Jesus & the Law – on foes & enemies … (11/15/18)
Seeing as how the ancient Law of Israel was exceptionally Judea-centric, it can come as no surprise to realize that there were more than a few Old Testament regulations proscribing how the Israelites were to prepare for war (see Deuteronomy 20:2, where a priest was required by Law to bolster the courage of Jewish troops preparing for battle), how the Israelites were to engage in warfare (see Deuteronomy 23:11-15, where the physical & spiritual cleanliness of Jewish war camps was proscribed), and how the Israelites were to treat their conquered foes at the conclusion of any military battle (that being, more often than not, brutally & ruthlessly – see Leviticus 25:44-46, Deuteronomy 20:12-20, & Deuteronomy 25:17-19). In addition, seeing as how Jesus was not only a self-professed radical reformer of the Law but also a radical proclaimant of peace (see Matthew 5:9, Matthew 5:39-48, Mark 9:49-50, Luke 6:27-36, John 14:27, John 15:11, & John 16:33 – also Isaiah 9:6, Isaiah 11:6-9, Isaiah 52:7, Hebrews 8:6-13, Hebrews 13:20, & James 3:18 et al), it can also come as no surprise that his ministry was interlaced with bold calls for a more radical actualization of the latter. Consider …
*Whereas the Law demanded that soldiers never fear their enemies (see Deuteronomy 3:22, Deuteronomy 7:21, & Deuteronomy 20:1) and that they refuse to head into battle before first “settling the sources of all softness” (see Deuteronomy 20:2-8), Jesus demanded exactly the opposite – namely, that all soldiers choose to humbly & courageously love their enemies instead (see Matthew 5:9‘s “Blessed are peacemakers” – alongside the text of Matthew 5:43-481 & Luke 6:27-36 et al).
*Whereas the Law demanded that military men prepare for battle by offering their opponent(s) a proposal of peace beforehand (see Deuteronomy 20:10), Jesus admonished his followers to set down their weapons entirely and prepare for peace instead – reminding them that “all who take up the sword will ultimately be destroyed2 by the same” (see Matthew 26:52 – also Mark 14:50-51 & John 18:10-11).3
*Whereas the Law was in large part constructed to ensure the survival of the Israelites via military conquest of their enemies, Jesus made it metaphorically crystalline that salvation only came to those who chose to actively care for their enemies instead (see the Parable of the Good Samaritan in Luke 10:29-37).4
“But love your enemies, do good, and give to them while expecting nothing in return. Your reward will be great [if you do so], and you will become Children of the Most High. For He is kind as well to the ungrateful and the wicked. So be merciful [to your enemies], just as your Father is merciful [to all].” ~ Jesus Christ (Luke 6:35-36)
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1 NOTE not only Jesus’ clear call to expand Leviticus 19:18‘s “Love your [fellow Israelite] neighbor” to include one’s non-Israelites enemies, but also his summons for that Love to become “perfect, just as [the Love of] your heavenly Father is perfect” (Matthew 5:48) – a Love that not only refuses to fear an enemy, but one that also refuses to attack or punish him as well (see 1 John 4:18 – along with Exodus 23:4-5). Indeed, Jesus’ summons in Matthew 5:48 (as well as the deeper implications he announces in Matthew 18:21-22 & Luke 6:36 et al) openly (and indeed, quite heretically) calls for replacing the fear of God seemingly demanded by Deuteronomy 18:13 & Leviticus 19:2 with a loving adoration thereof instead.
2 While traditional translations most often render this biblical phrase as “those who live by the sword will die by the sword,” the translation offered herein is far more accurate – with the Greek labontes (Strong’s #2983) meaning “take up” “raise” or “utilize” (not “live by”) and the Greek apolountai (Strong’s #622) meaning “completely destroy” or “utterly annihilate” (not merely “die” or “perish”) …
3 While it is indeed true that Jesus uttered the statement “I have not come to bring peace, but a sword” in Matthew 10:34, a closer examination of the biblical scholarship surrounding the same reveals that this utterance was not a call to violence of any sort or kind, but was rather a warning for all his followers – about the external conflict his message would bring to their familial relationships, and the internal discord his message would bring to their mental psyches. In truth, he announces the former quite directly in the two verses that immediately follow the one in question (“For I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, … and one’s foes will be members of one’s own household” ~ Matthew 10:35-36), and just as clearly in the verses that synoptically parallel it in the Gospel of Luke (“Do you think that I have come to bring peace to the earth? No, I tell you, [not peace] but division” ~ Luke 12:51). Just as tellingly, he affirms the latter by specifically referencing a “sword” – a term often used by Jesus in the Gospels when calling for non-violence (see Matthew 26:52-55, Luke 22:49-52, & John 18:10-11) and a word employed for similar purposes in several places throughout the rest of the Bible as well (see Isaiah 49:2‘s “He made my mouth like a sharp sword” along with Hebrews 4:12‘s “The Word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword”) … NOTE as well that Jesus does at one point seem to demand his disciples to prepare for violence when he tells them “the one who has no sword must sell his cloak and buy one” (see Luke 22:36b), and yet the sincere student of the texts would do well to read onward a bit before drawing any faulty conclusions – a due diligence that is rewarded in recognizing Jesus’ statement as the facetious jab it was clearly intended to be (“And the disciples said [to Jesus] ‘Look, here are two swords,’ and Jesus replied: ‘It is enough.’” ~ Luke 22:38).
4NOTE first and foremost that this is the only place in the entire Bible where Jesus directly defines the term “neighbor” – the same “neighbor” we are all to openly & courageous Love if we are to ever attain entrance into his Kingdom of Heaven (see Matthew 22:37-40, Mark 12:30-21, & Luke 10:25-28). Secondly, and even more importantly, NOTE that Jesus does so by equating our “neighbor” with our “enemy” – making the hero of his tale a Samaritan (at that time an open enemy of the Jews) who “shows mercy” (something that can only be given to one who has wronged us).
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