircumcised male may eat it.
NASB But if a stranger resides with you and celebrates the Passover to the Lord, all of his males are to be circumcised, and then he shall come near to celebrate it; and he shall be like a native of the land. But no uncircumcised male may eat it.
CSB If an alien resides among you and wants to observe the Lord’s Passover, every male in his household must be circumcised, and then he may participate; he will become like a native of the land. But no uncircumcised person may eat it.
NLT If there are foreigners living among you who want to celebrate the Lord’s Passover, let all their males be circumcised. Only then may they celebrate the Passover with you like any native-born Israelite. But no uncircumcised male may ever eat the Passover meal.
KJV And when a stranger shall sojourn with thee, 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.
NKJV And when a stranger dwells with you and wants to 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 a native of the land. For no uncircumcised person shall eat it.

What does Exodus 12:48 mean?

Celebrating Passover involved a series of symbolic acts (Exodus 12:3–20) to remind Israel of how God freed them from Egyptian slavery (Exodus 12:29–33). These symbols also served to foreshadow the ministry of Jesus Christ, the One who acted as the universal sacrifice for sin (1 Corinthians 5:7).

God did not say, "only those born into Israel are my people. Only the native-born may observe Passover." Instead, He establishes an important concept. Those who follow His covenant can participate in this celebration. The most basic sign of obedience was circumcision (Genesis 17:10–14). Those willing to follow the Lord's commands can become full participants in the family of Israel. They are not given limited access to the ritual: they are "as a native" (Exodus 12:49)

Several prominent stories in the Old Testament include people born outside of God's chosen people (Deuteronomy 14:2) who find full acceptance and integration because of their faith, such as Rahab and Ruth (Joshua 6:25; Ruth 1:4; 4:10–12; Matthew 1:5; Hebrews 11:31). God sent a prophet to the Assyrians—enemies of Israel—so they could avoid judgment (Jonah 1:1–2)

The "stranger" and the "sojourner" here are those who travel through Israel's land or live there without being part of the nation itself. Scripture warns not to abuse such people (Exodus 22:21; Deuteronomy 24:17; Malachi 3:5). In most cases, they were to be offered the same rights and protections as anyone else (Leviticus 19:34; Numbers 15:29).
Expand
Expand
Expand
What is the Gospel?
Download the app: