Ger Toshav

1. Ger Toshav
2. The God-Fearer
3. The Christian

Ger Toshav

The Torah reserves several distinct terms for the Foreigner. The designation most used is “Ger” derived from the verb “Gur” meaning “to dwell.” Ger therefore identifies an outsider, or a group, living with unfamiliar company. The first use of the term is found in Genesis 15. Abraham and his descendants would become “Ger” among the Egyptians: “Your descendants will be gerim in a land that is not their own.” When Abraham wanted to purchase land in order to bury Sarah, he said to the Hittites:

“I am a ger [Foreigner dwelling with you] and a Toshav among you; sell me a burial site among you…”

Toshav means “Resident.” In this exchange, Abraham acknowledges two points: he’s not a Hittite [Ger – Foreigner], and yet he is a temporary resident among them [Toshav]. While the two seem similar enough to be interchangeable, scripture often insists on maintaining a distinction. In Exodus chapter 12, Ger takes on a connotation entirely apart from its simple etymological meaning (to dwell). Regarding the Passover lamb, no foreigner is to eat of it:

“And the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, “This is the ordinance of the Passover: No foreigner [nekar] is to eat of it.” (NIV)

The Hebrew word used here is “Nekar” – which specifies another certain class of Foreigner. According to the text, the Nekar is forbidden to eat the Passover lamb. In Exodus 12:45 the prohibition is extended to the Toshav:

“A temporary resident [Toshav] or hired hand shall not eat the Passover.”

Two types of foreigners have now been named: the Nekar, and the Toshav. Both are forbidden to eat the Passover lamb. However in verse 48, suddenly an exception is made for a third category of foreigner:

“If a foreigner [Ger] resides with you and wants to celebrate the LORD’s Passover, all the males in the household must be circumcised; then he may come near to celebrate it, and he shall be like a native of the land. But no uncircumcised man may eat of it.” (NIV)

If a Ger wishes to partake of the Passover lamb, the Ger is instructed to receive circumcision to become “like a native of the land.” In other words, the Ger will become a proselyte to Judaism. It is regarding this type of Ger, a convert, that the Torah states:

“The same law [Torah] applies both to the native-born and to the foreigner [Ger] residing among you.”

It is for this reason, that the Greek Septuagint (translated by 70 Rabbis during the 3rd Century BC) consistently translates the term Ger, for “Prosilyto” or “proselyte”:

“In those passages of the Torah that emphasize the social inequality of the resident alien, the Septuagint usually translates ger with paroikos, Greek for “resident alien;” in those passages in the Torah that emphasize the legal equality of the resident alien, the Septuagint usually translates ger with proselutos [proselyte]…” – “The Beginnings of Jewishness” (Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 1998), 121

“In the late Second Temple times, the term ger had become virtually synonymous with “proselyte”… – David L. Lieber, “Strangers and Gentiles,” Encyclopaedia Judaica (2nd Edition) 19:241-242

If the association of “Ger” with a convert/proselyte is true, it makes perfect sense why the text would maintain a distinction between the Ger and Toshav. While the Ger is a convert, in contrast, the Toshav would represent a foreigner wishing to remain gentile, even while living with Israel in their land. Consequently, since the Toshav did not possess the land as an inheritance, the Toshav had no way to secure any substantial relationship or connection to it. Since the Torah defined the requirements for the inheritance of the land, the Toshav were not beholden to a great majority of the laws of the Torah. While the Toshav had freedom to participate of their own volition, they were not required to maintain ceremonial purity, nor did they follow dietary restrictions. However, the Toshav certainly weren’t free to follow absolutely every whim. For the sake of adjudicating legal cases involving the Toshav, it makes logical sense that Israel eventually did define a standard: a set of religious and social expectations that the Toshav would have to agree to, before they were permitted into the community.

