In the GardenJesus commanded Peter in (Matthew 26) "Put back thy sword into its place; for all those who take the sword will perish by the sword."
This statement gets misconstrued by gun control supporters who seek to cloak their disarmament agenda in the Christian religion. As a concerned lay person with a touch of historical (rather than theological) training I wish to arm the Christians amongst us with a valid understanding consistent with our God given rights.
Context is critical to understanding Jesus' command. The other portions of Scripture that treat Jesus' arrest are illuminating. In John 18 Jesus tells Peter simply "Put up thy sword into the scabbard. Shall I not drink the cup that the Father has given me?" In Luke 22, when Peter used his sword to cut off an assailant's ear Jesus told him "Bear with them thus far." and healed the assailant. In the version found in Mark 14, Jesus does still less and allows a similar action by a "bystander" pass without comment.
Jesus knew that he had to die for the sins of the world and thus he did not want good intentioned interference to complicate matters. In only one of the gospels does one get anything resembling an admonition to eschew the use of weapons in self-defense.
Critically at an earlier stage, in Luke 22 Jesus gave the following instructions to his followers "But now, let him who has a purse take it, and likewise a wallet; and let him who has no sword sell his tunic and buy one." Jesus was told that two swords were currently at hand and he said that this was enough. Given that he was about to go to his death Jesus knew that no swords would be immediately needed since interference was undesirable. He probobly intended for his followers to better arm themselves after the Resurrection.
So what does the specific statement "Those who live by the sword, perish by the sword" mean?
It is a commonsense warning by our loving God. It is a morally neutral statement. Anyone who lives under arms risks death at the hands of others who are armed. Thus if one protects the community as police officer or as a soldier one runs a greater risk of being killed in action then a non-combatant. If one does the opposite and tries to harm the community through the use of arms one will be more likely to be kiilled by those using arms. In Peter's specific case, Jesus was working to keep him alive so that he could be the rock on which the church would be built (at least according to my biased Roman Catholic layperson's reading).
To go beyond the commonsense reading and into a deeper understanding of Jesus' probable meaning one can apply this to good citizenship. If we, as average citizens choose to use our arms to resist religious persecution or defend our rights then we too run a risk of "perishing by the sword." Thomas Jefferson may have had this in mind when he said something to the effect that "The tree of liberty must, from time to time, be refreshed with the blood of patriots and tyrants. It is its natural manure."
Jesus is not telling us to put our heads down and submit to injustice. On the contrary. He is merely warning us that should we choose to fight with the arms he has admonished us to own then we must be prepared to accept the earthly consequences. Spirtually being killed in a just cause may be our ticket into Heaven since it is a last full witness to Christ's commandments.
Actually, Jesus warning to Peter and to us applies least of all to most practitioners of gun ownership in the USA today. We do live by the gun but merely with the gun. We may carry our firearms for self-defense but we do not seek our conflicts for either good nor ill. In short, we are living in the spirit of arms possession that Jesus wanted the majority of his followers to know. Only in extreme situations should more than a select number of Christians ever have to know the perils of "living by the sword even for a short while."
This statement gets misconstrued by gun control supporters who seek to cloak their disarmament agenda in the Christian religion. As a concerned lay person with a touch of historical (rather than theological) training I wish to arm the Christians amongst us with a valid understanding consistent with our God given rights.
Context is critical to understanding Jesus' command. The other portions of Scripture that treat Jesus' arrest are illuminating. In John 18 Jesus tells Peter simply "Put up thy sword into the scabbard. Shall I not drink the cup that the Father has given me?" In Luke 22, when Peter used his sword to cut off an assailant's ear Jesus told him "Bear with them thus far." and healed the assailant. In the version found in Mark 14, Jesus does still less and allows a similar action by a "bystander" pass without comment.
Jesus knew that he had to die for the sins of the world and thus he did not want good intentioned interference to complicate matters. In only one of the gospels does one get anything resembling an admonition to eschew the use of weapons in self-defense.
Critically at an earlier stage, in Luke 22 Jesus gave the following instructions to his followers "But now, let him who has a purse take it, and likewise a wallet; and let him who has no sword sell his tunic and buy one." Jesus was told that two swords were currently at hand and he said that this was enough. Given that he was about to go to his death Jesus knew that no swords would be immediately needed since interference was undesirable. He probobly intended for his followers to better arm themselves after the Resurrection.
So what does the specific statement "Those who live by the sword, perish by the sword" mean?
It is a commonsense warning by our loving God. It is a morally neutral statement. Anyone who lives under arms risks death at the hands of others who are armed. Thus if one protects the community as police officer or as a soldier one runs a greater risk of being killed in action then a non-combatant. If one does the opposite and tries to harm the community through the use of arms one will be more likely to be kiilled by those using arms. In Peter's specific case, Jesus was working to keep him alive so that he could be the rock on which the church would be built (at least according to my biased Roman Catholic layperson's reading).
To go beyond the commonsense reading and into a deeper understanding of Jesus' probable meaning one can apply this to good citizenship. If we, as average citizens choose to use our arms to resist religious persecution or defend our rights then we too run a risk of "perishing by the sword." Thomas Jefferson may have had this in mind when he said something to the effect that "The tree of liberty must, from time to time, be refreshed with the blood of patriots and tyrants. It is its natural manure."
Jesus is not telling us to put our heads down and submit to injustice. On the contrary. He is merely warning us that should we choose to fight with the arms he has admonished us to own then we must be prepared to accept the earthly consequences. Spirtually being killed in a just cause may be our ticket into Heaven since it is a last full witness to Christ's commandments.
Actually, Jesus warning to Peter and to us applies least of all to most practitioners of gun ownership in the USA today. We do live by the gun but merely with the gun. We may carry our firearms for self-defense but we do not seek our conflicts for either good nor ill. In short, we are living in the spirit of arms possession that Jesus wanted the majority of his followers to know. Only in extreme situations should more than a select number of Christians ever have to know the perils of "living by the sword even for a short while."
))