Bible Verses About Hospitality

“Then the LORD appeared to Abraham by the Oaks of Mamre in the heat of the day, while he was sitting at the entrance of his tent. And Abraham looked up and saw three men standing nearby. When he saw them, he ran from the entrance of his tent to meet them and bowed low to the ground. “My lord,” said Abraham, “if I have found favor in your sight, please do not pass your servant by. Let a little water be brought, that you may wash your feet and rest yourselves under the tree. And I will bring a bit of bread so that you may refresh yourselves. This is why you have passed your servant’s way. After that, you may continue on your way.” “Yes,” they replied, “you may do as you have said.” So Abraham hurried into the tent and said to Sarah, “Quick! Prepare three seahs of fine flour, knead it, and bake some bread.” Meanwhile, Abraham ran to the herd, selected a tender and choice calf, and gave it to a servant, who hurried to prepare it. Then Abraham brought curds and milk and the calf that had been prepared, and he set them before the men and stood by them under the tree as they ate.”

Abraham runs to greet three travelers and hurries to prepare food and rest for them. The story shows eager, unhurried generosity, and it turns out he was hosting more than he knew.

“When a foreigner resides with you in your land, you must not oppress him. You must treat the foreigner living among you as native-born and love him as yourself, for you were foreigners in the land of Egypt. I am the LORD your God.”

Israel is told to treat the foreigner living among them like a native-born neighbor and to love them as themselves. The reason given is memory: they were once strangers in Egypt.

“For the LORD your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great, mighty, and awesome God, showing no partiality and accepting no bribe. He executes justice for the fatherless and widow, and He loves the foreigner, giving him food and clothing. So you also must love the foreigner, since you yourselves were foreigners in the land of Egypt.”

God is described as one who loves the foreigner and gives them food and clothing, so his people are to do the same. Our welcome copies his own character.

“but no stranger had to lodge on the street, for my door has been open to the traveler—”

Job lists among his good deeds that no stranger had to sleep in the street and that his door stood open to the traveler. Hospitality was part of what it meant to live uprightly.

“Continue in brotherly love. Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it.”

Do not neglect to welcome strangers, says the writer, because some have hosted angels without realizing it. It likely points back to stories like Abraham's.

“Then the King will say to those on His right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave Me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave Me something to drink, I was a stranger and you took Me in, I was naked and you clothed Me, I was sick and you looked after Me, I was in prison and you visited Me.’ Then the righteous will answer Him, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You something to drink? When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? When did we see You sick or in prison and visit You?’ And the King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of Mine, you did for Me.’”

Jesus says that feeding the hungry and welcoming the stranger is, in some sense, done to him. Christians differ on exactly whom he means, but all agree the call to welcome is unmistakable.

“Then Jesus said to the man who had invited Him, “When you host a dinner or a banquet, do not invite your friends or brothers or relatives or rich neighbors. Otherwise, they may invite you in return, and you will be repaid. But when you host a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind, and you will be blessed. Since they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.””

Jesus advises inviting those who cannot repay you, such as the poor and the disabled, instead of only friends and family. Welcome without hope of return reflects God's own kind of giving.

“As they traveled along, Jesus entered a village where a woman named Martha welcomed Him into her home. She had a sister named Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to His message. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations to be made. She came to Jesus and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her to help me!” “Martha, Martha,” the Lord replied, “you are worried and upset about many things. But only one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, and it will not be taken away from her.””

Martha opens her home and then becomes overwhelmed by the work, while Mary sits and listens. Jesus gently suggests that presence matters more than a perfect spread.

“Then Jesus entered Jericho and was passing through. And there was a man named Zacchaeus, a chief tax collector, who was very wealthy. He was trying to see who Jesus was, but could not see over the crowd because he was small in stature. So he ran on ahead and climbed a sycamore tree to see Him, since Jesus was about to pass that way. When Jesus came to that place, He looked up and said, “Zacchaeus, hurry down, for I must stay at your house today.” So Zacchaeus hurried down and welcomed Him joyfully. And all who saw this began to grumble, saying, “He has gone to be the guest of a sinful man!” But Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord, half of my possessions I give to the poor, and if I have cheated anyone, I will repay it fourfold.” Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because this man too is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.””

Jesus invites himself to the house of Zacchaeus, a despised tax collector, and the man's life turns around. Table fellowship becomes the doorway to change.

“As they approached the village where they were headed, He seemed to be going farther. But they pleaded with Him, “Stay with us, for it is nearly evening and the day is almost over.” So He went in to stay with them. While He was reclining at the table with them, He took bread, spoke a blessing and broke it, and gave it to them. Then their eyes were opened and they recognized Jesus—and He disappeared from their sight. They asked each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us as He spoke with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?””

Two travelers urge a stranger to stay with them for the evening, and only at the meal do they recognize who he is. Their invitation is what made the moment possible.

“With one accord they continued to meet daily in the temple courts and to break bread from house to house, sharing their meals with gladness and sincerity of heart, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.”

The first believers shared meals in their homes with glad and humble hearts. Their tables were one of the main ways the church held together and drew others in.

“Among those listening was a woman named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth from the city of Thyatira, who was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul’s message. And when she and her household had been baptized, she urged us, “If you consider me a believer in the Lord, come and stay at my house.” And she persuaded us.”

Lydia, newly baptized, urges Paul and his companions to stay at her home. Her faith immediately took the practical shape of a spare room.

“Share with the saints who are in need. Practice hospitality.”

Paul lists sharing with God's people in need and pursuing hospitality as part of everyday Christian love. The word suggests actively seeking opportunities, not just waiting to be asked.

“Above all, love one another deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. Show hospitality to one another without complaining. As good stewards of the manifold grace of God, each of you should use whatever gift he has received to serve one another.”

Peter asks believers to offer hospitality to one another without grumbling, using whatever gift each has received. Even the tired, unglamorous kind of welcome counts.

“Beloved, you are faithful in what you are doing for the brothers, and especially since they are strangers to you. They have testified to the church about your love. You will do well to send them on their way in a manner worthy of God. For they went out on behalf of the Name, accepting nothing from the Gentiles. Therefore we ought to support such men, so that we may be fellow workers for the truth.”

John praises Gaius for caring for traveling teachers who were strangers to him. Those who host such workers become partners in their work.