cheenc03a.pdf

STRANGER AND SOJOURNER
their own strength and the general moral sentiment too, the Kenits might stand in the %;me relationship.
without rcrking any speciai protection. Dr. 217 f See MINGLED PEOPLE, K~XIIBS.
gives us the terms on which caravans might pas: The traveller's necessities mieht " be met bv a few davs'
through a foreign country. They were to keep to th~
protection; but foreigners oftell cnme info the courlfry
beaten track and pay for food and water. Further, ", "eed;ng u prrtnaneot 1,ome. ~iki
the more powerful Israelite kings were anxiour to ioste,
Jacob, they niight hai,e
the
commerce. and no doubt did what they could to afford
gep'
dangerous hostility of porverful enemies.
a general piotectioti to traders. Facilities for foreigr In Arabia, 'men ;ire uunitantly being cut off from their
tiaders were sometimes guaranteed by treaties ; e.8, own tribe. - eeneiallv for murder within the kin. somethe
'streets' or quarters which the Syrians had in times for oihtr offences against society, or even for
Samaria, and the Israelites in Damascus. I K.2034. Cp dissipated habits. . . . There were, however. many
TRADE .%xi, Cox~exzs, 99 46g The mercenaries oi other circumrtancer that might lead free Arabs, either
the royal bodyguard formed aliothei important class ol individually or in a body, to seek the protection of
re~ideiit foreigners (z S. 818 1518 207 23 1 K. 138 50 14 another tribe and beconle its ji,-J,r' (A-zn. qz). In
2 K. 11 I RV); cp CHERETHLTES and PELPTHLTES. It such cases the " czr becamr for a loneer " or shorter neriod .~ -
is noteworthy that David addrvsses the mercenary the settled client of a clan, or chief, or other individual
captain Itt~i the Gittite as a nokhr4 who came but head of a family.
,~ vestrrdav , and mieht - be exaected at once to ouir a Bertholet nlaintainr with great probability that such
service that pmmised littie advantage (2 S. 151~). On zzrirn would often attach themselves to the kine : and
the other hand, in Uriah the Hittite we have a foreign ihat he would welcome them as a menllr of strehgthenroldicrwho
married a high-born Israelite woman (z S. 11). ing his authority. He includes among the royalgzrim
11. Gzrim in the fpchnirnl sense. -The peculiar status the mercenaries and foreign traders. He further sup^
or thefizr arose (I) from the primitive sentiment that n pores that a foreigner might attach himself to a sanctustranger
was an enemy, an outlaw : (I) ary as fir of YahwB, and understands Ps. 151 614 as
&,
from the absence of any public police. ieferrinr
guest.
- to such carer. The Gibeonitrs would be
The guarantee of security of life lay in another cnre in point.
the blood~bond between a man and his kinsfolk. He The express references togzn-m in Israel, however.deu1
wm ~rotecfed bv the nsrumnce that his kinsmen would
Tvfnge his murder upon the criminal and hi, kinsmen.
l'hus the foreigner, who was far away from his kin. was
with thefirwho ir a dependent member of an ordinary
family ; in Ex. 2020, etc., the gz? ir grouped with the
~liives and the cattle. There arc constant enhortarionr to
at the mercy of any evil-disposed persons. His only deal justly and generousiy with thegir (Ex. 22~1. etc.);
svfety lay in putting himself under Israelite protection,
by becoming the g2r or guest of an Israelitr family.
He then becnme included in the blood-bond, and his
hosts defended oc avenged him as if he were of their
he is grouped with other needy and hrlpiess classes, the
Levites. orphans, widows (Dt. 261,-13 Ps. 946). and the
poor (Lev. 1910). The gZr was at the mercy of the
individual or the clan within whose gates he took refuge.
own kin. ..is in Arabia. such protection was freely They could take ad\.antage of hi5 helple~rnenr to nccoill
accorded wen to con~plete strangers. Abraham and protection only under oppressive and burdensome con-
Lot (Gel,. 188) press their hospitality on unkno\vr-n ditions. The prophets (Jer 76 148 2Z3 Ezek. 227 zg
tiavellerr. In Judg. 19 the depravity of the men of Zcch. 7,- Mal. 35) and the Law (Ex. 239 Dt. 24x1 Lev.
