Today’s Scripture Reading
(November 11, 2018): Numbers 25
German
statistician and economist E. F. Schumacher argued that “any intelligent fool
can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of
genius — and a lot of courage to move in the opposite direction.” Beating
someone up is easy. Following through on our baser emotions is easy. Punching a
wall in anger, being belligerent and confrontational, or speaking in anger is
easy. Trying to find a peaceful solution or being a quiet voice in an angry room is much harder. But I am convinced
that that is who we are called to be.
I
have to admit that I struggle with the violence of the Bible. Sometimes I can
write off that violence as simply finding its origin in a different time and
space. And sometimes, I wonder if the violence of the Bible is actually
misunderstood and maybe just a description of the way that they lived.
Sometimes, I might even argue that the violence of the Hebrew Bible is a result
of an incomplete revelation of God and reflects more of our desires than God’s
commands.
And,
sometimes, I wonder if we get the translation right. I like to read different
versions and translations of the Bible to give me a more complete view of a passage. And for the present passage, the
King James Version translates it this way – “Vex the Midianites,
and smite them …” (Numbers 25:17 KJV).
So, what is really being commanded here?
And
again, we need to look at the situation into which these words are spoken. The Moabites evidently did not believe that they were strong
enough to meet Israel head-on in a
military confrontation. So their first attempt to defeat them came through a
spiritual tactic. The king hired a prophet to curse them. The tactic failed miserably as every word that came out of the
prophet’s mouth turned into a blessing of the migrant Israelites.
But
the Moabites didn’t give up on their mission to defeat Israel. They just tried
a different tactic. This time they enlisted the Midianites, who were allied to
Moab both socially and religiously, and shared some of the same fears about the
migrant Israelites, to tempt Israel into sin. Specifically, this tactic
included a two-pronged attack on the men of Israel. First, lure them into a
sexual relationship with the women of Midian. Second, while the men had already
been compromised sexually, lure them into
the worship of the local gods. In this way, maybe, the blessing that God had
placed on Israel could be changed into a curse.
The
plan worked, Israel was compromised, and
the anger of the Lord burned against them. If Israel was to survive, they had
to change their attitude toward both Moab and Midian. And so the charge was
made. Stop treating Moab and Midian as if they are your friends. They may not
have taken up arms against you, but twice they have attacked you, and the
second attack succeeded. Now is the time to be on guard, take up arms, and
react to the attack as if they had used the sword against you. Defend
yourselves if they come at you so that
you will not be defeated. The word that is translated kill in this passage, nakah, can also mean chastise or send judgment upon, and
that might be a translation here in the light of Moab’s desire to get God to judge,
or curse, Israel. God is telling his people to return the favor. Realize that
these people are not your friends. Guard yourself against the purposes and the
pain that they want to inflict on you.
Violence is easy. Guarding ourselves and
maintaining the truth in our lives is sometimes hard. And often it is a friend
who leads us in the wrong direction. We need to be on guard against the lies of
which they may want to convince us. We need to be careful that we don’t follow
a friend into error.
Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Numbers 26
Happy Remembrance Day, Armistice Day, or Veteran's Day.
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