ἀλλογενής

From the study of Sirach 45:13

Range of meaning

Literally 'of another birth or stock'. The word belongs almost entirely to Jewish Greek. Depending on context it can mean (1) a foreigner, someone not of Israel, or (2) inside the priestly laws, anyone not of the priestly family, a 'lay person' in relation to the altar, even if he is a full Israelite.

Against the English

KJV and Brenton have 'stranger' and WEB keeps it. Modern English hears 'stranger' as an unknown person or a foreigner. NRSV's 'outsider' is closer. The word does not mean someone unfamiliar or someone from another nation. It means someone outside the privileged line.

How it drifted

'Stranger' in 1611 English could still mean 'one not belonging to a given group', which is what the Hebrew zar means in the Torah's priestly laws. Over time English narrowed 'stranger' to 'unknown person', and the technical sense was lost.

Used elsewhere in the period

The Septuagint uses allogenēs for Hebrew zar in exactly the priestly-boundary laws. Exodus 29:33: 'an outsider shall not eat' the ordination food. Numbers 3:10, 3:38 and 18:7: the outsider who comes near the sanctuary 'shall die'. In those laws the outsider is any non-Aaronide, including the Levites themselves. In other places the word does mean a foreign national. The Herodian Temple warning inscription forbids any allogenēs to pass the barrier, and in Luke 17:18 Jesus calls the healed Samaritan 'this allogenēs'. Ben Sira's own context settles which sense applies here. Three verses later (45:18) the 'outsiders' who rose up against Aaron are Korah and his company. Korah was a Levite.