Israeli leadership had no intention of inviting foreigners to lead communities astray with idol worship, and/or sexual imorality. For this reason, the contractual agreement made between Israel and a foreigner wishing to enter the land as a Toshav would have at the very least, included the following requirements:

• Renouncing pagan idolatry and false gods
• Directing all worship to YHVH
• No sexual immorality
• No violence
• No robbery

According to Jewish tradition, ancient Israel held knowledge of a set of seven laws allegedly originating with Noah and his sons. It is assumed that the Ger Toshav were required to submit to these laws in particular:

“Who is a…Toshav? Any [Gentile] who takes upon himself in the presence of three haverim not to worship idols. Such is the statement of R. Meir; but the Sages declare: Any [Gentile] who takes upon himself the seven precepts which the sons of Noah undertook…” – Avodah Zerah 64b:7-9

The seven laws, known as the “Noahide Commandments” are:

1. concerning adjudication (dinim)
2. concerning idolatry (avodah zarah)
3. concerning blasphemy (qilelat ha-Shem)
4. concerning sexual immorality (gilui arayot)
5. concerning blood-shed (shefikhut damim)
6. concerning robbery (gezel)
7. concerning a limb torn from a living animal (ever min ha-hay)

Jewish tradition has preserved several tentative methods as support that all seven can be derived from scripture, and that these laws were known to Noah and his sons. The truth is, absent of the methods provided, scripture is vexingly silent on transgressions that are common sense. For example, Before Cain commits the first act of murder in history, God warns Cain that “sin is crouching at your door.” There is no explicit account of God stating that murder is a sin. Instead, it is implied as if Cain should just know that murder is wrong.

The narrative of Genesis chronicles a host of behaviors the reader knows to be wrong, yet does not explicitly state as wrong:

• Violence (Genesis 6:5, 11-12)
• Adultery (Genesis 12:17-20)
• Lying (Genesis 12:11-13, 20:2)
• Homosexuality/Rape (Genesis 19:4-7)
• Drunkenness (Genesis 19:30-38)
• Incest (Genesis 19:30-38)
• Theft (Genesis 27)
• Rape (Genesis 34)
• Kidnapping (Genesis 37:12-29)
• Adultery (Genesis 39:7-9)

Sin isn’t defined legislatively until the Torah is delivered on Mount Sinai. The “Mishpatim” or Civil laws, not only specify Theft, Rape, Kidnapping, etc. as sin, but the Mishpatim outline the appropriate judgement to be carried out as consequence for the sin. In every case of “Mishpat” or Civil law, the action meritting a consequence is unquestionably wrong. This is in contrast to “Chukkim” or religious ceremonial law, which on the surface appear to lack rational sense:

“The mishpatim are mitzvot…whose reason and utility are obvious to us, and which we would arguably have instituted on our own if G-d had not commanded them. The Chukkim are those mitzvot…which we accept as divine decrees, despite their incomprehensibility and…their irrationality.” – chabad.org/parshah/article_cdo/aid/2797/The-Logic-of-the-Mitzvot.htm

“Mishpatim are the commandments with a clear explanation and value evident in the world (i.e., prohibiting theft, honouring parents).” – Hilkhot Me’ila 8:8

Jewish tradition pairs the term “Sichliyot” with the Mishpatim. “Sichliyot” in Hebrew, means rational. The Mishpatim are rational, and therefore can be discerned logically. We just simply know that theft or adultery is wrong. A resounding command from the Almighty is unnecessary.

In Romans 2:14, Paul remarks that even without the Torah, when the Nations obey the moral standard contained in the Torah, they are following a “law to themselves.” They show the work of the law “Written on their hearts” so that their “thoughts accuse or defend them.” In other words, when the gentile does something he knows is wrong [the law written on the heart] his own conscience [his thoughts] is sufficient to condemn him on the day of judgement.

The book of Genesis is a witness to the reality that man has always known sin (we know through the agency of logic and rationality). Genesis also hints of our inner brokenness, an internal nature of sin that inclines humankind to act against their convictions. This has sparked an area of study within Jewish tradition known as “Middos.”

The “God-Fearer”

According to the prophet Isaiah, when God moves to restore Israel during the Messianic era, four kinds of individuals will seek to identify with the Lord:

Some will say, ‘I belong to the Lord’; others will call themselves by the name of Jacob; still others will write on their hand,‘I belong to the Lord,’ and will name Israel’s name with honour.” – Isaiah 44:5

According to Jewish tradition, the four mentioned, represented the righteous among Israel, the proselyte, the penitent, and the “God-Fearer”:

“Four types of pious ones stand before the Almighty; as it says [in Isaiah 44:5], “One will say, ‘I am the Lord’s.’ This nation will say, “I am the Lord’s.” He belongs completely to the Almighty, and has no sinful ways in him. “One will call on the name of Jacob.” This refers to the righteous proselyte [i.e., convert]. “Another shall write on his hand, ‘belonging to the Lord.’” This refers to the penitents. One “Will name Israel’s name with honor.” This refers to the God-Fearers. – Numbers Rabbah 8:2

The last phrase, “will name Israel’s name with honor” is best translated as “name himself by the name of Israel.” The sentiment made, is that of a foreigner wishing to honor Israel by identifying with them in a strong way. This gesture would not only constitute an affirmation of the people of Israel, but of the God they serve. Consequently, such a foreigner could be regarded as one who fears/reveres God – The God of Israel.

