Buying Swords For Jesus?

Biblegems #228

Question: Why, in Luke 22:36-38, does Jesus tells His disciples to buy swords if they don’t have one, then later in the Garden of Gethsemane rebuke one of them for using it against the arresting party (Lk. 22:50-51)?  

Here is the reference in question:

         Luke 22:36    He said to them, “But now if you have a purse, take it, and also a bag; and if you don’t have a sword, sell your cloak and buy one. It is written: ‘And he was numbered with the transgressors’; and I tell you that this must be fulfilled in me. Yes, what is written about me is reaching its fulfillment.”

         The disciples said, “See, Lord, here are two swords.”

         “That is enough,” he replied.

Unfortunately, we don’t get to hear Jesus’ tone of voice or see the expression on His face. Imagine Jesus’ statement about the swords if we added different emoticons to it:

         “…if you don’t have a sword, sell your cloak and buy one” (serious face)

“…if you don’t have a sword, sell your cloak and buy one” (terrified face)

“…if you don’t have a sword, sell your cloak and buy one” (winking face)

So, was Jesus serious about buying a sword…or scared…or just kidding…or what?

Jesus reminded His disciples at the last Supper of how, earlier in their ministry, He had sent them out into cities and villages to proclaim the gospel of the coming Kingdom of God. At that time they were to take no money or traveling clothes, but to expect people to show them hospitality:

         Luke 10:4-6 Do not take a purse or bag or sandals; and do not greet anyone on the road. “When you enter a house, first say, ‘Peace to this house.’ If a man of peace is there, your peace will rest on him; if not, it will return to you. Stay in that house, eating and drinking whatever they give you, for the worker deserves his wages. Do not move around from house to house.

“But now,” Jesus said (Lk. 22:36), things have changed. With His impending death as a criminal, the disciples also would be looked upon as criminals. They could no longer expect the warm, friendly reception they had experienced at the beginning of Jesus’ ministry. Instead, the disciples would be viewed as “transgressors” (i.e., law breakers), even as Isaiah had prophesied (Is. 53:12), with Jesus as their ringleader.

The disciples produced two swords, and Jesus said in response, “It is sufficient” (v. 38). Sufficient for what? Certainly not sufficient as a defense against trained, armed guards. Two swords would, however, convince the arresting officers that Jesus’ followers were “transgressors,” —violent, law-breaking rebels.

Did Jesus want the disciples to use the swords to protect Him? Absolutely not! The disciples did not understand that the swords were basically for show, to fulfill prophecy, and in their misunderstanding they acted in violence (v. 51). Then, not only did Jesus heal the injured man and rebuke His disciples, but He made it clear that the use of violence had never been His tactic:

         Luke 22:52 Then Jesus said to the chief priests, the officers of the temple guard, and the elders, who had come for him, “Am I leading a rebellion, that you have come with swords and clubs?

This passage reveals that the presence of swords among Jesus’ disciples was only intended as a fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy that the messiah would be “numbered with the transgressors.”

Should Christians Serve In The Military?

Biblegems #143

Question: I recently received a card from a stranger stating that “war is not good for our country; therefore joining the military is unpatriotic.” Several Scripture references were given in support of this claim. Does the Bible teach that Christians should not join the military because, according to the Bible, all war is wrong?

The unasked for advice this young man got in the mail represents the kind of poor biblical interpretation practices that so often give Christianity a bad name.

Misrepresenting Scripture

The card this young man received contained the following statements  which were claimed to be the “Word of God.” However, not one Bible reference is given to show where in Scripture the passage is found. The reader is left to assume the author of the card is accurately representing Scripture—which he is not. Below are the verses, plus my comments:

“Thou shalt not kill” is one of the Ten Commandments, and is found in Exodus 20:13 (cf. Dt. 5:17; Matt. 5:21; Rom. 13:9). It means “Do not murder,” and has nothing to do with war, self-defense or capital punishment.

“Renounce war, proclaim peace” is not found anywhere in Scripture. The phrase “proclaim peace” shows up only once (Dt. 20:10), and even there the reference actually means, “to make an offer of peace” before an attack is begun. It has nothing to do with renouncing war.

“Do not go out to battle save I the Lord command” is not found in Scripture.

“Vengeance is mine, saith the Lord, I will repay” comes from Romans 12:19, but is also misquoted. The passage itself has nothing whatsoever to do with waging war. And even if it did refer to war, it would only apply if seeking vengeance were the motive for waging war, which is seldom the case.

“Keep my commandments and I the Lord will defend you” is also not found in Scripture.

The Bible and War

War is a reality of the sin-broken world in which we live. It is an unavoidable reality because nations rule by force in the absence of submission to God’s sovereignty over the earth. What is true of individuals is often true of nations—they take by force what they want, forcing those they take from to defend themselves:

         James 4:1-2 What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you? You want something but don’t get it. You kill and covet, but you cannot have what you want. You quarrel and fight. You do not have, because you do not ask God.

The day will come when Jesus Christ returns to earth and establishes His Kingdom and war will cease:

Is. 2:4  He will judge between the nations and will settle disputes for many peoples. They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train for war anymore.

Until that day, Christians serving in the military are serving governmental authorities instituted by God Himself to use worldly means for exercising justice and righteousness:

Rom. 13:4 For he [Governing Ruler] is God’s servant to do you good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword for nothing. He is God’s servant, an agent of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer.

•••

I would encourage readers of this Biblegems to check out Biblegems #81, “Murder And Self Defense,” for further development of this topic.