Deuteronomy 16:11
And thou shalt rejoice before the LORD thy God, thou, and thy son, and thy daughter, and thy manservant, and thy maidservant, and the Levite that is within thy gates, and the stranger, and the fatherless, and the widow, that are among you, in the place which the LORD thy God hath chosen to place his name there.
The verse speaks of the Feast of Weeks, an appointed feast season of thanksgiving for the grain provided, devoted to religious service and joyful worship before the Lord at the place chosen to place His name there. The celebration took place at appointed religious seasons when unnecessary work stopped so the people could consider God's blessings. Those gatherings provided opportunities for social fellowship as well as worship, and families attended together as far as possible.
Those called to rejoice there are the household — son and daughter and manservant and maidservant — together with the Levite and the stranger and the fatherless and the widow. The celebration therefore included servants, the poor, and the vulnerable without land-based support, and not only the household hosting it. Rejoicing at the appointed feast included all of these along with one's own household as a time of shared provision and welcome for people in need.
The occasion was joyful worship and fellowship before God, with households sharing the celebration and extending hospitality to strangers, Levites, and the poor. Provision was shared with hospitality and welcome for those in need, and guests were to be cared for tenderly when sick or in need. The rejoicing remembered and recounted God's blessings, especially His deliverance of Israel from bondage. Gratitude was expressed through gifts and freewill offerings and thank-offerings rather than appearing empty-handed, given in keeping with the blessings each had received. Those offerings showed whether the heart valued what had been received with gratitude or was ruled by selfishness and love of possessions.
The command is connected with reserving the corners and gleanings of the field for the poor and offering the first produce and wool to the Lord. These practices taught that God must come first, that He owns the fields and flocks and herds, and that His people are stewards of what He gives. The Levites included in this welcome were sanctuary assistants and religious teachers and missionaries.
As part of the education of Israelite families, Israel was to remain distinct and holy and separate from the nations that did not know God, yet welcome the stranger to the feasts of thanksgiving where His mercies were recounted. He was not to be looked down on for not being of Israel but to be loved because Christ died to save him as truly as to save Israel, so he could share in spiritual blessings. When he chose the society of those who knew and acknowledged God he was to be received that he might learn the law of Jehovah and glorify Him by obedience. The same instruction requires God's children today to impart blessings to the world in spiritual and temporal things, so that from within every disciple of Christ shall flow rivers of living water.