Mention of the “God-Fearer” (in Hebrew: ‘Yir-e’) as a designation for righteous gentiles is first found in the Psalms. Similar to Isaiah 44, The Psalms set the precedent for dividing the eschatalogical people of God into a number of categories. The Psalms specify at least three:

• The community of Israel as a whole
• The house of Aaron (The Aaronic Priesthood)
• And “those who fear the Lord”

Let Israel now say, “His mercy endures forever.” Let the house of Aaron now say, “His mercy endures forever.” Let those who fear the Lord now say, “His mercy endures forever.” – Psalm 118:2-4

Oh Israel, trust in the Lord; He is their help and their shield. Oh house of Aaron, trust in the Lord; He is their help and their shield. You who fear the Lord, trust in the Lord; He is their help and their shield. – Psalm 115:9-11

The Lord remembers us and will bless us: He will bless his people Israel, he will bless the house of Aaron, he will bless those who fear the Lord — small and great alike. – Psalm 115:12-13

The concept of the “God-Fearer” in contrast to the Toshav, is rather undefined. It may refer to a gentile residing in the land but is not limited to it. The point is, allegiance to the God of Israel is done out of religious conviction and not as a compromise for the land. The God-Fearer is therefore a gentile living anywhere who has come to adopt the God of Israel as their God, and as a result, identifies with the people of Israel in a strong way. It is important to note that although the God-Fearer has joined Israel in worship of the Lord, a distinction remains. The God-Fearer still has not undergone conversion. Such a process would result in the formation of a “Proselyte”.

The book of Acts contains two Greek terms to identify the gentile God-Fearer: sebomenoi (meaning, “those fearing”) and phoboumenoi ton theon (“those reverencing God”). The first reference is found in Acts 10. Cornelius, the Roman centurion is described as a “devout man who feared God” (Acts 10:1-2):

“At Caesarea there was a man named Cornelius, a centurion in what was known as the Italian Regiment. He and all his family were devout and God-fearing [Phoboumenoi ton theon]; he gave generously to those in need and prayed to God regularly.”

In Acts 13:26, Paul addresses the crowd: “men of Israel and you who fear God.”

“Then Paul stood up, and beckoning with his hand said, Men of Israel, and ye that fear God [phoboumenoit ton theon], give audience.” – Acts 13:16

English translators have approached the Greek term “Sebomenoi” a variety of ways, assigning a number of English translations: “devout”, “religious”, “worshipping”, etc:

“And some of them believed, and consorted with Paul and Silas; and of the devout [sebomenoi] Greeks a great multitude, and of the chief women not a few.” – Acts 17:4

“And a certain woman named Lydia, a seller of purple, of the city of Thyatira, which worshipped [sebomenoi] God, heard us: whose heart the Lord opened, that she attended unto the things which were spoken of Paul.” – Acts 16:14

The God-Fearers were massive in number and very influential:

“In Diaspora there was an increasing number, perhaps millions by the first century, of sebomenoi [God-fearers], gentiles who had not gone the whole route towards conversion.” – Encyclopedia Judaica 10:55, s.v. “Jewish Identity”.

“[There was a] numerous class [of God-Fearers]…although most of them did not feel able to shoulder the whole burden of the Law, they sympathised with Judaism…They were to be found in the provinces as well as in Italy, even in Rome…As they often belonged to upper classes their mere presence added in the eyes of the authorities weight of Jewish influence…” – M. Avi-Yonah, the Jews of Palestine (Oxford, 1796) 37.

“[Because of the] Many God-fearers…Hellenistic Judaism had almost succeeded in making Judaism a world religion in the literal sense of the words.” – Dr. Flusser, “Paganism in Palestine,” in Compendia rerum Iudaicarum ad Novum Testamentum I.2, edd. S. Safrai and M. Stern (Assen, 1976) 1097.