Gibcrh is shown by their inhospitable behaviour ; and lQM) alike protest against such opprcrsion. It appears,
in Job31n2 it is o mark of the righteous nlan that he moreover, from Dl. 11624x7 2719. that thegir was nat
does not leavr tiiegzr-i.e, the stranger who wisher to wholly at the mercy of his pntrons ; disputes between
be received iisgr-to lodge in the street. In Arabia thern might be referred to judger.
(WRS, Kin., 4, 8 ) the rtr;mger becomes a pzr by Thc pz~im, however, were not always poor; Lev.
cnfing or drinking with his patron ; 'even the thief who 2547 contemplates the porribihty that the~rr may prosper
ha surreptitiously shared the evening llrvught of an and purchase impoverished lrraeiiter as slaver. Shebna,
umviffing host is safe. Nay, it is enough to touch the Herekiah'a treasurer (Is. 221~). was probably aforeigner,
tent-ropes, imploring protection.' Further (259). 'he and the captailis of foreign mercenaries and other foreign
who journeys with you by day and sleeps beside you at courtiers would readily acquire power and wealth.
night is alro sacred.' But the hospitality so readily The relation of thegzr to his patrol, war voluntary
accorded can be enjoyed unconditionally only for three on both sides, and there was nothing in the nature of
or four days. Thegrr who stays longer ceases to be a the relationship to prevent its being terminated at rill
mest and becomes a deoendent 1Rerthaiet. 271. . , But. by either party; but circumatancer-the need of the
while the relation lusted, the obligation laid upon the gzr and the power of hi3 patron-tended to make the
hurt to protect the@, was stringent ; the srorie; of Lot
and of the Levite at Gibeah show what extraordinar"
relation permanent. In Arabia (Kin. 43) 'sometimer
incrificer a host would make to defend his gusts. ~ h k
latternarrafiveremindr us tbat, in eariytimes, an Israelite
in a strange tribe war a1mart as helpless as a foreigner.
Analogy suggests tbat whole clans or tribes might put
themrelver under the protection of a more powerful
@, Clans, people and become itsgzrim. 'The several
Jewish clans of Medina were compelled by
their wealiness to become ji,lin @.?rim) of
the Aus and Khazraj. Or a group might attach itself
to its cousins-i.e, to a tribe with which it reckoned
kindred' (\VRS Kin. 42). Thus the Ismeliter were
giiiii in Egypt, Ex. 22~1 ; Bertholet. 50, considen
that the s~bjcct Canaanites kame a kind of girim to
Israel, and that foreign traders and mercmaries may be
considered gzrm of the kings: but the termngzr, gjr,
are not applied to any of these classes. Both the
I~~zeIite~ and the Canaanites rendered service to their
ptrons. We might perhaps regard ar bodies ofpi~im
the 'mired multitude'-Ex. 1238 JE 3y. Nu. 114 JE
1~8~~-that went up from Egypt with Israel. Possibly,
~..-:
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STRANGER AND SOJOURNER
the protectors seem to have claimed the right to dismiss
theirjinin at will . . . at other timer . . . protection
is constituted by a public advertisement and oath at the
s~nctuacy, and holds good till it is renounced at the
Sanctuary:
The terms upon which pa-fm were received were
matter of agreement between them and their parons,
and their position was similar to that of ,hired
servants,' v?~, rahhir, with whom thry are classed
(Lev. 25640 Dt. 241~). Only, thegz~ was more helpless
than the native s'ihhir, and less awe to insist on favourable
terms. Jacob at Harm. Israel in Egypt, rendered
service fur their hosts; David fought for Achish-or
pretended to do so. MicaVr 1.evite came to bit.
Ephraim to find someone with whom he might lire as
gzr (,rl>, I=gar), and agreed to serve h4icah ur u priest
for board and lodging. and ten pieces of silver and a
suit of clothes annually (Judg. 17). The prosperity of
Jacob illustrates the posnibility of apEr becoming rich ;
and his stealthy flight shows that a gir might find it
difficult to leave his patron.
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