Sunday, I preached on the bible passage, 2 Kings 6: 8-23. In this passage, Israel is in one of the frequent battles with the soldiers of Aram. The prophet Elisha, through the intervention of God, enables the army of the Arameans to be defeated. He does this by means of sight being removed and restored. First, he prays that God will send blindness upon the Aramean army. Then he leads them astray into Samaria. When their sight is restored, they find themselves in the midst of their enemies. Rather than having the Arameans slaughtered – as would be the normal practice – Elisha tells the King of Israel:
‘No! Did you capture with your sword and your bow those
whom you want to kill? Set food and water before them so that they may eat and
drink; and let them go to their master.’ So, he prepared for them a great
feast; after they ate and drank, he sent them on their way, and they went to
their master. And the Arameans no longer came raiding into the land of Israel.
Here, Elisha shows that he is a prophet who is truly
exceptional and one that has by some measures even surpassed his master,
Elijah. He does something that is probably unimaginable to the King of
Israel and probably all the people of Israel, he shows mercy on the army of
their enemies when the Arameans were completely within their power to utterly
destroy them. We have this account which illustrates the usual approach
to conquered people:
When the Canaanite, the king of Arad, who lived in the
Negeb, heard that Israel was coming by the way of Atharim, he fought against
Israel and took some of them captive. Then Israel made a vow to the Lord and
said, ‘If you will indeed give this people into our hands, then we will utterly
destroy their towns.’ The Lord listened to the voice of Israel, and handed over
the Canaanites; and they utterly destroyed them and their towns; so, the place
was called Hormah. (Numbers 21: 1-3)
Elisha’s action was toward the Arameans is radical and
unexpected, showing them mercy and compassion. We can only see this as a
foreshadowing of what Jesus would be teaching the Jewish people so many years
later. Turning to the New Testament and Gospel theology, we have Jesus
telling his disciples and telling us that we must follow the way of
peace. He does this both by his words and his actions. In the
beatitudes he tells us specifically that we must be peacemakers, “Blessed are
the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.” He tells
us to turn the other cheek and not strike back when we are struck, “You have
heard that it was said, “An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.” But I say
to you, do not resist an evildoer. But if anyone strikes you on the right
cheek, turn the other also.”
So, it is very clear that as Christians, we are
commanded by our Lord and Saviour to be peacemakers. Israel is once again
in a state of war with one of its neighbours. It is responding to the
horrendous and vile attack by Hamas as they have throughout its history by
stickling back to defend themselves in what seems to be absolute terms.
As Christians, we are called to do what we can to strive for peace in this
terrible situation. Almost fourteen hundred Israeli citizens have been
slaughtered or taken as hostages. Many thousands of citizens of Gaza have
been killed or wounded and the infrastructure has been devastated. The
residents of Gaza have had little relief from the embargo of water, food,
medicine and fuel by the Israel government. We can support the call for a
ceasefire or at least effective humanitarian pauses to allow humanitarian aid
to be delivered to innocent residents of Gaza. We can support the call
for a true two state solution for the two nations, Israel and Palestine, where
there is security and justice for all.
Following the commandments of Jesus is not easy.
It is human nature to strike back and not turn the other cheek. Indeed,
the situation in the Middle East seems to be beyond the possibility of
peace. The peace of God is beyond our understanding at this moment.
But with God all things are possible. We can and we must pray for the
peace of God even if it is beyond our understanding. A prayer from The
Most Reverend Hosam Naoum, Archbishop of the Anglican Diocese of Jerusalem.
O God of all justice and peace we cry out to you in the
midst of the pain and trauma of violence and fear which prevails in the Holy
Land. Be with those who need you in these days of suffering; we pray for people
of all faiths -- Jews, Muslims, and Christians, and for all people of the land.
While we pray to you, O Lord, for an end to violence and the establishment of
peace, we also call for you to bring justice and equity to the peoples. Guide
us into your kingdom where all people are treated with dignity and honour as
your children for, to all of us, you are our Heavenly Father. In Jesus’s
name we pray. Amen.
May we be peacemakers on our journey.
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