According to  A.T. Kraabal, author of “the disappearance of the God-Fearers” Christianity owes much of its early success to those within the ranks of the God-Fearers:

“In the traditional reconstruction of the historical situation, the characteristics of the God-fearer are as follows: 1) They are gentiles interested in Judaism, but not converts = proselytes; the men are not circumcised. 2) They are found in some numbers in teh synagogues of the Diaspora, from Asia Minor to Rome. 3) The God-Fearer as traditionally understood is particularly significant for students of the New Testament and early Christianity; it was from the ranks of the God-fearers that Christianity supposedly had recruited a great number of its first members.” – A. T. Kraabel, Numen, Vol. 28, Fasc. 2 (Dec., 1981), pp. 114

Israeli scholar, Shlomo Pines writes:

“The early Christian community was addressed chiefly, and perhaps solely, to these ‘God-Fearers’, and that it had its first successes among them.” – God Fearers, Tony Janicki, page 44, Pines 146-147

The Christian

After the death of the first Christian martyr, persecution forced many of the Jewish believers away from Jerusalem to the Jews residing in Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch. Acts 11 remarks that some who settled in Antioch broke convention by preaching to the Greeks. Reception among the Greeks in Antioch was so high that word of this success inspired Barnabas to leave Jerusalem to tend to the Greek believers. Soon Barnabas was joined by the Apostle Paul, and they continued to teach for a year. It was at this time that the God-Fearing believers in Antioch were given the title: “Christianos” – a Greek term that can be roughly translated as, “the Messiah-ists.”

The believers in Antioch embraced the title because it provided the definition and clarity that the God-Fearers at this time desperately needed. Faith in the Messiah entailed a transformation that previously did not exist, prior to the movement. Prior to Jesus, God-Fearing members of Rome, Italy, and around the Mediterranean were at an all time high. Presumably, many Toshav were living in the land as well. Although respected for their friendship and valued for their usefulness as allies to the Jewish cause, the Toshav and the God-fearers were never considered covenant members. In Paul’s words, before faith, the gentiles addressed were “foreigners to the Covenants of promise” (Ephesians 2:12).

The Greek equivalent of the “Toshav” (resident foreigner) is “Paroikos.” The connection is made substantive by the Septuagint, which ties the two words together. In Ephesians 2:19, Paul writes that the believers are no longer “strangers and aliens.” In Greek, Paul writes that the gentile believers are no longer “Paroikos”:

“So then you are no longer strangers and aliens [Paroikos], but you are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God’s household.” – Ephesians 2:19

Through faith in the Messiah, the Toshav/God-Fearer is liberated from exclusion. They are invited as “fellow citizens” in God’s house.

According to Old Testament prophecy, a sign of entrance into the New Covenant is the reception of a “New Spirit” – a spirit from God, that catalyses a change within the heart leading to obedience:

“I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them” – Ezekiel 36:27

In context, the Holy Spirit leads Israel to obey the Torah. This is the paradigm, the understanding that the Apostles and the first converts to Christianity held when they considered the subject. However, In Acts 10, a paradigm shattering event occurred. While Peter was speaking to Cornelius, his household, and a gathering of friends, these God-Fearing gentiles received the Holy Spirit. They received the Holy Spirit while uncircumcised! In their original condition, as gentiles, God embraced them as members of the New Covenant.

The categories were blurred. Cornelius and those who gathered, were simultaneously gentile, yet members of the New Covenant. They were gentile/Jewish. This is what it means to be a Christianos/Christian. They left the realm of “Paroikos” (Toshav, God-Fearer).

Understandably, many Jews would eventually pressure the Christians to convert to becoming Jewish. Two understandings emerged:

• The Christians should convert to becoming Jewish for salvation
• The Christians should convert to becoming Jewish because it’s the right thing to do.

If you just give some thought to the latter, it isn’t unreasonable. What does being gentile/Jewish mean anyway? It’s illogical. You might as well resolve the contradiction by officially becoming Jewish. Also, ambiguity could be dangerous. What if by joining the Covenant, God expected the gentiles to eventually submit to the imperative to become Jewish. What happens to those who never take the plunge? Are they living in sin?

Paul and Barnabas would consult the Mother Church in Jerusalem. They were going to settle the dispute by wielding the power to “bind” and to “loose” that Christ gave to the Apostles in Matthew 18. In 1st Century Jewish language, this represented the power to establish binding religious decrees. The Jewish leadership of every generation (the Sanhedrin) would use this authority to enforce the Torah upon the Jewish nation. However as a result of corruption, Jesus took the power away and transferred it to the Apostles. In Acts 15, the Apostles gathered together to effectively form their own Christian Sanhedrin to wield that power. In doing so, they “loosed” the gentile Christian from having to become Jewish as a result of the faith. Although the gentile Christians were Covenant members, and Jewish in some spiritual capacity, they would functionally remain as Toshav and/or God-Fearers.

For a more in depth look into the concepts of “Binding”/”Loosing”, the Christian Sanhedrin, and the Acts 15 decree: The “Hebrew Roots” needs to learn “Halachah”

James as head of the Church in Jerusalem – the “Nasi” or president of the Christian Sanhedrin, announces this “Takkanot” or religious decree:

“It is my judgement, therefore, that we should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God. Instead we should write to them, telling them to abstain from food polluted by idols, from sexual immorality, from the meat of strangled animals and from blood.” – Acts 15:19-20

This brief list of four prohibitions, although significantly shorter, is reminiscent of the Noahide laws. As a result, scholarship is inclined to regard the two as essentially the same:

“The Noahide precepts were only seen as the minimal condition for Gentiles to be recognized as God-Fearers. They were so understood by the God-Fearers themselves, who were attracted by the Jewish way of life and accepted many Jewish commandments without becoming full proselytes. This was the attitude of many Christian God-fearers…many of which wished to observe as many Jewish precepts as they could. It is evident that, while the leadership of the Mother Church decided to lay no burden upon the Gentile believers beyond the Noahide precepts…it did not object to their voluntarily observing more.” – David Flusser, “Judaism and the Origins of Christianity”, page 630.

I would oppose this conflation. The Noahide laws, if they were genuinely enforced by ancient Israel, were used as a standard to adjudicate cases involving the gentile residing in the land. However, the Christian was regarded as a sojourner in another sense. We are citizens of a different Jerusalem – residing in heaven above. We have the inheritance of heavenly Jerusalem, and we have received its sign: the circumcision of the heart.  Christians are spiritual Jews (“Jews inwardly” – Romans 2:29).

The physical location of a Christian is irrelevant. Christians walk as citizens of the Kingdom at all times.

James and the Apostles had a different standard in mind. As already discussed, and addressed by Paul in Romans 2:14, the gentile world already has encoded within their hearts and minds a sense of right and wrong. Therefore, an official standard of conduct, outlining every act that would constitute a sin is not necessary. Anytime a man violates his own conscious, that is a sin:

“If anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for them.” – James 4:17

I contend the four prohibitions were established to resolve possible points of confusion. They were intended to address issues that new believers would possibly misunderstand, or as a result of their former lives of sin, would have been ill equipped to identify:

Meats sacrificed to Idols:

The first prohibition mentioned is not a rule against Idolatry in general. Instead, it specifies one form of Idolatry: eating meat sacrificed to Idols. Idolatry as a whole is not addressed, because it should be known that Idolatry is wrong. This is obvious. However in the case mentioned, eating meat associated with the act can be considered morally ambiguous. By including the issue in the decree, James is resolving the possible confusion.

Sexual immorality

At the time James made the decree, most forms of pagan worship included sexual immorality of some kind. It was so ubiquitous, that James saw the danger of Greek Christians eventually seeking to appropriate similar practises in their worship of God. Presumably, since they were so accustomed to a debased society, they wouldn’t have noticed anything wrong. Rather than imposing the list of respective commandments and Jewish concepts regarding sexual immorality, this simple injunction was considered sufficient. Again, they would lean on logic and common sense. Every man knows what constitutes sexual immorality and what doesn’t.

Blood and Meat strangled 

Meat from an animal “strangled”, is meat from an animal that hasn’t been properly drained of blood. In order to obey the commandment to “pour out the blood” (Leviticus 17:13) a traditional method of slaughter known as “Shechita” developed over time. This method would involve every measure to ensure that as much blood as possible would be purged from the meat. The term “Strangled” is found in Jewish literature referring to meat improperly slaughtered, and specifically, not slaughtered through “Shechita.” James was addressing the gentile practice of eating meat not properly drained of blood. The Biblical imperative to avoid blood consumption, and specifically, the blood held within meat is difficult to understand. In order to bolster the new believer in the faith by setting them up for success, James addressed this little understood issue. The point is simple: don’t consume blood, and avoid unintentional consumption of blood by properly draining meat of blood.